Youth Funeral / Ittō

Mike and I recently had the pleasure of playing a few shows with Ittõ and Capacities as part of a few day tour with Youth Funeral. I've uploaded some videos and photos from the final show of this jaunt.

Perspective, a Lovely Hand to Hold


Chalk Li


Youth Funeral


Ittō




Lovechild

Update: Zine Assembly

Listening to the rock radio station (so far I've had blocks of Bad Company, Nirvana, The Eagles, and Led Zep) and putting together some zines. 

Keep yr eyes peeled for some announcements this month. Maybe. xoxo

Update: What's in the Works

It's been slow here over at No Guidance HQ, but we're still going -- gasping, but somehow still alive, one might say. We've been slow with the updates due to our involvement with school and other far less interesting endeavors but, rest assured, we are slowly ironing out the details for our next few releases. Long since our initial announcement, we should finally be releasing something nice for Chalk Li, currently planning the packaging and accompanying goodies for the release as they prepare to record some new songs. We've got another cassette that I'm very excited for that we'll be announcing soon and we're also hopefully going to be helping to release a split 7" between Youth Funeral and Scowler (more details soon…it's always "soon, soon, soon").

The first batch of Youth Funeral cassettes are nearly sold out, with just two or three left and in the possession of the band now. The second run (out of a 100) have been ordered, are in, and are available for purchase either online or at the band's shows. In regards to those, here's a brief itinerary of what the band currently has planned, in case you were wondering or would like to help spread word. A number of these dates are with the seminal bands Capacities and Ittō so it's assuredly going to be a really good time.

ATTENTION: CANADIAN AUDIENCES -- We're sending a batch of the Youth Funeral cassettes up to our friend Dave at Zegema Beach Records for distribution. Finally, purchasing one of these will be financially reasonable and there hopefully won't be the issue of the exorbitant costs of shipping a single cassette and zine. I'll post another update when the package goes out and another, with link, for when Dave updates his distro.

Update: Second Press Youth Funeral Cassettes In Stock

Restocked on Youth Funeral cassettes, this time on purple tint. Available now in our webstore.

Release information:

Professionally-dubbed cassettes, white imprint on purple tint.

Each order comes with:

-Cassette and clear case
-Double-sided 3-panel J-card artwork
-Digital download code
-Lyric insert
-Zine with hand-printed cover

Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.

Edition out of /100.

Update: Youth Funeral Cassettes In Stock

The first No Guidance cassette release is now available for sale! Grab a copy of Youth Funeral's Symptom of Time from our webstore!

Release information:

Professionally-dubbed cassettes, white imprint on black smoke tint.

Each order comes with:

-Cassette and clear case
-Double-sided 3-panel J-card artwork
-Digital download code
-Lyric insert
-Zine with hand-printed cover
-Hand-assembled cardboard sleeve with spray painted art

Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.
Note: Attached photos do not show the spray painted cardboard sleeves; the sleeve in the photo is blank. Your final product will have an image on the sleeve.

Edition out of /50.

Update: Youth Funeral Zine Assembly

Preparing some of the goodies that will accompany the Symptom of Time cassettes.

12-page hand-made black and white zine with poetry, photography, short stories, lyric explanations, and more. Cover is made of cardstock with a hand-stamped linoleum print.

Lyric insert and digital download codes.

Update: Machete Recording Debut LP

(Photo courtesy of the band's Facebook)

Derry's Machete, a highly energetic and riff-driven "Mexican metal" band, has finally entered the studio to record some songs after being a band for nearly four years. Although no release date has been mentioned, the band had a session with Will Killingsworth at Dead Air Studios this past Sunday to work on the new material.

(Photo courtesy of Andrew Ralston)

Youth Funeral played a house show with these guys this past summer (from which the above photo was taken) and they were excellent. As heavy as they were loud, the band shifted from fast-paced riffs to crushingly slow, Electric Wizard or My America-esque breaks.

More information will be posted as it surfaces.

Update: Couch King: A New Punk/Indie Music Blog

Recently launched, Couch King is a new NH-based blog that focuses on interviews, reviews, and news updates about bands in the emo/punk community. Although there are only a few posts now, it should prove to be a valuable resource for people looking for a centralized source of information regarding bands in this scene. Drawing talent from a variety of contributors, there are numerous posts about bands' tour updates, and Zach from Roosevelt has already posted a review of Foxing's latest LP. 

The Facebook can be accessed here while the blog is here.

Update: Art Exhibit: Coming of Age - New England Artists Under 30

A little late to this, but the Sharon Arts Center is hosting an exhibit at 30 Grove St (Manchester, NH) called "Coming of Age: New England Artists Under 30" from November 1st until December 28th. The gallery hours are Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm and Sunday 11am-5pm.

From their site:

This year’s participating artists include: Torey Akers, Cara DeAngelis, Chad Creighton, Chloe Feldman Emison, Nathan Gagne, Shaina Gates, Elizabeth Gouin, Samantha Guay, Brett F. Harvey, Blake Hiltunen, Leah Hoyt, Elizabeth Ireland, Erin Jenkins, Sam Johnson, Deborah Koo, Kate Lenahan, Mary Anne McCarthy, Lauren Amalia Redding, Tres Roemer, Walker Roman, Beth Russell, Lauryn Welch.

For more information call the Gallery at (603) 914-7676. 

(Mary Anne McCarthy: Miguel -- Oil on Linen. New Haven, CT -- Courtesy of Sharonarts.org)

WEBSITE

November Update

After a quiet month of October and with half of November behind us, No Guidance is finally rising from its slumber and seeing its first traces of activity. Despite some initial delays, the Youth Funeral Symptom of Time cassettes have been ordered and we are now currently waiting patiently for their arrival from the plant; more information and photos will be posted once we have them in our hands.

Meanwhile, the first visual No Guidance release has also been ordered. 50 hand-numbered posters, 11"x17" and printed on Premium 100# Glossy Cover, designed and illustrated by Raphael Bastek, will soon be available in our webstore and at live performances by assorted No Guidance bands.

New Hampshire has seen a variety of excellent releases as well. In a scene that has lately been crowded with hardcore and punk outfits, Pleasure Gap is a very unique band that blends alternative rock, folk, and many other elements to create an eclectic and charming sound. They released Tropical Barn on September 18th and it's fantastic.

November 2nd saw the release of Primitive Form by Guilt. The members of Guilt have been playing in and out of various hardcore bands in the New Hampshire and Massachusetts music scenes for the past few years and I think I speak for everyone involved that this new EP is the culmination of years of effort and growth.

That being said, I recently had the pleasure of attending FEST 12 in Gainesville, Florida with some of my best friends. It was quite an excellent showcase of punk and post-hardcore music and I had the opportunity to see some fairly impressive bands. One that particularly stood out was Ittō, a band that I had been listening to and following avidly for quite some time but just now saw live; I highly recommend them.

I unfortunately missed a fair amount of bands that I was eager to see (Wild Moth, Pile, LVL UP, United Nations to name a few) but the good certainly outweighed the bad and the warm weather was a pleasant change of atmosphere from the bitter cold of New Hampshire.

Keep posted for more information about art, music, New Hampshire, and everything else.

Band Spotlight: Chalk Li

Today has certainly been a remarkably exciting day over at the No Guidance HQ! Earlier in the day, we posted the stream and download to the debut Youth Funeral EP, Symptom of Time. For those of you who missed it, it's available on Youth Funeral's Bandcamp page or for stream below.

Now, we are pleased to reveal the first track from the new Chalk Li EP! This first track, titled "Knew," shows Chalk Li further refining and expanding upon the punk and emo sound first shown on display on their previous EP, their self-titled.

This EP is going to be the second cassette release by the No Guidance Collective! We will post more information and photos of both the Youth Funeral and Chalk Li cassettes as we have them.

More about Chalk Li: As part of the new wave of bands revitalizing the emo sound that was made popular in the 90's, Chalk Li sets themselves apart from their peers by eschewing angular "twinkly" guitar riffs in favor of a more melodic and structured approach, as a mixture of hoarse and clean vocals are guided by a tight rhythm section and dual guitars that harmonize and supplement each other as they weave in and out of fluid and carefully-measured passages.

Recommended if you enjoy: Title Fight, Giant's Chair, Sunny Day Real Estate

Be sure to also check out Chalk Li on Bandcamp and Facebook.

Youth Funeral - "Lush"

Allow me to begin this update with a very humble thanks! Even after just this simple initial launch announcement and one Youth Funeral song stream, we have received remarkably positive feedback and interest. So thank you! As someone who is trying to start a new initiative in my life, this is an overwhelming level of support already.

To celebrate, we're sharing a few videos. For starters, here is a live video of "Lush" by Youth Funeral from their first show earlier in the summer. This is back when the song still had the working title of "O-ren Ishii" and this show was filmed by my friend James Attridge.

For anyone who doesn't recognize the name, the title "O-ren Ishii" came from the character of the same name from Kill Bill, vol. 1. Here is her origin video; it rules.

That's all for right now. If anyone is interested in hearing the Youth Funeral EP early and would like to review it, please let us know, either on Facebook  or through email ! Thanks!

The Machine is Sentient

After a little over a month of real planning and logistics (and countless months before that of daydreaming), the No Guidance Music and Art Collective is finally becoming a reality. In short, No Guidance is a collective that plans to try and help support the creative output of New Hampshire residents (and those of surrounding states), whether it be through music or art.

On Monday, September 9th, we will be posting a stream of the debut Youth Funeral EP, the first No Guidance release- check out a song from the release below! In the coming weeks we will post more information about the cassette release we have planned for this EP as well as more information about our next release.

[SINGLE TRACK REMOVED AFTER RELEASE OF FULL EP; STREAM HERE]

More about Youth Funeral: Characterized by fast tempos and rapidly changing time signatures, Youth Funeral is a chaotic and riff-dominant four-piece hardcore band. As dissonant chords build and crescendo over blast beats and a thick, distorted bass, the band's three vocalists often interweave their shouts and screams to create a cathartic and powerful sound.

Recommended if you enjoy: Hot Cross, Off Minor, Capsule

More info soon, so stay posted!