THIS PAGE WILL BE DEAD SOON - SUPERIOR NEW WEBSITE COMING EVEN SOONER

That's right, dudes... No more Blogspot for More Than a Witness. This format hasn't been cutting it for a long time and we're going to take our web presence to much higher level of quality. Followers of this blog deserve a lot when it comes to our web prescence. We're currently in the process of getting the brand new and vastly superior website up and running perfectly.

The new site will be about 100 times more visually pleasing, easier to navigate, feature updated and new detailed information, will be significantly more organized, and will feature an easy to use web cart system so buying records will be absolutely painless! No more having to email with a list of what you'd like; you can just add it to your cart, pay, and you'll have your records soon after!

The new site will still feature the unreleased cassette archive. It isn't going anywhere and now Google won't be able to take down posts that they find in violation of their policies.

Expect the new MTAW site to make it's debut in about one week. I will post the address for it soon, so please stay tuned.

Thanks for all of your support. It's only going to get much better from here!

UNITED MUTATION "DARK SELF IMAGE" LP (MTAWP #3) OFFICIAL RELEASE UPDATE

A great big fat hello to all you hardcores out there in the digital multiverse. This is my first post on this site in quite awhile. Anyway, I apologize to those people who have have been checking here for new content and release updates because there hasn't been very much lately. I was busy with a variety of different projects outside of the label/blog/distro, etc. I will be contributing much more content to this site regularly due to the many great releases on deck for the label.

I have also been fairly busy with behind the scenes More Than a Witness label stuff the last few months. I'm very excited because the upcoming releases that are taking shape are going to be absolutely killer. Really killer. The first of these releases is the UNITED MUTATION "DARK SELF IMAGE" LP.

This will be my third release and promises to be a serious stunner of ultra-manic dosed-out hardcore. If you aren't familiar with Washington DC's United Mutation and you're a fan of first wave American hardcore punk, you are in for a serious treat. If you're already aware of United Mutation, you almost certainly love their absolutely nightmarish hyper thrash that features some of the most brutal vocals captured during the early years of hardcore punk. This is music for loners and stoners alike, but at the speed of 100 miles per hour. Their debut EP "Fugitive Family" was originally released by Dischord/DSI in early 1983 and is a totally evil ripper of a hardcore platter. Dischord is very happy that this material will be in print once again on my release. United Mutation had a unique vision of what they considered hardcore and these musical contributions have stood the test of time and totally deserve the high quality vinyl reissue treatment.

The "Dark Self Image" LP will feature the classic "Fugitive Family" 7" EP that was originally released in '83 by Dischord/DSI as well as material that has never been officially released, as well as other totally previously unreleased material that went lost for decades on original master tapes stored at Inner Ear Studios. One of these lost tracks is titled "White Amerika", a crazed outtake from the classic "Fugitive Family" 7" session at Inner Ear.

Here's a photo of Don Zientara mastering the United Mutation "Dark Self Image" LP at Inner Ear in late 2011. The "Fugitive Family" 7" EP tracks and the demo recordings have never sounded better! Virtually every unstoppable DC hardcore record was captured by Don in his studio so it made perfect sense for me to work with him on this release.

Here's the lacquer master for the "Dark Self Image" LP being cut by a Neumann lathe as this picture was taken. The lacquer was cut by Dietrich Schoenemann at Complete Mastering. The master cut sounds great: loud, aggressive, but still raw enough to maintain the sound of when this was material was originally recorded.

The test pressings arrived a little while ago and they sound excellent. I'm hoping to have this LP out in late February. The artwork and layout is currently being worked on by myself and Michael Brown, singer of United Mutation. Expect a high quality release featuring tons of unseen photos, flyers, liner notes, session information, and knockout artwork all housed in a swanky gatefold jacket. Many people have asked about a limited edition version of this release that can be obtained directly from me. I have tossed around a few ideas that I think will work well, but I have not fully committed to doing a limited version as of yet. Part of this depends on obtaining the correct materials to make my idea happen. I can say that there will be absolutely no preorders if there is indeed a limited version of this record.

Check back soon for more information about this release. I will be posting more shortly.

I FOUND A FEW YOUNG REPUBLICANS "COOKOUT EDITION" LIMITED COPIES IN MY ROOM

Ever since the Young Republicans "Sabotage Your Cookout" 7" EP came out this area has been in perpetual disarray making it really difficult to find stuff. A few nights ago I finally decided to do some organizing of this mess and in the process I found a small grip of about a dozen "Cookout Edition" red vinyl mailorder only copies. They were buried underneath a heap of cardboard boxes in a drawer that I haven't looked in for months. The "Cookout Edition" features hand silkscreened covers made out of cookout style tablecloths and a different insert along with the EP on red vinyl. These sold out in one weekend when I first advertised their sale so if you'd like one and missed out the first time around, act quick and you'll score one.

Pictured above with the "Cookout Edition" copies are the second pressing mispress copies that are limited to 50 copies. The plant goofed and accidentally pressed 50 with a small hole when I did the repress instead of the large hole version that I ordered, which there are about 1300 of. I still have a small handful of these remaining so if you'd like one, now would be the best time to get one because I have 5 or 6 left before they're gone for good.

There are a few different purchase options. You can buy a "Cookout Edition" or a limited to 50 mispressing or you can buy both.

I'm sick to death of using the Paypal cart system payment method. That piece of shit never works for more than five minutes at a time, so if you'd like to get any of these records, drop me an email: morethanawitness at gmail dot com

MECHT MENSCH GATEFOLD DISCOGRAPHY LP COMING SOON ON MORE THAN A WITNESS PRODUCT

For those who are not familiar with Mecht Mensch, they were purveyors of killer Midwest style hardcore in the same vein as Die Kruezen and other bands that pushed paint by numbers style thrash into the domain of the uniquely psychotic. Their debut 5 song 7" EP "Acceptance" is a true testament to dissonant hardcore. This classic EP is reminiscent of the aforementioned Die Kruezen or perhaps No Trend after some really cheap speed. One of the best all-time Midwest hardcore EPs. This 7" was recorded by Butch Vig who'd later go on to produce Nirvana and the Smashing Pumpkins.

I'm incredibly excited to officially announce that my fourth release will be a Mecht Mensch discography LP. This release will include the absolutely classic "Acceptance" 7" EP from '83 as well as the tracks from the Tar Babies split cassette from '82 as well as other solid unreleased material. This release will feature a beautiful gatefold jacket with tons of great photos, liner notes, and other relevant art & ephemera. This release has been in the making for nearly 10 years but things are now things in perfect alignment and this should be out before summer.

If anyone reading this has any flyers, photos, or any anything cool relating to Mecht Mensch, drop me a line at the email listed here on the blog because I'd love to use this stuff for the release.

YOUNG REPUBLICANS "SABOTAGE YOUR COOKOUT" 7" SECOND PRESS SMALL HOLE MISPRESSING

After selling out of the first pressing of 1000 copies of the Young Republicans "Sabotage Your Cookout" 7" EP rather quickly, I called up the plant and ordered a repressing of another quick 300 copies. I guess whoever was operating the record press wasn't paying attention or something and 50 of these 300 repress copies were pressed with a small hole instead of a big hole. I always thought the big hole 7" looked better and much more classic so I never intended on doing any with a small center hole. So if you're keeping score there's 1250 with small hole and only 50 of this 7" with a small hole due to this mistake by the pressing plant.

If anyone would like to order one of these unique singles, you can do that below. I can't imagine these won't last very long so don't sleep if you'd like one.

ALL OF THESE PRICES INCLUDE POSTAGE.

PLEASE SELECT WHERE YOU LIVE:

USA $7.50 CANADA $9.00 WORLD $11.00

"ADVENTURE JUKEBOX" RADIO SHOW - WXCI-FM, DANBURY, CT. 1985. HOSTED BY RAY CAPPO

I've long been a fan of regional college radio programs that had the audacity to play hardcore punk on the airwaves during it's formative years. The 1980s American hardcore scene will probably be forever indebted to programs like the seminal Maximum Rock & Roll radio show as well as more regionally focused programs like WNYU-FM's "Noise the Show". These radio shows were so essential at the time because they represented the starkest opposition to the then (and now, sadly) flaccid brand of corporate FM radio. More specifically, these pioneering shows gave listeners a chance to hear all of the great new records that were coming out at the time, advertisements for local hardcore gigs, and interviews with local and touring bands.

The "Adventure Jukebox" was the premier hardcore punk college radio show in the western Connecticut area for quite awhile. Broadcasted from the campus of Western Connecticut State University (my alma mater), this show began sometime in the early 1980s and presumably ended sometime in the late 80s. "Adventure Jukebox" was hosted by a fellow named Darryl Ohrt. Much like the aforementioned MRR & "Noise" radio shows mentioned above, "Adventure Jukebox" focused on all of the rad newly released underground music that was coming out at the time as well as spreading the word about local hardcore punk shows that were happening at the Anthrax in Stamford (and later, Norwalk).These gigs featured top notch touring bands and as well as blossoming local hardcore bands. During the early 80s, the Connecticut hardcore scene was flourishing quickly because of such exciting bands like CIA, Vatican Commandoes, 76% Uncertain, Violent Children, Lost Generation, Reflex From Pain, Seizure, No Milk On Tuesday, Young Republicans, etc. "Adventure Jukebox" was responsible for playing these killer bands on the radio before anyone else.

This specific episode posted here for download is pretty cool because it features a set of crucial tracks hand picked by Danbury native Ray Cappo, right around the time that the mighty Youth of Today formed. The first few tracks on this tape have Daryl Ohrt as DJ but the majority of the tape features Ray. It's possible that Daryl was there in the studio the day this was recorded since the "AJ" was his radio show or those tracks are from an earlier broadcast.

Essentially, this serves as an enjoyable mix tape for me. Ray picks a bunch of ultra classic tracks (all of them, nearly) that are favorites of his and plays them live on the radio. It's really awesome to hear bands like Discharge, 7 Seconds, Code of Honor, DOA, and Urban Waste played on the radio within a few years of these records being released. It must have been very exciting times to hear this kind of music on local radio and be involved in the underground. These days, college radio is far less exciting as it's more or less a bastion of formulaic fluff selected by independent labels with major label tactics. Come to think of it, the disintegration of contemporary college radio into a consolidated mass of CMJ and Pitchfork Media approved sterility is quite ironic when you consider how the medium got it's start.

This broadcast was recorded sometime during 1985. I don't have a more specific date because the cassette master doesn't provide any other information than this year. I've been meaning to ask Ray Cappo if he has any additional information about this tape, but I'd imagine recalling anything like this would be analogous to me remembering something I did when I was 13. You can also see that some tracks were cut out by the original taper.

Track listing:

The FU’s: Beast In My Bed

Rich Kids on LSD: Adolescent Death

White Flag: Psycho Cop

Broken Bones: Problem

DYS: Stand Proud

Jerry’s Kids: I Don’t Belong

Gang Green: Have Fun

The Freeze: Broken Bones

Deep Wound: I Saw It

DYS: Yellow

Scream: Your Wars/Killer

Bad Brains: Coptic Times

Iron Cross: You’re a Rebel

Meatmen: Tooling For Anus

Double O: You’ve Lost

Agnostic Front: Blind Justice

Major Conflict: Out Group

The Mob: Dr Butcher

Urban Waste: Police Brutality

Anthrax: Deathrider

Abused: Drug Free Youth

Adrenaline OD: AOD vs Godzilla

The Misfits: Astro Zombies

The Plasmatics: Monkey Suit

DOA: Unknown

Negative Approach: Your Mistake

Corrosion of Conformity: Tell Me

Verbal Abuse: Power Play

Big Boys: Sound on Sound

Discharge: Hell on Earth

7 Seconds: Boss

7 Seconds: Racism Sucks

7 Seconds: Fight Your Own Fight

Code of Honor: Code of Honor

DOWNLOAD:

http://www.mediafire.com/?2d9587iu2j889ms