NEWSLETTER 015
02/02/22 - MATT K
Back at it again…..featuring some updates on the ALMIGHTY WATCHING 7” and an interview with Matt K from SEARCH FOR PURPOSE.
SCHEME REPORT:
All current mailorder barring AW 7”s preorders are sent out or in the process of…..shout outs to no one buggin us asking where their shit is.
Barring an act of god or a standard delay, the ALMIGHTY WATCHING records should be completed at the plant at the beginning of April. Thanks to everyone who's waited patiently.... A reminder that if you're in Europe / UK, you can get a copy of the record from MerchPit in Germany who are currently taking preorders for the 7" here. We also still have copies of the 7” / Tape on black in our store. Tapes and posters are shipping out now if you can’t wait to get your fingers on it.
if you are interested in stocking copies of the record / tape, let us know and we can start to figure it out with you…hit us up and we can shoot you over our distro pricing OR if you have ill shit (records / zines / (vegan) artisanal goods), lets trade stock..
SCENE REPORT:
The Scheme team will be appearing at various events in the North Eazt. First off we got some fresh out the oven announced bangers: ALMIGHTY WATCHING is playing the NYC / CT dates of the BURIED ALIVE / SANCTION / AGE OF APOCALYPSE weekend and WRECKAGE will be playing the CT show:
As mentioned previously, ALMIGHTY WATCHING is playing CT alongside WRECKAGE for their second attempt at a record release on February 11th with ONE STEP CLOSER and RAIN OF SALVATION. In addition to that, AW is now playing the FROM WITHIN records showcase:
......speaking of From Within, if you haven't already you should peep their podcast for some discussions of the core via Carter and co. Their takes will either leave you scratching your head in confusion or nodding in agreement….it's up for you to listen and find out. Also forgot to mention it in the last installment, but we were able to catch DESPIZE while they were over here and it was dope. I first caught their group of bands in the UK about four years ago while over there and it's cool to see them, MOURNING, DEKLINATION, etc. getting love over the pond. I think the DESPIZE / DEKLINATION split tape is sold out via From Within but you should listen to that shit anyway.
RESTRAINING ORDER is gonna be doing a tour with STAND STILL on their way to LDB Fest, RESTRAINING ORDER Winter Tour '22 zine coming one day...you can peep the dates for this here:
In other hxc news...New Age is releasing the final SLUGFEST recordings...Kyle had a hand in it in collaboration with Shining Life, which should be cool….keep your eyes peeled for more news in the coming weeks. If you like that POISON THE WELL / kill ya motha kill ya fatha shit, you should check out the new FOREIGN HANDS EP thats coming out on Daze...they dropped a new song and the EP should be coming out in full in the next couple weeks.
Kyle round up on all these happenings:
Records in April: Lots of mail.
BURIED ALIVE shows: Feels great to share the stage with our esteemed colleagues in BURIED ALIVE…and SANCTION.
AW with OSC: I expect to be heckled by well dressed teenagers.
From Within Pod: I will be appearing and commandeering this soon.
RESTRAINING ORDER Tour: If I ever felt the need to go back to the midwest I’d go on the tour.
SLUGFEST: Big week for the Vogel back catalog, got my mits all over the records / zine / shirts for this one.
FOREIGN HANDS: I REALLY shouldn't think this is good.
KYLE’s PLAYLIST:
JAWBREAKER
MIKE NESS - Cheating at Solitaire
PANTERA - Great Southern Trendkill
DISCIPLE - Scarab EP
INSIDE - My Funeral
ANXIOUS - Little Green House
CHAIN OF STRENGTH Discog
ALBIN’s PLAYLIST:
RED EYED DEVIL - Demos
New STAND STILL shit
RANCID - And Out Come The Wolves
JUSTICE - Look Alive / Escapades
ARCADE FIRE - Neon Bible
NY HOUNDS - God Bless the Royal Hounds
VANITY - Vain In Life
AGE OF APOCALYPSE - Grim Wisdom
Search For Purpose Eternal Eternal Emotion
The first time I played North Carolina it was with a decked out youth crew stu outfit called SUBSTANCE; seemingly young kids playing a mix of early Rev / New Age hardcore. A year later they would hear a STRAIN record and everything would change except who they were, you couldn’t ever fake the sincere feelings they held about the state of North Carolina and its history of straight edge hardcore.
People would come and go but some friendships would grow and despite it all those same feelings remained the same and that sincere feeling is now tempered into conviction (a little bit of pun intended I guess). These are the kind of events that hardcore is built on and make all the struggle and strife worth it in the end. Without further adieu, Matt K from SUBSTANCE, MAGNITUDE, ECOSTRIKE and SEARCH FOR PURPOSE straight out of Malmo, Sweden.
Who are you and where does SCHEME find you on this January evening?
I’m Matt and I sing in SEARCH FOR PURPOSE. I'm currently sitting next to my girlfriend in bed while she watches some type of true crime documentary. Just confirmed it’s a Casey Anthony documentary - shout out to a band from NC who will remain unnamed who had a song called “Casey Anthony Didn’t Do It.”
They’re probably awesome. After a short vacation from the scene and leave of absence from MAGNITUDE you’re back in the fold but why?
So for those unaware I started my “adult” career as a high school teacher in 2019 and I kind of disappeared from the scene for a minute. I had originally planned to stop playing in bands to focus on my job and my “last” show with MAGNITUDE was FYA 2020…fast forward a couple years and a pandemic later and they realized full time touring wasn’t for them and asked me to rejoin.
Obviously not that much happened since you left the band considering a pandemic and all but did you miss being a part of something you put a considerable amount of time and effort into?
Given the amount of work and effort I had put into writing the MAGNITUDE stuff and kind of being there from the beginning, I always had a bit of regret for leaving the way I did. If I had thought it through a bit more I’m sure I could have figured out a rhythm for juggling work and the band. At the time I was in this laser focused mindset of “I did the band thing for a while, but now I’m an adult and I have to move on” which ended up just making me feel like shit. On top of that I kept seeing videos and pictures from shows they would play without me and it made me feel like I was missing out so I definitely had the hunger to get back into playing hardcore. I’ve come to realize that realistically I’m going to end up being the 40 year old in the back of the room somewhere down the road and it is what it is…
We’re all going down together brother. I can fairly say without kissing ass that MAGNITUDE and SEARCH FOR PURPOSE to some extent are bands that people feel a real kinship with, be it through the live show experience or the lyrics. How does that make you feel? Do you take pride in that?
I’m sure this sounds corny but it’s the truth - when I got into hardcore at 17/18 the feelings I got from listening to bands like YOUTH OF TODAY and CHAIN OF STRENGTH truly impacted me and connected with me in a way that changed my life. The idea that I could be even slightly involved in having that same impact on another person is humbling to say the least and is definitely something I take pride in. I used to nerd out watching the RIGHT BRIGADE video from posi numbers where they cover FLOORPUNCH and have kids piling up to the ceiling singing along…now that I’ve gotten to play shows with similar reactions it’s amazing to know that other people connect so deeply with something I’ve been a part of. I’m not and have never been the primary lyricist for MAGNITUDE so I think it also speaks volumes to Russell’s ability to write lyrics that get people feeling things and truly connecting with the music, not just trying to mosh hard or look cool.
That segues pretty good into what I wanted to ask next; on the point of moshing hard (which is sick..) and looking cool (which can also be dope..) what are somethings you look for when examining a hardcore band that draw your attention or peak your interest in a positive way?
Look man, I’m all for dancing and I’ve been known to rock some threadbare excuses for shirts at times so I get it…but to answer your question there are a few things that usually draw me in. I’ll preface this by saying that I have a pretty straightforward taste in HC with a few exceptions so that’s usually the first thing that gets me interested. I feel like a lot of bands the past few years have veered off from traditional hardcore and that’s fine (I mean I wouldn’t exactly say my bands sound like AGNOSTIC FRONT or anything either) but like many of my slowly aging peers I pine for the days where I can go to a show and see a band of 18 year olds covering SIDE BY SIDE. The biggest thing that pulls me in besides the aesthetic/general vibe is usually lyrics. I feel like the bands I’ve always been drawn to are ones who get a great sing along type reaction, and on a deeper level than that, have lyrics that actually make you think or feel. What good is having a band if you’re not going to at least try and say something?
I thinks that’s a good way to start talking about the band you sing in and the reason we’re having this conversation; For those unanointed SEARCH FOR PURPOSE at least in a live setting was just MAGNITUDE with you singing and Russ on the guitar, did SFP and Mag start at the same time just as another thing to do when you were all hanging out? If not, what was the intention with starting the band..
SFP actually started a little bit before. I was in a band called SUBSTANCE when I was younger, it was pretty straightforward youth crew type stuff. I got bored and wanted to do something different with total creative control. I wrote the whole demo and recorded it JUDGE style with me singing and doing guitar/bass and Connor from MAGNITUDE playing drums. SFP has morphed into its own beast entirely despite never really playing shows throughout our 5+ year existence. The live lineup was literally just MAGNITUDE with me and Russell switching spots. I really never intended for it to go anywhere and wanted to maybe just play a couple shows. SFP ended up getting a decent bit of traction but definitely got eclipsed by MAGNITUDE when their demo came out in 2018 and that’s when I kind of hit the brakes…before I rejoined Mag I wrote a couple new SFP songs with Connor and that has kind of been the impetus for me getting back into it.
It’s proven that you know how to write a riff or two but does writing lyrics and singing come easy to you? Do you find it difficult to express what you’re trying to convey in your lyrics?
I don’t really have a hard time writing lyrics but I’ve really struggled with actually singing and figuring out vocal arrangements. It took me a while before I got the hang of it. As far as conveying a certain point or anything like that in the lyrics goes I think the lyrics are relatively straightforward….typically I’m just writing about hardcore or a specific person/event but I like to leave the lyrics up for interpretation a little bit.
Alright let’s wind this down, people got places to be; in as many as words as you need what influenced SFP in the past and what influences SFP going forward?
In the past I feel like I was just trying to (poorly) rip off New Age bands but now I think I’ve moved into something a little more unique. I’m not really sure what bands I pull from now…maybe CHAIN OF STRENGTH, TURNING POINT, TEMPERANCE, KINGPIN…as always I try to capture the energy of the classics with a little bit more emotion and darkness. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t…we’ll see how it ends up
Alright last one; what trends do we gotta kill in the scene in ‘22…and whatever final parting words do you have for the kids who still believe.
Enough with the horseshoe at shows…thankfully it seems like kids are starting to get into packing it in and singing along. Also enough of covering random PANTERA breakdowns. As for final words…don’t be afraid to do a band that sounds like how you wish your scene sounded. If you don’t like what you see around you then figure out a way to make it better and do it.
