As the release date of xXx Fanzine (1983-1988) Hardcore & Punk in the Eighties draws near (November 10), Bridge Nine has teased a 19-song companion compilation. Entitled Still Having Their Say, the comp features reinterpretations of hardcore hallmarks by the likes of Strife, letlive., Fu Manchu, The Riverboat Gamblers and more. The newest track to be unveiled is by Killswitch Engage’s Jesse Leach, who has parsed down Minor Threat’s “Salad Days” to an electro/dub-tinged jam.
Leach commented, “I’m honored to be a part of this covering one of my favorite bands on the planet. I wanted to bring a whole other creative approach to the song. I feel like if you’re going to do a cover you might as well push it in another direction and make it unique. I think it’s safe to say I added my own spin to the track. Hardcore music is the backbone and soul of my youth and Minor Threat was the first band to make me want to scream into a microphone.”
Chronicling one of music most alternative music’s most raucous eras, xXx Fanzine (1983-1988) Hardcore & Punk in the Eighties is a 288-page book that documents a the iconic Boston zine’s heyday. This compendium isn’t merely a look back at hardcore’s salad days—it offers a unique look at how punk’s music and message shook the mainstream itself. In addition to reproducing (and restoring) countless interviews and pages from the ‘zine, this is a chronicle of punk’s evolution in the ’80s; a story of music and ideologies in motion.
While based in Boston, xXx’s main writer and editor, Mike Gitter, not only concentrated on his own city’s burgeoning scene, spear-headed by bands like SS Decontrol and D.Y.S., but also looked to other states and countries for xXx’s reportage. Now, xXx Fanzine (1983-1988), Hardcore & Punk in the Eighties re-interviews countless bands and musical prime-movers including Ian MacKaye, Keith Morris and members of Agnostic Front, Bad Brains and Cro-Mags to give the book a rare ‘then and now’ perspective.
Pre-orders are live here, and xXx Fanzine (1983-1988) Hardcore & Punk in the Eighties release parties are as follows:
xXx Fanzine Book Release Show
Thursday, November 9th — Somerville, MA @ ONCE Ballroom w/ The Proletariat, Kevin Seconds & more
xXx Fanzine Book Release
Friday, November 10th — Peabody, MA @ Bridge Nine HQ feat. DIY Panel including Mike Gitter & Tony Rettman and performance by Kevin Seconds
xXx Fanzine Still Having Their Say Compilation Track Listing:
1. Strife – Who Are You? (Void)
2. Done Dying – Blending In (Government Issue)
3. Letlive – Fix Me (Black Flag)
4. Trial – Money (Embrace)
5. H2O – Safe (Dag Nasty)
6. Nomads – How When Where / The Eliminator (Cruxifix / Agnostic Front)
7. Walter Schriefels – Society Suckers (Agnostic Front)
8. Tombs – Kiss Of Steel (Samhain)
9. Voivod – Man In The Trees (Die Kreuzen)
10. Aeges – Hungry Child (Corrosion Of Conformity)
11. Last Light – A Wish To Dream (Uniform Choice)
12. Fuck You Pay Me – Religious Wars (Subhumans)
13. Jesse Leach – Salad Days (Minor Threat)
14. Shai Hulud – Raw Power (Raw Power)
15. True Rivals – Coolidge (Descendents)
16. Fu Manchu – When The Shit Hits The Fan (Circle Jerks)
17. Gallows – The Possibility Of Life’s Destruction (Discharge)
18. American Nightmare – It’s The Limit (Cro-Mags)
19. Riverboat Gamblers – The Dicks Hate The Police (The Dicks)