MTAT jamz from the abyss of 2020/21
Articulating the range of emotions that we’ve individually and collectively experienced, from the delirious highs to the crushing lows, over this course of this epoch-defining clusterfuck of nature, human egos and willful disaster capitalist criminality and dereliction of duty, is beyond the scope of most essays. It’s certainly beyond the scope of quickly typed liner notes to accompany a year-end diy punk compliation, but here we are.
We’ve got so many people to thank for all their support and solidarity over the last two years that I’m hesitant to make a list, lest I forget anyone. Alas, I’m going to give it a go. The most important thanks of all go to everyone who has continued to support what MTAT does since physical operations came to a close last March. The eighteen months between the last show of Dundee Women’s Fest in March 2020 and the ALLDEEPENDS 7” release show were the longest of my life. I hope to never experience that again.
HUGE THANKS to Hazel and all the staff at Rad Apples, all the MTAT crew, all of the incredible artists who continue to entrust us with their music, everyone who buys records/downloads/merch, everyone who comes to shows, Rainbow Music, Dundee Music Studios, Audiowave Soundhire, The Good Night Out Campaign, Idioteq.com, Colin’s Punk Rock World, Shout Louder, Creative Scotland, Anti-Manifesto, Ripcord Records, Aaahh!!! Real Records, All Ages Records, Little Rocket Records, TNS Records, Medical Aid For Palestinians, Dundee Women’s Aid, Women’s Rape & Sexual Assault Centres Dundee & Angus, Refugee Survival Trust, Dundee Foodbank, Campaign For Racial Equality & Rights (CRER Scotland), Merch Central UK, No Sweat UK, Punks Against Sweatshops, Anti Social Vegan Club, Entropia Records, Rad Girlfriend Records, Ant Booth @ Kesbri Studios, JCHC, Queer Skate Dundee, Food Not Bombs Dundee, Thirteen Records Dundee, Serendipities, LGBT Youth Scotland, all my bandmates in Uniforms, everyone who came to BOOK YER ANE FEST XIV, Edinburgh Girls’ Rock School, Dundee Women’s Festival, AK Press, Coin-Operated Press, Succulent Melts, The Little Green Larder, Daisybakes Dundee, 71 Brewing, Razorcake, Aston @ Boss Tuneage Records, Papa D, Radical Independence Dundee, Black Socialists of America, Scotriders, Get Soma Records, Clever Eagle Records, Middle Man Records, Les Disques Rabat Joie, Gordon MacKenzie Photography, The Sewer Cats, Struggletown Records, Specialist Subject Records, Black Lives Matter UK, Reclaim The Streets Dundee, Lighthouse Books, Pluto Press, The Skinny, DOPE Magazine, Dog Press Publishing, Artificial Womb, Gordy Crawford, VPOnline, Bandcds.co.uk, Food Not Bombs Glasgow, Fraser Stewart and literally every single human who has given a shit about what we’re up to and support what we do after all this time.
I turn 40 years old next year and have been playing in punk bands of some sort since I was around 14 years old. That’s a long fucking time to be doing anything, by far and away the longest relationship I’ve ever had. After all this time of playing 100+ shows a year with multiple bands to playing zero with none is a bit of a headfuck, being honest. Not that headfucks are in short supply right now. Best we can hope for is to survive, if not thrive, together. Thank you so much for being part of the journey.
01. Dog Eared – “Twelve Days A Year”
a fizzy pop-punk banger in the finest Scottish tradition of The Kimberly Steaks / Beauty School Dropout / Murderburgers, self-recorded & mixed, taken from the “OUR BORING LIVES” EP, released in September 2021. One of the most exciting new pop-punk band in the land. Available as a limited edition CD & digital download.
makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/our-boring-lives-ep
http://dogeared111.bandcamp.com
02. Concept Car – “Unity”
Taken from the self-recorded self-titled debut album, “Concept Car” is one of the warmest and most lovingly produced records to pass my ears this one, sheer joy in tone, heavy in subject matter. A labour of love, this is catharsis in uber-melodic classic rock with hearts fully worn on sleeve. Available as a limited edition cassette tape housed in a beautiful metal tin case with enamel badge, stickers & guitar pick, as well as digital download.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/concept-car
03. Seas, Starry – “Stabbed In The Eyes”
An absolute noise rock monster taken from the incredible “ANATOMY” CDEP, co-released with our friends at Ripcord Records. Recorded remotely in isolation, this record was an immersive collaborative endeavour written and performed as a sonic experiment, translating into a mesmerising EP. It was truly an honour to be asked to participate. CDs for Ripcord, downloads from us. We’ve still got a handful of physical CDs left in the distro!
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/anatomy-ep
http://ripcordrecords.bandcamp.com/
04. Goodbye Blue Monday – “Exile”
A stand-alone zinger from the most dangerous punk rock band in Scotland, or “a b-side disguised as a single”. Either way, this self-recorded banger was mixed & mastered by Andy Dazzler from Dead Neck and is a fine indicator of things to come. Graham also gifted us the “Self-Indulgent One-Take Woefuls” acoustic EP right at the start of lockdown. The debut LP, a proposed special release and potential greatness awaits, no pressure biyz!
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/track/exile
http://goodbye-blue-monday-1.bandcamp.com/
05. Lounar – “Cycle”
Some folx expressed surprise at MTAT putting out a hiphop EP but those that ken ken that hiphop is the truly world changing revolutionary musical movement that came from the 70s. I digress, however. The “daye3” is an amazing and vitally important piece of social commentary and self-exploration; Palestinian London-based hiphop real talk as described by a punk rock artist in the oft-ostriched diy punk scene. All proceeds to Medical Aid for Palestinians, all power to Hassan and the peoples’ struggle.
Free Palestine.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/daye3-ep
06. Tragical History Tour – “Gainesville City Limits”
This is a cover of the Tim Holehouse song that was recorded live by Ant Booth at Kesbri Studios at some point when we were out of the “Aphorisms” LP trail. This jam originally appeared on the 100th Aaahh!!! Real Records digital download release, then was included as part of the “Live at Kesbri Studios” album released in February 2021. I’ll burn ye a CD if ye want one.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-kesbri-studios-2
07. Kaddish – “Post-Diana Emotional Literacy”
One of the most exciting projects of lockdown was re-releasing the first two Kaddish demos, first 2002 and 2006 respectively, on cassette tape in collaboration with our transatlantic friends Middle Man Records (usa) and Les Disques Rabat Joie (canada). The tapes sold out almost instantly but this is a captivating insight into a band evolving and finding their true sound amidst the noise, chaos and violence of early/mid 00s screamo/hardcore culture. The true heavyweight champions of ecossemo.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/two-demos-tape
http://kaddishuk.bandcamp.com/
08. Stonethrower – “Always Looking In”
Originally released as a digital download, then a vinyl preorder followed by a nine month wait for delivery due to global over-subscription of vinyl services due to major label fuckery, Record Store Day and the new vinyl fetishists, we finally took delivery of the much-anticipated “LEGACIES” LP vinyl in time for release at BOOK YER ANE FEST XIV. We’ve found pink/purple & blue/green/black vinyl thus far, who knows what other variants we’ll find?!?
50% of proceeds from downloads donated to CRER Scotland.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/legacies-lp-records-are-here
09. Order Of The Wolf – “To The Chaos”
Teaming up with Tragical History Tour to release a split single in solidarity with CRER Scotland, OOTW bring their magickal brand of black metal punk rock together with THT’s bleak finger-picked acoustic version of the same old THT song for a unique release. Orignally appearing on THT’s “Broken Stories & Senseless Things” EP from 2009, this is a redux version from beyond the back of the graveyard, a screeching holler of existential grief.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/to-the-chaos
10. Stöj Snak – “Trees”
Taken from the jaw-dropping post-folk punk genius of the “Life, Death and Everything in Between” LP released on a plethora of european diy punk labels, “Trees” is yet another example of Stöj Snak’s peerlessness. Playing “folk punk” like a hardcore band, few collectives bring together with sheer joie de vivre of impassioned punk rock with the grim tales of impending ecoological collapse with such melody and fervour as our Danish comrades. Perhaps 2022 will finally be the year they come to scream Rad Apples down.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/life-death-and-everything-in-between-lp
11. Paper Rifles – “It Started As A Joke”
If there was any justice in this world, Paper Rifles would be all over the radio and headlining festivals country-wide like Scottish radio rock monsters Idlewild, Biffy Clyro, Twin Atlantic, et al. This rager is taken from the amazing “Traitor’s Hill” album, co-released in deepest darkest lockdown alongside our capital city comrades Anti-Manifesto. Available on CD & digital download!
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/traitors-hill-lp
http://paper-rifles.bandcamp.com/
12. ALLDEEPENDS – “Is That Your Walking Distance, Or Mine?”
Perhaps the ultimate cowpunk love story, ALLDEEPENDS met and formed in the basement and released what would prove to be our last 7” before the floor collapsed. The “Hello MY NAME IS” EP is one of my favourite releases we’ve ever put out; as near to diy cowpunk perfection as it’s possible to get. Their debut LP is recorded and in the offing, so it’d be fucking sick if folx could grab a copy of the 7” to help us fund this impeccable forthcoming LP!
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/hello-my-name-is-ep
13. The Marx – “Pierrepoint Vice”
These Dundee socialist punk rock’n’rollers played hands-down my favourite set of 2020 in front of about 30 folx in the basement when they ripped through the entirety of their self-titled debut album in 35 minutes without pausing for breath or banter. Absolutely sensational stuff, so was delighted when they got in touch offering us the “Musk Family Emerald Mine” EP in solidarity to raise some funds to support Rad Apples. Such kindnesses are never forgotten and we’re very grateful to them for reaching out a hand of friendship. One of Dundee’s finest, for sure, top class.
14. platitudes – “feed the fascists mushrooms”
I could wax some lyrical bullshit about how platitudes allowed me to expand my creative pallette or some other bollocks, but the simple fact is that my first loves were rave and hiphop music and that this sonic experiment allowed for immersion and the blocking out of the world for a little while. It was enjoyable. Not sure I’ll be more but it was fun making the three EPs. They’re all available for free/pay-what-you-want download, this jam is from “further meaningless platitudes”, the second EP. It was this or “Faux-Woke Shitcunt Dudebros” but thought “feed the fascists mushrooms” to be a more positive sentiment. I’ve had enough beef, let love prevail.
http://makethatatakerecords.bandcamp.com/album/further-meaningless
That’s more than enough from me, probably somewhere in the region of 1500 words too much, but there’s the craic so far as I see it.
Thanks for awhin, awbody.
Cheers, Derrick (MTAT).
