Latino Oi! from N.Y.C. by COMBATE 49 in 2011

COMBATE 49 - "DEMO 2011"
("D.I.Y."; MP3-Download):

Okay folks, this here is a pretty nice one, good to see that the Bootboys in and of COMBATE 49 from New York City (right, or?!?) are back again. First contact with them (respectively their music and also their message) was the D.I.Y. split CD they did last year with the mighty FIGHTING 84, and here they are back with their new release, their "DEMO 2011", and it's also a D.I.Y. affair and a lot of things have changed since the fall of 2010. Back then, for all what I know now, COMBATE 49 used to be not a proper band but just the lead singer and another guy who was doing respectively playing all the instruments (I hope I got it right) and now today they are a proper four piece band. And also they used to sing in spanish the last time around and have now today changed that so that they do sing on this one here all solely in english (what's a huge step anyhow). And what do they give us now here today after the mentioned some changes? COMBATE 49 are about to make them a name for themselves as a very promising N.Y.C. Oi! band. I labeled them back then (last fall) as a R.A.C. band (without any NS/WP/14-88 crap, just to get this straight right from the start... or from where the hell ever, it's just important to get this damn straight right now right here), hm, but I wouldn't do so still today, even things (maybe values to COMBATE 49) like Patriotism and Anti-Communism may still are damn important for them. (And why the fuck not?!?) But no, especially musically you won't find any R.A.C. reminiscences here on this very one, it's hard knocking, even harder stomping and damn brutal and aggressive, forceful and really dirty and truly angry Bootboy/Skinhead Oi! from the City that never sleeps, the city of New York by itself, and if you like the almighty OXBLOOD (how could you not do so) then also COMBATE 49 should be up on your list anyway (but they don't copy OXBLOOD in any way, just to get this also pretty straight right here and right now). Harsh and evil sawing and buzzing, angry and aggressive pushing guitar work, dominated and marked very strong by the forceful riffing and a very grounded and straight stomping rhythm (guitar) work, is marking the songs very strong and effective. The vocals are very angry and bitter, hard spitted and bitter shouted, staccato like delivered and are pretty cool stuff, but they could become much more flowing and more sung (then spoken) and with this a little bit more integrated into the songs. The rhythm work is really damn good stuff, especially the very present, marking, forceful and harsh pushing bass rules totally okay, and the drumming is some good oiled stomping rhythm machine, powerful and heavy pounding. And they also fixed quite a bit the problem of not being so tight and in time at all, I mean sometimes this problems you can still get aware of but they really improved quite a big bit and the next step is just about to come if you ask me. And to play their instruments they know also for sure, and the songwriting was also back then more than okay and is today really just very good stuff, trust me, also the pace and rhythm structures really know to convince when you are listening to this nice little gem. Also lyrically we get some cool stuff, from Skinhead Way of Life lyrics to brutal and violent Streetlifestyle issues to really great political stuff ("THIRD WORLD", damn good song and great lyrics) they give us a lot of good stuff to read. The production sound is dirty and noisy and really a great grounded affair, thumbs up for that, and the download comes with all lyrics and also the (maybe not really creative, but anyhow cool) artwork, hm, and for all what I know this pretty cool and surely damn good "DEMO 2011" of COMBATE 49 is currently just released as a (which means as this) MP3-Download (the download link I will give you as the closing line of this review). A big step forward and I'm curious to get more to listen to from COMBATE 49, so just check them out, download this demo and support them. Hopefully a good Oi! label with the guts to put them out will soon give COMBATE 49 a good and fair record deal, because I think that their time is about to come (if it's not already come along anyway). I really recommend this to anyone of you looking for some new hard American Oi! the East Coast (and especially N.Y.C.) way of style and sound, this is a very promising young band that we all should put up pretty high on our lists. Truly damn good stuff!!! Btw, it really feels damn good to get some good new (American) Oi! music to listen to finally again. And "THANX a lot!" I have to say to COMBATE 49 for sending me their "DEMO 2011" via MySpace and keeping me so 'informed' about what's going on in their camp, so again: "THANX guys!!!" and "ALL HAIL!!!" to you. Hm, maybe (if the band wants to and if I get it all finally done again) there will also come an interview with them some time in the (hopefully maybe near) future, because they are a pretty interesting and very promising band, so I really feel the need to give them some room up here to spread the word and help them making a name by their own, time will tell. Until then: Get and enjoy this one here and I'm looking forward to music from them!!! Cheers & Oi! (8 of 10 points)

(http://www.myspace.com/combate49)

(And here's the download link: http://www.mediafire.com/?4anohotbna5abfi)
Two 'final' announcements: 1.) It sucks a little bit that the Download Link doesn't work automatically, thanx to MySpace that's spoiling this 'automatic-way' somehow, but the link is correct so just copy and then set it into your browser and you will get there to download this demo; 2.) Great, I can announce that an interview with COMBATE 49 will come, it's confirmed and I will work it out the next days and then will get in contact with the band again and then it all will kick off, and that's damn fucking great and "THANX!!!" to COMBATE 49, that's great of you guys!!!

*** From the West Coast to the East Coast, it's American ROCK AGAINST COMMUNISM on the Attack!!! ***

FIGHTING 84 & COMBATE 49 - "WEST COAST TO EAST COAST ROCK AGAINST COMMUNISM" ("D.I.Y."; CD):

Yeahr, here it is, a record that I've been waiting for, and that also for quite a while already now. I'm so fucking happy that FIGHTING 84 finally put out their debut release, 'Hell Yeahr!', and it's more than just cool that I got it, and for that a huge 'THANX A LOT!' is going out to BRANDON of FIGHTING 84 for sending me this CD, just great, I really appreciate it, so yeahr, 'THANX!' and 'ALL HAIL!' across the borders and the ocean to you my mate!!! 'Keep up the good fight!!! Oi! Oi! Oi!' So, like you all should know by reading this very blog here I'm a huge fan of FIGHTING 84 from the very beginning on when I first listened to them on respectively via MySpace and do yourself a huge favor and read the two interviews that I've already done with them here for this blog, and now we will go straight ahead to this record respectively the review of this record. It reached me this past saturday and damn it, but I was fucking curious about it and simply couldn't wait to listen to it... and I can't really tell ya how many times this CD ran up and down and was turned round and round in my CD player, no matter if it's my stereo at home or the one in my car, and on my MP3 player it's also and giving me the right music to go and pump iron in the gym, fucking awesome. So, the to me totally new and before this CD damn unknown COMBATE 49 are kicking this CD off. A spanish singing R.A.C. band from N.Y.C., if I'm now not throwing something totally across right now. Giving us two songs, "SOMOS PATRIOTAS" and "ENEMIGOS", and the first one they give us also in a live recorded version. It's a nice start for me with this band. Some angry and hard hitting Skinhead Rock'n'Oi! sound with patriotic and anti-communist lyrics (yeahr, you read it right, the four years of spanish as a subject in school hadn't been a complete farce, haha;-)...), and all very strong dominated by the angular and grumpy guitar playing and the very pissed off and pretty aggressive lead vocals. Also, and that's always cool, the bass playing is very well present, and it's a pretty heavy and well jaw chopping affair, and that's pretty cool and damn nice. Also the massive stunning drum work is really very well stuff. Sounds pretty good, but there's a annoying cosmetic defect to it, and that's the fact that it all could have be done really much, much more tighter and also much more certain when it comes to the timing, especially when it comes to the guitar playing that sometimes really getting out of the rhythm and pace of the songs. But okay, it's all not that annoying at all, because on the one hand it's all not that erratic like it now may sound (trust me!!!), and on the other hand this is just the first recording for them and they showcase us already some very strong potential, also because they already know pretty good what they have to do when it comes to writing songs, which means that their songwriting is already pretty good stuff that will catch your attention pretty fast. With "SOMOS PATRIOTAS" they give us a heavy and brutal mid paced Bootboy stomper, and with "ENEMIGOS" we do get a very evil, aggressive and damn pissed off fast hammered hatefilled bullet straight in our ears. Hm, one thing that I always recognize when it comes to spanish singing bands is that the lyrics more or less always seem to be too long for the songs, haha, just listen to "ENEMIGOS" and you will know what I mean: While the singer is still singing the strophes the music seem to have already reached the next part of the song and is just waiting for the vocals. Don't know what I want to say with that here and now, hm, but it's just something that I somehow usually recognize when I'm listening to 'spanish music' no matter of which genre, and I think that's all what I wanted to say to you with that, haha;-). All in all COMBATE 49 do get 7 out of 10 points, and that's already a good start if ya ask me, a really good start that not that many bands know to succeed with this days. Good, solid job by them, point and fact!!! So, after COMBATE 49 then are coming FIGHTING 84 from L. fuckin' A. city, and I was really excited about how they will sound here on their first recording. And now I'm even more excited about how damn good they sound, about the fact that they already sound that damn good, strong and also already really pretty tight and that there's no flurry hecticness to be recognized, and guys, for that my honest respect to ya!!! They give us three songs and are starting with their brandnew track "RED DAWN", and damn it, that's some pure hate track, a battle anthem that's filled with so much mercyless aggression and brutality that it makes you want to go out and kick in someone's head. Damn fast paced, full throttle and the engine is constantly running on full power in the red zone of the engine performance. Evil grinding and very sharp played guitars, a brutal hammering bass and fast and hard played drums are the ingredients of this song, and the brutal and very forceful vocals are really the golden crown on the head of this song. A very militant and gladiatorial song, filled with shiploads of energy and pure fury, great!!! Also nice quick break in the song to fasten up the pace even more. Nice shot!!! It's also all really pretty tight done, so thumbs up!!! Can't wait for more new songs of this quality, so hurry up guys!!! Then comes there 'old song' named "ON PARADE", and that's really an impressive statement. Compare this recorded version respectively this recording of the song with their first versions on MySpace and you will get aware of how much they have already developed. I like this song and its message, and also the raw and rough attitude of this angry and pretty fast staccato rhythm song, and I can really imagine how the crowd will go nuts when this song is played live. Also nice sound gadget in the middle of the track, and again it's a very fast track that will smash some P.C. faggots heads in. Then comes my peronal favorite of them, no matter if it's about the lyrics or the music, and that's the great "CLASS RAGE", the slowest song of them on this record here, but still pretty fast, coming with some nice and pretty 'unamerican' guitar work, some great 'Chiswick guitar riffing' in the tradition of the old SKREWDRIVER, great, and also some fuckin' present bass playing and very tight drum work, fuck it, that's what I'm talking about!!! Political lyrics that are also strongly critical on society and damn patriotic, anti-communist and gladiatorial and unbroken, great!!! They also know how to write grapping songs, and they demonstrate us how much potential they do call their own, even this is already a damn strong work of and by them. FIGHTING 84 do get 9 out of 10 points, and I hope that they will find some good label very soon that will back them up with some more bucks that they can spend on the production, because the production sound (especially when it comes to the guitars) is the only annoying thing here. But damn it, no criticism at all, 'cause it all costs a lot of money, and that's why I hope for a good label that will give them the more than only justified support. And don't get anything wrong, this here is R.A.C. the way it should have always been meant, just right wing, patriotic and conservative and anti-communist music, no White Power music faggot crap and no stupid NS Rock, that's how it should be always done. Ah, and this counts for both bands. And yes, you can also call it just fucking good Oi! music, nothing else, if ya have the guts to do it!!! So, the production sound, when it comes to both bands, could be far better, but it's a demo recording, so no real criticism at all, and also you get used to it very quick. The artwork looks really pretty cool (it really makes me want to know about the possible message behind it), and the CD comes as a CD-R in a Slim Case, just that you know it. And if ya now ask yourself what to do, ha, damn it stupid, nothing else then getting into contact with at least one of the bands and get this fucking little gem!!! Damn, I' fuckig happy and proud that I call it my own. Great stuff!!! All in all it gets... (8 of 10 points)

(http://www.myspace.com/fighting84)

(http://www.myspace.com/combate49)