Poison Planet “Boycott Everything” 7” (Refuse Records)

Happy (late) Edge Day my collector scum friends! This next post comes a day late, but every day is a good day for the straight edge in my book. West Hasty has been a close friend of mine for many years, and after some cooersion he finally felt like adding his voice to the Dollar Bin Rippers. He has immaculate and unapologetic taste in hardcore punk ranging from first wave DC to whatever is hot in Malaysia this week. His collection is nothing but raging, and according to a rumor I heard, he's never sold a single record that he's purchased. Anyway, here is West's take on a should-be-classic straight edge release:

POISON PLANET immediately caught my attention due to the fact that their name is taken from the song of the same name by one of my personal favorite bands – Corrosion of Conformity. The paradox here though is that this band is an anarchist, straight edge, vegan, and pro-animal liberation band, with the cover of this very 7” having a very Crass Records feel to it. Why is that a paradox though? I mean all of those things seem to go hand in hand right? They do…but typically that ideology/aesthetic is most often executed by either really shitty spinkick metal, boring “epic” crust, or some jug blowing, hippie fuck who worships Penny Rimbaud. POISON PLANET is none of those. Actually, Poison Planet is totally ripping hardcore rooted in the 80’s sound, not unlike their namesake C.O.C, or maybe SSD (particularly in the vocals) with some very obvious Black flag influence as well; especially in the first song “Liquor Flesh Trade”. As soon as the needle drops on “Liquor Flesh Trade”, it comes in with a steady hi-hat roll, followed quickly by a single string riff like one that maybe Ginn himself may have indulged in towards the end of the “Damaged” era. There’s even a discordant, noisy Ginn-esque solo in the track as well. Simple, but speedy riffing throughout these 5 tunes, executed extremely well with everything else falling into place perfectly. The 49 second closer “Tidal Leveling” does just that…it levels you. It’s a mid-paced stomper that you feel will eventually burst into a swell of speed, but just like “that” it’s over just as quick as it began, no fast part to close it, just an abrupt ending that leaves you wanting more.
The 7” version of this record released by Poland’s own Refuse Records seems to be overlooked due to the fact that it was re-released in a much more striking 12” format. Apparently the band really wanted to add a lot more topical imagery and more essays, thus making the 12” format appropriate I suppose. An ignoramus like me who thirsts for nothing more than ripping hardcore can be appeased by the 7”, but if you want to flex your head as well, then maybe you should check out the 12” version. Either way, not cramming these 5 songs into your earholes would be a huge disservice to yourself.
-WJH