GSL-45

De Facto - Megaton Shotblast (2001)

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The Mars Volta before they were the Mars Volta. Originally a three piece consisting of Cedric, Omar, Jeremy, they hooked up with Ikey and started cranking out the dublicious tunes. I don't know a fucking thing about dub music but I do know that this record is fucking amazing.

Released on GSL.

HH666-111

Daughters - Hell Songs (2006)

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DAUGHTERS were one of the many off-beat "grind" bands that emerged from the whole Locust rip off scene. First album is basically Locust worship with better drumming and Arab On Radar guitars instead of keyboards. Nothing wrong with that but on this album they traded their piss colored Locust LPs in for some Birthday Party tapes. Longer songs with more conventional structures but still the face grating guitars and technical fills along with Nick Cave channeling vocals. I love this album.

Hydra Head is a label out of Los Angeles run by Aaron Turner of ISIS.

GSL-07

The VSS - 21:51 (1996)

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Been a while, been busy, sorry.
THE VSS were a post hardcore band fronted by Sonny Kay, owner of GSL and previously of Angel Hair. This is a compilation of previously released out of print material.

SFTRI 644

Tourettes Lautrec - Red All (2001)

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Tourettes Lautrec was a short lived punk band from San Diego best known for their contribution to a Queen tribute record released by 31G. Female fronted spastic punk similar to the Sick Lipstick/Black Cat #13 or PRE.

Released on Swami, a subdivision of Sympathy for the Record Industry.

AF02

The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower - INRI (2006)

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The PLOT was a one of a kind San Diego punk band with a sexually overcharged in your face attitude backed by jazzy saxophone hooks. Of all the bands that have come and gone over the years that I miss most, this one would have to be in my top five due to their amazing live performances. This was their last proper release (a posthumous release was planned by 31G but was later scrapped after the bassist's fatal heroin overdose) containing a new track, a Bowie cover, and a remix of the title track.

Art Fag is a Southern California label that didn't really come into prominence until last year with releases from Ye Olde Maids, Dum Dum Girls, Best Coast, etc.

CLD001

The Starlite Desperation - Violate A Sundae (2004)

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Up by popular demand: Third proper release from this criminally overlooked So Cal rock and roll band. Released on Cold Sweat Records.

LBJ-28

The Faint - Blank-Wave Arcade (1999)

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Have your black hair dye and white belt on standby. Maybe a pack of Parliament Lights, too.
I've been seeing so many Faint LPs in used bins over the last month that I sort of took it as an omen and felt compelled to post an album of theirs.
THE FAINT is an electroclash band, I guess it's now known as new wave revival or something. But they started off as probably the worst post-hardcore band you've ever heard. Their first album is seriously painful, but you'll probably never hear it. So I guess this can be seen as the first "true" Faint record in terms of the archetype for scenester dance music that would be prevalent for the next six to seven years. Hard to believe this came out in 1999.
Released on Saddle Creek (originally Lumberjack which would explain the catalog number), the label responsible for your favorite guilty pleasures: Rilo Kiley, Son Ambulance, Bright Eyes, Cursive, etc.

You can stop clapping now

The Faint live at Koo's Cafe in Santa Ana 2000.

VD-010

Neon King Kong - Get What's Going Around 7" (2002)

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THERE'S A PARTY THIS WEEKEND AND YOU KNOW EVERYONE'S GOING TO BE THERE: name dropping everyone who was anyone in So Cal circa 2002.
The only other release from Hot Rod Todd's shortlived Neon King Kong. Two song seven inch released through Vinyl Dog Records. I have no idea who that label is but I assume they were an Orange County/Long Beach label since they released stuff by the Orphans and the Starvations.

GSL-55

Neon King Kong - Mix Up The Mix 7" (2002)

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Neon King Kong was a short lived synth punk band out of Long Beach featuring members of the infamous LE SHOK. This was actually the first band I ever saw live back in 2002 opening up for Bratmobile and the Locust at the Roxy.

31G-40

Fast Forward/T Cells Split (2004)

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Here's something else I've been meaning to upload for years that I know people want. Fast Forward formed around 1999 in L.A, CA and is known for their controversially political live shows. Includes mysterious members with ties to such organizations as Wrangler Brutes, The Locust, Nazti Skins, One Day As A Lion, and Le Shok. The band has two previous releases on Vermiform and KOTM. T Cells are from Long Beach, CA and were formed around 2002. Including members of The Locust, Le Shok, One Day As A Lion, The Distraction, and Nazti Skins. Their music is Lo-fi electronic, pulsing noise pop? This record includes a cover of Cime’s “Maserati”. T Cells also have a self-released 10″ on SPS Records. This release is a double 3″ CD released on Three One G.

GSL-59

Chromatics - Chrome Rats vs. Basement Rutz (2003)

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BY REQUEST: Chromatics are the typical case of a band getting attention when they turn into a flavor of the month generic act. Yes, I'm talking about their last album Night Drive, which sounds like a less interesting Glass Candy. Boring synth lines with Blondie-like vocals that you've heard before.
Chrome Rats is KRTMX's very first album: a very discordant post-punk showcase with screeching guitars and pulsating basslines. Actually reminds me a lot of Erase Errata.
Brought to you by the fine folks of GSL.

Yip-Yip playing a high school homecoming dance 2004.

Didn't know the Irish could dance

Les Georges Leningrad 2005 in Belfast. Check out the dance moves in the crowd.

ALIENCD 045

Les Georges Leningrad - Sur les Traces de Black Eskimo (2004)

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Les Georges Leningrad was a four piece from Montreal active from 2002-2006. They played a ridiculous form of funky synth driven garage punk that they dubbed "petrochemical rock."
This is their second album on Alien8, a Montreal record label that's released stuff by Masonna, Merzbow, and the Unicorns.

31G-21

Moving Units - Moving Units EP (2002)

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There was a point in time when Moving Units were the coolest band on the planet and now they're just the reason why you don't do heroin. Moving Units are a Los Angeles post-punk dance revival band that peaked around 2005. This is their debut 12" single on 31G.

Maybe it's better off this way

Moving Units on FOX ROX 2004.

Load-41

Lightning Bolt - Wonderful Rainbow (2003)

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Providence, Rhode Island's LIGHTNING BOLT is a two piece noise/experimental two piece that only use drums and bass except you can't tell it's a bass.

Load Records is an American noise/experimental independent record label founded in 1993 and based out of Providence, Rhode Island. They are responsible for releasing stuff by Neon Hunk, Arab On Radar, Pink and Brown, and White Mice to name a few.

Andre Dymond was Duracell: Lightning Bolt meets chiptunes. Somewhere in France 2005.

Kapow #8

The Starvations - One Long Night (2003)

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Had an impossible time finding the cover art for this...The Starvations were a garage rock band from Los Angeles. They aren't related to the Starlite Desperation at all but I always associated the two for having that bluesy garage punk feel to them. Anyway, Starvations were from LA, this is probably my favorite release by them. They released some stuff on GSL and then broke up. The singer is now in Jail Weddings, who are basically a more commercial version of the Starvations.

Kapow! was an Orange County/Long Beach based record label. They released stuff by Le Shok, the Stitches, Thee-Make Out Party!, etc. Basically any band that ever played at Vinyl Solution released something on this label. They went under a few years ago.

Can you tell me that it was sour?

At The Drive-In 1999.

GSL-20

The Starlite Desperation - Hot For Preacher/Waste Your Train 7" (1999)

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Holy fuck, I love this 7".
The Starlite Desperation was a Monterey, CA band. Seriously underrated, and there was so much good bluesy garage rock revival music like this that was grossly overlooked, but I don't think anyone did it better than this band.
They broke up in 2008 after releasing a few records, and doing a side project called Lost Kids.

GSL-42

Heart Of Snow - Endure Or More (2001)

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Heart Of Snow was a female fronted deathrock/post-punk band from the San Francisco area. This EP through GSL was the only thing the ever released. Bummer because the guitar tone just kills me, and I would have like to have heard more from this band.
A couple of the members went on to form Swann Danger.

Forward Youth

Fast Forward at the Smell 9/11/06.

DM-51

Now for something completely different:

The Miracle Chosuke - The 7/8 Wonders of the World (2003)

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Get your dance shoes because this is one ass shaking record. The Miracle Chosuke was a Costa Mesa sextet that played what was basically the embodiment of the whole So Cal hip kid scene with razored haircuts and neon shirts: nasally vocals, twangy guitars, lots of synth, etc. This was their only album and they would break up shortly after with a couple of the members going on to form Bad Dudes.

Dim Mak records was started in 1996 by Steve Aoki who has apparently tricked a bunch of morons into thinking he's a DJ, but I remember when that guy would come out to shows at Koo's. Anyway, Dim Mak has been great at jumping bandwagons: they released post-hardcore in the late 90s, transitioned into that whole garagy post-punk revival scene (this record), and now specialize in flavor of the month electro.

I live the rock and roll lifestyle

Justin Pearson and friends troll the Jerry Springer show. If you want to know the whole story go here.

GSL-04.5

Angel Hair/Bare Minimum Split (1994)

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Earliest release I could find on Gold Standard Laboratories.

Angel Hair was an post-hardcore/screamo-ish band from Boulder, Colorado. They were around from 92-95 and featured Sonny Kay on vocals. Kay was the founder of GSL and would go on to sing in the VSS and Year Future.

Gold Standard Laboratories (GSL) was an independent record label which was founded in 1993 in Boulder, Colorado by Sonny Kay. In 2001, it was moved to San Diego where Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (At the Drive-In/De Facto/the Mars Volta) became co-owner. It was headquartered in Los Angeles until GSL closed its doors on October 29, 2007.

Is this analog?

Le Shok at the Che probably in 1999 or 2000.

This is how you do an interview.

The Locust vs Extreme Elvis from Burn My Eye! Episode #4 from V. Porter on Vimeo.

This is from 2004 or 2005 when the Locust went on tour with Bratmobile (I was there!). Pretty much the best interview ever conducted.

KOTM-02

Locust/Man Is The Bastard Split (1996)

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Relatively long 10" split with 21 tracks clocking in at 22 minutes.

The Locust continue their crusty powerviolence assault with very minimal keyboards.

Man Is The Bastard was a powerviolence band from Claremont, CA. However, their contribution to this split is a 10 minute noise track split up into 12 parts.

King Of The Monsters Records started in the summer of 1994 as a way for two friends, Mike Genz and Tawna Hannifan, to release records by bands whom they believed in and thought others should hear. Over the years KOTM has released records from The Locust, Man Is The Bastard, Fast Forward, Soiled Doves, Black Cat 13, and a bunch of other artists.

31G-04

Locust/Jenny Piccolo Split (1995)

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This is a 5" picture disc split released on Three One G. First release by both bands. Locust would go on to change their name to The Locust because there was someone already using that name.

On this release, San Diego's the Locust feature a very different line-up with a predominately powerviolence sound.

Jenny Piccolo was a Santa Cruz powerviolence 3 piece.

Three One G is a San Diego, California based record label, started by Justin Pearson (The Locust). The name comes from the chorus of a Joy Division song "Warsaw", a song covered by Pearson's previous band, Swing Kids.

THIS SPACE RESERVED FOR ALL THINGS GSL/31G/SKIN GRAFT/LOAD RELATED.