GR1—Custom Floor—The first seven inch by Goldenrod. Custom Floor on this record is Miki Vuckovich, Phil E., and Garry “Skate” Davis, three prominent figures of skateboarding’s past and present. The music ranges from ethereal and trippy to upbeat and not poppy. Strange guitar explorations are the key here, and Garry’s vocals tend to be emotional pieces about our fucked-up society. Three songs on this record. Custom Floor also has an album called Clear Day which was produced by John Reis and features Atom from Rocket from the Crypt and Crankshaft and Liars, Inc. on drums. Out of print.
GR2—Fishwife—Fishwife has three albums out. Two on Cargo/Headhunter and one, the third, Poquita, Rosada Mona , was released on Goldenrod. This single has two songs: “First Time Caller,” and “I Love Plants, But I Like You,” the latter of which is otherwise unavailable. When Fishwife’s crazy singer and frontman decided to call it quits a couple years back, they had already recorded most of that third album, but it was not released until this year. Gar, Chris, and Matt decided to keep playing and went on to become Tanner, who have an album and several singles. (See GR17 and GR40). Fishwife is heavy, with lots of starts and stops, mixed up vocals and excellent guitar work. This single features the now-infamous inside cover art of their last show when Ryan shed his clothes and made his penis do that! Gar is now playing bass in the Hot Snakes, and Chris is drumming for No Knife. Still in print.
GR3—rust—This single features really cool silkscreen art done by Joe Polevy. The songs are great, too--expanding the propensity of what can be called “skate rock.” The a-side went on to become the bands’ first single from their Atlantic debut, but this is a rawer, earlier version. It’s called “Everyone Except for Me.” The b-side is unavailable elsewhere, and is a cool little ditty called “Waiting to Happen.” These guys have recently found some more success with a single from their 2nd album (Bar Chord Ritual, on Atlantic). This was their second single, their first was on Liquid Meat Records. This is grungey sort of rock—high energy, passionate rock that matters. John and Pat Hogan have been longtime members of the San Diego skateboard community, and Tim B. was in such great bands as Creedle and Rocket and da Crips. 20 left!
GR4—Hemlock— This is Hemlock’s first single and is a favorite among those who prefer their more harsh recordings. Nathan sings more on these songs and his voice isn’t what you’d call smooth. Screamy, discordant, and painful is what I would call it--and fucking amazing. The music is tight, technical without sounding technical, and complex. Hemlock is similar to the San Diego hardcore sound with just a little bit less chaos. Two songs here: Jolly Plogg and Gasoline. This band features members of other bands, too: Chris, who plays guitar, played the drums in Tanner and is now in No Knife; Bill played drums in Radio Wendy, and is now in The Shortwave Channel, and Nathan played in Reclyner, and is in the current emo outfit (who are totally great!) Keepsake. Hemlock also has another seven inch, a one-sided LP, and a CD on Goldenrod. (GR22 and GR45). They also have a CD on Liquid Meat Records. About 15 left.
GR5—Powerdresser/Heavy Vegetable split—This is kind of wierd to write about. Powerdresser is no more, because singer/guitar player Denver Lucas passed away in late 1994. Denver had a profound impact on the music scene in San Diego, and when he died, a lot of spirits faded. Denver was into the idea of free music, and before he died, he and I had been talking about and planning how we could make the next Powerdresser record and give it away for free. This song is called “It’s a Corduroy World” and exemplifies Denver’s (and Powerdresser’s) motto: “Promoting Communication, Interaction and Exercise.” The Heavy Vegetable song is “Green Light Gorilla” and is otherwise unreleased (update: it’s now on their singles CD) It’s long and has a lot of changes. Heavy Vegetable broke up, too, this year, and they have a pair of absolutely great records on Cargo/Headhunter. Rob, Elea, and Jason Soares also have a new band called Thingy which is totally great live, with synthesisers and really cool vocal melodies. They have a full-length coming too. This seven inch is free for the price of postage, in respect to Denver.
GR6—Radio Wendy—This single was recorded live to DAT 2-track at the Casbah in San Diego. This was Radio Wendy’s second single—at last count they had 7. “Busy Bee” is vintage punk Radio Wendy, from the Mark Marino era. (The band has had three rythym guitar players and Mark was the first.) “HangNail” is an explosive quiet-loud song with a catchy guitar hook. The recording quality is suprisingly good, and is a good example of the energy the band has live. Also look for other Radio Wendy stuff: GR21, a split 7” with Rocket from the Crypt on Pusmort, a 10” on Sympathy for the Record Industry, and 7” records from Standard, FlatLine, and Itchy Korean. This is currently out of print, but at least one of these songs should end up on a Goldenrod comp in the new millenium.
GR7—Unleaded—This band broke up not long after this record was released. What a fuckin’ shame, too, because along with GR20, this is one of my favorite records we’ve done. This sounds kind of like early Jawbreaker, but with more of what I guess is called the San Diego sound—octaves. Two songs: “Grave Decision” and “New Oriface.” It’s sort of emo, sort of new hardcore. Unleaded was also on two comps: the Goldenrod comp GR43 and the Liquid Meat comp called Volume. Mark, the guitar player, went on to join aMiniature. Unleaded rocks, this single is lo-fi and great. (Update: it’s April 2000 and I still love this record!) Still in print.
GR8—Fluf—This was fluf’s second single. Their first was on Sympathy for the Record Industry, and since then they’ve released about 8 others. This single has two cover songs: PJ Harvey’s “Sheela-na-Gig” and Overwhelming Colorfast’s “Song in D.” They do both better than the originals, IMHO, at least as far as making the songs more aggressive and loud. Regardless, the songs are great. and this single also has some great cover art, as usual, by O. This is out of print as of April 2000. (See GR24, GR25, GR56 for more from fluf and O.)
GR9—Tina Age 13—”The Minimalist Art Damage Years” This band got its name from a drawing Chris got at a thrift store or something. Or maybe it just came from that idea. The name is perfect, though, because as tweaked as the name is, the band is more tweaked. This was their first release, and includes four songs recorded live to DAT to capture the sound of their live act. Hardcore noise with melody. Not pretty melody, but melody nonetheless. Tina also has an EP on Broken Rekkids which is really good, and a forthcoming LP/CD on Goldenrod, and a couple singles, too. Still available.
GR10—Supernova—This was Supernova’s first single, other than the one they released themselves to press, radio and friends only. So I guess it’s their second single. It has three songs: Calling Hong Kong, which also later appeared on GR43; the original version of Chewbacca, which is different from the one in the movie “Clerks,” and “Pop as a Weapon,” which is otherwise unreleased. The version here of Chewbacca is the original, and includes the samples of Chewie from the Stars Wars movie. It will appear on CD when we do another Goldenrod compilation. This is the original lineup of Art, Hank, Dave, which IMHO is far superior songwriting-wise to the current lineup. I’m biased, though. Regardless, this single is probably Goldenrod’s only real collector’s item, and we’re very proud to have released it. Still in print.
GR11—Boilermaker—This was the first single from the new era of Goldenrod. It was the first band that had started since we’d been a label and I had watched them progress. These songs—”Mobile Home,” “Drained Nonsense,” and “Why is Grandma on the Roof?” are all excellent, and this single has remained a consistent seller. Emo-core, kind of mellow, but with some intense guitar parts and gripping vocals. The third song is an instrumental, and was given its name, at the bands request, by Garry Davis, who also did the art. Garry was kind of bummed when he found out that the words in “Mobile Home” were about Terrin’s grandpa, since he’d named the song beforehand. “Drained Nonsense” also appeared on the Volume Comp CD on Liquid Meat. I don’t think the others have been on anything else. Boilermaker also has an out-of-print single and self-titled album on Wrenched Records, and two albums on Goldenrod: Watercourse and In Wallace’s Shadow (GR52). Still in print.
GR12—Lucy’s Fur Coat picture disc—The only real picture disc we ever did. It has two unreleased songs. “Lucy” was kind of a theme song; they always always played it live but it didn’t appear on their debut LP, Jaundice, because the chorus goes “Lucy was a Whore” and their label didn’t think it was all that great. The B-side “Watergun” is a three chord punk wonder that somehow escaped the sessions for that album. We’re stoked to have ‘em. The record had really cool artwork by our friend Yogi, the guy who's done all the Emerica shoe ads for the last 5 years. This record is out of print, probably permanently. “Lucy” will probably end up on a Goldenrod comp at some point in the future. Also see GR41.
GR13—Deadbolt/The Strangers split—An odd release among odd releases for Goldenrod. These guys are very funny, very nice, and very politically incorrect. Deadbolt does “Cockeyed” and the Strangers do “Rawhide.” Both songs fit the mold perfectly: amusing, solid and raw. The labels were flopped on the first pressing and you’d be suprised how many people reviewing it got confused. Great art rounds out this package too. This is currently out of print.
GR14—No Knife—Two songs from one of the best bands I’ve ever heard. “Habits” and “Oh, I... “ are guitar punk songs with a mix of old hardcore like GBH and new power stuff like Drive Like Jehu. This version of “Habits” is rawer than the re-recorded version on the LP Drunk On The Moon, and “Oh, I...” is so far otherwise unreleased. (It will appear on the next Goldenrod comp CD.) The best mix of great songwriting and guitar playing possible, catchy riffs that wind circles around the ear combined with personally revealing lyrics. This record is out of print right now. No Knife has been touring their little asses off like you wouldn’t believe, and they’ll probably be everywhere you llok soon. See also GR17 and GR34. No Knife! They also have two albums out on Time Bomb Recordings. Out of print, but not for long.
GR16—Big Drill Car—I was so stoked to do this single. I had known Frank and Mark for a long time and was nervous about asking them to do a single. They gave us two great songs that were so good they should have been on their new album, but they were exclusive to this record. “Nothing At All” and “Trash the House” were recorded in early 1994 with two different drummers: Jamie Reidling (Jalopy, Cadillac Tramps) and original BDC member Danny Marcroft. Big Drill Car was doing pop-punk way back before every band in the world, and they did it better than those bands, too. Gritty and distorted punk with hooks galore. Mark, the guitar player, is now Rocket from the Crypt’s soundman. Go say hi if you see them and tell them how rad Big Drill Car was. (Update 2000: Frank and Mark are in a new band, called All Systems Go, and there’s supposed to be a Big Drill Car singles comp CD coming out sometime soon.)
GR17—Tanner/No Knife split—Two great bands from San Diego on one single. This actually came out about the same time as GR14 and the Tanner single on Standard, and was a strong single among
strong singles for both bands. “Sweep Away My Shadow” is one of No Knife’s best songs, and the same goes for Tanner’s “Slightly Calculated.” Cool art by Yogi and a funny foto by Ted Drake help make a cool, simple package. Tanner also has a CD/LP out called Ill Gotten Gains and several other singles on Sympathy, Liquid Meat, and Standard, as well as the album (Germo) Phobic, their latest release. Still in print.
GR18—Knapsack—These guys played at a Christmas party at Foundation Super Co. one time and I was drunk. That was a long time ago, it seems, but since I rarely drink, I still remember the night well. Knapsack was so good. They were so energetic and confident that they were doing OK, and I asked them if they’d do a single right then. A different version of the
A-side “Trainwrecker” appeared later on their debut LP/CD Silver Sweepstakes (Alias) and “Don’t Mind” was otherwise unreleased until GR43, the Goldenrod comp came out. This is when Knapsack was a 4 piece; now they’re a three piece without 2nd guitar player Jason. (Update: they’ve broken up, and Colby is doing a new solo typr thing.) These guys toured a lot, and they’re really good live, but I think Alias did a lousy job promoting their records. I could be talking out my ass, though, maybe it did better than I thought. Regardless, the band is great, and I’ve loved everything they’ve done. This was their first release, and it’s excellent. Still in print.
GR19—Fishwife CD—This is Fishwife’s third full length. It’s called Poquita Rosada Mona, and has nine songs. A couple of them ended up on singles, but mostly small-pressing singles that didn’t get too far here in the US. When the band broke up, they had already recorded this. This record is the natural progression step between the second Fishwife album Ritalin and the first Tanner album, as far as the music goes. The vocals are less screamy than the other Fishwife records, too, but still maintain that Ryan Foxe quality of being psychotic. Ryan has since reached great heights of fame in the LetDowns, the garage/60’s/ psychopunk band he now fronts. And of course Tanner rocks too. Still in print.
GR20—ColdWaterCrane—In our series of skateboarder bands this one ranks up there...Ray Barbee plays guitar in ColdWaterCrane, and along with Rachel, Marshall, Gabe, and Benji, they recorded one great single. Two songs of Fugazi-like chaos in the background as a bed of smooth noise for Rachel’s soothing voice. The band broke up not too long after this record came out, but Gabe, Benji, and Marshall went on to become the nucleus of 100 Watt Halo, by whom we’ve put out a single and LP. This single is one of my favorites, because I absolutely love the A-side song, but also because Ed Templeton did the atwork, which included a silkscreened Television and antenna and band name on the plastic sleeve. Ed’s an idiot savant when it comes to this kind of idea for artwork. I love him, and I love this record. Still in print.
GR21—Radio Wendy—Kids In America 7”. This single was with new guitar player Davin Neubacher, who had been in Crankshaft with Goldenrod’s former co-owner Tod Swank. This record got a really good review in Maximum RocknRoll, which was nice. It’s a cover of “Kids in America,” with none of the verses sung at all—they’re just kind of mumbled and screamed. They obviously didn’t know the words. The B-side is called “Growing Old,” an original. The art was done by Marc Gariss and is completely cool. Readers of Transworld may recognize his completely original art style. This is a great record. (It’s also out of print as of April 2000. Not sure when it’ll be back, but the A-side will probably be on the next Goldenrod comp CD.)
GR22—Hemlock. This is their second single and it totally marks the progress they’ve made as a band and that Chris has made as a songwriter. Three songs, all great. Melodic guitars with cool hooks complement well-sung melodies that keep me singing along after 200 listens. The 3 songs here also appear on the CD version of the Valvestate EP, GR45. For more info on Hemlock, see GR4. Again, this is a standout amongst what I consided a bunch a great releases. A few of these left.
GR23—Kinda Fat. Well, this was sort of a weird deal. Our old friend Mike Ballard, as well as Spike Jonze, (yes, the Spike Jonze who directed all those rock videos and "Being John Malkovich"), Mark Lewman, and some other guys recorded this thing, and we put our name on it (Lord knows why?) and made 5000 of them to give away on select copies of Big Brother Magazine. If you have a copy, I'll buy it from you. I bet these made a lot of frisbees. Three songs plus a remix. Ha!
GR24—O.O. Crispies—That’s just another way to say that this is O. doing really crispy four-track recordings. It’s got six songs, and if you heard and liked the Ow! Quit It! stuff by O., then you’ll like this. Since most of you probably didn’t, he writes these little silly ditties that make me cry. About being fat, being lonely, about totally stupid stuff, too. O’s a rad guy, and if you can handle a little sensitivity, then you’ll love this. Most of it is acoustic guitar, but there’s some keyboards and electric stuff too. And if you like this, you should check out the Woofer single on Sympathy which is O. with a synthesizer and guitar. Really funny ripoff art from a cocoa crispies box too. Thus the name.... Still in print.
GR25—Fluf—O. named this Moody as the Day is Young. Whatever that means. I guess it’s kind of an O.ism. Anyway, this has “Waffles” on it and “One Trick Pony” and a disaster called “Song We Trashed.” It has really cool artwork and these two songs ended up on The Classic Years CD/LP that they released with all their singles. There were about ten or so with duotone blue printing instead of the full color brown with yellow. Of course O. did the artwork for this, too. I guess there’s not too much else to say. It’s a great single. It’s out of print as of April 2000.
GR26—Swivelneck—This single took a really long time to come out. I love Lane Miller, and he’s the guitar player for Swivelneck. He’s the most under-recognized guitar player in San Diego--he’s currently in a band with Mike Kennedy from Drive Like Jehu called Corregated. This single has two songs and both are simple straight ahead punk with a little less guitar pyrotechnics than on the albums. (Their second record on Cargo/Headhunter is called Baby Cry Cry, and even though the name is totally lame, the record is really fucking good.) This record got some good reviews, too, and besides, it’s got Kendra Gaeta, WonderWoman of the North, with disco roller skates on it. If you knew Kendra, you’d buy this just for the photos. And then be stoked on the music, too. Still in print.
GR27—4—The name of this band is 4. A lot of reviewers wrote wierd names, because O. did the art (under the pseudonym “Earl Grey,” because he was going theough a rediscovery of tea period.) and the name of the band is very close to the name of the record. O. gave it a silly name like on GR25. The name on this one is The Past and the Present, so a lot of people thought that was the name of the band. Anyway, it is Matt and AJ, the swingers, playing guitar and bass and singing and Miles from fluf on drums. Three songs, and really good except for the sound of a sinker bong-load. That was kind of weird for Goldenrod, but cool for the band. Anyway, the music is kind of heavy guitar punk, kind of reminds me of Tanner, but not so refined and technical. Very good, and they have an album coming out soon, i think... Still in print.
GR28—Boilermaker.Watercourse CD/LP. Boilermaker is an amazing band. This is their first full-length, and it was recorded, mixed, and I guess therefore produced by Mark Trombino. Anyway, Boilermaker took their sound and amplified it, exaggerated it and built upon it for eleven songs. Some quiet parts, some ragged guitar parts that build tension and let you down easy, and some really catchy songwriting make this album excellent. Boilermaker also has a single and another album on Goldenrod, as well as a song on the first Goldenrod comp CD. The LP and CD are currently available.
GR29—Tina Age 13/Ovarian Trolley split. This is yet another case of a record that we committed to and then it came out like a year and a half later. Tina does “Foggiehead” which was from the sessions with O. and Mark Arnold (see Big Drill Car) which will eventually be their album called Good Feelings. Ovarian Trolley does Tiny Person, a song which perfectly captures their hardcore techi-sound. Not techno, but sort of a precision tight sound with looped bass and crazy vocals. Two of San Francisco’s best bands on one single! Still in print.
GR30—Chinchilla—These four girls are among the best musicians, as a group, I’ve ever seen. They mesh really well together, and from the first gig there was a trance-causing magic there that said they were onto something. Whatever it was, everyone could tell; they were having fun and playing was pretty easy for them. These two songs were recorded with Mark Trombino and were the groups’ first decent recordings. (I think they did some
demos somewhere before, but I can’t really remember where.) “Cyberella” and “Batman” were the songs here, and both are A-sides. Heavy bass draws lines everywhere, and the vocals kind of follow that lead, while the guitar adds texture and grit. The drumming is technically tight and excellent without flash, and fits well with the music. I’d make a reference to Fire Party, except for the vocals. I can’t really think of another band that these gals sound like...Very original. Sometimes live they do the Sonic Youth-ish distortion/feedback thing, and they even manage to keep that sounding like Chinchilla. It’s very energetic. They also have another single out on Trademark Records, and one of those songs, “Tall,” appears on the Goldenrod comp, GR43. They also have an album on Crisis Records, which is excellent. Still in print.
GR31—100 Watt Halo—These guys are so good I can’t even believe it. Energetic, frantic, yet controlled at the same time. Benji lays down these riffs, or sets of repeating noises ala Gang Of Four, on his SG, and Marshall creates these crazy fucked-up bass lines that are impossible to figure out, (or else they’re so simple and straightforward that the first time you hear them, you think “I’ve heard this before...”) and then here comes Gabe, pounding the hell out of the kit with the steady beat with tight fills, and then on top of all that, out of this smallish guy named Brock, here comes this growl, with cool lyrics, and he also adds the melodic guitar lines that you’re humming the next day. The four songs here were recorded pretty low-fi, and it sounds raw. Think Fugazi without being so serious. Three members here were in ColdWaterCrane, and 100 Watt Halo just takes it one step further in the songwriting department with the addition of Brock. This is a great debut record. Still in print.
GR32—Nothing Rhymes With Orange—Well, nothing does rhyme with orange! This is five songs of fun garage punk with catchy hooks, silly-fun lyrics, and obviously three girls having fun. “Pretty collegiate,” wrote somebody somewhere. (There was a guy in the group named Larry, who sings on some of the songs, but after several reviewers in magazines wrote that they should lose the guy, they lost the guy. Larry’s getting married so it was OK, anyway.) This was one of those records that I knew people would love or hate. I love you, I mean it. If you’re into garage punk, straightforward, mid-tempo punk, you’ll love it too. Still in print.
GR33—The Faction Collection—Goldenrod-The Mystic Years—This band broke up in 1985. Halloween was the day, I remember it well, and with all the reissue of many of my old punk favorites came the idea to do this. I made some calls, and this awesome CD is the result. 28 songs, none of which were ever on CD before, and many were never released before. It’s got all the expected favorite skateboarding anthems, like “Skate and Destroy” and “Let’s Go Get Cokes,” and it’s got some of the faster, well-crafted songs like “Tenebrea,” “I Decide for Me”, and “100 Years War.” Of course it has the raw skate punk from the first single, too. Actually, it has everything the band ever recorded in a studio, except for three songs, and one of those is here in live-at-CBGB’s form. No repeats, just 70 minutes of early hardcore from NorCal. The liner notes include every gig the band ever played, complete lyrics to every song, and artwork from every record they released. This is a great collection from a great band, and it definitely stood the test of time so far. Yes, it’s still available.
GR34—No Knife—Drunk on the Moon—This record is another record I’ll probably seep excitement about as I write. Eleven songs, not a dud in the group, and each one different from the rest, but the album manages to have a complete sound. Mark Trombino recorded this, and it sounds great. The songs range from full on hardcore punk, (“Daniels,” an ode to Jack) to melodic emo-core, and there are several 1995 takes on traditional English hardcore. Among Mitch the singer’s favorite bands are the Adicts and GBH, and that style of guitar rings true, but it’s completely updated. Really cool art makes the packaging great, even if there are a lot of photos of the band. See also GR14, GR17, and GR50. This album is now on Time Bomb Recordings, but we still have GR17 in stock, and GR14 will be back sometime soon. No Knife also has an otherwise unreleased song on the Goldenrod comp GR43.
GR35—Overwhelming Colorfast— Sourdough—This release came out on limited vinyl with four songs and also on CD with six songs. One extra track appears on the Meices/Overwhelming Colorfast split on Trademark records—”How It Should Be.” The other extra track is “Sway” the Stones song. These songs are the last songs of anything close to the original lineup, and this is the first release to feature a song by Bean Espinola, the bass player. These songs are absolutely great—”Where can you play in San Francisco today/where the kids can come/and the cops will stay away.” Some of the best songs Bob Reed has written are on this record, and he’s written some gems. This is what punk was before the recent resurgence, so maybe this is “noise-pop” or something now. I don’t know, but it’s great, rough, and catchy guitar music with great vocal hooks that stick in your mind. They have three other full-lengths, and a slew of singles. Great band! Still in print.
GR36 Tina, Age 13

GR36—Tina, Age 13—Good Feelings—What a funny name for this record. Tina, Age 13 are San Francisco’s best kept secret. This record was recorded a while ago in a So Cal recording yard with O. and Mark Arnold. Completely drug-induced psychosis create total noisy punk-n-thrash with a few little hooks thrown in at just the right spots. Overdubbed vocals keep everyone in tune, but the songs were recorded live in a few takes, and despite a few energy vampires, this record turned out great. Bass player Chris Johanson did the artwork, and it helps makes the entire package just a little tweaked. You’ll have good feelings after you listen to this... Will be available summer 2000.
GR40 Tanner Ill-Gotten Gains LP—Tanner remains one of my favorite bands, and this is their first LP. We did the vinyl, and Caroline did the CD. A great record full of twists and turns, Gar's frantic guitar playing and frenetic vocals, all with the solid rythm section of Chris Prescott (now in No Knife, also of Hemlock, Fishwife, Rocket From The Crypt) and Matt Ohlin (Fishwife). There's no good definition for this, other than powerful, fast, punk rock, San Diego style. An amazing recording, too, done by Mark Trombino. Still in print.
GR41—Lucy’s Fur Coat—Secret Seven Inch—This record was kind of a weird thing. The band had these two songs that were part of a batch of demos ready for their second album. Two of them were called “Aurora” and “Stealth.” Somehow the idea for a clear record in a clear jacket with no label and no info came about. The only thing on the record that says what it is is a sticker on the outside. The thing that added to the mystery was that the band was sick of their label, Relativity, and dealing with all the legal and other bullshit, so they broke up. The record came out, and the band has started to practice and play again. Anyway, these two songs do the Lucy’s thing very well: Take a riff, build it up, throw some cool melodic vocals over the music, add some backing harmonies, and you’ve got two great songs. Catchy and heavy mid and fast tempo three chord punk rock. Works for me—Lucy’s Fur Coat. This is still available.
GR42—Deerheart—”Male” and “Radiator Lover” are the two songs here. Both are completely heavy excursions into hardcore noiseville, with stops along the way at Chicago Recording Company for some help from Steve Albini. Tight start-stop drumming, gnarly straight ahead bass, and two guitars sawing their way back and forth accross the sound spectrum. Heavy duty vocals attack in “pist” mode, and the singer means it: he’s out to kill anyone is his way. What's Sterling so angry about? Still in print.
Goldenrod Compilation Super Mixer CD

19 bands, including unreleased stuff.

Click picture for more info.
GR44—Deerheart—Queen, Worker, Drone—LP/CD. More gnarled heaviness from Deerheart—this is their debut full length. Ten “songs” that fit together nicely as an album. Each song centers around precision drumming, which together with a set of great sounding guitar noises creates a background for growly vocals. Fans of Big Black, 16, and other heavy, angry punk will love this. The band is from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and the music fits in well with that industrial background. Sterling, the singer and guiatr player, is a great skater who rode for Planet Earth for a few years before turning his attention to music. Still in print.
GR45—Hemlock—Valvestate 12”/CD—This is one of the best records I’ve ever heard. Five new songs, each with Chris’ windy guitar lines combined with heavy distorto-bass. (Shit, it’s hard to write all these things and not sound stupid.) Catchy, but not poppy, with vocals you can sing along to, and guitar hooks that stick in your head, that’s Hemlock. The 12” version of this record is clear, but it’s silkscreened black with a really cool design of rats in it—one of the best packages you’ll ever see. The cover art by Carl Prescott is totally bitchin, too. The CD has three extra songs, from GR22. As I’ve said before, Hemlock has members from Fishwife, Reclyner, Rocket From The Crypt, No Knife, Tanner, Radio Wendy, Shortwave Channel, Camera Obscura, and more. LP & CD available.
GR46—Mock—This band was turned on to Goldenrod by Joel at Sessions. Mock is really fucking good pop-punk who sound like the Adolescents for the 90’s. Steady pounding drums with 3 chord guitars, but what sets them apart is the vocals. The singer comes up with these really catchy melodies which stick in your head like a good song is supposed to. He gets an A+. Two songs, “Remember Me” and “Pity,” and both are gems. They also have a CD out on Sessions.Still in print.
GR47—Spanakorzo—Influx CD—Spanakorzo is a hardcore band who sound kinda like the Jesus Lizard meets Heroin. They’ve got a new singer for this record, and the vocals are not as screamy as they were with Tim. (The old singer was Tim, the drummer from Boilermaker.) Steady long and winding riffs with Brian’s rad drumming, and Robbie singing about standard emo fare: girls, the world condition, and lame people. 9 songs here, half of them were released on vinyl, and the rest are re-recorded with Robbie and are unavailable elsewhere. These guys have a couple of singles out, a CD called Headdress, and a split 10” with the Swing Kids. Excellent stuff. Still in print.
GR48—Dodgeball—Four songsof Descendents type punk rock with good girl vocals about lame people, bad relationships, and bad scenes. Upbeat, hyper and tight, these guys are all about having fun and making music. Monica’s voice is smooth, but she can also get that cool growly thing going like Kim from the Muffs does. Monica doesn’t really ever scream like Kim does, though. Most of the vocals are fast like the music, so it doesn’t sound grungey. This is a really good punk rock record. Still in print.
GR49—Cars Get Crushed— Blue&West CD/LP. Cars Get Crushed is a dynamic quartet, and Blue and West finds them producing a range of sounds from hardcore emo to quiet stuff like Slint to avant-garde noise-punk. Cars Get Crushed makes it all come together in one cool album, and these eight songs are excellent. This is their second record, and they have toured the west coast several times now. Hailing from the prominent punk/underground scene in Berkely and Oakland, these guys know their roots, but have evolved into a significant force on their own. This record was supposed to come out on Gravity. Colored vinyl LP and CD available.
GR51—Servotron—What a great sound these guys have: it’s not like any other. Hayden is genius, and if you didn’t know it from his guitar wizardry in the original Supernova or Man...Or Astroman?, you’ll know it from this single. Catchy, poppy, Devo-esque songs that sound mechanical and are a testament to some great human time machines. “Batteries Included” and “Red Robot Refund” are the songs here, and were recorded at the same time as the songs on the Sympathy for the Record Industry single. Gray slate vinyl and cover go well with the industrial theme. Third pressing still available.
GR52—Boilermaker —In Wallace’s Shadow.
This record was recorded by Mark Trombino at about the time he started getting a lot of recognition for his studio work. He's a great producer, and this is one of his favorite records. Boilermaker never really got the “emo” pigeon-hole, but they sort of fit that label. Really, though, they're good ol' punk rock. I don't need any other title or label, I guess. The songs here are pretty damn touching, as they talk about death, and fucked-up friends, and sad situations. The difference is in the way the band brings it across: with feeling and intensity. The music, no matter how loud and fast and dischordant it gets, sticks in your head as sensitive. It's not wimpy, though, for sure. Terrin is an absolutely great bass player and songwriter, as is Rich, who writes guitar parts that are both simple but complex and layered... another great record that I'm proud to have released. CD available.
GR53— Three Mile Pilot - This Divine Crown 7” When Pall first brought us the DAT I listened to it about15 times in a row. God, it almost makes me cry. These songs are so beautiful I can't describe them properly. Definitely stretching the limits of “emo” or whatever label Three Mile Pilot constantly defies. The power of Pall's voice and Zach's piano are godlike in their ability to touch. Deep inside. One of my favorite covers, too. The first 750 came with a patch. Still available (no patch)
GR54— Three Mile Pilot - Chief Assasin to the Sinister. Goldenrod re-released this record-- Pall from Three Mile Pilot and Jason of Negative had been friends of mine for a while, and when Jason decided he couldn't afford to records anymore, I gladly bought what he had left and made new covers. What can I say. This is an amazing record. The best testament to Zach's bass playing is the review that said it sounded like two basses. Well, that's Zach's one bass--he does very special things with his bass. Add Tom's technically and creatively inspiring drumming and the ever-so-smooth Pall's voice and the amazing songs the three of these guys come up with, and you've got one of my favorite bands by far. Description? A magnetic conglomeration of hardcore attitude, mellow, chaotic music, and somehow, an emo feel. A real honor to do this record. Out of print right now.
GR55-— Hemlock—Give Kids Candy LP. The fifth Hemlock release, but their first full-length record. This album sees a more "mature" Hemlock evolve and morph into a less-harsh, more melodic band. While still far from poppy, they've taken what has long been described as the "San Diego sound" and added even more of their own touch to it. For the uninitiated, that means one part Tanner, one part Drive Like Jehu, one part Heroin, and ten parts Chris, Bill and Nathan. This is a great record, with 12 songs and a handmade custom silkscreened cover. Still available.
GR56 - Fluf / J Church split 7” Fluf and J Church are happy to help you beautify your house, jacket, neighborhood, and the world with the new SuperStencil Cover from Goldenrod. This record cover serves a dual purpose: besides being a stencil which can be used for spray painting Fluf's and J Church's logo all over everything in sight, it also protects two new J Church songs and the first recorded song by Fluf since Josh Higgins joined the band. On the J Church side we’ve got a cover of Guided By Voices' song “If We Wait...” an upbeat song with some good ol' J Church harmonizing. Next is an exclusive take called “Contempt for Modesty” a great song played at high speed and high intensity in typical J Church fashion. Fluf comes with their first venture into the studio with a song called “Assmunch,” about the perceptions of certain bands simply because of the labels they release their records on. A crunchy little number, this sweet song will not be on their forthcoming album. A lyric sheet is included for those who prefer lyric sheets. Back in print.
GR57— The Crimson Curse. Both Feet In The Grave 12”. What can I say? This was a departure for Goldenrod. I'd always been into the edge of hardcore, but hadn't really had the opportunity to do a record, mostly cuz i didn't know any ofthe kids in the bands. When Justin asked me to do the record, I was sort of wondering why they wanted me to do it, and they just said they liked the label and they couldn't put it out soon themselves, so they thought they'd ask. Fuck, the record was amazing. Complete hardcore angst, chaotic and frenzied, but definitely with more structure than say, Heroin or Clikitat Ikatowi. I wish I'd done more records with bands like this. So much energy. Not just in the music but just in the kids. They are the real fucking thing. Enough said. The Crimson Curse is Christopher on guitar, Justin doing vocals, Jimmy on guitar, Mike playing thedrums, and Damean playing bass. The bands these guys used to be in or are in now: The Locust, Swing Kids, Constatine Sankathi, Guyver One, Struggle, and Tristeza. This record is now available on Three One G Records.
GR58—Dodgeball "Hooray For Everything" CD. Dodgeball has made a great record that adds to their collection. This album has 16 tracks, with not a dud in the batch. I guess this could be described best as punk-pop-stoner-rock, but the comparisons I've heard a lot are to the Descendents with a girl singer, or, as Maximum RocknRoll said, "a better Tilt." Catchy, fast, heavy at times, and with great lyrics by singer Monica, Dodgeball is in that niche that's hard to define. This was recorded by Gar Wood in his Box. Still available.
GR59—Inch "Dot Class 'C'" LP-What a freakin' great record this is! Inch has never gotten the recognition they've deserved, and I've never understood it. I think some of it has to do with an old MAximum RocknRoll article which used them as an example of the negativity of major labels. A loss, for sure. This record has all the power you could want from an emo/punk record, with great guitars, sort of in a math-rock way, but without quite so many parts and changes, and with more emphasis on songs. With former Sub-Society guys, it's love by the skaters who've found some of the songs in various skateboard videos, but don't be mistaken, this is not pop-punk at all. It's quality high energy punk music, just the way we like it. Still available
GR60—The Crimson Curse—Live Video. This is a semi-amateur video edited from footage of a Halloween show at the Avocado Club House in Golden Hills, in San Diego, California. Complete with a poorly shot fight, lots of punks in costume, this shot-from-the-hip video captures seven songs of one of the most fucked up shows you've ever wished you'd witnessed. The perfect documentary of chaotic live hardcore. The price is right, too. This will be re-released, eventually.
GR100—100 Watt Halo—The Steady Continental Seventy LP—The kids are back with their first full-length, 9 songs recorded by Mark Trombino and finally capturing, other than in lo-fi, what it's all-about. Post-hardcore hardcore, two guitar punk for the new kids. Brock's and Marshall's vocals alternate between smooth and harsh screaming, and the way they do the quiet loud thing is all thier own. The hardcore kids still love this, but the "mature" punks dig it too! LP available.
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