Void - Inner Ear Studios Demo

Void
Inner Ear Studio Demo
unreleased



by DC the Medic

First, let me say that Void is my favorite DC hardcore band. Yes, I like them better than Minor Threat and Scream, which is to take nothing away from those two great bands. Void played with a certain energy, even in the studio, that I haven't heard in many, if any, other bands. They seemed to create a maelstrom that threatened to make any song at any time fall apart into total chaos. Punk rock, indeed. Void were far from a technically proficient band, normally I would say that sloppy playing is not a valid aesthetic choice. However this is the exception that proves the rule. Although, to be more specific I don't consider Void to be sloppy or bad musicians, but rather reckless ones. All four guys just play as fast as they can as hard as they can, and if someone drops a beat, comes in late, or doesn't play in perfect synchronization with the rest of the band, then, oh well. Like I said before, the effect of all this is to create the legendary Void musical maelstrom.

Speaking of legendary, Void never seemed to get their due back when they were active. The closest they ever came to a full-length release was the Faith/Void split (still available through Dischord Records) even though they recorded Potion For Bad Dreams for Touch & Go Records. However, according to internet rumor, guitarist Bubba Dupree had some kind of undisclosed issue with it and has subsequently blocked the album's release for more than 20 years. And for Bubba Dupree, I found the comparisons between him and Greg Ginn to be both inaccurate and unnecessary. In my opinion, Dupree's work stands on its own and it should be enough for him to the manic guitar player from Void instead of "the Greg Ginn of the east coast" but I suppose there are worse people to be compared to.

As for the demos, they were recorded in the famous Inner Ear Studio in late 1980 and would eventually be released in a different track order as the Condensed Flesh EP. Different versions of some of these songs would later appear on the Faith/Void split. The sound quality here is excellent, and all the songs are killer. Recommended for any Void fan, any old school hardcore fan, and anybody else except for Hatebreed's lawyer.




Void - Inner Ear Studios Demo



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