It would be hyperbole to tag this with a cheesy phrase like "the future of hardcore! but, holy shit, its pretty much the most innovative record youre likely to hear in 2008. Formed in 2002, following the break-up of vocalist Dan Yemins second insanely influential band, Kid Dynamite (the first being Lifetime), Paint it Black let loose Yemins most aggressive tendencies, relishing in their devotion to Black Flag, Bad Brains and other highlights of 80s hardcore. With New Lexicon, however, the band have stepped out of the realm of modern classic hardcore tribute bands and launched themselves into a whole new world. Co-produced by the band, the inimitable J. Robbins and Oktopus (one-half of abstract hip-hop duo Dalek), New Lexicon takes a great hardcore record and infuses it with Oktopuss utterly unique and occasionally bizarre post-production flourishes. A ripping collection of great hardcore songs when played loud in your bedroom becomes total headphone ear candy in a different setting, as the variety of subtle sounds on this record necessitates multiple spins on just about every music player at your disposal. This is fucking punk rock.
Were there any surprises when you got the final mix back from Oktopus?
Bassist Andy Nelson: What he initially gave us sounded completely insane. We spent a couple of days reeling him back in. I actually really liked some of it. There was one song in particularly I fought really hard to have on the record but I was voted down. Well probably put it online or something at some point. Theres actually a version of the record thats only drums, bass and all the post-production stuff. Not all of it works, but some of it sounds insanely good.
Did you approach writing this record different knowing the kind of work that would be going into the post-production?
Not really. There were only a few parts we left open, knowing wed want to add some stuff in post. Mostly, we just practiced a lot more. Wed practice hours and hours for days on end. We would do crazy stuff well, crazy for us like play all the songs really quiet and really slow. It seems like with hardcore or punk too much attention gets paid to velocity. Youre so worried about getting to the next riff that you dont really pay attention to the one youre playing. We ended up going into the studio so extremely prepared that it made the process really easy.
(Jade Tree)Were there any surprises when you got the final mix back from Oktopus?
Bassist Andy Nelson: What he initially gave us sounded completely insane. We spent a couple of days reeling him back in. I actually really liked some of it. There was one song in particularly I fought really hard to have on the record but I was voted down. Well probably put it online or something at some point. Theres actually a version of the record thats only drums, bass and all the post-production stuff. Not all of it works, but some of it sounds insanely good.
Did you approach writing this record different knowing the kind of work that would be going into the post-production?
Not really. There were only a few parts we left open, knowing wed want to add some stuff in post. Mostly, we just practiced a lot more. Wed practice hours and hours for days on end. We would do crazy stuff well, crazy for us like play all the songs really quiet and really slow. It seems like with hardcore or punk too much attention gets paid to velocity. Youre so worried about getting to the next riff that you dont really pay attention to the one youre playing. We ended up going into the studio so extremely prepared that it made the process really easy.
