Kill Your IdolsWithout question, Kill Your Idols were one of the quintessential hardcore bands of the last decade. Sure they didn't reinvent the wheel or play anything new per se but what they did do was embrace everything hardcore was about. They always stuck to their guns and were unwavering in their support of hardcore and the people that support it. Any band that has as many fanatical fans as these guys must've done something right.
Well, it is 12 years later and Kill Your Idols just played their last show in a parking lot with no interruption from the cops (talk about different times). The band could've easily called it a night after the venue got shut down but in typical KYI fashion they improvised and found a way to put on a show for those who came from miles away.
This 38-track compilation features the splits the band has done with Good Riddance, The Voorhees, Full Speed Ahead, Ensign and Decay, The Nerve Agents as well as songs that they contributed on many compilations and the bands EP titled "For Our Friends". There's awesome covers of Negative Approach, S.O.A, Slapshot, Scandal, Voorhees, Sheer Terror, Jawbreaker, The Exploited and Breakdown.
With albums such as this, recording tends to be an issue but not so much here. The remastering job by Charles Chaussinand breathes new life into recordings that weren't terribly bad to begin with. Shit, even the sound check cover of Breakdown's "Vengeance" sounds good.
It's only proper that the final release by KYI would feature the legendary skull. The purple layout that puts to use all 20 of its pages makes good use of flyers from the bands lifetime that are contrasted in the background looks great. The best part about the album is the linear notes by Andy and Gary. They are extremely comprehensive for the little space they had. For each batch of recordings there is a brief summary about the events that took place during the recording period. They also give the recording information as well as the lineup of the group at the time. To cap off the linear notes there is a prologue that is worth reading.
Rating: 5/5
Songs Worthy of Replay: Can't Take My Pride, Hardcore Circa 99, Vengeance (by Breakdown), Step On It (by Slapshot) and Can't Tell No One (by Negative Approach) and Time Don't Heal A Thing (by Sheer Terror)
Synopsis: I love thorough collections such as this one. I mean not only do you get a fuckload of rare and hard(er) to find material from one of the best bands hardcore has seen in the last decade but you also get one hell of a package complete with indepth linear notes. Shit the covers and the linear notes alone make this thing worth buying. If interested Get Outta Town Records is selling a 7" box set version of this with some extra goodies, http://www.getouttatownrecords.com The records look awesome, as does the total layout.