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F-Minus

Won't Bleed Me / Failed Society
2005
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F-Minus - Won't Bleed Me / Failed Society (Cover Artwork)

Review by: thirtyseconds
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Published on January 10th 2006

I imagine most people here would have seen "Terminator 2" as a kid growing up. For me it was actually one of the first films I ever saw. I loved it so much I never stopped to think there would even be a prequel to that, never mind how good it was. Kids, eh. Finally last year I shelled out for the original on DVD and lo and behold, it just wasn't as great. Yeah, it was quite enjoyable, and having seen that first I think it would have been just enough for me to want to check out the "later material."

That's how I feel about F-Minus' latest release, Won't Bleed Me / Failed Society, a collection of their first two vinyl-only EPs with a couple of old covers chucked in for good measure. This is the older, simpler, inferior sibling of Wake Up Screaming, although it must be said this still packs a fair punch and is a great introduction to the band. Featuring a lineup of Sarah Lee, Jennifer Johnson, Chris Lagerborg and of course Brad Logan, all 20 tracks weigh in at 15 minutes and 40 seconds. What's that, two Coheed & Cambria tracks? If F-Minus had a comic book accompanying their releases, it would probably feature some mightily pissed off lower class dude going 'round a dark, bleak city beating the absolute shite out of anyone who had even slightly annoyed him (or her) in any way. (Think money-grabbing bosses, politicians...even your local vicar.) And there wouldn't be any calculated, drawn out violence in there either á la Frank Castle. That takes far too long. Why go around slowly taking out each individual when you can nuke the whole damned island?

That's what you're getting here. No bullshit, just to-the-point hardcore as in Minor Threat and Negative Approach, the latter being covered twice here. (The other non-EP cover being of Agnostic Front.) Basically, this is either your thing or not. If it is your thing, you will probably know that F-Minus always seem to have the edge over a lot of bands today in this field. Tracks like "Living Hell," "Gun to My Head" and "Peer Pressure" are standouts from the pure blur of listening to this record (probably back to back), even though the rage is felt all the way through. Believe me. Although AT took the step of putting the slightly newer (by one whole month) EP in the track listing first, and therefore you can feel the meager drop in recording quality at track 10 (the opener from Failed Society), the sound is generally rough and rasping. So, the perfect match for F-Minus. Recommended for fans of the band, and although not their strongest release, it might make sense to start here. Without a doubt they got stronger with each release.

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Posted by chunk_loves_stza on 2007-02-23 02:36:43
My Score:

not the best but still good

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 14, 2006 at 12:33 PM (EST)

Dude, I dunno. I'm listening to Corrosion of Conformity's "Eye for an Eye" LP right now, and F-Minus is kinda taking a beating in a mental comparison.

Posted by manifesto on 2006-01-13 13:21:39
My Score:

"Fuck World Trade was re-recorded with someone else. The only Albini shit used was one of the between song things."

I don't know. It would be pretty stupid to pay someone like Albini for the production and then start all over again with another producer...

Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, January 11, 2006 at 4:22 AM (EST)

Fuck World Trade was re-recorded with someone else. The only Albini shit used was one of the between song things.

Posted by SalsaShark on 2006-01-10 23:52:42

thirtysecs, I understand what you mean about the C&C thing now. Very understandable. I think C&C is sorta wank too.

Oh, and I forgot to say this last time, but good review.

Posted by gladimnotemo on 2006-01-10 15:27:32

F- covered Middle Class on the Crack Rock spilt, and it's awesome, of course.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 at 2:40 PM (EST)

manifesto you are right, FWT wasn't up to albinis usual standard.

F-Minus are incredible, they got me into hardcore, and i still couldn't name a band that plays this kind of stuff better.

I like their ST release the most i think. However nothing they have done is bad, and the split with the Crack Rock Steady 7 is just necessary to own.

My copy is signed by both bands, something im pretty proud of seeing as i live in the UK and neither come (or came) here that often.

Posted by thirtyseconds on 2006-01-10 14:15:31

Yeah, the original Terminator was good and all, but I even preferred number 3 to that one

Posted by rkl on 2006-01-10 12:55:19

i always thought suburban blight was their best, no question, but wake up screaming is still a damn good album(somewhere between that 3-3.5 stars mark, while suburban blight gets 4-4.5)

Posted by skankin_in_the_pit on 2006-01-10 12:45:16
My Score:

I'm with everyone else that likes the earlier stuff better, but I think it is crazy to call Wake up Screaming "slow and mid-tempo hardcore." Sure some songs are slower, and a few even reach the three minute mark, but I still love it.

Posted by manifesto on 2006-01-10 10:46:57
My Score:

"Seriously, yeah, i'm jocking steve albini 'til no end too, but i thought his work on wake up screaming wasn't really that good. It was just lacking overall, and way too engineered, what the hell was he thinking when recording the drums?"

What!? I thought his work on Wake Up Screaming was amazing, especially the drums. The record sounds like if you were in a nightmare...in a good way. I know it doesn't make sense but anyway. Great production.

On the other hand, Leftover Crack's Fuck World Trade is not really up to Albini's talent...in my opinion.

Posted by gladimnotemo on 2006-01-10 10:35:58
My Score:

A PLUS, dammit. I need to buy this soon.

Posted by gladimnotemo on 2006-01-10 10:35:42
My Score:

Posted by shindo on 2006-01-10 09:12:50

I liked "Suburban Blight" much more than "Wake Up Screaming." I haven't spun either in a while but I recall "Screaming" wore on me pretty quickly.

-adam

Posted by sickboi on 2006-01-10 08:38:48

Uh, Terminator (the orginal) was the shit. Just because it didn't have the special effects, doesn't make it worse. He was a fucking bad guy, that's why it was so badass.

Posted by givemeamuseumandillfillit on 2006-01-10 08:34:11

Seriously, yeah, i'm jocking steve albini 'til no end too, but i thought his work on wake up screaming wasn't really that good. It was just lacking overall, and way too engineered, what the hell was he thinking when recording the drums?

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 at 8:04 AM (EST)

"Wake Up Screaming" was just more crust influenced. It's a good record, but I like "Suburban Blight" better. You can't really compare the two eras, because they're completely different. The stuff on here is great... Very much just fast hardcore punk.

-Will

Posted by ghostmonkey on 2006-01-10 07:37:22

how did Wake Up Screaming suck balls? Its fucking great. Steve Albinis production adds soo much to it, and i like the fact they even kept the mistakes in, it makes it better

Posted by joeg on 2006-01-10 04:15:55

i need to pick this one up. wake up screaming was good in that "they tried something different and it still bites your head off" kind of a way. but what made this band so fucking good was the no bullshit, straight up speedcore approach. i thought suburban blight was their best.

Posted by formerly-blade-runner on 2006-01-10 03:55:21

i like the terminator analogy.

good review, I was going to purchase this off the AT website, but is it worth it?

Posted by thirtyseconds on 2006-01-10 03:35:25

Also, if the nuke the whole island thing sounds shit and slightly puerile, it's taken from one of the Punisher Max books. Although I can't remember which one

Posted by thirtyseconds on 2006-01-10 03:31:13

Salsa, the C & C thing was purely to link in with in the comic book thingymajig. Although I do think they're wank. Erm, hope it doesn't show too much

Posted by TheOneTrueBill on 2006-01-10 02:36:12

Woah woah woah, Ken, you're MAD! Wake Up Screaming is one of the best punk rock albums of all time in my opinion.

The cover songs are "Trouble at the Cup" from Black Randy and the Metro Squad, "Victim In Pain" from Agnostic Front, and "Negative Approach" and "Can't Tell No One" from Negative Approach.

Posted by SalsaShark on 2006-01-10 01:59:36

F-Minus is pretty cool. What are the two cover tracks?

Also, I think that cheap shot at Coheed & Cambria was a little unneccesary and out of the blue.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 at 1:56 AM (EST)

Further proof that "Wake up screaming" sucked mad balls. This record shows the band at the greatest stage in their "career". Fuck slow and mid-tempo hardcore.

-Ken

Posted by TheOneTrueBill on 2006-01-10 01:29:04

I actually like this better than the self titled album. The roughness and sheer speed of it all creates a sensory overload where you don't even realize fifteen minutes has gone by. This was one of my favorite bands of all time.