The Bellicose Minds plays eerie, dark post punk that fits the weather and atmosphere here in Portland. I’m not sure if this band still active, they haven’t released anything since their excellent 2016 LP The Creature - but this here is their earliest recordings, and it’s the same gloomy apocalyptic vibe. The best way to describe it is music that you can both dance to, overdose to or commit suicide to. Musically it’s not complex - repetitive even; bass-forward, lots of hi-hat 32nd notes, with slightly monotone vocals that fit this genre so well - clearly Joy Division inspired but not a direct rip. There is a bit of anarchist / peace punk in here too.
The insert shows the Portland scene in a nutshell - at least maybe before I moved here - they’ve played with bands all over the spectrum - Poison Idea, War Cry, Tragedy, Defiance - along with similar bands like Belgrado, Arctic Flowers, and the Mob.
Originally the band’s demo, this recording was reissued as a 10” in 2014 - my copy is on clear (100). The songs are from 2009.