Cracks In The Wall -s/t- ep

Do you remember hardcore?
Do you remember shitty basements and worn out squats?
Do you remember being harassed by the police and chased by jocks?
Do you remember bands who got up on stage and played like they were chased by the devil?
Do you remember songs that were anti-establishment and had more to do with hate than love?
Do you remember putting real money in an envelope?
Do you remember waiting months for a package of new records to be delivered at your door?
Do you remember looking over the artwork and learning each song by heart?

Well to be honest parts of it I don't remember either. Yet Cracks In The Wall reminds me of those days. Days we mostly know about through 'American Hardcore' the book and movie.

The Netherlands have a great tradition of fast and angry hardcore. BGK, Larm, Seein Red, Citizens Patrol and now Cracks In The Wall.

Ofcourse there's always room for growth. This is their first ep. Next time I would like more of those Black Flag guitarparts and maybe a bit more backingvocals. Now I do have the feeling especially vocalwise the record just goes on like a bulldozer on speed. Yet I think the same thing about Negative Approach.

If you like your hardcore fast, no frills, no gimmicks and 80's style I suggest you pay attention to Cracks In The Wall.

(If you think I'm biased because my best friend plays in the band, you might be right. Just go and check for yourself.)

Oh I've got a testpress that was only sold at the releaseshow number 35 of 40 for those who care.

Cracks In The Wall -s/t- ep back
Originally uploaded by xroldx

Myspace: Cracks In The Wall

Cracks In The Wall (part 1)

Slowly but surely the world is moving towards the release of the first Cracks In The Wall 7". Since I've seen this band grow over the years and some members of it I consider close friends I thought it would be nice to pay some attention to one of the fastest Dutch hardcore bands around right now. What always strikes me when seeing the band is that all members are totally different in age, where they come from, what kind of work they do etc. So I interviewed all of them seperately. Here's part 1 with guitarplayer David.


How did you come in contact with hardcore and punk and is CITW your first band?

I was never really into music as a kid. Being from a small village in Brabant, all my friends listened to things like 2unlimited and all those cheesy eurodance songs, but I was never really into that(now I am though haha). I was more into the things my brother listened like Guns n Roses, Iron Maiden(sort of), AC/DC, Metallica and a shitload of reggae. But mostly Guns n Roses. At age 12 I moved to Rotterdam. I still listened to Metallica etc. One day me and a friend of mine wandered into a big record store and they were selling cd’s at ridiculous prices, he bought The Offspring and I bought Stranger than Fiction by Bad Religion, cause I’d seen the name somewhere. Pretty good choice I think, still one of my favourite records. From there on it was mostly punkrock from Epitaph and Fat Wreck Chords.

As far as hardcore goes, I think the first albums I bought were the Manliftingbanner discography, Seein Red discography and a Backfire album.

Going to shows: Full credit goes to Uppercut. They got me and a friend into driving around the country for shows. Awesome times. And from there it got worse and worse.

CITW is my first real band. Before that I played with some friends for a few years, but never really did anything besides trying to make the heaviest slowest doom possible.

So which band is a bigger inspiration to you Black Flag or Tear It Up and why?

I don’t really know what to say. I’m not very good at these things. I Think what both bands have in common is the sheer energy, the anger and a bare bones approach. Play to destroy, as you will. That is the kind of thing that appeals to me.

What did you think about your fellow bandmembers after the first rehearsels as you all didn't really know eachother?

It started with me wanting to do a fast hardcore band and posting this on a messageboard(So yeah we’re an asice band haha). At the start it was just me and Willem. Later Frankie and Theun.

As far as what did I think about them? Nothing really, didn’t know em. Over time I think we became good friends and that’s awesome and the best thing about this band. We’re all really different I think, but it works perfect. Never any trouble or arguments or any bullshit like that.

What's it going to be Tilburg or Rotterdam?

For now Rotterdam. I think in a few years we’ll definitely move back to Tilburg. Really love that city, always things going on. And you can hardly get a decent pizza in Rotterdam. RIP Maestro.

Are you happy with the 7" or are there already things you wish you could've done otherwise?

I’m probably the wrong person to ask as I tend to hate things immediately when they’re finished. I think we improved a lot, but also a lot could’ve been done better. Especially in the guitar department. I’ve never felt 100% satisfied over anything I did. Maybe not even 50%.

What was your best moment yet with CITW and what was an all time low?

If I have to pick one, I think the UK trip with Reproach. Non stop awesomeness and the excitement of going on the road for the first time. Last year was awesome as a whole. We played a pretty good amount of shows, we progressed a lot. Went on tour. Released a record etc etc couldn’t ask for more.

As far as lows? Don’t think we really had any real lows, besides the occasional weak gig. Maybe when Frankie had his surgery on his hands. I feared we couldn’t do anything for a long time, and wondered if he could keep on playing bass at all(you never know!) but in the end that wasn’t the case luckily for Frankie and for us.

What do you want to do with the band next?

Just playing as much shows as possible and touring. After that we’ll see. We’re already writing new songs and I think we’ll definitely end up in the studio somewhere in 2009.

Can you give me you top 3 of current dutch bands and one of old dutch bands?

That’s hard and it could change from day to day. I won’t do the place 123 thing, cause I don’t think that holds any value.

Current:
* Citizens Patrol(awesome band. I love how far they’re taking it and the response they get everywhere)
* Room 13(best single of 2008 easily)
* No Turning Back (An inspiration as far as what you can achieve when you put your mind to it and put in insane amounts of effort. Many big bands talk the talk, but this band walks the walk. Just look at the amount of shows and the places they play….Insane.)

I also have to mention Reproach. Best euroband if you ask me and AxSxHx( dudes slayed short fast and loud Tilburg.Check m out!)

Old:

* BGK(up there with the best hardcore bands around. Truly classic)
* Lärm (DUH! )
* Manliftingbanner

Myspace: Cracks In The Wall
Label: Crucial Attack