The Witzard

Beneath every blast of feral Hardcore is a sense of melody—not a three-part harmony or earworm hook, but the right mix of pace, phrasing, and a heap of intangible passion. Formed as a five-piece unit in the Greater D.C. area, Praise's mission statement has been to work within the box of traditional Hardcore while exploring the bounds of melody in every possible sense. This means more than splicing power-chords with catchy accents, but rather, mining the work of the masters inside and outside of the genre and immersing themselves in the roots of those who changed Hardcore's sound and boundaries; but it doesn't just stop there. Along with their love of the rich history of Washington, D.C. Hardcore Punk, Praise's sound darts and dashes through scenes, decades, and genres, united by the core tenets of a catchy song and the impulse to deliver a message. From 80's Minneapolis Power Pop and Dag Nasty to The Cure & Leatherface, along with sprinkles and nods to t...

"No Guns on TV Hill" b/w "Dog" by Blue Streak Blue Streak is a DC/Baltimore -based "super-group," of sorts, consisting of current and former members of local area Punk/Hardcore bands Angel Du$t , Give, Pure Disgust , and Red Death... although, they're playing jangly Power-Pop , rather than your typical Hardcore/Punk fare. Blue Streak consists of guitarist/piano player Ben Schultz (Give,) drummer/percussionist Robin Zeijlon (Red Death, Pure Disgust, Lackluster,) bassist Nick Heitman (formerly Angel Du$t,) and vocalist/guitar player Mike French (Angel Du$t, In Between.) French, Heitman, and Zeijlon previously played together in "Throwback Pop-Punk" outfit Dizzy Pleasure Club (DPC) with Pat McCrory of Turnstile & Angel Du$t , who released a 5-track EP entitled D.C.P. on Photobooth Records back in 2016. As you might have already gathered, Blue Streak is named after 1999 Buddy Cop Comedy film Blue Streak starring Martin Lawre...

Pure Disgust by Pure Disgust "The NWODCHC [New Wave of DC Hardcore] is so powerful and on the rise. It’s great to see young kids being in the center of it all as well. It’s even cooler to see that all my friends are [getting] on bigger labels, putting the name of DC back on the map. You've got Protester putting a record out on Triple-B Records , Stand Off putting one out on Youngblood , Red Death putting something out on Lockin' Out ... I love it all. My friends are what keep me here, and I love every single one of them and what they're doing," Pure Disgust frontman Rob Watson recently revealed to DC -based publication Bandwidth ; it's fitting that Washington, DC is currently experiencing a period of musical rebirth— nearly some 40 years after 1980's Hardcore founding fathers Bad Brains , Fugazi, Minor Threat , Dag Nasty, Black Flag frontman Henry Rollins , Scream, Rites of Spring , Embrace, etc. initially burst onto the scene. Watson formed...