New Katorga Works Releases: Merchandise, Dads, Natural Law

Let me start this off with an apology for the lack of ICDT posting. One of the many reasons for our lack of productivity is that Colman and I have been preparing three new Katorga Works releases for this November 1st release date! Granted, it only takes a few hours on the computer to make a post, but still! Two of the releases are collaborations with other labels, one of our personal favorites, Drugged Conscience, and the new D.C. label, Hesitation Wound. Drugged Conscience is splitting the Merchandise LP with us and Hesitation Wound helped us with the Natural Law 7". Big thanks to them for helping us out with this stuff!

Here is a summary of our new releases, which include the new Merchandise LP, the new Dads 7", and the debut 7" of Natural Law, Colman's rock band:

Merchandise - (Strange Songs) In The Dark

Artist: Merchandise
Album: (Strange Songs) In The Dark

Release: 2010

Label: Drugged Conscience/Katorga Works

Tracklist:

1. Loss

2. I Locked The Door

3. Foolish (Her Song)

4. I Get Lost

5. Worthless Apology

6. What Was Left Behind

7. In The Dark

The first of our new batch of goodies is the debut vinyl release of Merchandise, (Strange Songs) In The Dark, which is a split release with the great Drugged Conscience. This record is actually the reason Colman and I decided to start the label and we couldn't be happier with it! Seriously, this is probably the best thing we'll ever be apart of, unless Dads decides to let us put out an 8-track/Laserdisc live combo. For real, it has been an honor working with the band and with Chris from DC. The talented C. Cox even made two videos for the record and I love them! Be sure to check them out, as they are inappropriately interspersed through-out this write-up.
Merchandise - I Locked the Door from Id House Vid. Group on Vimeo.

Here is the poor man's description of the record: "Tampa's Merchandise returns with a revamped sound, harnessing the most goth elements of post-punk, shoegaze, and Drag City into what surely is the undergound pop record of the year. Despite being drenched in discordant feedback and white noise, (Strange Songs) In the Dark still manages to enrapture with its urgency, melancholy, and, ultimately, its unrivaled beauty."

Merchandise - Worthless Apology from Id House Vid. Group on Vimeo.

This is an exciting release not only because the record is so insanely good, but because it's being released with a bunch of other Tampa-related artists. As you've read, we're releasing the new Dads 7", a band which features two of the Merch Rockers, but what you may not know is that Drugged Conscience is also putting out the new Neon Blud B Girls 12", which, in my opinion, far exceeds that of the demo tape.

Also being released by the band is their new cassette, Gone Are The Silk Gardens Of Youth, which features the band's newest material, and is being released under the Cult Maternal banner.

So yes, be sure to at least check everything out! Then, buy it if you like it. Or something. Also, how 1992 is the video to "Worthless Apology?" It rules!

Download Here

Buy Here (Drugged Conscience)
Buy Here (Katorga Works)

Dads - Hat Creek 7"

 

Artist: Dads

Album: Hat Creek 7"

Release: 2010

Label: Katorga Works

Tracklist:

1. Hat Creek

2. Banana Twinz

3. Sex Theft

4. Dub Creek

Another of the Tampa brethren to release a record with us is Dads. I honestly don't know what to make of Hat Creek, other than that I play it all the time and my roommates hate me for it. They're just plebeians or something. As for a real record description, this is all I could think of:

"On this record, Dads returns with their unique brand of retardo-rock, this time as an amalgamation of twee pop, noise rock, post-punk, and dub."

There you go. This record is sick and looks awesome! This is probably the smartest record we'll ever release too, so there's that...

Download Here

Buy Here

Natural Law - Slump 7"

Artist: Natural Law

Album: Slump 7"
Release: 2010

Label: Hesitation Wound/Katorga Works

Tracklist:

1. Hand And Foot

2. Poor Taste

3. Slump

4. Persona

5. Acclimate

Here is the black sheep of this 'lil release family. By sheer luck, Natural Law's Slump is coming out at the same time as the Merchandise LP and the Dads 7", but the band actually has no relation to those or any other of the Tampa bands putting out music at this time. God forbid they become associated with one another!

Slump is the first vinyl release from this relatively new hardcore band from NY/NJ. Natty Law plays dark, melodic hardcore that they wished sounded like the Faith, but probably doesn't. Still, it's great and it's nice to see Colman succeed in at least one aspect of his life. Sorry, dude, but Paul Hodes will likely lose to Kelly Ayote!

Tangents aside, I'm very stoked on this release. It's been split with the upstart Hesitation Wound from D.C., so you have two great places to get the record!

Download Here

Buy Here (Hesitation Wound)

Buy Here (Katorga Works)

As you can see, there are links to the various places in which you can purchase these releases. There are plenty of deals to be had. You can buy a packaged deal from us and get a dollar off on each of our new releases or, if you buy the Neon Blud 12" and/or the Merchandise LP from Drugged Conscience, you can get the Dead Friends and Cowboys Became Folk Heroes LPs for only $5 each!

Katorga Works will also be doing the exclusive mailorder for the aforementioned Merchandise tape. It might be your only way to get it unless you exist within close proximity to the band itself. This will be featured alongside distro items including: the Neon Blud 12", the Nomos 12" (cheapest you'll find it!), the Crazy Spirit 7", the Dawn Of Humans 7", the Confines 7", the Weed Hounds 7", the Men LP, the Nuklear Blast Suntan LP, and more goodies!

For questions and concerns, as well as wholesale inquiries, here is how we can all be contacted:

Drugged Conscience: burnxnaples[at]hotmail[dot]com

Hesitation Wound: hesitationwoundrecords[at]gmail[dot]com

Katorga Works: katorgaworks[at]gmail[dot]com

Go crazy.

-Adam & Colman

P.S. Other blogs, feel free to share the download links, just please use ours and include a link for purchase. That would be much appreciated!