How come it's me that's always hurt?/I'll stain the world with your blood

In my previously mentioned "quest to be more punk," I picked up Dischord Records' old Faith/Void split on a friend's recommendation. She is a big Void fan, and recommended the split. I'd have to say I definitely prefer the Void half, as well. Faith is a fine example of DC hardcore, but you hear it and think, "man...this sounds like what would happen if Ian MacKaye's little brother started a band." And then you realize that Faith IS Ian MacKaye's little brother's band. Very much influenced by Minor Threat both stylistically (minute-long bursts of barre chords and yelping) and thematically (lots of vitriol expressed at an undisclosed "you," at least one song talking shit on those who aren't straightedge, etc). Void, however, feels like it's own thing. The music DOES contain many of the tropes of hardcore, both musically and lyrically, but you can tell they've also listened to a metal album or two, and are much more willing to experiment a bit. Guitar effects that aren't just distortion, weird effects on group vocals in the middle of a song, a definite sludgier/heavier sound with lyrics that range from the standard hardcore to the above track, "Time to Die," which takes the Misfits' horror penchant to darker, more metal territories. The track immediately following that one is about Nazi atroicity (but then it goes right back to a punk-by-numbers song called "Ignorant People"). The split is pretty solid overall, but the Void tracks are the ones that will probably spend more time in my headphones.

You can pick the album up at the Dischord site, or on Amazon.