In the winter of 2002, I met a person I had only heard about before. His name was Dickie. He sang in a band called Knockdown and had run a record label for a bit. The crowning glory of his record label was split releasing the first Converge LP. That’s all I knew of him. Turns out, he lived down the street from me in Worcester. Somehow, this part I can’t exactly recall, we met. We discussed the core, and he told me about his amazing record collection. At that time, he was looking to lighten his load and move some of his vinyl. So we set up a time for me to roll over to his house to look through his collection. It was winter and super fucking cold. I don’t think he was big on turning the heat up OR on so I spent a little bit flipping through the vinyl with cold fingers. On the first trip, I grabbed mostly Rev goodies. GB lp on purple, ep on yellow, judge on green, side by side eps, nfaa, soia on red and first press, … You know, the good stuff. A few weeks later, he called and asked if I wanted to buy more. It just so happens that I had gone to Foxwoods the week before and won a weekend poker tourney. I was flush with cash and agreed. At that time, we figured it would just be easier if I bought THE ENTIRE COLLECTION. That’s what I did. Two boxes of EPs and a whole stand of LPs. One of the greatest parts of this collection was getting 16 mint, unplayed copies of Halo In A Haystack. That’s right, 16 copies. I’ve sold 14 of them in the last 8 years and have definitely covered the cost of buying the collection.

That’s right. That means I still have 2 left. So if you are interested in one, hit me up. I’m sure we could work something out. My copy won’t come with a yellowed sleeve, too.

Peep robojamesdean’s other auctions for a few more records.

Here’s the Converge Downpour/ Serial Killer EP on black vinyl. It’s weird, when I think of this one, I always picture the white vinyl. There are ~1000 total 5″s. I’m not sure how they are numbered, I’m guessing randomly between black and white. All the ones I’ve come across have high and low numbers spread across the colors. 1997. Wowza. That makes this slab 13 years old. Not bad. I believe Tre of Deathwish Inc Records does backups on this gem. We love Tre. Go hit up DWI and pick up that merch. Also, if you haven’t grabbed your copy of Jane Doe on limited vinyl, now would be a good time to do that too.

What we have here are TWO different rejected test presses. That’s right. TWO rejected test presses. You can imagine getting the Right Idea lp pressed was something of a headache. If you pre-ordered, I’m sure you recall that headache. Thankfully, Aram kept all of us up to date on the trials and tribulations of this lp.

The final product is ill. And that’s what counts.

Also, lets talk about Jeff Hess’s collection. Dude collects Varsity Jackets. How cool is that? I gotta step up my game there. I don’t mind an old hand me down varsity jacket. Good look. Hard to compete with a dude who has the OG Smorgasbord Jacket and that Youth Of Today – Free At Last jacket. Real, real hard.

This is one of those great releases featuring many Reaper Records bands.

Naysayer, Bad Seed, Absolute Madness, Unforgiven, Brick, and Alpha & Omega

Best bands of 2010, basically.

Next up is the Bad Seed test press from 6131 Records. Another great EP by a great band. Sounds good to me.

They released a few albums on smaller labels (like Aram’s Anchor Records, pre React Records!). And ended up signing to Indecision Records to sell a few EPs and LPs. They did some big tours, but at least on the east coast, they never got the fanfare they deserved. Oh sure, the Tanguays moshed like crazy bastards (or at least Kyle did), but for the most part, it felt like they slipped unnoticed through the east coast. I’m sure it was an all together different story in Seattle and Portland.

Also, lets not forget that one of the dudes in the band is named Eagle Barber. Great name. And a pretty chill dude too. He hooked me up with a big box of tees a while back for a VERY reasonable price. Big fan.

First up, their first release on Anchor Records. Later Anchor Records would release EPs from What Feeds The Fire and almost Verse. Then Aram got super busy touring the world 600 times over with Champion and had to put record labels on the back burner for a bit. But this Stay Gold EP is a fave. This is the regular release.

This is the same EP but with the limited edition record release cover. Limited to 75. Aram is obviously good with packaging, always has been. This one comes with an acetate sleeve AND a vellum sleeve. Clear vinyl too!

Up next is the Caught Up In The Moment EP from Indecision Records. This one dropped in 2001 and was really when Stay Gold seemed to shine. This was the record that kids really wanted. Sadly, most of those kids wanted the record in 2006, instead of when it originally dropped in 2001. Like Van Gogh, they seemed to have got more popular post break up.

If you never got down with Stay Gold, I suggest picking these up. They are worth the listen.

I can’t think of any other reason you would have missed out on this crew.

Seriously.

This band is all about fun. They bring it back like the late 80s. No one takes themselves to seriously, but pride in their actions is apparent. Lots of Straight Edge pride up on this one.

This lot is for the demo pressed on wax. I’m 90% positive it only came on clear and black, and both colors had an equal amount pressed. What’s odd is that the record label is some joint from Florida that I just can’t recall. I honestly would have expected a Western Mass label, but no.

Also, the cover is drawn up by Jay Jacoby. You’ve seen his work before, trust me. Great dude with a good eye (and a steady hand) for what bands want and deserve.

I suggest snapping this up. In about 6 months, you’ll be kicking yourself if you don’t. Trust me on that one.