Askance and Contagen…

I probably won't update the site again until the end of next week because I have a bunch of days off work and don't want to spend them on a fucking computer, so I'm gonna drop a double shot of obscure old bands from my area in the meantime. First up is Askance, and I don't really know much about this band at all since I didn't get this 7" until several years after they folded. I was just starting to really get into hardcore in the early-90's anyway, so by the time I was even aware that Askance had existed the EP was already pretty damn hard to find. Aside from a couple of compilation appearances in 1992/1993, "You'll Never Be the Mannequin" was the band's only release, which came out on the Catheter Assembly label in 1993. For anyone who cares, Catheter Assembly was started by at least one member of Avail, and 13 years ago the label's P.O. Box was coincidentally in the same post office where I've been receiving mail for like 10 years now... so there's some useless trivia for you.

Askance was definitely a unique sounding band (largely due to the vocals), but musically the material does have that recognizably "90's sound" where it's not straightforward hardcore, but it's definitely not metal, nor is it particularly emo, even though influences from all three genres can be picked out in the dissonance of the riffing. The drumming on this record is fuckin' stellar as well, there are loads of slick fills and a lot of the playing is based solely on feel, so it's flashy enough to really make a difference without going over the top. I also always loved this style of guitar work, and still do: I can't wrap my head around the fact that almost no damn bands have carried this vibe over into the present. What gives? Lyrically this stuff was definitely dealing in the socio-political realm, though the personal insight element was driven home by loads and loads of explanatory text within the packaging. Hopefully some of you will appreciate this, though I imagine the younger crowd might turn up their noses to all this stuff. I apologize for the number of little vinyl "pops and clicks" in the tracks, but hey, it's a 13-year-old 7", what can you do, you know?

1. "We Stole This"
2. "Clench"
3. "In Theory and in Treatment"
4. "Premeditated"

The band members were only credited by their first names in the 7", but as far as lineup connections go I believe guitarist Matt Rankin had played on Four Walls Falling's self-titled 7" a year earlier, while he and vocalist Jimmy Anthony later formed Contagen (see below). If any collector types are interested in tracking down a copy of this 7" for themselves, there's actually one fairly inexpensive copy on eBay right now. But once that's gone? Good luck! This was one of the harder EP's I ever persisted to obtain in my day, so...

I don't know all that much about Contagen either, but their sole album, "Dioroma", was recorded in mid-1994, so I assume Askance sort of morphed into this band with a couple of lineup changes at some point. This one was on Watermark, but I'm not sure if it was actually released in 1994 or 1995. Either way, at the time I bought this simply because the band was local and I knew basically what kind of music it was going to be. It was actually because of Contagen that I learned of Askance and started searching for the above 7", and if you want more random bullshit information: After I bought "Dioroma" I realized that I had gone to high school with Contagen's drummer. Go figure.

Anyway, Contagen sounded very similar to (though in my opinion better than) Askance, just a little more diverse musically (heavier and darker, I guess you could say), while the lyrics were a little more abstract and intricate. There are actually some great lyrics on this album, come to think of it. The vocals had also become even more distinct at this point in terms of the "Into Another factor" (that's not a comparison, just a general reference to high-pitched singing that's somewhat of an acquired taste), so I'm sure a few people checking out these tracks are gonna bitch about that. But for me the only minor setback here is that I always wished the recording on this record was a little stronger. The mastering is pretty damn quiet for one thing, and the bass tone is overly dense. I really dig the presence of the basslines in the mix, but since they lack clarity it kind of messes with the overall balance. It's about what you'd expect from this kind of thing with regard to its age, and it actually does sound fairly decent all things considered, but I've often wondered if this material would be better received were the production slightly different... because at its best this album nails the fucking songwriting. There are a couple of absolute gems on this thing that have really stuck with me over the years—namely the impeccable title track.

Contagen "Dioroma"
Contagen "Deserving"
Contagen "Graded Earth"

I actually didn't think it would be all that hard to find a few used copies of this CD to link to, but damn... I'm not really seeing anything out there from a source I'd feel comfortable recommending!? Oh well, I guess this is a rarer find than I would've expected these days. I'm suddenly quite glad that no unfortunate circumstances have befallen my copy over the years...