Over a month back I heard that FUGAZI was releasing a series of live recordings from a cross selection of their career. Three volumes I received from 1993, 1995 and 1997 arrived in what appeared to be homemade CD cases on CD-Rs. Obviously the cut-rate price of $8 and $10 (for 2-CD sets) keeps material quality at a minimum and I also assumed this allows the band to only produce as many copies of each show as necessary to fill orders. This DIY aesthetic translates to the sound quality too.

On the website, www.fugaziliveseries.com, the group explains that each disc is straight from the live recording with no edits and no mastering. This means you don't hear any fake tricks like mega-bands often use, but it also means the audience isn't hearing the best possible live recording. In the end the sound is equal to some of the better soundboard bootlegs that have circulated for years, freely, among fans and tapers.

The only thing that might get fans that are already interested in live FUGAZI shows to buy these discs, is to get an official source from the band. But the lack of quality artwork (every disc has the same cover and inset photos as well as basic black type) or mastering of the tapes might make buyers a bit burned.

All that aside the music and power that defined FUGAZI as one of the best live acts of the 1990s is perfectly preserved in these rough-edged recordings. Some offer less than stellar transitions between songs, most are flawless. On occasion the vocals are very low in the soundboard's mix and the guitars distort wildly. These aren't good things for audiophiles' ears, but they are more or less what anyone in an audience would've been hearing. There is an honesty here that even those that say the band was too political or self-righteous can't deny. I'm just glad the band was smart enough to keep a tape rolling all those years. Now if they just mastered a few of them for us.

Indie Pick of the week

It is almost impossible to explain how many albums I receive these days that are in this new indie-rock/hardcore/metal genre that seems to be the only new music on Earth. There is no reasonable explanation why every kid from Southern California to Southern Florida is playing the same music in their garage. That's why getting a dark and moody looking disc from Epitaph called SCATTER THE ASHES didn't surprise me.

However, I was pleasantly taken aback that the first track "Caesura" had a dramatic introduction, with a slower tempo, almost classic guitar riff and a moody singer to top it off. Clearly Epitaph is investing in a band that has more to it than a bad name. It's easy to liken the band to a number of varied influences, but it's better to note that when they meld them together drums start to conjure images of clocks ticking in a way PINK FLOYD could never have imagined. Unfortunately like many of today's up and coming acts in this genre, singer Daryl Stamps reverts to screaming too frequently when his actual singing voice isn't half bad. Tracks like "Division" would be great if stamps just refrained from screaming the few seconds between pleasant vocals. Then perhaps SCATTER THE ASHES would be a plain old hard rock band we all could enjoy.

Throughout Devout/The Modern Hymn resemblances to THURSDAY came to mind, but in the end it was the unique production, atmosphere and solid playing that kept breaking up any monotony. The drums pounded fast and fervently but not in any rehashed nod to thrash metal or hardcore punk. Guitarist James Robert Farmer is equally skilled and gets to free reign on many tracks leaving the established framework of standard songwriting. These diversions and eccentricities make SCATTER THE ASHES an easy group to like.

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