HARDCORE, PUNK, SKA AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN IN PORTUGAL (1/5 )

Encontrei hoje um texto que sinto ser meu dever partilhar com vocês! Apesar de ser em Inglês, foi escrito por Luís Martins para o site http://www.poisonfree.com ( pelo menos foi ai que o encontrei ).

De notar que este Scene Report consiste quase num texto "histórico" uma vez que desde o tempo em que este texto foi escrito já muita coisa mudou na cena Hardcore Nacional!

Não deixando de dar o devido valor ao que foi escrito devo antemão dizer que o texto revela a opinião do seu autor que não tem que ser necessariamente igual à minha!


Assim sendo segue em seguida a primeira parte deste texto, que se debruça essencialmente sobre a presença do hardocre na Margem Sul!

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HARDCORE, PUNK, SKA AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN IN PORTUGAL

by Luis Martins

This is a scene report about Portugal so, first of all, I believe it may be important to take into account the country's social and geographical reality... Portugal is a small country in the far-west of Europe... it has about 10 million inhabitants and its capital and biggest city is Lisbon with about a million inhabitants. Other major cities are Oporto in the north, Faro at the, in the far-south and Coimbra, between Lisbon and Oporto... Guess it would be easier if you check a map...

Anyway, in order to talk about the scene I must explain something important in the portuguese geography, a zone called "Marg em Sul" (in English: "South Side" or "South Bank"). This is because just across River Tagus that run s along Lisbon a huge urban area developed along the years as a result of the industrialization and the ports in the mouth of Tagus (where Lisbon is). Margem Sul is separated from the capital by 3 km of river and developed as a result of constant immigration from the poor rural areas of the country and was mainly a working class zone, a suburb of Lisbon and still now most of the habitant s of Margem Sul (MS) work in the capital. In the recent years MS population kept growing also as a result of the settlement here by young people that look for cheaper houses - many "yuppie" just-married couples among them... The main town in this region is Almada, that has about 200 000 inhabitants... No need to say that it was in Lisbon and its suburbs/outskirts like Margem Sul that the Portuguese hardcore/punk scene flourished, as well as in Oporto (second largest town in Portugal) and its suburbs...

some show @ Incrivel in Almada some years ago… (photo by Cameraman Metalico)

So, here we go, on to the scene itself (I'll translate in brackets stuff in Portuguese like band's names and stuff):

Starting with the MS Hardcore bands there are some stuff I feel I need to say... First of all I must say that although I've a lways lived in Almada and I love my town I'm what can be described as disappointed with the so-called MS Hardcore scene, and I guess a scene report shall have stuff like this opinions in it.. one's feelings about "the scene"... I personally think that MS scene is a bit "over-inspired" by the NYHC and stuff like Madball, Skarhead or Agnostic Front... It's kind of a thug-core scene in it's overall appearance. It must be said that MS concerts hold the reputation for being the most aggressive and violent of all the Portuguese Hardcore scene. Personally, I believe it lacks something in the MS scene, something I cannot define. It is all more or less about the "unity" and "respect" cliché. And I use the word cliché because here, unity is only among people from Margem Sul (and even that is lacking now...). When it comes to support bands from elsewhere or straight edge bands, the "unity" is soon forgotten... Also, here the concerts and the attitude evolves a bit too much around smoking pot and drinking beer and cheap wine. It certainly lacks a "deep" message and what should be "controlled aggression" in the pit soon degenerates into violence and disrespect... But, after all, things are getting better, with less vandalism, a bit less aggression and more respect even if the MSHC Unity spirit seem to be fading if it hasn't disappeared for good, really... And well, have it really existed, anyway? Wasn't it just an "imitation" of NYHC?... Some have that opinion... But, after all, it was the "scene" where I grew up and the bands and gigs I grew up listening and going to and after all, there are great bands here! Hardcore bands from Margem Sul:

LAST HOPE and 69 BALLS: two of the oldest and more typical MSHC bands playing good Hardcore Punk. I just don't know what else to say about this bands... just that they are my favourite MS Hardcore bands and the "purest" because they were formed when it still made sense to talk about a true MSHC family (?)... They rock! You still can feel the strength and the emotion at the LAST HOPE gigs when it comes the shouting of the "Last Hope! South Side! We'll never sleep and never die, M.S. Hardcore, We can't sleep anymore!!" lines of the "MS Hardcore" song from the "Spirit Of Unity" album..........

Lately, new bands appeared like CIRROZE (Cirrhosis), CALL TO POWER, KRYOUT, WORD WEAPON... playing typical Hardcore and trying to re-ignite the MSHC spirit but in my personal opinion, although they rock hard it just don't sound the same it's just more Hardcore, highly influenced by the likes of Biohazard, Madball, Skarhead, 25 Ta Life or Agnostic Front... More new Hardcore bands in Margem Sul are NOT WITHOUT FIGHTING and DEADLY MIND that chose a more new school sound... Other more-or-less new band in MS is CAMPO MINADO (Mined Field) that play an excellent blend of Punk and Hardcore. I guess it's the best band around playing Punk-Core, this side of the river...

HUMAN CHOICE is also an older MS band from the "golden age" of MSHC. Two vocals: male and female (with a second male vocal sometimes) and a sound that ranges from the typical New School Hardcore to the Emo Core or Screamo. Whatever... they are hard to describe in terms of sound but I can't deny their importance in some years of my life... They are linked to the SXE attitude that spread trough MS and brought onto the stages bands like HUMAN CHOICE, RENEWLL and SHOAL, for instance...

SHRAPNEL and SEVEN TEN SPLIT are two bands that even if sometimes described as Hardcore, have a more Metal influence. SHRAPNEL play a good mixture of Metalcore, Hardcore and Crossover influenced by the likes of Hatebreed and Metal bands... SEVEN TEN SPLIT play some kind of Rock-Hardcore-Metal...

I believe it's really important to mention two awesome MS bands that highly influenced all the HC bands, here, that appeared prior to them... ACT OF ANGER, who played memorable shows and highly marked those who were "in the scene" when they were still around... they broke up in early 2000 if I'm not mistaken... NEWT is the other band... pioneers in the MSHC scene they marked and fought for the affirmation of the MSHC reality, together with LAST HOPE, at least that's what it appears to me... they went separate ways late 2002, at least for the time being... Other important no longer existent band was called SOUTHBREED.

Well, despite all the differences that may exist in terms of sound all this bands usually play together... MS will always be regarded as the Hardcore zone and will have the reputation for aggressive pits and lots of booze... Sometimes I feel it's a pity but anyway... it's kind of a "trade mark" and we have great bands here and awesome gigs!...