I was saddened by the announcement Razorblade made saying they were going to call it a day at the end of 2015. I did not realize how important their music has become to me until I realized I may be with out new material very soon. Through the dark days of the early 2000's, when there was very little really Oi! music, to the new explosion of boot boy bands, Razorblade has been there. Uncompromising in their sound and attitude. It is easy to be a ultra catchy Oi! band. The sound is safe and everyone likes songs to swell beer to, get drunk and forget the world. Razorblade chose the brickwall sound. A sound that is hard to swallow, harder to forget, and even harder to keep interesting. Brickwall is the sound that has always stuck with me. As trends and crossover sounds cultivate street punk (from Oi!, Oi! & roll, mod Oi!, sugar Oi!, soul Oi!, so on and so forth) the heavy sound of brickwall Oi! stands firm. Razorblade not only fought the good fight, but made the most iconic albums of the brickwall style. They took the sound of C84 and the 4-Skins, blended in Dutch beer, and added unyielding creativity. They broke the mold and re-cast it on every album. The limits and pitfalls of the genre, that plague some bands, seem to have skipped Razorblade. They added groove through their rhythms. On albums like Days Of Glory, the band added melody and touches of rock & roll. Each album and single set the bar higher and higher. Looking back on their catalog, what stands out most to me is the fact that the band grew with every release.
The band was more then just a heavy sound. The lyrics and meaning of songs are sometimes forgotten. Do not sleep on the great song writing of this band. Songs about the Dutch revolution on the album "My Name Is Vengeance". "Fighting The System" on "Days Of Glory". "Black Flags" on the "Shitting Out Nails" E.P. just to name a few.
The band also delivers songs about your culture with passion and soul. "The Getaway" on "Days Of Glory," "Daily Grind" "My name Is Vengeance," "Put In The Boot", Having A Laugh," both from the self titled album, "Skinheads Are Back" from the aptly titled "Skinheads Are Back" lp.
What I love about these guys is they have a laugh and a say. The laugh part is always very important to me. Razorblade is great at joking around with songs about themselves and drunken anthems like, "#1 Hit Machine," "Shitting Out Nails," "Wolves In Sheep's Clothing," "Let's Get Drunk," and "Singing And Dancing" to name a few.
I do not always know what Oi! means. And I can not always define what it is to others. I know what I want Oi! to mean and that is what Razorblade has given me all theses years. All I have left to say is thank you. I am excited to see them at Midwest Live & Loud and excited for the last releases. This is a band that left their boot print on our scene and culture.
- Lars Oi! Brains of the operation. Bitter, jaded asshole. Master of drunken mayhem and spewing opinions that will only offend.
"Backstreet stories, urban glory.
Can you feel the power?
Living days of victory.
Up to our final hour.
(Chorus)-
It's the sound of love and hate.
These are songs of pride.
And long lost authenticity,
before we fade into the night.
Warriors" - Lyrics "Warriors"
I realize that Razorblade is still alive and destroying ears around the world. This isn't meant to be a eulogy for the band, but with the announcement that they are calling it a day at the end of 2015, we here at Oi! of America thought we take a second and give our readers a little insight to what the band means to us. If you're not familiar with Razorblade, stop reading this, go to YouTube, type in "Razorblade oi," sit back, and listen. As a side note, make sure you add the "oi" part otherwise you're going to get some weird shit. If you like what you hear, go buy their albums. They're easily accessible and well worth the investment.
I know it's hard to image a time without plentiful Oi releases, but if anyone cares to think back to the years between 2002-2009, there was a severe shortage of short hair music being produced. Wouter, Razorblade, and Rebellion Records have kept the flame alive through thick and thin for the last 14 years. I'll admit it, I didn't really care for Razorblade the first time I heard them. I'm drawn to more melodic bands and the guttural brickwall sound wasn't always up my alley. It wasn't until I got my hands on a copy of "Skinheads Are Back" in 2007 (about 3 years after its initial release) that I realized what I had been missing. I was dumbfounded that a band I had written off was actually much, MUCH better than I had initially thought. A potent combination of Motörhead, Condemned 84, and Sheer Terror was pumping out of my speakers and making a fool out of me. How could I have over looked them? Well, we all make mistakes, right?
Since then, I've kept a keen eye on these Dutch Oi heavyweights. Each release has outdone the last and the band has only gotten better with age. Razorblade has honed a tough as nails, brickwall sound that doesn't envelop their listeners, it crashes down upon them like a sonic tidal wave. If you think Razorblade is all style and no substance, you are sorely mistaken. Wouter has taken the time over the years to write songs that cover a wide range of topics. From the light hearted, "Shitting Out Nails," to songs with an air of contempt, "Techno Kids" to pure, chest thumping anthems, "Warriors," Razorblade isn't a one trick, genre cliché band. They are, to me and the rest of the staff, number 1 boot boy rock stars and to see them go will, no doubt, be a blow to the worldwide skinhead community.
If you think 2014's "My Name Is Vengeance" was Razorblade's swan song, you're sorely mistaken. They are contributing 3 songs to the next installment of Rebellion's Oi! Ain't Dead series and there's one more Razorblade release scheduled for 2015. If you're in Europe, they are playing a few shows in the Netherlands and one in Germany. According to the band, there will be 1 or 2 farewell shows at some point as well. If you're a Razorblade fan in the U.S., there is one place where you can see them in 2015. It's the same place where you can see Slapshot, Booze & Glory, Duffy's Cut, Brass Tacks, etc. Where is that, you may ask? Well, Midwest Live & Loud, of course! Don't miss your chance to get pummeled by one of the best bands of the last 15 years before they call is quits.
--Jerry Writer for Oi! of America. Bringer of smarts and wise cracks, lover of tacos.
Razorblade=Brickwall Fucking Oi
Shitting Out Nails-Days Of Glory-My Name Is Vengeance-Skinheads Are Back-Spreading Fear....
The sound of thunder, words of war, pride, warriors. Razorblade was a band that gave back the things it was given. A band that marched to the beat it produced and lived the words they wrote. True blue Brickwall. Melody and Integrity. Vocals of a barbarian...drums that sound like the Odin preparing for battle...guitars that are a buzzsaw. Words that I will take to my grave. Truly an incredible band from start to finish. A band that many will use as a blueprint. A band that makes me wanna stomp skulls and drink heavily. Sad to see em go, but at the same time honored to send them out in the only way a Skinhead knows how at Live and Loud in Milwaukee this year. Cheers for the years goes to Razorblade and the music they gave to the scene, when other bands got softer, they got heavier and kept the music in the streets were it belongs.
RAZORBLADE FOREVER, FOREVER RAZORBLADE
SFFS
"Long time from now when your old and alone, and all of this is nothing but an old story, years from now when your strength has fade away, will you still remember your days of glory"
- Jon P. Singer of Doom Hammer and writer for Oi! of America. Bringer of drunken over eating that lead to funny selfies!
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