Faultline

Faultline was a outspoken political straight edge hardcore band from Connecticut. They played metallic new school hardcore, with lyrics dealing with various issues of sociopolitical and environmental nature. For whatever reason this band seemed to never have gotten the recognition they deserved. Maybe they were too political for the crowd that could appreciate their mosh/chugga chugga style, and too 'tough' for the more PC crowd that could appreciate their lyrics and politics? Who knows... What I do know is that they were awesome. The self-titled 7" was released on Alliance Records in 1994/1995 and is a great example of how politics and chugga chugga don't bite. I believe this 7" was first released on Faultline's own Earth House Records tho? It's got some good mid-tempo chugga chugga parts, combined with the heartfelt vocals that were such an important part of Faultline's sound. It's a shame my copy of this 7" doesn't have the insert, which I assume did come with it originally, I would love to read the lyrics more properly.

In 1996 the follow up to the 7" was released as a split release between the awesome Endless Fight Records and Earth House Records. The 'Roots Of The Rape Culture' CD brought a more refined sound. It continued the in the same vein as the 7", and there were still chugga chugga/mosh parts, but the band had incorporated a few more influences, and the vocals had a slightly more hiphop-like delivery. There are also 2 spoken words tracks on here, to reiterate the political nature of the band. It is an awesome album, with some really great and intense lyrics which are definitely worth a read.

There's not that much information about Faultline online, so I don't know what else they released besides this 7" and the 'Roots Of The Rape Culture' CD. I do have a couple of compilations they appeared on, altho with tracks from the 'Roots Of The Rape Culture' CD so no additional tracks/recordings unfortunately. These comps include the 3rd installment of the Over The Edge compilations which I blogged about here as well as the 'Youth For Justice' comp CD on Earth House Records on which they contributed 2 Faultline tracks as well as a few spoken words tracks by the singer. I ripped these spoken words tracks for those who are interested in them. If anybody has any more information about this underrated band, please share! Enjoy!

Here's a vid of them performing 'Separate' from the 7" at a show:

Faultline - s/t 7"
Faultline - Roots Of The Rape Culture CD
John Faultline's spoken words tracks from 'Youth For Justice' comp CD