Author: Hector Zaldivar

Professional magician. @hexzald

ENTER: INFIDEL.

I used to be super harsh on grindcore, death metal, genres like that… Why would anyone want to listen to something that heinous? Or at least, where’s the balance? Not to connect it to anger, because when I listen to that stuff it doesn’t make me angry, but I think after everything I’d been through this music has helped me make peace with it all.

FOUL. OC HXC.

Yo, I’m Marco or Baba whatever y’all wanna call me, but I play drums in Foul. My brothers showed me everything I know about music. They both play in their own bands & don’t get along for reasons, but both of them really have impacted my life.

God Awful – Premeditated.

The hardcore scene has been very welcoming to all of us and it’s brought some amazing people into our lives. The best part about IE hardcore in my opinion is the sense of community. There is always a familiar face at our own shows, and even at shows we attend that we don’t play at. There are so many people we have to thank for constantly showing love and lifting us up. We can only hope to do the same for others and show everyone twice as much love as they show us.

Auditory Anguish – Tragedies of Western Existence.

Goat brought out a small bottle of tequila at like 9AM and said, ‘Whenever I record, time doesn’t exist.’ And he was right – you really didn’t feel the time pass in there. Abe was the first one up and laid out the drums from like 10:30-2 after mic setups, testing, etc, etc. Diego followed with the guitar, Goat followed with the bass, I finished up with the vocals.

SWEET DREAMS, DEAD MEMORIES – MI VIDA LOCA by Jessica Edith Cerda.

Initially, this piece was brainstormed the last week of July 2023 and the pencil didn’t hit the paper till July 28 all the way till August 24, a little under a month of very well-used hours to get this pieced and framed, ready in time. I loved creating this piece and the emotions and memories that came with illustrating sweet dreams, dead memories.

The Family Portrait – Differences. Track by Track.

There was a picture of Jesus on the ceiling that she used to talk to who she thought was her friend. And I’m sure he was… Um, (laugh). But I went to go visit recently, and I saw that my aunt finally took that photo down. I’m 28 now, and I’m still trying to figure out 18 years later how to deal with all this stuff. This project has been such a big help.

Commercialized DIY in Los Angeles. With Fracture.

LA’s becoming pretty commercialized, for sure, as far as the production groups that throw shows. Even the stuff that presents DIY; if you follow the band pages on these bills individually, it’s presented in a very DIY way. ‘Look at our 35mm photos, look at this cool collage-y art thing…’ And the flyers, especially the flyers. It looks so DIY that they’re almost tapping into our scene, you know? And now the standard in this city is a very commercialized DIY, especially in hardcore, for sure. For sure.

Implied Powers in the Greek Ambient Scene – Submersion Records.

Taking the landscape and melancholy quiet of Bulgaria and the direct, hyper political art found in Thessaloniki to make… something. As of writing, I’m still working on what it is, but I got some ideas involving charcoal infused toothpaste and pea soup, and it’s gonna be fucking revolutionary mark my words.

Dreary’s Blueberry Crumble Pie.

Preheat oven to 375°F. In a large bowl, mix berries with granulated sugar. Add cornstarch and salt – mix until berries are coated… Add lemon juice and transfer to an 8×8 square baking dish… In a bowl, beat together butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy…