With The Quickness #17: Will Butler's O.G. Winamp Playlist Full of Grindcore, Fastcore & Powerviolence Selections (To Live A Lie Records)

To Live A Lie (TLAL) Records is a Raleigh, North Carolina-based Fast Hardcore, Grindcore, and Powerviolence label founded by Will "Fastcore" Butler. Since forming in 2005, To Live A Lie has released recordings by ACxDC/Antichrist Demoncore, DROPDEAD (only distribution,) Eddie Brock, Escuela Grind, FAIM, GEL, Marxbros, Peace Test, Regional Justice Center, Sick Sh*t, Travølta, and more. Additionally, Will Butler has a few of his own bands signed to TLAL, including Christ Violence, Don Garnelli, No Comply, and Tired of Everything, and was once part of now-defunct projects Iron Crow, Oxidant, and The Dead Body Men. We've recently been in contact with Will concerning a number of releases we persoanlly ordered and wrote about, namely HARD FOUL / THESE BASTARDS' self-titled split EP on on newly-reinvigorated 625 Thrashcore. So, when putting together installments of our onging Punk playlist column, With The Quickness, for 2021, we figured why not reach out to Will for a Grindcore/Powerviolence-leaning curated playlist? So, without further ado, below, you have Will Butler's O.G. Winamp Playlist along with some blurbs about the selections within from the man himself.


"Hey, all. Will [Butler] from To Live A Lie/Tired of Everything here. Matt asked me to put together a Spotify playlist of Grindcore/Powerviolence/Noise/etc. but what I really have for you today is excerpts from my O.G. Winamp playlist that I imported into Spotify and, then, cherry-picked. Let's jump in: First, is a crushing song by [Regional Justice Center] about Ian [Shelton] meeting his real dad and his sorry excuse for having a KKK tattoo. Next, is a ripper of an Anti Cimex song, not the album I normally would have played, but some of this old Punk isn't normalized well for Spotify, so you get a "slower" Rock Cimex, much more like the Disfear song later. Avail is a curveball, but a band I grew up seeing and can fit in to a great Punk playlist, if you're careful; Dixie songs, like "Clone" or "Model," would be a better choice, but the chorus on this one is great."


"Career Suicide to up the snottiness, since I shouldn't play Screeching Weasel. R.I.P. Brandon [Ferrell,] who I saw play for them the last time I saw them play. A good Punk list needs Anarcho Punk, [especially,] during these crazy times. So, I picked a Conflict song that is, honestly, a less familiar one to me, but is off my playlist. Minor Threat on a playlist seems overdone, so we have Dag Nasty. "Powerload" by Disfear is on the list, but seems to not play for me, for some reason, but is a crucial Rock Discrust anthem. Despise You brings the West Coast Graffiti 'violence. This Disrupt song is one of the best songs ever—the message and sample for Animal Rights is immediately important. Electro Hippies because I don't think Larm or Neos is [on] Spotify and you need that speedy stuff that inspired all of my favorite Fastcore [bands]."


"Gouge Away is way more "modern" compared to the whole list, but good modern Hardcore. Government Issue takes us back in time, R.I.P. John Stabb. Jerry's Kids for the 80's Boston Hardcore you'd expect me to play. Another curveball that makes sense to me is Kid Dynamite, which gives you that fast snotty modern sound, this is another sing-songy song, like the Avail one earlier. Angel Du$t keep up the snot and groove. Back to old Punk with some [North Carolina] rippers, R.I.P. Reid Mullen. For some reason, my player is skipping the Flux [of Pink Indians] song, but it's crucial and fits right next to Zounds. Weird/fun/depressing UK Anarcho music hits the spot sometimes. Another favorite song ever is "Requiem" by Killing Joke—doesn't sound like a "Punk" song exactly, but could fit in a New Wave/Dark Wave playlist, but it binds my love for big songs and has almost an Industrial plus Pop Rock feel to it."


"[To] wake us back up, we have Mellakka with ripping Finnish Dis-worship. Back to The US with Urban Waste; totally crucial 80's Hardcore Punk you've seen bootlegged over and over. No good Punk playlist skips Poison Idea and I'll pick Pick Your King or Feel The Darkness songs all day. Off to Portugal with Ratos de Porao, who I've, luckily, seen live! Our last country, we have Razor's Edge from Japan; pure fast, snotty, and very 2000's/late 90's fast Thrashcore-style Punk. Back to [the] 80's for the rest here, D.I. as seen in Suburbia, with their second most crucial song. Followed by Angry Samoans with a much more early Punk[-sounding] catchy song. This may be 90's and not 80's, but Youth of Today's Ray Capo with Shelter and one of the harder songs by the group. [Articles of Faith] with some fast Punk."


"Siege with a song you've probably seen covered many times and sticks out as harder than a lot of what I've played. Last, is one of my favorite EP's, Thou Shalt Not Kill, by Antidote—catchiest song on the whole album and closes out our O.G. Will Butler Winamp tour. I purposefully skipped anything on my label, but stay tuned to TLAL for your Powerviolence & Grindcore fix and, hopefully, Tired of Everything will get back together when COVID gets more under control and can write a full-length is the real goal for us. Hope you've enjoyed what you hear here!"

- Will (@tolivealie)