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Here’s a crucial slice of early NYHC, No Thanks “Are You Ready To Die” on red vinyl. Though the seller seems to think it’s a mis-press, it’s seen around from time to time, but is definitely more rare than the black vinyl. According to the band’s singer there were 5,000 pressed on red, which is impossible given how infrequently you see it.

So it was sometime in 2005 and I was on tour with Mind Eraser. As it was the first tour I’d ever booked, it was quite poorly done, and by that I mean, the dates were a total clusterfuck. As such we had a day off in Berkley which shouldn’t be a place you have trouble finding a show. At any rate though, it happened, and somehow (I don’t remember how) Cooch got word that the singer of No Thanks, Donna Damage had surfaced in Berkley and had been on the internet claiming to want to do a reissue of their elusive 7″ E.P., and even to have original unplayed copies. An email was sent, and miraculously a reply came from Ms. Damage that we should meet her that afternoon at her apartment. I felt like one of those punk rock detectives on the Break My Face website. When we showed up Donna was there with her roommate, a former member of a later lineup of No Thanks as well as her metal band Navigator (they have a demo that reminds me of  Détente , another female fronted metal group). They were both definitely in the Berkley hippie mode, and offered to get us stoned, which of course we politely declined because being straight edge is cool. Without missing a beat, she offered us some carrot cake instead (it was not “space cake”). I wish this happened more often, but it’s the only time in my life that it has. Usually people just get bummed I don’t want to get fried. Fucking jerks I say…

The cake was delicious and following that Donna pulled out a box full of photos from hardcore’s early days on the Lower East Side. There were also a few cassette tapes, and yes, a handful of copies of No Thanks’ “Are You Ready To Die”. We flipped through the photos for a while. Early pictures of the Nihilistics and the Undead, a shot of teenage Harley Flannegan, maybe some early Sonic Youth or Agnostic Front shots, great material. As we rummaged Donna told us stories about living on the Lower East Side during the first hardcore era and stop to note things like “that’s my old living room” in photos. She played us the No Thanks demo (which is absolutely killer, and possibly the fastest hardcore released in ‘81), and told us about the troubled release of their 7″. The engineer didn’t like the band or take them seriously, the original front cover art was lost or destroyed, the label was sketchy with their treatment of the band, etc. All the usual shit. After an hour or two we thought it might be time to make an exit, we’d made plans to further discuss doing a reissue of the 7″ and demo after tour (eventually this got bounced to Gloom records, before finally coming out last year on Lengua Armada), and I politely enquired about purchasing one of her copies of the 7″, which at that point was already a 3-digit item. Donna instead offered to give me a copy, and then offered one to Cooch too. In probably the least selfish moment of his life he declined, saying he already had one. Immediately I could read the collector scum remorse on his face, but it was too late.

As soon as we got in the car the first thing he said was “I can’t believe I turned down a free copy”. I’m sure I said something like “yea what the fuck is wrong with you”. Still we were psyched on our experience, and at that point anyway were looking forward to the first reissue on Painkiller. Of course that never happened, and basically every other reissue we’ve attempted has been foiled in some way since. “Wahhhh”.

Regardless No Thanks were a great early hardcore band. I think they’re probably most similar to the punky scuzz of Urban Waste, but a little heavier in terms of protest lyrics and politics. Donna is probably one of the hardest female singers I’ve ever heard. Absolutely great vocals. Ladies take note: sing like this in a band instead of trying to copy Penelope Houston. Are there any females even reading this blog?

Hey real talk - pick up the lp reissue of this stuff on Lengua Armada, it’s well done and worth your time if you dig early NYHC.