7 DIY Punk Tapes You Probably Have Slept On

Sweden’s Nagasaki return with a new six-track EP that pushes their familiar råpunk assault into even harsher territory. After a short instrumental intro, the real obliteration begins. The trio blasts into a feedback-drenched hellscape where riffs blur into distortion and drums collapse into frantic, scorched-earth demolition. Both Patrik (guitar) and Nate (bass) growl like they’ve been summoned straight from some blown-out underworld. Their noise is still entrenched in that Shitlickers school of primitive punk, but now dripping with even more reckless brutality. Compared to their debut, this one sounds tighter, but it’s still a reaction against slick production and technical finesse. Everything here is red-raw, brutal, and left to bleed. There’s something that reminds me of Japanese maniacs like Frigöra or Ferocious X, who’ve taken the Swedish sound/language and twisted it into their own noisy nightmares. Only the record’s last track is streaming online for now, but the full EP drops also as a 7-inch via Fucked Noise Sound in Europe and Blown Out Media in the US around the end of September. Nagasaki is an unhinged fucker. Don’t miss this hellish eruption!

The title of Plagöri’s album is a sarcastic take on the never-ending debates in leftist collectives where “the plenum” is the all-hands assembly for consensus-driven decision-making processes. The lyrics, sung in Swiss German dialect, cover militant antifascism, small-town struggles, trans liberation, punk identity, and collective action. Musically, this queer-feminist-antifa band channels melodic deutschpunk in the vein of Slime, Wizo/WTZ, and Knochenfabrik. The standout track, “Assigned Cool At Birth,” comes with some über-cool stickers that arrived with the tape. “Reptiloid Rimoldi” is a direct mockery of Swiss conspiracy theorist Nicolas Rimoldi of the Mass-Voll! movement, “Ächte Punk” brilliantly satirizes macho, nihilist punk posturing, and “Kei Gott, Kei Staat, Keis Zentralkommittee” is a an anti-tankie anthem drawing from the Kronstadt rebellion history. Plagöri also throw in a bit of saxophone and theremin, which adds a kind of synthpunk vibe without actually being synthpunk. It’s post-ironic punk at its best, raging against right-wing bigotry and DIY punk’s own failures, all while holding on to the dream of collective joy and liberation.

Killing Yield’s tape release is a fast, thrashing hardcore punk out of Zagreb, Croatia. Packed to the rafters with riff-heavy 1980s hardcore, it’s driven by a full-throttle dystopian urgency, just like the title promises. Across twelve breakneck tracks, the band delivers dense, cerebral lyrics that take aim at global capitalism, consumerism, militarism, environmental collapse, right-wing conspiracies, and the cold indifference of EU bureaucracy. It’s dark, no holds-barred, and viciously political hardcore for the fucked future we’re already living in. If Killing Yield were from the US, it would be one of those tapes that old-timers are talking about. Instead, it’s a gem flying under too many radars. My only criticism is that the vocals may feel a bit too rushed, and a touch more gruffness would only make it hit harder. If the vocal delivery sounded a bit more like 9 Shocks Terror or Tear It Up, it would be just perfect.

Tokyo’s Thirsty sent me this tape along with their shorter 2024 demo, all the way from Japan, and based on the cover art, I kind of expected a beer-soaked skinhead stomper. While the Oi! influence is definitely there (plus the band’s origin story reportedly came from a shared love of beer), Thirsty are firmly brewed and fermented in the American powerviolence tradition. The demo kicks off with a longer, sludgy instrumental intro before launching into jagged, stop’n’go ferocity that sticks to a rehearsal-demo punk production, crunchy guitar sound, and over-the-top vocals. Speaking of vocals, the tape features guest appearances from none other than Napalm Death’s Barney Greenway on the 9-second blast “Thirsty Pt.2,” a homage to some classic songs on Scum, and even more unexpectedly, Barney features on the cover of Blitz’s “Never Surrender,” which closes the tape and loops right back to the Oi! theme. Japanese bands rarely disappoint, and even when the production’s not the best, the energy and intent are off the charts.

Trench Rot is another hardcore punk ripper out of Sweden, formed in 2024 and already coming out of the shadows with a scorching demo that channels the tried-and-true, no-frills thrashing hardcore formula. The vocals are the glue here. Confident, forceful, and carrying the whole thing with ease, while the riffs lean heavy on Poison Idea-style grip with flashes of blazing Japanese hardcore influence. Unlike political hardcore outfits, they focus on personal despair, burnout, and alienation, though the themes connect strongly to broader systemic pressures: overwork, conformity, isolation, and rage at life’s futility. The horror imagery in “Prowl” breaks up the realism but still ties back to the central mood of anger as survival instinct. A fierce and focused debut.

Трън (translating to “thorn”) is a young Bulgarian doomy screamo band who released their debut EP in 2024. The tape consists of one long lyrical narrative divided into three tracks (“I”, “II” and “III”) with a total duration of just over 13 minutes. The band shifts between classic screamo parts and darker, more monumental doom metal elements, with samples and drones aiding to the bleak atmosphere. The EP was recorded live and it really feels like it, especially in the vocal delivery, but that only adds to the raw and genuine appeal of the whole thing. It’s dark, melancholic, and carries a strong DIY vibe. Personally, I’d love to hear a bit more blackened elements and faster emoviolence parts too, something closer to the older Italian band Thorn, which their name immediately reminded me of. Трън aren’t on Bandcamp, so if you want to grab the tape, just message them directly on Instagram.

I must admit, Them’uns has to be one of the smartest band names I’ve seen recently. Besides the obvious play on “them” in English and “uns” in German, in Ulster, “them’uns” refers to “the others.” An attempt of rekindling a radical creole identity and a revalorization of the revolutionary traditions of those who’ve landed in this part of the world over the past five centuries. On their debut tape, this duo from various nowhere towns in County Antrim in Ireland bring a riotous mash of rave, punk, and synth, all played with analogue synthesizers and electronic drums. Simple 808 beats twisted through DIY circuitry. No laptops, no drum machines. Long involved in the do-it-together, anarcho-punk, and political circles, their lyrics drip with classic UK old geezer sarcasm while still fighting the good fight. “Soylent Blueblood (Ethical Cannibalism)” gives the slogan “eat the rich” a dancefloor-ready twist, and “Fuck Cars (Gary Numan on Yer Bike Mate)” turns an old new wave classic into an anti-car, pro-bike anthem. If this hits right, check out other rave punk acts like Killdren and Scottish Gabber Punk. Rave punk might be on a roll!

P.S. Their 2022 video for “Soylent Blueblood” features plenty of familiar DIY Conspiracy stickers.