BIOGRAPHY
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dan-drums/vox.........
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matt-guitar/vox.......
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tom-bass/vox .....
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brent-guitar
what: squalora is the result of a
lifetime of anxiety attacks and moodswings;
full-on machete-core destruction formerly known as ASS-END OFFEND (imported from
missoula, montana). we
began in 1999, endeavored numerous tours throughout the us as
well as a tour in eastern europe, and
we released many records on poisoned candy records and wantage
usa. after our temporary demise, two
of us (dan and matt) formed momentarily
with dave parsons (from such great bands as disgruntled nation,
humpy, sasshole) to play a few shows
under the name NAZGUL before we all made the move out to this community
we refer to back home as "west missoula".
so this is our reanimated concoction
of heavy, fast, slow, pissed-off distortion; we are dedicated
to diy culture and we love playing house
shows so let's go deaf together!
how:
squalora sounds like a cross between getting stabbed in
the ear with a rusty sickle, having an aneurysm while being run
over by a gravel truck, and all your favorite hits from the 80's
played backwards, full of subliminal messages. we're
talkin' spandex, hairspray and leg warmers drenched in
fucking blood from stomping on the heads of riot cops in the streets
of portland! woohoo!
why: we are a band because we share common interests, or to
be more exact, common frustrations with this sick world we're
all forced to be a part of. this music
is made for the therapeutic release that is achieved in the process.
there is something comforting about having
someone scream in your face for 30 minutes. it
reminds us that not all communication needs to be made through
these superficial computer screens!
also
see: 2005 US/EURO-SMASH TOUR DIARY
Ass-End Offend
was a four-piece DIY hardcore punk troop from the small town wastelands
of Northwest Montana... A state that hosts one of the nations
biggest federal Superfund clean-up sites (Butte's Berkeley Pit
and Libby's asbestos for starters) and more casino/bar/restaurants
than you could fit onto the Unabomber's shitlist! Razed on a scurrilous
diet of 80's and more modern punk sounds, AEO threw together their
own raucous mix of hardcore that has been deemed by some as "harsh",
melodic at times, and "gloomy with a metallic tinge".
Ass-End Offend's damage report includes four 7" EP's and
one full length CD/LP, plus 3 full U.S. tours, a handful of west
coast trips, and a tour through Eastern Europe.
TO MAKE A SHORT STORY LONGER...
Brent has
been involved in the Montana scene the longest, he was in Disgruntled
Nation, who self released a ton of records and were the first
MT punk band to do a US tour (that I know of). Tom was in a band
in Kalispell called the Vagrants, Dan was in the Miscreants (also
from kalispell), I was in The Anti Difrancos & Venal i.V.
here in Missoula. After their bands broke up they got together
to start Ass-End Offend sometime in '99. In the spring of 2001
they recorded the material that was released in 2002 as 'Becoming
Our Destruction' EP and the split EP with The Anti Difrancos.
The Anti Difrancos played a lot of shows with Ass-End Offend before
I joined, including a west coast tour and a later trip to seattle.
The Anti Difrancos quit when our drummer moved to south Korea
to teach English. So I was suckered into playing with AEO sometime
in 2002 and we soon released another EP "Welcome to the Discomfort
Zone". Tom and Dan moved to Missoula, and Brent is still
in Kalispell (this has always made practicing interesting).
That winter '02/’03 we did another west coast tour and froze
our asses off. There was a layer of ice on the floor of the Suburban
and we got stuck in some bad snow storms. One night we had to
sleep in the Suburban in a parking lot; i ended up passing out
on the floor and woke up the next morning with my clothes stuck
to the ice. We somehow made it through that tour and went on to
do a full US tour the summer of '03. We got to play so many fun
shows and meet and stay with really fun people. We played in NYC
and stayed with our friend at the C squat. total culture shock.
We broke down in the middle of nowhere (Brownsville,TN) and had
to get the transmission rebuilt, but managed to finish the tour.
The next spring (2004) we drove down to SF and recorded with Tim
Green for our release with Wäntage USA records "Character
Assassins". We did another US summer tour to support that,
managed to make it without breaking down again. All the previous
releases were released under my DIY label 'Poisoned Candy Records'.
I also released a compilation CD of old and new Montana punk rock
called "Welcome to Montana...Come die with us". I've
always thought that the demos that these bands only made a few
copies of should have been heard by everyone. Most of these great
recordings are sitting in their basements rotting. ...Anyways,
to move on, Brent has been running a website "www.mtpunk.com"
which has played a major role in keeping the montana scene organized.
Two of us are parents- Brent has a 12 year old daughter, and I
have a 9 year old daughter. That has always made things interesting,
especially when we have to tour!
This spring (2005) we did a west coast tour and stopped in Portland
to record with Mike Lastra, then released it as our new EP "Unchecked
Aggression", and left for two months through the U.S., Poland,
Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, & Czech Republic. It
was very inspiring to experience the way they run things over
there. They are totally committed. I’m still not sure why
we came home! We temporarily broke up soon after returning home
and have since made our escape from Montana to reform as SQUALORA.
-Matt Svendsen, 2006
WÄNTAGE
INPUT
Ass-End Offend
is a terrifically blazing Montana (a large, rural, mountainous
western state) hardcore punk rock institution. They have been
around for six years, and have turned what started relatively
standard hardcore into powerful music full of it’s own personality,
and originality. Ass-End Offend play hardcore that can’t,
and shouldn’t, be pigeonholed into one convenient category.
In their six years, Ass-End Offend have amassed a serious following
across Montana and America. They have toured the U.S. three times.
They write songs, that for a reference point, are similar to much
of the output of the Prank label. Civically, Ass-End Offend are
thoroughly involved in the U.S. scene; they book shows like crazy
for touring bands. They write zines. Guitarist Matt Svendsen does
a record label called Poisoned Candy –which co-released
the CD with Wäntage USA. They are entirely committed to playing
small, intimate spaces to all-ages crowds. They don’t preach
the gospel of DIY, they practice it.
Ass-End Offend have an almost martial ability to alternate their
bombast and restraint. Like the best hardcore, it’s fresh
to the point where it doesn’t need to rely on what’s
been done in the past. Rather, it plows forward loudly. And there’s
a song called Skateboarding Is Not a Sport. The LPs are limited
to 400 copies pressed, and were hand silk screened at the Wäntage
USA Societal Betterment Labs. Fans of Gauze, Artimus Pyle, Neurosis
and the Prank and Six Weeks labels will appreciate Ass-End Offend’s
ruckus. -Josh Vanek, Wäntage USA Records
Welcome
to version 2.0 of Squalora's page. Version
1 is archived here.
