Rot in Hell - Boxset I

The name Rot in Hell is synonymous with two great things. Not only is their music insanely good, but they also take so much care with the packaging of their releases that they really shine above anyone else. One of their more elaborate pieces is now part of my collection; The Cvlt of Khali box set. This contains the work present on the Hallways of the Allways compilation on a special 4 7" set.

The entire package comes tied in a customised cardboard box. The band logo has been cut into the back which reveals a familiar face just poking through.

As mentioned above, this set contains four 7"s. These are the original demo, the split with Brain Dead, the split with The Process and the split with Hordes. I did already have copies of all of these, so this is marking my second copy of each (actually third for the split with Hordes). These are the same as the standard copies of the record, except for the demo, Sins of Malice. The original had a hand sprayed process symbol on the B-Side, whereas this version has an Ouroboros scratched on instead. I think this is the better copy of the two.

There is also a bonus CD that comes tucked alongside the records. This covers the rest of the tracks that were available in the Hallways compilation. It is a bit difficult to see, but this also has the band logo printed very subtly on the topside.

In terms of music that is it for the set, but in terms of everything it is far from over. The first (and probably most special) part of this release is this print on black card.It in insanely detailed and shows just how much effort is put into these releases.

The next is this RIH t-shirt featuring a bird and a lamb head/rib cage, it is even in my size too. In some ways I wish I hadn't taken it out of the box to photo, it was difficult to fold it exactly the way it was to fit perfectly in the box. There was also a RIH badge/patch combo.

Lastly is this huge fold out poster. To get an estimate of the size, one of the square folds is the size of a standard 7", so it it really quite big. On the pack is the spray paint of de Grimston peaking out the front of the box.

Just beneath the giant head is a stamp showing just how limited this is. Only 35 were made all together, with mine being lucky number 7. This actually came out some time ago now, but a while ago I was lucky to be contacted by a fellow blogger who thought this might be of interest to me.

Overall a fantastic package. They have since made a second boxset which I'm sad to say I have missed out on. Perhaps one day I will be fortunate enough to get my hands on it as well....

A389 Friday 13th Tote Mystery Bag

A little while ago, A389 came up with a rather novel idea. Along with a new tote bag design they were releasing, you could choose to buy a surprise package. For just $13 (US) the tote bag would come with an LP, a 7" and a CD chosen at random, which was too good an offer to resist, even if you weren't sure just what you would get. As an added bonus, they also did a Charlie and the Chocolate factory style prize, with one lucky bag receiving the golden ticket, a free pass to the A389 anniversary bash!

The 12" I received was the self released title by Cyanrae. The vinyl looks quite interesting, and according to the store is bark/bone vinyl, part of the first press. The LP is ridiculously heavy, and even features a track in reverse. It came with a black and white insert, with photos of the band resembling something fomr Francis Bacon.

Although only one 7" was promised upon purchase, my bag actually came with two. The first is this entirely unknown EP by a band called Diablero. I haven't heard of this band before, and the only information I could find online is that it was released by a label known as Dysphoria distro back in 2010.

The vinyl is mostly black, but does have a hint of red splattered around the centre label. The EP isn't even on the distro part of the web-store, so I'm not sure just exactly where this came from..

Next up is the CD, Guillotine from Frightener. I did receive this as a free LP a while back, but never really got that into it. I should really give this one another listen when I find the time.
The CD has the artwork printed on the top, but overall I don't find CD packaging particularly interesting..

My second 7" was was Vigilante Saint from Wisdom in Chains. This is quite an old 7" in the scheme of things, originally being released back in 2006. To be honest it doesn't blow me away, and doesn't seem to be anything particularly different from a lot of the hardcore out there. It does have some cool artwork, and came on a marbled purple vinyl, so it isn't all bad.

There is then of course the matter of the golden ticket. Sadly I wasn't a chosen winner, but I still did receive this print of a certain FAN declaring I did not receive my free pass.

But that still isn't all. Alongside the 12", 2 7"s and CD I also received a handful of stickers and a flyer for the upcoming show. All that for $13? Not bad....