O.C.B. - Die Trying

Here is the download: O.C.B. - Die Trying Demo

Okay, before I get any further, you need to check out Lawrence from O.C.B.'s Myspace Page (go to his pics section), where he has posted literally hundreds of amazing flyers from the late 80's - early 90's Atlanta shows. It is unbelievable, and is like having your own version of Fucked Up and Photocopied for your home town. Check it out, and make sure you have blocked out enough time in your day to really soak it in.

So back to O.C.B., when I was 15 years old or so, I used to frequent my local skate shop, BC Surf and Sport (later Ollies) in Roswell, and this demo was in the display case along with the first Act of Faith demo as local "skate rock". I never even heard the recording, but just seeing that tape left an impression on me, and made me think of the local music happening in the area just out of my reach at the time. Now, thanks to Steve Wishart, I finally have the demo and can share it for others that might have been in similar circumstances where this music might have been heard. Like the Spiney Norman "Cups n' Coffee" tape, this is a demo that might as well be a full album for the number of songs included, but that was the only way we could get the music out there at that time.

I never personally saw OCB live or knew any of the members, but Matt Mauldin has some experience with them, and can give some personal insight into these guys:

"In late 1989, I was 15 and had been into punk, hardcore, and underground metal for a few years by that point. The problem was my age, I never was able to get to the Metroplex even though I knew of alot of shows happening there. I had just started going to concerts in the past year, but hadn't seen any smaller shows with real underground or good local bands. I would hear about about cool local bands on WREK's Thursday night punk show or Friday night's "WREKage".

One night in the fall of 1989, instead of going to the Milton High School football game in Alpharetta where I lived, a friend and I caught a ride to this crazy place that we had heard about (in Cumming of all places) that had shows. The place was called Visions and it was the first place that I ever saw real grassroots hardcore and metal shows. Some of the Atlanta punk and metal bands would venture up there and play. Jawbreaker even played there on their tour for Unfun in 1990. Needless to say I never went back to another high school football game.

There were two bands that I saw play at Visions multiple times over the course of 1989 and 1990 that made a huge impact on me; they made me believe in the power of "DIY". It was a wild revelation that I could go to this shack in the middle of the woods in Cumming, Ga and see bands play that would blow my mind just as much or more as seeing some huge band play on a huge stage. One of those bands was F.U.C.T., an awesome metal/hardcore crossover band from Nashville. The other was Cumming, GA's own O.C.B. (Overly Compulsive Behavior).

O.C.B. by this time had been playing hardcore shows in Atlanta opening up for touring bands. They had a tape out and were getting played on the WREK punk show. I knew their name, so I anticipated seeing something cool when I saw them for the first time at Visions (I guess this was around December of '89). I remember the opening strains of the song "My Mistake" and these four dudes up there jamming looking kind of disheveled like they had just gotten off of work at a construction job. These were pot smoking, beer drinking, long haired, punk rockers playing classic aggressive but melodic hardcore that made you want to dance. Like a great hardcore band, O.C.B. had an element of danger about them; they seemed like the types of dudes that you might get in trouble for hanging out with. Their "sound man" was named Taco and had a pony tail and wore a hat that said "narcotics officer", classic stuff! Each guy in the band added their own element to the overall personally, and it was total energy when they played.

Basically, it was our own little part of world's take on classic SoCal hardcore like the Adolescents and stuff like that. It was utterly brilliant to see them play and I've never seen anything quite like it since. They did the "Die Trying" tape and also the "Dance Not Destroy" tape (let James know if you have a copy-I'd love to hear this). They started playing alot with F.U.C.T. and even opening for Melvins at The Masquerade, and their sound got heavier and more metallic right before they broke up around the end of 1990. I was in their practice space and remember hearing a song they were working on called "Aftertaste" right at the end that was different from the early stuff but very cool. Anyway, Act of Faith kind of picked up the torch from O.C.B. and the rest is history. Great stuff though and I'm glad James got his hands on this recording.

Visions ended up moving to Buford Hwy late in 1990 for like two weeks before it was gone forever. But while I was going there I got to see alot of cool bands and played my first show there along with Spiney Norman and the Wishart Bros in Such As. Good times."

Here are some O.C.B. flyers for your perusal. Once again, check out Lawrence's page - you will not be disappointed:

August 12, 1990 - O.C.B. with Distemper and Venocity (featuring Matt Mauldin on vocals!) at the Masquerade

November 12, 1988 - O.C.B. with Social Disease, Ghost Story and Cyanide at Excelsior Mill (i.e. The Masquerade under its original name)

May 8, 1991 - Fugazi with O.C.B. and Random Conflict at the Carriage Inn


August 24, 1990 - No Fraud with O.C.B. at The Nite Owl


May 26 - The Accused with Brotherhood and O.C.B. at The Pit


September 7, 1989 - U.K. Subs with Lost Generation, Lastregus Nosferatus and O.C.B. at The Cotton Club

April 7 - O.C.B. with Animosity at Visions

March 27, 1988 - FUCT with O.C.B., Fatal PMS, and Zero Hour at Elliston Square

June 10, 1990 - O.C.B. with Anitschism and Humanicide at Jake's

October 3 - Circle Jerks with The Weirdos and O.C.B. at the Masquerade

October 26 - Nihilist with FUCT, O.C.B., and Skeletal Earth at The Wreck Room

June 1, 1988 - Lastregus Nosferatus with O.C.B. at The White Dot

May 27 - The Melvins with Mercyland and O.C.B. at the Masquerade

November 29 - O.C.B. with FUCT, Skeletal Earth and Gardens Of at The Wreck Room

And here are some O.C.B. live photos: