Despite their limited discography (consisting only of two demos, a 7" and a song on the "Generations of Hope" compilation) Southern California's Against the Wall remain among my favorites of the late 80's/early 90's California hardcore scene. A lot of ATW's, slower, heavier riffs bring to mind their New York contemporaries in Judge, but unlike Judge they aren't afraid to mix it up with more melodic "groove" ala later Turning Point material (see: the chorus of "Burning" and much of "It Wears Thin") and solid straight-forward fast parts. If you aren't into the later TP material, don't let that comparison sway you because every song on Identify Me is still hard, fast, and everything a traditional hardcore song should be. The lyrics are pretty standard fare about personal struggle and ambiguous songs about hardcore/straight edge/personal politics. Members went on to more popular and more frequently namechecked bands like Ignite, Outspoken, Amendment 18 and Mean Season, but I'd take this record over any single record from any of those bands.
Ever since I've played in bands I've wanted to cover the intro to "It's Time" because the drums sound so huge and the riff makes me lose my mind every time I hear it.
Against the Wall - Identify Me
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