OUT OF THE DARKNESS #19 fanzine

 

the latest issue of the Out of the Darkness fanzine arrived at the end of last year.. 19th number of this hardcore punk publication, based in Serbia is regularly released for already 9 years and it continues to resist the curse of this digital age and still sticks to the good old-school method of publishing a paper fanzine and they menage to put out a new number twice a year which is pretty respectable.. from the very beginning, Out of the Darkness has been the kind of fanzine written by people from the scene, about the scene.. it's mostly music-oriented, with a good mix of articles about the local Balkan scene and the international one, and now features a respectable number of authors and regular or occasional contributors from all over the region..

although I have to admit I've always been more of a fan of the more personal fanzines made by individuals or maybe a couple of authors, but with the general lack of fanzines these days, I'll take what I can get, and I'm not complaining at all with this one because I really can't remember the last time I read a fanzine, so I was really excited when this arrived with mail..

so, what do we have here?.. on about 116 pages of A5 format if I counted correctly you can read several interviews, as I often find the ones with individuals involved in the scene, and not just bands, more interesting, so I'd highlight the ones with the crew from autonomous spaces Nigdjezemska from Zadar and Kripta from Budapest which are interesting and informative because of the lack of their presence in online world.. featured bands in this number include Statico, Peripetija, and Pasmaters, as well as Tejka Vasiljević from the band You, artist and musician Nenad Gucunja and David Gamage from Earth Island Books.. besides the interviews, there are also a couple of columns, gig reports, and the inevitable reviews, which I was looking forward to because I was hoping to find out about other active fanzines, but unfortunately, there are only 2 fanzine reviews, while the rest are for music releases and books. I like that in record reviews is a relatively broad and diverse musical spectrum represented, somehow I was expecting strictly hardcore punk, but there's some crust and raw punk in there too..

and finally, a bit about the design: the cover is printed on slightly thicker paper, with awesome drawing made by the aforementioned Nenad, so those almost cardboard-like covers in color look great.. the font inside is quite large and easy to read, and the design is pretty clean and done in this computer-like style if you know what I mean.. I have no complaints on design, though a little more creativity in the layout to break away from the template wouldn't have hurt..

you can get the fanzine from the author or at various distros and places throughout the region.. I got my copy from always realiable Sumoggu Records for 5 euros and did I mention, some stickers was included with it as well..

 

- contact: outofthedarkness.rs@gmail.com 

- web: https://outofthedarkness.rs/

 

upcoming gig in Malmo, Sweden

 

when?......................24.01.2026., Saturday

where?.....................Plan B, Malmo

who?........................WARCOLLAPSE crust punk, Swe

                                 SWORDWIELDER stench crust, Swe

                                 CRUTCHES raw d-beat punk, Swe

                                 LAUTSTURMER crust'n'roll, Swe

                                 WARHAWK motorcharged rock, Swe

                                 BRAIN BURN rock, Swe

entrance?.................350 SEK

upcoming gig in Rijeka, Croatia

 

when?.........................................24.01.2026., Saturday

where?........................................Podrum, Rijeka

who?...........................................ĐORNATA raw crust punk, Slo

                                                    HELL PADRINO punk'n'roll, Cro

                                                    KAVEKANEM crust punk, Slo

entrance?.....................................4 - 6 €

 

https://rijekadiyhcpunk.blogspot.com

upcoming gig in Požega, Croatia

 

 

 

 

 

 

when?...................24.01.2026., Saturday

where?..................TOM Klub, Požega 

who?.....................KORIDOR post hc punk, Cro

                              ŠEKRET noise hc punk, Cro

entrance?...............5 € 

upcoming gig in Rijeka, Croatia

 

when?......................17.01.2026., Saturday

where?.....................The Rock Pub, Rijeka

who?........................NUCLEAR ALTAR d-beat hc punk, Cro

                                 JARAC black metal, Cro 

                                 CRYPTIFY death metal, Cro  - canceled

entrance?.................8/10 €

 

https://distune.org/dogadaji/veles-vortex-4-nuclear-altar-cryptify/

 

Nuclear Altar interview on the occasion of this event (on Croatian): 

https://distune.org/cener-s-nuclear-altarom-zlo-je-ustalo/

U.B.T. - Pure Audio Warfare - LP is out now!!!

well, this is the thing!.. this is the one that we wait and want, the kind of noise we need and can't wait for another shot every morning for easier surviving of this nightmare called life.. 

here we have one of the craziest and wildest Croatian bands, maybe ever, with their first release on vinyl, released as 12" LP by fresh label Kill Ugly Pop and it consists of material recorded during two different studio sessions, the one from 2019 and other is with still fresh recordings from 2024, all together even 17 songs in form of ultra fast, noisy and raw to the bone thrash hardcore punk.. mix on "side two" with older recordings is a way louder and production is little different, at least this is noticeable on digital version, but who really cares, just give us the noise because: "volim buku, jebote led!"

support this band and also the new label if you like what you hear, vinyls are ready for orders and little advice - if you have a chance go see them live somewhere, because this, my friend is also story for itself and it just hits different..

 

"Hailing from Zagreb, U.B.T. unleashes a furious hardcore punk offensive in the vein of (early) HERESY and LÄRM, while channeling the raw spirit of Yugoslav hardcore pioneers U.B.R. 
Lightning-fast speed, razor-sharp riffs, and aggressive vocals give each track exceptional power and velocity. 
No nostalgia, no compromises: just pure urgency and total intensity. If you're into 80s European thrash/hardcore, U.B.T. is a band you absolutely must discover. Pure mayhem."

 U.B.T. 

youtube 

PORTAL TOMB / EXTENSIVE SLAUGHTER - split 7" is out!!!

hmm, first post in 2026, and what's the best way to start a new year!?.. well if you ask me it's with this little banger which is constantly on repeat here in crucified freedom headquarters for the last five days - one of the darkest, nastiest and meanest releases to come out in the "last seconds" of previous year which was btw amazing, at least when we speak about d-beat hardcore/crust punk releases, on the other hand when it's about everything else, it was pretty much a complete shit of a year..

here we have two interesting bands from Canada - Portal Tomb from Montreal of which I must admit I wasn't fully aware until now, I noticed their demo a year ago released by great Sore Mind but I've never give it a proper chance and Vancouver's Extensive Slaughter which I follow already few years now and consider them as one of the most interesting bands coming from always amazing Canadian crust punk and stenchcore swamp.. 

with this material represented here Portal Tomb becomes one of the heaviest and darkest stenchcore/crust forms in the world currently active, trust me.. they have incredible power and an atmosphere that they build cleverly across those two songs which somehow merge into one, throwing you into a kind of meditative state, slowly crushing your bones and ultimately sucking you into the darkest corners of the stenchcore crust abyss.. on the other side Extensive Slaughter which I experienced more as d-beat crust band although composed of members with obvious metal background but heavily influenced by euro crust sound from 90s, all that based on their first two releases but with this new song they seriously stepped more into Portal Tomb's territory (on the first you get feeling that they are the same band) and made one hell of stenchcore/crust anthem which sounds just like a perfect soundtrack for riding some unstoppable orc-like creature into the apocalyptic battle.. from my point of view, it's a little shame they didn't stick to the original sound from demos but just little because they did this so perfectly that I can't complain much..  

the whole record - from album art, cover, format, band names and mostly through music transmits dark, heavy and grim vibes full of despair and anger, just as we like it and make this as a perfect record for hammering the last nail into the coffin of a year which could easily share similar description and at the same time to become a soundtrack for the beginning of a new one and for ongoing everyday struggles..

this is released on 7" vinyl by Arhaic Records in limited clear and regular black version and on Sore Mind as a tape.. don't hesitate to order your copy if you are from Canada/US because whichever version you choose, I believe it will go fast and supplies won't last long.. and we European suckers can only hope that few copies will made their way to some distro here.. until then go blast it loud on some of the links from below..

 

PORTAL TOMB

 

EXTENSIVE SLAUGHTER

 

youtube