V/A - "Straight Edge As Fuck" compilation cd (parts I & II)

I think it's fair to say that this compilation was the introduction for many an edger to what was happening in and around the Swedish city of Umeå during the middle of the 1990's.

The original two versions of the Straight Edge As Fuck compilations were put out by Desperate Fight Records, a label which was operated by the vocalists of Abhinanda and Refused, two bands that appear on this record. Part I (Desperate Fight #2) was released in 1994, and the subsequent Part II (Desperate Fight #9) in 1995. This label was keen on bringing forth stuff from many of the bands featured on this disc. Shortly after Victory released Refused's Songs To Fan The Flames Of Discontent full length, they quickly repackaged and re-released both compilations in this handy singular collection. In doing so, it introduced many of these bands to kids in North America for the first time. You'll notice this version of Straight Edge As Fuck wasn't given a Victory catalog number; it was considered both a Desperate Fight and a "Desperate America" release, via VR's distribution of this newly-compiled version (see the logo on the bottom left of the fourth picture).

Here, tracks 13 through 18 originally appeared on the first installment, and the second edition was comprised of tracks 1 through 12. On the Desperate Fight version of Part I, there was a Final Exit song which was not mentioned on this redux version, but was included as a "hidden track" at the end of the cd. While there are some decent jams on this comp ("Everlasting", "The Demon and the Desert" and "All Of Us") the great majority of these bands just weren't for me. I did own a few Doughnuts and Refused records, but that was basically it as far as Swedish hc goes throughout the 90's.

Finally, this cd was released in 1996 and showcases fifteen bands for a total of eighteen (nineteen) songs.

Tracklist:
1) Shield - "Kaleidoscope"
2) Doughnuts - "The Demon and the Desert"
3) Situation 187 - "Hatchet"
4) Abhinanda - "All of Us"
5) Aim - "Another Friday Night"
6) Eclipse - "Impasse of Lies"
7) Final Exit - Sing Along"
8) Saidiwas - "In the Ocean"
9) Refused - "Cheap..."
10) Reason For Anger - "Function?"
11) Separation - "When the Day Comes"
12) Purusam - "Oceans"
13) Drift Apart - "Burning"
14) Doughnuts - "Self Destruction"
15) Beyond Hate - "I Refuse"
16) Abhinanda - "Remark of Frustration"
17) Solitude - "Outside"
18) Refused - "Everlasting"

- all parts of Umeå are very safe -