We spent the afternoon of Groundhog Day Eve with Sub Pop’s Oxford Collapse and by now, we’ve all already forgotten what the little rodent saw – shadow or none. The afternoon was casually spent, but it was on this day that I questioned whether photographer Phil was kind of dense. You see, the Collapse is deadly loud. Their levels will make the ears of embalmed corpses bleed. Impossible, you say? Phah. They can do it. They are three, but they are mighty in their slaughter of the cochlea and the tympanic membrane. I asked repeatedly if he’d just wear ear plugs when he was in the live room, for me. He refused every time, telling me he was used to it and that it wasn’t a big deal. Oxford Collapse – drummer Dan Fetherston, guitarist/vocalist Mike Pace and bassist/vocalist Adam Rizer – bring unholy levels of force to their live performances, if this day was a telling indication. The boys worked through many new songs this day and took time to make sure they each had their parts settled on. Pace informed us this week that they’re currently recording some of these and along with more new material for the next record. Conversation turned to woodworking and carpentry when Adam revealed that he was one and Pat was right in the early stages of a home renovation that involved scraping thousand-year-old tar from his floor. Adam was happy it wasn’t him, but appreciated the amount of hard work and diligence that task was taking our fair sound engineer. I won’t soon forget the fine shoes the group was wearing and how, for the middle of a Thursday afternoon, they sure looked clean-cut and snappy. – Sean Moeller

First song
Search Party (Oxford Collapse) [2.61MB] [1560 downloads]


– unreleased
This is a new jam. I’m still working on the lyrics, but ultimately it’s going to be about James Buchanan, our 15th President.

Second song
Cumberland Gap (Oxford Collapse) [3.47MB] [1548 downloads]


– original version appears on Some Wilderness
A song from our first record that we thought we’d rearrange a tad for maximum success for that particular tour. We failed.

Third song
Electric Arc (Oxford Collapse) [2.27MB] [1528 downloads]


– unreleased
Born from the ashes of a very old jam from about 2002. Was resurrected, turned inside out, and should be featured on the next album.

Fourth song
In Your Volcano (Oxford Collapse) [2.89MB] [1514 downloads]


– original version appears on Remember the Night Parties
The last song on Remember the Night Parties. For all our hoes in different area codes.

Fifth song
Quiet Man (Oxford Collapse) [3.44MB] [1662 downloads]


– unreleased
A song which cannot be beat.