Canada’s largest city — Toronto was fertile ground for a burgeoning new hardcore scene taking root in the early ‘80s with YYY and Direct Action leading the way. Surrounding suburbs soon followed and a group of young skate-punks named Sudden Impact emerged to become one of the greatest of all. Revered as a crown jewel of early TOHC, this carefully remastered 10 song debut demo is on vinyl for the very first time. Fast and furious hardcore skate punk from 1984! Includes a generous 16 page booklet full of photos, art, and their story all housed in a deluxe close pocket sleeve. 500 copies.

Our take: Supreme Echo Records gives us another killer Canadian punk reissue, this time from Toronto’s Sudden Impact. I knew the band from their 1986 LP, No Rest from the Wicked, which is a record that never grabbed me. I skimmed through it after hearing Freaked Out and my opinion is still the same. No Rest from the Wicked is cool… it’s fast and I like the wild guitar solos, but the crossover feel is further from my wheelhouse and the songs never grabbed me. Freaked Out, though, is a different story. While it’s a little metallic, I wouldn’t call it crossover at all. It’s just ripping, early 80s USHC with great riffs, fast drumming, and snotty vocals. This recording reminds me of Direct Control, and by extension bands like DRI and Attitude Adjustment that had a similar tight, metallic punk sound. The recording is perfectly vintage—clear but miles away from overproduced—and with 10 tracks it feels longer than a lot of 12” EPs I’ve heard. As usual, Supreme Echo does it up on the packaging, including a 7”x7” booklet containing loads of pictures, flyers, ephemera, and a new interview with the band. Highly recommended for fans of vintage 80s North American hardcore.