PALATKA

I am going to say right off the bat that next to Sonic Youth, Palatka has had the largest impact/effect on me musically out of the 1000's of bands I have heard over the years. Their awesomeness stemmed from their ability to mix chaos and melody. This with their thought provoking lyrics, what more could you want from a band.

The first time I had ever heard of Palatka was when the Tet Offensive (from ON)played in Owen Sound with my friends band High Ranking Officials. I would have to say this was 1997? Anyways, this kid Ryan from Tet Offensive had a distro in which I was perusing and had barely any knowledge of the bands he had in this distro. So, I asked the big question "Do you have anything you would suggest?" He was like, "What are you into?" To which I replied, "I like stuff that is fast and screamy." He then suggested the Palatka/Asshole Parade 12" and the Kill the Man Who Question 7". I thought them and took them back to our apartment in Orangeville. I put on the Palatka side of the split and was shocked at how crazy and chaotic, yet melodic they were. I had never heard anything like this before. It took a few listens and I was hooked. This is literally were I found my love for screamo and emoviolence.

Since then I have gotten my hands on everything they had released other then the Hope Spring Eternal split cassette ( I can only hope to find it one day). They have also managed to stand the test of time and will always be a band that touches my heart and I can enjoy every time they are on. I even have a tattoo of the artwork from the Palatka/End of the Century Party 7" on my forearm.

I have put links at bottom of this blog to download nearly everything that Palatka had released except that damned elusive split cassette... I wonder if it truly exists?



The story of Palatka:
Palatka started in November/December 1994. Mike (guitar) & Kurt (vocals) lived in a house known as the Mega-Rock-Arena. Jason (bass) was a friend of Mike's from their hometown. Mark (drums) was introduced to the three of them through Jason's roommate. At the time of their inception they all had the same beliefs of a self-sustaining DIY music scene. They would set up house shows, play on floors and book their own tours. Later Ryan & Will from Hope Spring Eternal moved to Gainseville. From there, Ryan joined Palatka as a second guitarist.

At one point, Kurt stayed in Europe to study abroad. Palatka continued to play shows but changed their name to Ex-Best Friends. Once Kust moved back to the states, Palatka reformed. All the songs on the End of Irony LP are Ex-Best Friends songs.

Discography:

Splits:
- w/ Hope Spring Eternal - Cassette (Self Released)
- w/ The End of the Century Party - 7" (Self Released)
- w/ Asshole Parade - LP - (Coalition/Jason & Kurt)

Album:
- The End of Irony - LP (No Idea)

Comps:
- Bleeeaaaauuuurrrggg A Music War - 7" (Slap A Ham)
- Vida - Life Benefit for Project Vida - 7" (Lengua Armada)
- Fragile Records comp - 7" (Anima)
- Destroy New Granada - LP (Sound Virus)
- Possessed to Skate - LP (625 Thrash/Pessimer)
- Southeast Hardcore, Fuck Yeah!!! - 7" (Jason & Kurt)
- Mandatory Marathon - 7" (Amendment)
- A Product of Six Cents - 7" (Six Cents)
- In Words of One Syllable - LP (Catch Phraze)
- No Idea 100: Redefiling Music - LP - (No Idea)

This is a video of Palatka playing a 2 minute and 16 second set.


Here are the links to download mostly everything that this amazing band had released:

Link to Palatka/End of the Century Party 7"
Link to Palatka/Asshole Parade LP
Link to Palatka - The End of Irony LP
Link to all 14 songs that Palatka released on comps.