Screaming Newborn Baby (Blue Colored Vinyl)

Screaming Newborn Baby is the band's long-

awaited follow-up to The Gift. Finally available outside of Japan, Screaming Newborn Baby seamlessly introduces new drummer Zax (The Bonez), moving the punk trio forward while honoring late drummer Tsune-chan's legacy. The six tracks on the EP include Hi-Standard's take on Ben E. King's Stand By Me, The Mr. T Experience's Book of Revelation & tribute to their friend "Fat Mike." Formed in 1991, Hi-Standard is arguably the most influential punk band to emerge from Japan, widely credited with pioneering the country's melodic hardcore and skate punk scene. Singing primarily in English, the trio-comprising Akihiro Namba, Ken Yokoyama, and the late Tsuneoka- caught the attention of NOFX's Fat Mike, who signed them to Fat Wreck Chords and launched them onto global stages like the Vans Warped Tour. However, their domestic impact was even more profound; through their own label, Pizza of Death Records, and their self-created Air Jam festival, they built the infrastructure of the modern Japanese punk scene. This grassroots empire helped them famously sell over a million copies of their masterpiece, Making the Road, entirely independently.