Walter Schreifels Readies Acoustic Solo Project, Covers Agnostic Front

Posted on Mar 19th 2010 8:00AM by Amy Sciarretto Comments

Walter Schreifels is best known for his work in Gorilla Biscuits and Quicksand, but he is gearing up for his first solo record, 'An Open Letter to the Scene,' on May 4.

It's a decidedly personal affair, a stripped-down and mostly acoustic sound, a seemingly far cry from his definitive past in the then-burgeoning, 1980s New York Hardcore scene! It's not shocking for an artist with an xHxCx legacy, such as Schreifels, to shift to a more mature sound at this point in his career. It's a byproduct of experience and a life well-lived. But Schreifels displays his roots with his cover of Agnostic Front's 'Society Suckers.'

"AF's 'Victim in Pain' was a formative album for me," Schreifels told Noiscreep. "The year before, I saw my first AF show at CB's, the best concert I had ever seen was REM or U2. It was a sea change. After seeing AF, I thought those bands were lame.

"I've always brought my 'REM side' or my appreciation of melodic and pop songs to the hardcore songs I've written; doing the AF cover is just flipping it the other way around. It's also a nice way to say something about where I've been." He even namechecks Biohazard's Evan Seinfeld on 'Arthur Lee's Lullaby,' which is available for download.

Schreifels is bonafide New York hardcore legend, and we're not throwing that term around lightly. As for his favorite all-time memory of that period? He can't narrow it down. "There are so many," he said. "CB's matinee's, Pyramid club on Saturdays, big shows at the Ritz, The Donahue show, The Birth Of Unity show in Long Island! It was a scene that was loose, with a few popular bands that, within a year, evolved into 500 kids a weekend at CB's, and there were loads of different and good bands. I've never experienced anything like it."