The Halcyon Days EP is the second official release by English punk–rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band Sounds of Swami

Sounds of Swami

Sounds of Swami are a progressive / post-hardcore influenced punk rock band currently active in the UK underground punk scene. They formed in late 2005 in Keighley, West Yorkshire, England. The band is well known for their eclectic mix of punk, DC post-hardcore, and progressive rock as well as...

. After the success of their Vent EP

Vent EP

The Vent EP was the first official release by English punk–rock band Sounds of Swami. After several years of recording demos, the band finally entered the studio with Tim Gray in Manchester. Recorded in two sessions, "Identity Crisis" and "BANK!" were recorded in a single day in late 2007 after a...

, the band began work on their debut album. After a positive EP

Extended play

An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

 review in an issue of TNS Zine, the Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

 zine expanded to record label TNSrecords

TNSrecords

TNSrecords ' ' is a DIY Record Label based in Manchester, United Kingdom, founded in 2008 by Revenge Of The Psychotronic Man bassist/vocalist Andy Psychotronic, along with a personal friend of his, Tim Bevington. They specialise in Punk rock, and Ska, though have also included some Heavy metal acts...

 and offered the band a one-off split record deal with two of their roster bands. The band reluctantly declined in favour of saving new songs for the planned debut album. Months later, the idea of writing and recording songs in a hardcore punk style as a one-off release came to fruition with three of the six songs being written in one practice. The songs showcased their more hardcore punk

Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...

 side with influences including Bad Brains

Bad Brains

Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...

, Minor Threat

Minor Threat

Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. The band was relatively short-lived, but had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene, both stylistically and in establishing a "do it yourself" ethic for music distribution and...

, Black Flag

Black Flag (band)

Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...

, Gorilla Biscuits

Gorilla Biscuits

Gorilla Biscuits are a New York City-based vegan straight edge hardcore band consisting of Anthony "Civ" Civarelli, Walter Schreifels, Arthur Smilios, Alex Brown and Luke Abbey. The band is currently signed to Revelation Records.-Early career:...

 and Dead Kennedys

Dead Kennedys

Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....

 making an impact on the overall sound of the EP. The band approached TNSrecords about the project in the run-up to their debut album and co-released the EP physically on 7-inch vinyl and digitally on iTunes

ITunes

iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

. Both formats are a first for the band. To much surprise, Halcyon Days

Halcyon Days

Halcyon Days is a collaborative album by the ambient musicians Steve Roach, Stephen Kent and Kenneth Newby. This album was recorded in the period from December 17 to 28, 1995...

generated rave reviews on the underground punk circuit and gained high recognition from mainland Europe.

Track listing

Side A

1. "Briefcase of Ignorance"
2. "Lapels"
3. "Look At Me"

Side B

1. "Bandwagon Hi-Jack"
2. "The Clue Is In The Title"
3. "Your Name Not Here"

Personnel

• Kurt Wood – Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
• Luke Yates – Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
• Rob Gilbert – Vocals, Bass
• Matthew Wade – Drums

• Tim Rickaby – Insert Art, Photography
• Christopher Thomas – Cover Art