<p><strong>Burning Sons</strong>\' 2001 debut 7-inch <em>Masquerade</em> came with a built-in hook for punk collectors: It was the <a href=\"/article-11768-milwaukeerss-burning-sons-revive-a-legendary-punk-label.html\">first release in 20 years</a> on the iconic punk label Mystic Records. Anybody who scooped up the 7-inch just for its label affiliation, though, was in for a treat: a heady shot of purebred hardcore that did justice to the label\'s heyday releases. Burning Sons\' full-length followup for Mystic, <em>Reduced to Equality</em>, is as brief as many of the classic \'80s hardcore albumsjust eight songs, including a secret trackbut it covers much more territory than <em>Masquerade</em>: This time around there\'s a bit more thrash, some more overt metal overtones, and a whole lot more politics. The band plays <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/Burning-Sons/103145806431578?ref=ts#%21/event.php?eid=179892455422502\">a release show</a> tonight at 8 p.m. at Rush-Mor Records.<br /></p> <p>After four preliminary battles that have whittled the contest down to eight rappers, Milwaukee\'s <strong>Takeover Freestyle Battle</strong> will host its finals at Stonefly Brewery on Friday, Nov. 4. The local rap group KingHellBastard will once again fill the judges\' seats, and there will be performances from The Rusty P\'s, Automatic and SPEAKEasy. (<strong>SPEAKEasy</strong> will also perform at a free show tomorrow night at the Cactus Club with LSay, Panic and DJ Him & Her.) <br /><br />Jammin 98.3 DJ Antonio Criss is readying the release of his second rap album under the name <strong>Immortal</strong>, a double-disc record called <em>History in the Makin\'</em>. He\'s throwing a 7 p.m. listening party on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at Nostalgia 1, 7155 N. 43 St.<br /><br />I missed this when it came out last month, but Milwaukee electronic producer <strong>adoptahighway</strong> and his labelmate <strong>Dolor</strong> have released a split cassette/Bandcamp EP called <a href=\"http://wednesdaysound.bandcamp.com/\">Reshaped Escape</a>. adoptahighway contributes a track of alternatingly zoned-out and hard-kicking exotica called \"Spaces,\" while Dolor shares a witchhouse-leaning composition called \"Thrones.\" Each producer remixes the other\'s track. <br /><br />And in this week\'s <em>Shepherd</em>, Erin Wolf <a href=\"/article-16318-canyons-of-static-settle-down.html\">chats with <strong>Canyons of Static</strong></a> about their new EP in advance of their show Saturday night at the Riverwest Public House.<br /><br /></p>
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