Protest (3)
Vinyl Overload

Listening notes

Protest (3) released "Vinyl Overload" in 1983 through Xcentric Noise Records, a single catalogued under the number Fourth 1. The release carries genre designations of Oi, Punk, and Rock, situating it within a broader early-1980s landscape in which those categories frequently overlapped on independent labels operating outside mainstream distribution channels.

The record is a two-sided single. The A-side carries the title "Hypnotic State," while the B-side is titled "Oppressed." No track durations are documented in the available release data.

The catalog number Fourth 1 suggests this may have been among the earlier releases on the Xcentric Noise Records imprint, though the precise release history of the label cannot be confirmed from the information at hand. The single format was a common vehicle for Oi and punk acts of the period, allowing smaller bands to commit recordings to vinyl with the shorter production runs that independent labels could practically support.

The title "Vinyl Overload," paired with the label name Xcentric Noise Records, reflects a self-aware sensibility that was not uncommon in punk-adjacent circles of the era, where naming conventions often signaled attitude as much as identity. Whether that sensibility extended to the recorded content of the two tracks is not something the available documentation can speak to.

For collectors and researchers focused on early-1980s independent punk and Oi releases, this single represents a catalogued data point from that period. Verification of additional details — including personnel, recording location, pressing specifics, and any associated chart or distribution history — would require sources beyond what is currently confirmed.