Album Review: ‘Change In My Head’ & ‘New Wind’ (TRUST Editions) by 7 Seconds
7 Seconds’ 1986 album New Wind was the product of a band in the beginnings of a transitional period. While generally considered to be the final record of their original hardcore punk era, it also provided a glimpse into their next direction.
Trust Records is a reissue label that was formed to preserve classic punk and hardcore records. They have reissued albums by the Circle Jerks, SS Decontrol, Aggression, and partnered with BYO Records to return that label’s catalog to streaming services. Trust has also reissued the 7 Seconds’ records The Crew in 2021, Walk Together, Rock Together in 2023, and now New Wind in 2025. As with the previous reissues, New Wind was remastered and given back its original cover but that wasn’t all.
Change In My Head is a remixed, re-sequenced, and reimagined version of New Wind. The project was spearheaded by Ian MacKaye (the album’s original producer) and Don Zientara of Inner Ear Studios and includes two previously unreleased songs from the New Wind recording sessions. The result is a completely different album and listening experience. Everything about Change In My Head feels different. Yes they are the same songs but the remixed versions highlight different elements and textures. The closest thing that I can think to compare it to is The Replacements’ Tim (Let It Bleed Edition) reissue. The difference being while the Tim (Let It Bleed Edition) reissue sounds like that album should have sounded all along, Change In My Head sounds like a fascinating thought experiment. That’s not to say that it is bad, just wildly different. And maybe I’m too close to this because 7 Seconds was such a huge influence on my life and I know those records backwards and forwards. I don’t know. That said, the remastered version of New Wind is outstanding! The album sounds incredibly robust and dynamic in ways that the original version never did.
No matter which version you prefer, these songs pack a strong message of emotional intelligence and believing in yourself.