Jersey Beat Music Fanzine
 


GHOST WOLVES – Consumer Waste (Dirty Water Records, theghostwolves.bandcamp.com / Saustex Records, www.saustex.com)

What would it sound like if aliens from a 1950's science-fiction movie came to earth to play rockabilly music? If you want to know the answer, listen to this album! Ghost Wolves is a wild duo from Austin, Texas, but the rockabilly they play is insanely crazy, with manic vocals, discordant guitar, thumping bass, and sizzling synths. The title track, which opens the album (after a hilarious rant with a British man yelling at Ghost Wolves to get out of his club), is a love-hate song about our throwaway consumer culture, and it’s a fucking great roller-coaster ride that’s going to make your head spin. “666 Mankind 666” bears the mark of the Beast, and it sounds like the song came directly from the depths of Hell, with a great foot stompin’ rhythm and blues-driven melody. Even more astonishing than how good these songs are is that they’re somehow actually played by just the two people, Carley Wolf fronting the duo, with Jonathan “Jonny Wolf” Konya behind the drum kit. “No overdubs” is what I read about them, but I can’t see how it’s possible, with so much going on. I even read one report indicating Konya sometimes plays both guitar and drums at the same time! Space aliens, I tell you! The songs offer up plenty of societal commentary, like that title track, and “Wage Slave,” about feeling trapped working for little pay. I love how raw this stuff is, yet how complex it comes across, and how unbalanced and feral it is, too. Every time I hear a song that makes me think, “this is the best song on the album,” another one tops it. I was sure “Under Your Skin” was going to be my favorite, with the guitar notes bending and swirling through thick distortion, warping my sense of reality. But then “Back Against the Wall” started playing and its shifting rhythms pulled the carpet from under my feet, and I went flying through the air. To be honest, every song on this album is my favorite now.

HAMMERBOMBS – F For Effort (Loud Circles Vinyl; thehammerbombs.bandcamp.com)

Hammerbombs is a band that’s a whole lot of fun. They play raucous pop punk songs that often are hilarious, sometimes personal and filled with emotion, and always fueled by plenty of beer. Because of this, it’s hard to decide whether I like them better live or on studio recordings. On the one hand, the live shows are always a blast, and they’re great people to hang out with. But on the other hand, the studio recordings are typically tighter and cleaner. And this is top-notch fun time pop punk that needs to be heard. But maybe some of the drinking and partying is taking its toll, if the album’s opening track has anything to say about it. “Tired” sounds like a typical good-times Hammerbombs song, but the lyrics begin, “Tired of drinking, tired of everything.” It sings about being stuck in a rut doing the same shit, day after day, and then going “without a sound.” It sings about being in a room full of strangers and feeling alone. Are the Hammerbombs giving up their party ways? Well, maybe and maybe not. “Talk To Me” seems serious enough, about shyness and attraction and how the two things together can immobilize us. The song sure isn’t immobilized, though; it’s bouncy as hell. Hammerbombs often turn real life experiences into songs, and “Midnight Pancakes” is one of these. Hammerbombs are famous for their pancake brunches the mornings after shows, but sometimes the urge hits to have some RIGHT NOW. Such was the case when the band were in Chino, California, staying at some friends’ home, and the song recounts making the titular meal. It’s party pop punk rock time with this song, and you can just hear the drunkenness that led to this late night desire. The album features songs about people who speak poorly of others behind their backs, about pure hatred, about love, about deep anxiety, about loss, and about partying. “Meteor Mick” is one of Hammerbombs’ more serious songs, and it’s a love song. Not quite a ballad, but not one of their raucous tunes, it’s about a real long-term relationship that works and keeps getting better, something rare in the dysfunctional pop punk world. It has a quieter feel than the other songs (but it’s still buzzy and noisy), and it has real warmth to it. “Funeral” is a heart-tugger of a song about losing multiple friends in a short period of time, the memories, and especially the regrets. It’s almost anthemic, especially in the chorus, as the whole band sings, “I don’t wanna say goodbye, but I do it all the time.” It’s really nice to hear these studio recordings, because it’s easier to listen and reflect on the meanings behind these songs. But those live shows, man, they’re so much fun! I guess the answer to my dilemma is both – listen to their records to really hear the songs, and then go see their live shows and prepare to party hard and have the best night of your life.

NIGHT COURT - $hit Machine (Recess Records, www.recessrecords.bandcamp.com)

Night Court are fast becoming one of my favorite active bands. After the one-two punch of “Nervous Birds! One” and “Nervous Birds Too in 2021 and 2022, the Canadian band quickly came back with the “Humans!” LP and “Frater Set" EP in 2023. Their latest full-length is now ready, and “$hit Machine” is another solid effort filled with fun poppy garage punk and indie rock. They’ve mastered the ability to present fully formed yet economical musical ideas: their songs struggle to reach the two-minute mark. In the hands of any other band these songs could end up sounding like unfinished sketches, yet Night Court leaves my ears fully sated, the seventeen (!) tracks filling a boisterous 27 minutes. They also keep changing things up to keep the sounds fresh. The album starts with “Human Torch,” an anti-gun violence song that has a strong Marked Men feel. But immediately after that, “Mistakes Become You” has a much brighter indie pop sound, with a catchy melody and some nice harmonies. The buzzy 70s style synths give the bridge a retro sci-fi sound. There’s nerdy pop punk in “Infrared Glasses” and I love “Make Up My Mind” for reasons hard to pin down. It’s probably the great melody and the creative arrangement. It may be my favorite song of the album. “D List” is a song filled with contradictions: It’s chaotic, yet glides smoothly, it’s hardcore-like yet it’s melodic. And immediately following is the very pretty “Miranda July,” an indie-pop song that’s wonderfully noisy and lo-fi, yet it soars and wafts on the breeze. ”Where the Light Comes From” is a cool garage tune that reminds me of some of their new label mates – Recess Records has a distinct sound, courtesy of the various Todd Congelliere-fronted bands. And the closing track, “My Last Acid Trip,” is different from all the rest: it’s very Devo-like. There are all these different sounds and styles on the album, yet there’s a cohesiveness that ties everything together, and the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Yeah, Night Court have really been growing on me, and they will on you, too.

SPEED CIRCUIT – Survey the Damage (Setterwind Records, setterwindrecords.bandcamp.com)

Speed Circuit is a new band that includes Ryan Allen on drums (and some guitar, piano, and backing vocals), and I absolutely love Ryan’s other bands, Extra Arms and Big Life, so I was very excited to receive this. The PR materials liken Speed Circuit to Dinosaur Jr, The Buzzcocks, Built to Spill, Hüsker Dü, and The Pixies. But I don’t get any of that. What I get, sadly, is disappointment. Oh, the band is perfectly competent, but the songs sound more like generic alternative rock than anything else. Those other bands are noted for their power, their originality, a specific tone, and so on, but I don’t hear anything particularly unique in Speed Circuit. Of the eight songs, maybe the one that stands out a little bit is “Maybe Another Time,” with a nice jangly guitar tone, nice vocal harmonies, and a Mission of Burma-like bass line. But overall this just doesn’t move me all that much.

VOLUME – Joy Of Navigation (A Trip Through The Eternal Unknown) (Kozmik Artifactz, volume-rocks.bandcamp.com / volume-rocks.bandcamp.com)

Volume was originally formed in 1993 by Fu Manchu’s Patrick Brink, and has featured a rotating cast of musicians. These days the band also includes Ed Mundell (Monster Magnet) on guitar, Mike Amster (Nebula) on drums, and Dave Catching (QOTSA, Arctic Monkeys, Iggy Pop) on keyboards. The band calls 29 Palms, California home, a place deep in the desert, some three hours east of LA, and you can hear the desert in their music. Volume plays what is best described as “stoner rock,” the sort of 60s and 70s style music that melds metal and acid rock. Think back to Black Sabbath’s pivotal first LP, but make it heavier and spacier and you’ll get an idea of Volume’s sound. This latest record is a five-song “mini-LP,” that’ll last you a good half-hour before you need to take another hit. The album opens with “Mercury Pull,” which features spacey sitar sounds mixed with mysterious keyboards and cool backward guitar tones to create a nine-minute epic to launch you into your trip. The band has mastered the art of dynamic control, ranging from soft and delicate to massive, dense, and weighty. But it’s always recognizable as the proverbial stoner rock. Listen to the deep fuzzed bass on “Heavy Sunshine” and you’ll be transported back to 1968, the smell of “funny cigarettes” wafting through your mind. The one track that breaks the pattern is “The Golden Age,” the band’s sole ballad-like tune. It’s got a softer sound and feels more story telling like, with a hint of Americana. There aren’t a lot of bands playing this style anymore. Or at least, not many good bands. Volume could be one of the best around today for this genre.

WEEGEE – Primitive Thrill (Dot Dash Sounds, weegeenyc.bandcamp.com)

Of course, Weegee are a New York band. Hailing from Brooklyn, Weegee’s debut LP instantly brings to mind the New York No Wave sound made famous by Lydia Lunch, Sonic Youth, and others. Music is played at a slow deliberate pace, hypnotically hammering away at us, with droned vocals and repetitive melodic lines. The title track, in particular, is a five-minute adventure in total musical chaos, invoking memories of the great band from the other coast, Flipper. “Maybe I’m Blind” is quite different, with a cool lazy feel, very hypnotic, very relaxing, yet very Lydia Lunch-like. There are only six tracks, but none is less than five minutes long, so these are somewhat extended sonic explorations, with screeching guitars, sludge-filled bass, and those captivating vocals. A blast from the past brought to the present.


JOY BUZZER – Pleased to Meet You (Wicked Cool Records, www.wickedcoolrecords.com)

Stevie Van Zandt must have a time machine at his record label, because Joy Buzzer’s new LP sounds like it was recorded in the 1970s. It’s power pop, yes, but more than that, it’s got influences from British Invasion, progressive rock, and psychedelic pop sounds. This New York band channels the sounds of The Who, Yes, The Beatles, and more. “You’d Be Surprised” is a favorite, with a great Beatles-like drive, but even better is the jangle and the intricate psych-prog lines of “Jeanette.” The harmonized vocals on the chorus are right out the late 60s. And “All These Yesterdays” closes the LP with a song that sounds like it the ending song for a hit stage show. Though they don’t have orchestral type instruments, in some ways, Joy Buzzer reminds me of The New York Rock and Roll Ensemble, a group of classically trained musicians who played rock and roll in the late 60s and early 70s. There’s some of the same care in arrangements and some cool complexities to some of the melodies.

MANICBURG (Respirano Records, respirano.com)

Manicburg’s debut LP is one part psychedelic folk, one part chamber pop, one part dream pop, one part jazz, and one part experimentalism; it all adds up to a singular art rock experience. It’s what happens when New Yorker Ray Lustig meets up with Italian Luigi Porto. Lustig is an instructor at the famed Julliard School, and Porto is a renowned composer in Europe. The album is filled with a variety of musical textures and poetic labyrinthine lyrics, creating a thought provoking musical tapestry. Just the opening track, “One for You and One for Me,” veers from hard rock to chanson-like, from jazzy riffs to abstract imagery. Listen to the haunting “All Together Now,” with its subtle Euro-folk sounds and martial rhythms. “Monkey World” blends Euro folk with swinging blues, using creative instrumentation. The music box tone with a non-traditional melodic line and tympani in “Your Balloon” is fascinating, while “Harness” has the delicate feel of the 60s folk of Simon and Garfunkel, with quietly plucked acoustic guitar and harmonized vocals, but the ambient sounds from piano and electronics in the track give it an orchestral feel, too. “One Man Cult” is best described as “space-pop,” because it’s got a pop song structure, but a spacey arrangement. And “Daughters On Valentine’s Day,” starts as an old timey folk song, complete with scratchy sound like it’s from an old 78 rpm shellac record, then becomes a twisted experimental country tune from another world. This is an engrossing and captivating debut.

ONSLOOW – Full Speed Anywhere Else (Tiny Engines, onsloow.bandcamp.com)

The Norwegian band that changed my perception of Scandinavian music returns with their sophomore LP, this time signed with Tiny Engines. The band offer up another ten tracks of perfectly lovely indie pop, with guitars both jangly and noisy, and lead vocals that are clear, emotive, and very pretty. The melodies are catchy and the songs feel light and lithe. Sure, there’s some grit in the guitar tone, but just enough to give some oomph without overwhelming the melodies and vocals. The result is a band that sounds full and rich, poppy and fun, and a little bit wistful and dreamy. Some songs sound downright breezy, like “Brakes,” a song that makes me feel like I’m riding in a convertible with the top down, along the ocean on a bright sunny day. “You From Before,” too, has a calm breezy feel, so smooth and relaxing. Onsloow’s new LP is just as lovely as the first.

THE RATCHETS – Late Stage Capital (Pirates Press Records; theratchets.bandcamp.com)

The Ratchets are back with another in their series of singles with remixes. This time, “Late Stage Capital” is a hopping ska tune with early punk influences, ready made for dancing. This is real ska punk! The remix this time around is titled “Bunker Rock,” and it’s a remix by Strawberry Zaiquiri. As is the case with all of the band’s remixes, it bears little resemblance to the original song, but it’s still awesome in its own right. The vocal lines are pulled in, and some guitars, but there are subtle synths added, funky bass, and some horns; the overall song sounds super relaxed and chill. I love this singles series. The Ratchets keep changing things up each time out, and the remixes are so cool.

SISTER THIEVES – Crawl (sisterthieves.bandcamp.com)

Heavy. Dreamy. Grunge. Romantic. These are the words that pass through my mind as I listen to “Crawl,” the new LP from the New York City group known as Sister Thieves. This sophomore release is a regrouping, of sorts. They formed in 2017 and released their self-titled EP in 2019, but the pandemic led to a hiatus. Returning in 2023, they’ve now built up enough material for a debut LP (they call it an EP, but with eight tracks and over half an hour of music, that qualifies as a full-length to me). And the first notes of the album are noisy and heavy, but also bluesy and dreamy. And then when Steph Twyford-Rigley’s lead vocals come in, it’s dripping with mysterious romance. Her singing flows beautifully. I like the jazzy vibe of “Be Bad,” a song that has a swinging rhythm, and Twyford-Rigley’s singing is gorgeous, but the keyboards and guitar have deep grit in them, giving the song a dangerous sound. And songs like “Save Yourself” have a hazy dreamy feel while remaining heavy and noisy. The mix of heavy grunge and light pop on “Let It Down” is astoundingly good and unique, too. Fascinating LP.

SQUINT – Big Hand (Sunday Drive Records; squintstl.bandcamp.com)

Squint are a band from St. Louis that are hard to pigeonhole. They call themselves a hardcore band, but they aren’t really. Yes, they have hardcore influences. I also hear grunge, and I hear post-hardcore, emo, and even dreamy pop. This is big 90s style music, with catchy melodies played with layers of noise and dissonance, and sung with as much intensity as can be mustered. But along with the distorted guitars, pounding drums, thrumming bass, and bellowing vocals are ethereal keyboards (or it may just be a really cool unique guitar tone). It’s hard to imagine anything catchy in a cacophony like this, but there it is, catchy melodies and even bouncy rhythms. “Half Asleep” is a favorite, a downright poppy song, but played with a thick layer of doom and sung as if the world was ending. You can hear the brightness of the synths coming through the dense guitars, as Brennan Wilkinson’s vocals cry out in anguish. “Well Wisher,” too, has a catchy melody with some angular lines that feel like they’re rotating around, and the singing feels almost like rapping, with a rhythm to match. And then there’s a song like “Grace,” which veritably soars, with big sustained guitar notes. The chorus of “Golden State” reminds me of Beat poetry, and the closing title track cycles through every one of its component genres, from dream pop to emo to grunge and everything else. It’s a real tour de force. Quite a unique, solid debut LP here.

ST. LENOX – Ten Modern American Work Songs (stlenox.bandcamp.com)

This is one of my most anticipated albums of the year. Andrew Choi has been teasing about this album for quite some time, and it’s finally here. Choi, an attorney by day, is the driving force behind St. Lenox, and his songs are always beautiful and filled with meaning and emotion (I once was moved to tears by a song about his relationship with his father). Each of the previous St. Lenox albums has made my “best of the year” list; that’s how much I love St. Lenox. The songs are simple, just Choi singing gloriously and playing his keyboards. But the emotions conveyed are often incredibly heavy, and the sentiments full of gravitas. His albums revolve around a central theme, and this time it’s about work, labor issues, the hopes and dreams our parents have for us, and the realities in which many of us find ourselves. Those realities can include crushing student debt, hard long hours working, balancing the trade-offs between our passions and the reality of paying bills, what we give up for financial security, and those who sometimes literally work themselves to death. It’s this last topic that Choi chose to open the album with, “Eulogy for the Company Man.” It’s a farewell from the fresh new hire to his mentor who died without ever getting to retire and enjoy his “golden years.” It sets the tone for the rest of the album, which seems to serve as a cautionary tale. The closing song, “On Fulfillment,” relates the meeting of two former classmates at a wedding of a mutual friend, and they catch up on each other’s lives. But more than that, it seems to be about how the most fulfilling parts of life have nothing to do with work. Our lives are not defined by the work we do. Instead fulfillment comes from truly living life, from the people we share it with, and the love that we give. In between we get sparkling songs about hard work, struggle, sacrifice, goals that always seem to be out of reach and that disappoint when attained, and missing out on what we ultimately find out what’s most important in life. Particularly moving is “Rudy,” a conversation between two friends, one chasing the life of a successful businessman and the other who gave up the rat race to move away and enjoy life with his family; the former regards the latter with jealousy as he realizes how empty his “successful” life is. The music is simple, but gorgeous. “Lust for Life,” for example, has the sound of a baroque chorale, as does “Quasi-Nichomachean Ethics,” the latter featuring Choi’s violin skills (he was a classically trained violinist before he went to law school). It seems inspired, in some ways, by Pachelbel’s “Canon in D,” and features the protagonist giving life advice to his nephew, most of it the standard sort that conformists live by, with rigid rules intended to make one look good in the eyes of others. And “Your Local Neighborhood Bar” is bright and lively, a sparkling recollection of a past when life was simpler, remembering the joys that were given up when moving away to pursue a career and money. While all of St. Lenox’s albums are, it their core, slices of life, in all its various aspects and glories, this may be both the darkest and the brightest of them all, providing both a warning and a path that can take us out of the darkness and into the light.

VARIOUS – Count Your Lucky Stars Split Series #5 (Count Your Lucky Stars Records, www.cylsrecords.com)

This is the fifth in a series of splits among CYLS artists, duh This time around we get new tracks from four bands: Camp Trash, Expert Timing, Mt. Oriander, and Thank You, I’m Sorry. The four tracks cover the spectrum from pop punk to indie-pop, with Camp Trash’s “Friendship America” being the most punk of the group, with a tough guitar sound, a catchy pop melody, and some big group vocals. Expert Timing is next with “Sudden Glow,” and they blend more traditional light indie pop with the thick guitar distortion of bands like My Bloody Valentine. It’s a lovely combination. Mt. Oriander’s “Everything Is Connected, but Nothing Is Working” continues the delicate 90s emo sound they’ve been presenting, with clear stoic guitars and sad nerdy vocals. Thank You, I’m Sorry rounds out this split with “Snow Window,” a huge booming track with jangly guitar, sparking synths, sweet vocals, and a ton of reverb. It crosses bright indie-pop with dream pop, creating something both luscious and epic. Gorgeous stuff here.


CORKER – Hallways of Grey (Feel It Records; corker.bandcamp.com)

Ohio band Corker’s sophomore LP is a mix of past and future. There is a distinct post-punk influence, but dystopian science fiction films also appear to inhabit the band’s thoughts. The music uses minimalism often, with repeating lines and rhythms. This can result in tracks that are overwhelmingly hypnotic. Such is the case with “Night Ride” and “Vital Fall,” the former with the guitar line and the latter in its bass line. “Distant Dawn” mixes punk rock guitars and Goth synths for a dark track, and “Forever Silent” is a favorite of the album, with its pulsing rhythm and warbling synths, along with spoken word vocals. At the end it gets downright eerie, with just the spoken vocals, speaking as if reading poetry, and single tone synth, like out of some art sci-fi dystopian film. I enjoy the urgency of “Wiring,” with a surf-punk meets new wave Goth vibe, and “Sunken Submarine is almost mechanical, with sharp, angular, repetitive lines. This is a moody LP that sometimes veers toward the experimental, and uses influences from well-trodden genres to create something new.

THE DOPAMINES – 80/20 (Rad Girlfriend Records, www.radgirlfriendrecords.com)

If you don’t know the Dopamines by now, you need to fix that fast. They’re only one of the top pop punk bands around today. They have a strong Midwest pop punk sound, akin to Dillinger Four, mixed with the immediacy of PUP. The songs are performed full throttle, with massive energy. Powerful vocals, including vibrant backing vocals, abound, and the instrumentals are lively and dynamic. But the band has been stretching time between albums; this is their first new LP since 2017, so it’s long overdue and cause for celebration. The album starts out strongly and never lets up. “Wedge” and “For Heaven’s Sake Pt. 2” sound urgent and exhilarating. I love the big anthemic quality of “The Other Room,” and the punny title and huge emo-pop-punk sound of “Parasites Lost” make it another winner. Some songs are more introspective than is usual for The Dopamines. “The Doctor" is a little slower paced, with a bigger, melancholy (but no less powerful) sound. “Treatment Center Blues” is an unusual song for The Dopamines, with more of an introspective indie sound than pure pop punk. And the title track, which closes the album, goes through multiple transformations through its three-minute length and could be the best of the album – which is saying a lot, because every track has the potential to be a top track of the year. This gets my strongest recommendation.

THE DUMPIES – Gay Boredom (Dirt Cult Records, dirtcultrecords.com)

Tongue planted firmly in cheek, The Dumpies fly through nineteen tracks in 39 minutes, giving us a tour through hardcore, punk, and pop punk sounds over the decades. There’s lots of humor and lots of great music here. Favorites include “Bisexual Hedge Fund Manager,” with its Radioactivity-like garage punk sound and humorous title, “Cum Gutter Punks,” which channels old school early 80s hardcore to a tee, and “Get Fuzzy, which seems to be the band’s take on the late 80s Lookout/Gilman pop punk sound. “Hats” is manic crust-core, while “Ol Pal” is frantic gutter punk noise-core. I love “Ballad of Two Stubborn Men,” a sped up indie pop song with a single line of lyrics and melody repeated over and over. “Hot Wash” mixes 70s AM radio harmonies and 80s cow punk, while “Gay Boredom” continues the smooth pop sound. The band’s obsession with everything gay continues on “Waste Connection, another early hardcore tune, mixed with more modern pop punk, which starts with a recording of someone asking people “Are you gay?” And the album ends with “Dumpies Theme,” a hilarious track of self-identification. It sounds sort of like a nightmarish pop tune from the 70s, with lyrics all about being The Dumpies – after an intro that again fixates on the question “Is everybody gay?!” which starts the track. This band screams “party time!” And their live sets are notoriously chaotic. Sounds like a fun time to me!

EARLY RISER – Big Life (Asbestos Records, asbestosrecords.com)

The first thing that caught my eye is that Mikey Erg is in this band. The second thing that caught my eye is that the band includes a cello. And upon listening to this, I fell in love. Besides the cello and Mikey Erg on drums, there’s acoustic guitar and bass, plus sweet vocals from Kiri Oliver. The songs have the sound of a mix of traditional folk and pop punk, making for a wonderfully adorable sound that melts my heart. Heidi Vanderlee’s cello is not just a novelty add-on, either; her playing drives the melody of many of the songs, and the songs, as a whole, have a lovely warm feeling. The fourth member of the band is bassist Nicole Nussbaum, who provides a solid foundation for these songs. And the songs are catchy, like good pop punk should be, but also charming and exquisite, due to the cello and acoustic guitar. It’s like mixing Martha with Even in Blackouts, a perfect blend. Some songs, like the first two, “Beetlejuice” and “Strays,” could almost be called raucous, because they’re a little bit more aggressive and bouncy than others, but it’s still light and lively. The title track has the most amazing group and harmonized vocals, and “Go Away” is a fun track of independence, with the lyrics telling someone to go away. “You only text me when you’re high,” the song begins, and it recounts all the terrible things about this other person. And “Keepers” is an absolute favorite for its strong traditional folk flavor. Early Riser has a wonderfully unique sound that I adore. My only complaint is how fast the album is over. I want more!

FOUR LIGHTS (fourlightsrock.bandcamp.com; Bypolar Records, bypolarrecords.com / Double Dos Recordings, doubledos.bandcamp.com)

At long last, Four Lights’ third LP is here! After making a big splash with their first two, “Death to False Posi” in 2016 and “Kobayashi Maru” in 2018, the band went quiet, with members working on other projects. But now, after a long 6-year wait, the band’s self-titled third LP has arrived. And it was certainly worth the wait. The band gives us a dozen songs over 38 minutes, which is a whopping length for a pop punk LP, but not one second of it is filler. It’s filled with energetic, upbeat pop punk tunes and more. More? Yes, Four Lights have expanded beyond pop punk on this album. But fear not, they still offer up some spirited poppy punk rock, like on the opener, “One Year.” One of the great things about Four Lights, too, besides their excellent musicianship and solid songwriting, is their ability to sing with tight multi-part harmonies, and this is on display throughout the album. “Ride or Die” is poppy and grungy at the same time, with a dark hard-driving sound. And “CVA” is noisy, buzzy, and tuneful. “Just Tonight” glides with a great pop punk sound, and is one of my favorites of the LP. The more? They give us some indie rock songs that aren’t quite pop punk, like the somber sounding power pop “Clap Clap,” new wave synths and beats on “Good Ol’ Days (I’m Still Making Them),” and “Chill Song” is, of all things, a ballad! “Take Away” ventures into 90s melodic punk territory, and the closing track, “No Idea,” is wonderfully pleading indie rock, and another favorite. There’s even ska punk song, complete with trumpet (Of course it’s called “skasong”)! This latest LP from Four Lights shows the band remains in top form and are more than a one-note band. Solid stuff here.

L.A. CRIMES (Self-Released; distrokid.com)

L.A. Crimes is a new four-piece band out of, well, L.A. It’s fronted by Bradley Riot, whose solo acoustic material I’ve previously reviewed glowingly. What we get in his new band is the same wild, raucous, passionate sound of his acoustic songs, but bigger, richer, and electric. This makes sense, since four of the five tracks on this EP are full-band versions of songs from his solo LP. These new versions have all the excitement and intensity of the acoustic originals, but with an added layer of grit. “Dark Side of the Road,” in particular, has a huge sound, giving it even more of an urgent feel. “Don’t Say Goodbye” trades the smooth lonely electric guitar for a gruffer tone, and the song turns from melancholy to bitter. “Port to Port” transforms from a morose ballad to a striding travel tune. And “RIP” manages to sound even more heart wrenching in the full band version than its acoustic predecessor. The new song is “Pirates Brawl,” and it’s got a big 90s Epitaph punk sound mixed with sea shanty vibes, appropriate for a pirate song. While most of the songs aren’t strictly new, the full-band arrangements breathe new life into them and reconstruct them, and make them even more exciting than before. Which is a tremendous accomplishment.

PRIME DIRECTIVE – The Fallout (Punkerton Records, punkertonrecords.com)

This Columbus, Ohio band has been around for a long time, having formed nearly two decades ago, going on hiatus, and reforming in 2013. Their sound focuses on 90s melodic punk, rock and roll, and metal, and this is clearly evident on their latest release, “The Fallout.” With songs like “Reaper,” “Planet X,” “The Last Starfighter,” “Wolfman, “ and “Landing Party,” you can tell the band has a thing about science fiction and horror. Their invented backstory, too, says they “attacked from orbit” and that their “invasion” has begun. Kinda cheesy, if you ask me. But, hey, other more successful bands have their shtick, too, so I’ll allow it. But what I can’t allow is the generic nature of the record. The mix of 90s punk and metal is so overdone and it does nothing for me. One of the lead singles, “Reaper,” at least has a bit of pop melody to it, but the gang vocals on the chorus sound lethargic, and it brings down the whole song. The one thing notable on this record is the metallic punk cover of The Human League’s hit, “Don’t You Want Me,” replacing the shimmering synths with gritty guitars. It’s an odd choice of a cover in this day and age; it’s a song about a woman leaving a relationship and asserting independence, and the man claiming he’s responsible for her success and demanding she not leave him. Kind of a creepy song choice. A bland and not very appealing record, in my opinion.

TIMMY VULGAR’S GENETIC ARMAGEDDON – Zeta Reticuli (Goodbye Boozy Records, goodbyeboozydigital.bandcamp.com)

OK, this is a weird one. The A-side is the title track, and it’s strange psychedelic folk-punk, with synths creating an eerie atmosphere, a drum machine and bass pulsing hypnotically, and Timmy Vulgar singing a deep bass melancholy song. The B-side, “When The Booze Is Gone The Sorrow Is Still There,” is acoustic country folk, with delicate guitar plucking and vocals that sound deeply sedated. This is one for the stoners who are into the unconventional.

WHY BOTHER? – Hey, At Least You're Not Me (whybotheriowa.bandcamp.com; Feel It Records)

Garage punk from the heartland of America. Yes, there is music amidst the cornfields of Iowa. This stuff is gritty and lo-fi, with plenty of old school punk angular chord changes, but it’s also got subtle ambient synths creating a mysterious mood. Warbling solos sounding like they’re played underwater add to the otherworldly punk effect, while some tracks feature bouncy pop melodies. One such track is “The Wayside, sounding much brighter and less menacing than others. But speaking of menacing, “Grim Anticipation” sounds downright diabolical, with thin guitars plucking away at the melody, surrounded by sinister synths creating a cloud of confusion. “Monoamine Oxidase A” is an oddly named track that’s got a mix of garage and hard rock sounds, and it gets downright noisy and windy on the metallic guitar solo filled bridge and especially at the end of the track. I can’t call it breezy, because it’s more like a hurricane is roaring through the speakers. “Descension” is a hopping Latin-influenced dance tune that’s a lot of fun, the title track sounds like an ancient folk-song mixed with an alien soundtrack, and “I Fall Down” has the sound of a dusty western folk tune from the desert. You can hear the scream of the hot wind blowing in the synths. Each listen reveals something new. This is more creative than a “garage punk” categorization would imply.

HALF DIZZY/THE BOY DETECTIVE – Split Single (Punkerton Records, punkertonrecords.com)

It’s Spooky Season, so it’s time for some spooky music! Well, sorta – I mean how spooky can ska and reggae be? The split single features Long Island’s Half Dizzy on the A-side, assisted by Vic Ruggiero of The Slackers, on two versions of the song “The Faceless,” a song about eerie monsters without faces coming to get us. The first version is the original, and yes, the minor key and sinister electric organ give the song a spine-chilling feel. It’s a nice variation on the typical ska formula, and it gets twisted even more on the other version, which is a dance remix by Destryur. The original track is sliced and diced, and heavy electronic beats are inserted, so you can dance to the zombie apocalypse. The Boy Detective lives on the B-side and are joined by special guests J. Navarro (of Suicide Machines, Break Anchor, and J Navarro and the Traitors) along with his Traitors band mate Eric Abbey on their song, “For the Record, I’m Not a Cannibal Anymore.” This is reggae, but it also features a dark sound and eerie organ, but it’s a lot more chill and smooth sounding than the Half Dizzy track. If you like ska, reggae, and Halloween, this is the record for you, but grab it fast, because the different color variants are very limited.


AMERICAN MOTORS – Content (The Ghost Is Clear Records, theghostisclearrecords.com / Expert Works Records, expertworkrecords.bandcamp.com)

American Motors, founded just a year ago, are here to destroy the concept of “post” punk. Their debut album features a cover photo of a living room in a decaying abandoned home, upholstered furniture situated amid crumbling walls and debris, the front door wide open. It’s an apt description of the musical landscape they’re trying to evoke, ripping apart the sounds that many have considered their musical “home” for the past few decades. The band’s promo photo, too, the trio of Dustin Travis White (guitar/vocals), Alex Steward (drums), and Brad Williams (bass) sitting on the steps of Dischord House, the birthplace of much musical influences in the 80's and 90's, is fitting. American Motors’ sound mixes 90's post-punk with big dreamy sounds, noise rock sounds, ambience, and experimentalism. The biggest influence I hear is that of J Robbins, especially his 90's Jawbox material. It makes sense, in a way, because Robbins produced the record. The basic Robbins-like melodic structures are there, and the interesting angular guitars, too. But they deconstruct that genre, add layers of reverb, throbbing bass, drums that alternately pound and stab, and a filmy covering of dreaminess. But there are also lots of empty airy spaces in these tracks. Like on the opening track, “Colonial Lanes.” There are times when just the bass and drums play sparse lines while the vocals are intoned, and there are times when the guitar comes in and fills the entire space, the plucked strings ringing out like carillon bells. Another big influence is Shellac, with songs featuring harsh guitar tones, endlessly repetitive lines, and starkly bleak vocals. And when the styles merge, the result is fascinating. Like on “Three Crosses,” with throbbing bass on repeat, stabbing drums, J Robbins like vocals, with tuneful sustained tones, and massive guitar with a tone that’s dreamy, but dark, like a nightmare. The topics of the songs are as grim as the sounds. An example is “The Former Mall Anchor Store Call Center Blues,” a song whose sound is harsh and forbidding, and whose lyrics sing of urban decay and futile attempts to repurpose our municipal albatrosses. With songs ranging from thin to lush arrangements, from stark to grand, from minimalist to orchestral, American Motors tear down our concepts of “post” music to forge something new out of the ruins of the old.

THE ARMOIRES – Octoberland (Big Stir Records, www.bigstirrecords.com)

Just in time for October comes The Armoires’ fourth full-length LP, “Octoberland.” The Armoires are led by Rex Broome (vocals, guitar) and Christina Bulbenko (vocals, keyboards,) who are also Big Stir Records’ label bosses. The band’s latest LP features a dozen songs of lithe indie pop with hints of power-pop, psyche, and glam. Broome’s buzzy synths give many of the songs an expansive 70's sci-fi soundtrack feel, while Bulbenko’s vocals glide smoothly, and other songs include romantic sounding violin. “This One’s for the Swedes” features all of that in a song about being a band on the road, specifically, touring with Swedish band In Deed. It’s a definite favorite for its unique sound. The end of the world sounds downright bright and happy in “Ridley & Me After the Apocalypse,” with sparkling synths and joyous vocals singing about attempts to build a new world among the ruins of the old one. There’s plenty of variety on this LP, too. For example, there’s Americana-tinged Beatles-style pop in “Ouroboros Blues (Crow Whisperer"), cinematic songs like “You Oughta Be Cut In Half,” and an old-timey song like “It's A Good Time To Come Back Down From The Cold,” complete with saloon style piano. The closing track is the most touching of all, a delicate song about the two most important things for us to thrive, “Music & Animals.” Songs to uplift us and companion animals to keep us grounded and to share unconditional love with are essentials. Another lovely album from The Armoires.

ARMS & HEARTS – The Future Is Not Bright (Thousand Islands Records, thousandislandsrecords.com / Mt Crushmore Records, mtcrushmorerecords.com / UTB Manchester, utbmcr.bandcamp.com)

This is not the sort of record I was expecting from Thousand Islands Records, a label most noted for releasing skate-punk and melodic punk records. Instead, Arms & Hearts play gentle, emotion-laden, indie music, in the vein of Spanish Love Songs. Many of these songs are slow-paced, pensive affairs. I adore the opening track, “Time Flies When It’s Meaningless.” It starts out very quietly, with just guitar. Then the vocals come in, and there’s a very lonely feeling to the music. It builds very slowly, another guitar joining in with a big shimmering sound. The bass and drums beat out a doleful pace. It’s a very moving song. “Val” is like this, too, a hazy, lazy sort of song about death and fading away from people’s memory. “They say you die twice,” the chorus declares, “Once when you die and when someone speaks your name / For the last time.” It’s a commentary about how, within a few generations after we’re gone, no one remembers us and we’re truly gone. And how it takes a concerted effort to keep the memory of our forebears alive. A few songs change things up from this formula, with a mid-tempo pace and more of a broad West Coast pop punk feel (which is interesting because the band hail from Manchester, in the UK. “Ghost” is one of these, with a breezy sound. “Elvis Will Do in a Pinch,” “Binaries,” and “Sink, England, Sink” also fall into this category, with the last being downright bright sounding. And “Bottom Line” is almost plain ol’ pop punk. Plenty of bands were playing this sort of music a decade or so ago, and there are fewer doing it now. It’s nice that Arms & Hearts are, because it’s a style close to my heart. And they do it well.

BLACK ENDS – Psychotic Spew (Youth Riot Records, youthriotrecords.com)

Black Ends is a newer trio out of the Pacific Northwest, and Psychotic Spew is their debut LP. Despite their location of origin and the PR materials that tried to tell me otherwise, they are not a grunge band. Or, at least, the songs on this album are not grunge. There’s no heavy sludge or hard rock present, and there’s no 70's acid-rock influence, things I consider prerequisites for the grunge label. Rather, Black Ends play indie rock that’s got some of the riffage of grunge but is lighter and much quirkier and more experimental. Nicolle Swims’ lead vocals have a unique tone and glide and ooze through the music artfully and sensuously. The lead guitar injects angular melodic lines, while the drums give the songs an incongruent jazz-funk rhythm. “Bent” is a favorite; it’s got an instrumental bridge with lots of stop-start action and off-kilter beats. But honestly, a lot of the tracks have plenty of unconventional touches like that, which makes for great listening.”Suppin On Strange” is another favorite, with a breezy feel, an atypical 12/8 meter, and more raucous rhythms in a couple of instrumental bridges. I love the mysterious sounds of “Black’s Lullaby,” with tension filled chords and violins, Swims’ vocals reminding me of the great Lydia Lunch. There’s even sampling of William S. Boroughs to close the song “When I’m Alone.” And “Red Worry” is a tour de force, more up-tempo and with more spasmodic instrumentals mixed with those sultry steaming vocals. No, this isn’t grunge, but it sure is adventurous, and that’s what we need more of in music these days.

CLASS – A Healthy Alternative (Feel It Records, www.feelitrecordshop.com)

This Tucson, Arizona band sounds like they stepped out of a time-machine blender. They’re a throwback to the sounds of the 1970's, but it’s a variety of sounds all mixed together, including garage-rock, power-pop, glam, and punk. They’ve got the raw power of early punk, the poppy melodic content of power-pop, the bright fun of glam, and the grit of garagey rock 'n' roll. Through 25 minutes, comprising ten tracks, the band radiates megawatts of power. “Scared to Care,” with its fast and loud character and angular chord changes, is the most punk of the album. Songs like “Burnout City” are very glam-like, with more of a loping tempo and attitude dripping from every note. And there are songs like “Not an Idiot,” which are very power pop, but with a strong raw edge. Besides guitar, bass, and drums, instrumentation includes saxophones and synthesizers. The track “Move So Fast” uses these in a broader song that gives it the sound of mixing progressive rock and the minimalist sounds of Krautrock. Seventies music has been making a real comeback lately, and Class are a strong participant in this movement.

DEATH DOULA – Love Spells (Death Doula Records, deathdoula.bandcamp.com)

Love can create beautiful music. Such is the case with Death Doula, formed from the budding romance of Kerry Jones and Kyle Alexander, who first collaborated a few years ago on some demo recordings, then fell in love, then moved in together in Portland, Oregon. After drafting some area musicians to fill out a band, Death Doula was born. It’s an odd choice of name, as a "death doula" is someone who provides emotional and spiritual support to people who are dying. This Death Doula should not be confused with the doom/sludge band of the same name from Northern California. No, this Death Doula is an indie rock band that plays music dripping with passion and romance. The music is poppy and dreamy, and Jones’ lead vocals are ethereal, bringing to mind amorous lounge songs. The songs are mostly hazy and lazy, but sometimes have a more dangerous and mysterious sound, like on “Poet for Hire.” “The Witness,” one of the lead singles for the album, has a huge rolling epic of a sound, while “Disembark,” the product of the original collaboration, has a big dreamy feel, the guitars drenched with emotion, and the rhythm section getting as emphatic as they can, the bass lines flying up and down while cymbals crash. This is a fine debut for Death Doula, and is a wonderfully pensive and idyllic album.

DELTA SLEEP – Blue Garden (Wax Bodega, waxbodega.com)

Delta Sleep is a UK band with whom I was completely unfamiliar until receiving this record for review, and I am ashamed, because they’ve been around for more than a decade and they’re one of the most unique bands around today. They combine mathy emo and breezy pop, using a creative mix of electronics and acoustic and electric instruments to create something new. They have developed a novel genre that they alone occupy; no one else sounds like them. They play songs that are smooth and relaxing, and songs that are emotionally charged and moving. They have incredible control over dynamics, going from quiet and solemn to explosive and back again at the drop of a hat. There are so many interesting creative touches on this album, and each listen brings something new to my ears. I love the jazzy pop rhythms, the shifting cadences, the huge emo guitar tone, and the quiet somber moments. There’s some amazing warbly electronics juxtaposed with subtle bass, and poetic vocals against hip hop beats. It’s hard to pick out standout tracks, because they’re all amazing, but I’ll mention a few that really opened my ears. “The Distance” mixes math rock and smooth jazz-pop to create something so lovely, with complex rhythms and silky guitars and vocals. “Illuminator” starts out with shiny sounds from the synths and a guitar played in the most unique way, sounding like a ticking clock, turns gloomy and then epic, then dark and mysterious. And the closing track, “Sun Chaser,” is pure beauty, starting out quietly, then exploding with joy, big pop-filled group vocals reminding me of PUP. This is a wide -ranging album that’s like nothing you’ve heard before, and it’s highly recommended.

STIFF RICHARDS – “GFC” b/w “Empty Barrels” (Drunken Sailor Records, www.drunkensailorrecords.co.uk)

Stiff Richards are the undisputed kings of old school punk rock, keeping alive the flame of the first wave. I’ve reviewed a number of their previous releases, always enjoying each one. This latest single, though, may be one of their strongest releases yet. “GFC” is energetic punk rock bordering on hardcore, fast and loud, angry and powerful. The flipside, “Empty Barrels,” is more firmly rooted in the early 80s hardcore sound, faster, louder, with the beats and fierce vocals echoing each other. It’s a bit of a departure for Stiff Richards, but it’s blazingly effective. Solid single here, and I wish this was at least an EP. I want more!


ALIEN NOSEJOB – Turns the Colour of Bad Shit (Drunken Sailor Records; aliennosejob.bandcamp.com)

Alien Nosejob blends 80s new wave and early punk sounds. The best analogy I can come up with is early Devo mixed with early Go Go’s. Buzzy synths and raucous guitars, bass, and drums mix with sing-shouted vocals and poppy melodies. Saxophone appears in the mix on some songs, too, adding some nice texture, and alternating male and female lead vocals keeps the sound changing up. There’s enough retro here to keep older punks happy, but not so much as to be maudlin and nostalgic. Most of the songs have a great garage pop feel, with a gruff sound and upbeat tuneful melodies. “MAU” is one such notable song, while “Gone to Gowin…” and “It’s So Easy” are the most punk songs of the album, with a faster pace and rawer sound. The latter reminds me a little bit of the garage punk sounds of Marked Men or Radioactivity, but a little more melodic. One of the songs has a solid party sound; “Trapped in Time” has a real B-52s influence in it, making it a favorite of the LP. There are ten songs, in all, and at just under 30 minutes long, listening to “Turns the Colour of Bad Shit” is a pretty good use of your time.

COLD SUMMER – Altlasten (Kink Records/Eleven Records; coldsummerpunk.bandcamp.com)

This is dark, gloomy, aggressive music. Cold Summer’s latest release is four songs, sung in German, with Goth-like post-punk, metal, and hardcore influences. There’s a solid wall of guitar, bass, and drums providing an almost martial rhythm, and shouted vocals barking in a commanding way as if to demand you heed what you are hearing. Occasional keyboards provide ambience, both light and dark, and the entirety sounds plain ominous, especially with the buzzing guitar tone, the fuzzed distortion, and the minor and modal chords. It’s as if we’re listening in a fog-filled room, searchlights scanning the room, looking for those who would commit treasonous acts.

DOCTOR VELVET – New Breed (Wap Shoo Wap Records; wapshoowaprecords.bandcamp.com)

Way back when, there was a period in music when blues and jazz merged to become rhythm and blues. And then R&B was electrified and became the progenitor of rock and roll. Doctor Velvet aims to bring back that era with their debut full-length LP, “New Breed.” We get ten tracks of rockin’ R&B, with guitar, bass, drums, electric organ, saxophone, and vocals, all soulfully crafted. They tracked this album thoughtfully, mixing raucous rockers, slow burners, and darker tunes, like the Latin jazz-rock inspired “Road to Nowhere.” Some tracks lean more toward the jazzy side of the equation, while others are more rock and roll. Such is the case with “Messed Up,” which is a time capsule of 50s rock and roll, from the rhythm cadence to the rollicking guitar solo. I really like “Snake Pit” and “Blue Moon Caravan,” both of which have a lounge-like feel but with a tension-filled slow burn. Right after these two we get the hopping “Bad Luck Baby” that’ll surely get you out on the dance floor shaking your behind. But it’s “Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere” that’s got the juice. Mid-tempoed, rockin’, soulful, with a great sax solo. The closing track, “I’m Crying,” has the most modern sound of the LP; though it’s still an R&B/rock and roll song, it seems to have undertones of 60s mod that was yet to come and even hints of power pop. What a cool record!

FELDSPAR – Old City New Ruins (TTK Records; feldspar.bandcamp.com)

Imagine mixing post hardcore’s dark angular sound, progressive rock’s complexity, and youth crew hardcore’s anger and big gang vocals. That gives you an idea of what Feldspar sounds like. The band from Rome plays songs with loads of melodic content, thick, rich arrangements, and furious vocals. They’re fairly new, having only formed a year or so ago, but they sound like seasoned pros. The arrangements are more labyrinthine than typical punk or hardcore, which may seem at odds with the genre, but Feldspar break through normal expectations to create something new and unique, and it works surprisingly well. One song with an unexpected twist is “Dead Friends Still Alive,” which includes an angelic choir of backing vocals on the chorus, but the verses are a mix of loping hardcore, indie, and post hardcore, with passionate pummeling vocals. I really like “18 Karat,” which reminds me of old school youth crew hardcore like Gorilla Biscuits or Youth of Today. It’s the most straightforward track of the album, eschewing the creative mix of genres and going with a more pointed approach for an attack on people who constantly seek approval from others and think they’re better than anyone else. Right after is another solid youth crew type song, “Your Resistance Is not Only Futile but Also Pathetic.” And “Scalp Is an Ashtray” may be my favorite track of the album, with a mix of post hardcore, hardcore, and even DC style emo hardcore. The angriest track has to be “God Is Fired,” a vicious attack on organized religion and the Vatican. It opens and closes with ethereal synthesizers, and its end flows into the title track with that same sound. But in between is powerful hardcore that has some great riffs and a huge epic sound. Feldspar is one of the most original hardcore bands around today.

THE GOBS – “Go Soft” b/w “Pop Off” (goodbyeboozydigital.bandcamp.com)

The Gobs’ debut is a two-song blast of noisy lo-fi synth punk. Italian garage record label Goodbye Boozy Records gifts us with this new band from the Pacific Northwest of the US, and their two songs of raucous, buzzy, synth-laden punk-fucking-rock. “Go Soft” is fuzzed to the max, speedy garage punk, but super poppy and buzzing with synths. “Pop Off” is slightly cleaner sounding, but it’s darker, more hardcore, and less pop. Both songs show a promising future for the band.

HOTKID – Downtown (Fortune Stellar Records, fortunestellarrecords.bandcamp.com)

Toronto indie band HotKid returns with a new four-song EP. These are lovely songs, and Shiloh Harrison’s vocals are smooth and soothing. There are two versions of the title track, a full-band version and an acoustic version. The full-band version leads of the EP, and we get fuzzed rhythm guitar and jangly lead guitar playing gorgeous riffs while Harrison croons beautifully. The acoustic version closes the EP, and it has a more somber sound, not only from the acoustic guitars, but also in Harrison’s singing. Rather than crooning, the vocal delivery has a sense of melancholy. It’s hard to decide which I like better, because they’re both good and both very different. “Naked” has a darker sound, with throbbing bass and frantically picked guitars. There’s a hint of 70s soulful rock and roll in here, too, particularly from the guitar tone. “All Time” sees a brighter song, the presence of the instruments being felt in the quality recording job. Harrison’s singing on this one glides in a very soothing way, and this may be my favorite of the EP. Nice job!

KILL LINCOLN – No Normal (Bad Time Records; killlincolndc.bandcamp.com)

Oh, c’mon! You know Kill Lincoln! You shouldn’t need me to write a review to tell you they’re one of the foremost ska-punk bands around today. They have a PUP-like intensity in their pop punk parts, complete with big gang vocals, and the ska sections are just made for skanking to. The arrangements include trumpet, trombone, and saxophone that blend thoughtfully, injecting hints of jazz, as well as ska. The arrangements are thoughtfully done and really add to the songs, which are hugely poppy, and the lead vocals are equal parts passion and nerd-punk. There isn’t a single song on this album that isn’t a solid banger, but there are some notable tracks. “Planted” starts out as more of a hardcore song, fast and loud, and then the horns come in, jazzing things up, while the guitars play those ska riffs and the song turns eminently poppy. I really like the mix of loud and raucous with the tamer, poppier parts in this song. I love “Roll Me Away,” with its big fun sound, and I can see this one as a huge crowd pleaser at shows, with lots of singing along and fist pumping. The horns in ”Buried Alive” deserve special mention. They do a great job bridging the gap between jazz and ska, and the more melodic punk of the guitars, bass, and drums, especially in the amazing ending of the song. And “Coming or Going” is one of the best songs of the album, with a mysterious Middle Eastern folk sound in the ska parts. The flute intro and the horn solos are spectacular, and when the punk parts start, it’s wonderfully controlled mayhem. The songwriting, performances, and arrangements on this album are all top-notch. And even if you’re normally not a fan of ska, you need to hear this album, because it’s so well done (and there’s more pop punk than there is ska, anyway).

THE LOW SIXES – The Oshawa Tree (Forge Again Records, forgeagainrecords.bandcamp.com)

The Low Sixes are indie rock from Montreal. And though the PR material call them a “punk-injected power pop” band, I don’t get that. They’re not raw or raucous enough to be called punk, nor are they simplistic enough to be called power pop. Yes, their songs are catchy and melodic and will get your head bobbing with ease. But the nine tracks are lusher and more complex than either of those genres; this is definitely indie rock. There’s a definite streak of fun in the songs, plenty of excitement in the sparkling instrumentals and just the right mix of angst and joy in the lead vocals. Listen to the opening tracks, “Turn on the Night” and “Ryan’s Favorite Song,” and see if you don’t agree with me. They just sound so rapturous and bouncy. Many of the songs have really lovely backing vocals, too, adding to the celestial sound of these tracks. There are hints of Beatles influence and glam in some songs, too, particularly “The Worst is Yet to Come,” which has an almost cinematic vibe. And “I Know Somebody” is super soulful, and has trumpet and saxophone in the arrangement. The Low Sixes’ new LP is a lot of fun.

MATT CASKITT & THE BREAKS – California Dream Hearse (Loud Circles Vinyl; mattcaskittandthebreaks.bandcamp.com)

The producer needs a band credit on this album, because the production really gives these songs an added dimension. From the reverb to the guitar tones selected, and the smooth harmonious backing vocals, the songs sound bigger, and dare I say, dreamier, than they do live. I can more clearly hear the emotion and passion in Matt Caskitt’s lead vocals, and the high pitched jangle in the lead guitar gives the songs a bit of old honky-tonk feel. The songs sound breezier and more epic, and the keyboards add a new twist to the band’s sound. There’s more use of harmonized gang vocals on this album than there is in the live shows, and it really makes a positive difference, making the songs sound both bigger and dreamier. Many of these songs have become staples of the band’s live set, but some of them are so different here that it’s like hearing them for the first time, and it’s glorious. “Talk Talk” opens the album, and it’s a longtime favorite. The album version uses all sorts of great production techniques to make the song feel so much more epic than in the live set, the keyboards and guitars blending in the reverb, and vocals bouncing around are amazing. The song is about those people who are always rambling on about something, interrupting other people, and spewing verbal diarrhea. Listen to the tone of “Got Me On Your Hook.” It has a big breezy sound and those tightly harmonized backing vocals remind me of 70s AM radio top 40 in the best way. And “Renovations,” a song using home renovations as a metaphor for making changes in one’s own life, is generally introspective sounding, and a bit wistful, but the chorus iteration after the halfway mark veritably shimmers with pop goodness, thanks to keyboards. A song I haven’t heard in the live set is “The Long Lost Arts.” It’s a much darker sounding song than MC&TB usually do, and very mysterious sounding. There’s an impenetrable wall of guitars through much of the song, and a piercing quality to the guitar tone that reaches right through the soul. “Back Pedal” has also been a regular live set fixture, but this album version sounds so much bigger and flows so much more smoothly. You can really hear the care that went into making this album, and the attention to detail. This album outdoes the band’s debut, “Welcome Home,” and also any of Matt Caskitt’s previous work.

ROWDY (Drunken Sailor Records, www.drunkensailorrecords.bandcamp.com)

When a band has the same name as several other bands, it’s hard to find info about them on the internet, but it’s still easy to listen and provide my impressions. And Rowdy are a fun band that play simple, straightforward rock and roll with a punk rock twist. There’s nothing fancy or flashy going on here; this is straightforward raw music. The songs are poppy, yet aggressive, in a power pop meets garage sort of vein. “Be That One” is a favorite for its harder garage sound, with a deep rumbling bass and growling guitars. Right after that we get “Rollin’ and Strollin’,” which has a softer sound, slower pace, and an almost ballad-like melody. The simple chords and melodies, along with the tough female vocals, reminds me of The Runaways. Listening to this short LP (eight songs in 22 minutes) is like stepping back in time to the 1970s.

SEAFARERS – Another State (seafarersmusic.bandcamp.com)

Seafarers are an indie-pop band from London, but they have a thicker, lusher sound than typical indie-pop bands. Their songs also feature folk-inspired melodies and a story-telling vibe, creating something very pretty and compelling to listen to. But the topics of the songs are hardly fodder for typical folk songs. Take “Televangelists” for example. There’s a hint of Celtic folk in the melody, and the shimmer of the instruments underneath the delicate vocals gives it a magical sound. The lyrics are about the cynical use of religion by greedy shysters to control people and enrich themselves. As the song evolves it grows louder, adding keyboards, plucked guitar (in place of harp?), bass, and drums, swelling into something glorious before quieting again and ending with that spiritual shimmer. “Melissa” also has a folk-pop sound and lyrics that are a slice of life, speaking of the hardships of adult life, trying to hold onto relationships, and just trying to get by. Lauren Kinsella’s lead vocals are enchanting, as they are throughout the album. She makes it sound so casual and easy, almost conversational, which gives the songs that story-telling feel. On songs like “Crashing Cars” we get a sense of why the band is the Seafarers; it has the sound of a slowed down sea shanty, but rather than being a song about life on the ocean it’s about looking back on one’s life, the with its ups and downs. It feels almost like a solemn anthem. “Tiny Itch” is very different from the rest of the tracks, with Matthew Herd taking vocal leads on a song that’s part hip hop, part pop, and part ethereal magic. And the closing track, “A Little Loss,” is simply gorgeous. The song features simply piano and vocals, and it’s a very somber song, also with a traditional folk mien. This is a spellbindingly beautiful record.


THE BAD UPS – Life of Sin (Jump Start Records, jumpstartrecords.com)

The Bad Ups is a band from Philadelphia, formed fairly recently (in 2018) by front man Travis McKayle. The name comes from a slang Jamaican term (McKayle is from the island) “baddup,” which is bad treatment of someone else. After six years as a band, The Bad Ups are finally releasing their debut full-length LP, which features 90s style poppy punk rock, in a Bouncing Souls sort of vein. Poppy melodies mix with aggressive guitars, throbbing bass, and powerful drums to create something that falls halfway between the 90s Epitaph and Fat Wreck sounds. It’s edgy enough to be please your punk side and poppy enough to keep your dancing feet jumping. Songs are mid to up-tempo and expertly played and produced; a lot of care obviously went into making it, as it sounds almost slick. Some of the songs have a loping mid-tempo, like the opening track, “Better Than You,” “or Ego Trip,” which sounds a bit like an old Green Day song. “Paloma” has the sound of a punk rock cover of a Latino anthem. I enjoy the striding feel of “Dawg,” which mixes some barking (both human and canine) into the tune. And “Sweet ‘n’ Low” has a more indie rock sound than pop punk, and it’s got a cool 80s guitar tone in it. Some songs are a little quicker paced, with a higher level of excitement, like “Underground” or “Lowes,” the latter of which has some great ska-punk breaks (belying McKayle’s Jamaican roots). The closing track, “NTB,” is acoustic, with a dark haunting sound, but it’s also got a raucous feel to it. I honestly can’t pick out a favorite song of this album, but likewise, I can’t pick out any I don’t like, because they’re all good.

BAD YEAR (Snappy Little Numbers Quality Audio Recordings, www.snappylittlenumbers.com)

Bad Year hails from Denver, Colorado, and mostly play big pop punk songs. They’ve been around awhile – since 2016 – and they’ve released a handful of singles and EPs, but this is their first proper full-length LP. Across thirty-five minutes we’re treated to ten songs of thickly arranged pop punk in a 90s vein. “Opener” opens the LP, and is a favorite, with a sound that’s both nostalgic yet still sounds modern and vital. The arrangement is rich and full and the vocals are powerful and tuneful, the melody broad yet bouncy. I like “Washington Your Home,” too, for its wistful sentimental feel in the melody and gang vocals, even as it’s still raucous poppy punk. “Black Zin” has a broad emotional sound mixed with the pop punk, while “Closer,” which, of course, closes the album, we lose the pop and get a bigger more emotional sound. The only track I couldn’t get into at all is “Paper Cuts.” It’s easily the worst track of the album with more of a generic hard rock sound than anything pop punk or punk at all. Bad Year is firmly rooted in pop punk traditions of the past, so in that sense they aren’t unique, but they play well and write songs you can get into and jump around to.

BRACKISH – Rear View (brackish.bandcamp.com)

Philadelphia’s Brackish have been making music for nearly a decade, but only released their debut full-length LP a couple of years ago. Their follow-up is a new three-song EP that loosely could be called emo pop punk. The first song, “Threatening,” is the bet of the three, with an aggressive sound, thick loud guitars, passionate vocals, and a melody that’s alternately dark and bright. “Lay Down” is the middle track, and starts out with the same aggressive edge, but with a more plaintive melancholy melody. And “Rear View” has a milder jangly indie sound. While there’s an argument to be made that Brackish aren’t creating anything new and sound like other bands, they do a solid job of it and are nice to listen to.

FLOURISH – Deep Wellsprings of Being (Lost Future Records, www.lostfuturerecords.com)

Flourish are a band from Northern Ohio that are a bit tough to classify. The album title seems very appropriate, as the songs are very spiritual and artistic. These are songs that ebb and flow, the band painting musical landscapes. There’s a sense of dreaminess and shoegaze, as well as edgy grungy metal, jazz fusion, ambience, and more. And though the songs feel primarily like instrumentals, there are vocals in some songs, though the vocals seem to blend in with the instruments to become another aspect of the sonic art. The dynamics are massive, songs going from huge mounds of deep sludge to shallow pools of clear water blown by a light breeze and back again. Unorthodox time signatures create unique rhythms, synths generate a shimmering backdrop, and guitars, bass, and drums shift the mood from serene to chaotic and everything in between. It’s hard to conceive of dreamy music contrasted with noisy guitars, but Flourish do just that, smooth ethereal vocals vying for attention with the gruff gritty instrumentals on songs like “Steel Tracks Move the Trains” or “New Cosmic Terror.” I think one of the coolest aspects of this album is how, on certain tracks, when the music comes to an end there are still ambient sounds gently shimmering. At first I thought it was sounds coming from outside, but it’s part of the music. This is fascinating stuff, perhaps best listened to for setting a mood.

PALM GHOSTS – Façades 3 – Channeling (Sweet Cheetah Records, www.sweet-cheetah-records.com / Poptek Records, www.poptek.com)

We’ve reached the third EP in Palm Ghosts’ ambitious endeavor to release four EPs this year, culminating in a double LP collection at the end of the year featuring all four EPs and some bonus tracks. Like the previous two releases, this one features five songs of music that could loosely be called post-punk, with deep baritone Ian Curtis-like lead crooning vocals. The first EP (“Escape”) hopped through variations within the post-punk genre, and the second (“Masks”) had a more cohesive sound mixing bright and dark post-punk with a pop edge. But this new EP’s songs are a little more experimental in nature. From the start of the first track, “Wilderness of Mirrors,” we hear something more sinister, darker than anything Palm Ghosts have done before. The wilderness of mirrors that surround us are constantly reflecting distortions of our collective features, as the song tells us, seeming to explain that our worst fears are mere reflections of ourselves and what we put into the world. “Church Windows” is a dark, brooding song about how organized religion, though a solace for many, seeks to keep people in ignorance (“Stop asking questions you don’t wanna know the answers” comes the song’s refrain, as the song also alludes to religious leaders purposely creating shadows to obscure things (“I seek to starve the shadows born from / The church’s window lights”) and how they cast a fog to confuse (“But through the fog beset on me / I see not my own hand”). The upbeat “Love Bombed and Conquered” features dark booming bass and glittering synths, while singer Joseph Lekkas’ sonorous vocals sing of being trapped in an evil cult. “We Measure Days by What We’ve Lost” sounds brighter than the preceding tracks, with a sweeping saga sound, though the topic is darker. “This Side of Heaven,” which closes the EP, is the brightest song of them all, and one of the brightest Palm Ghosts songs yet. It’s got a nice thick sound, surfy lead guitars singing out while the rhythm guitar sits in the background creating more ambience than rhythm. Three EPs, a cohesive sound, yet all three have significant differences. I think “Channeling” may be the best one yet.

MT. ORIANDER / AMID N THE OLD WOUNDS – Split EP (Count Your Lucky Stars Records, www.cylsrecords.com)

Three songs on a 7” split. The A-side is from Mt. Oriander, fronted by label boss Keith Latinen. The song is a sweeping epic of gorgeous 90s indie-emo, with lightly jangling clear guitars that turn into big soaring guitars, and Latinen’s wonderfully nerdy 90s emo vocals. “You Chip Away at Anything that Isn’t an Elephant” is a long song that doesn’t feel long, because it’s so simple and so pretty – and so sad. Amid the Old Wounds is Daniel Becker and his acoustic guitar, and he lives on the B-side of this split, also playing two quietly sorrowful songs, “Field of View” and “Hypothetically Speaking I.” Becker’s voice is clear and sonorous, the acoustic guitar spare and stark; his resulting songs are genuine and moving.


ALL HOPE REMAINS – Find My Way (Pee Records, peerecords.com / Double Helix Records, doublehelixrecords.com)

All Hope Remains is an Australian band that plays “melodic punk,” that generic name for generic punk-based music that was popular in the 1990s and 2000s, and remains popular in bro-punk circles today. It’s heavy and metallic, often speedy, with skate punk leanings, and it’s dark and loud. And all ten of the songs sound very much alike, and they all sound like a million other bands that play this genre.

BEEF – Il Manzo (Goodbye Boozy Records, beef.bandcamp.com)

Beef ain’t what’s for dinner, it’s what’s going to knock you for a loop. Beef are a quartet from Cincinnati that play heavy rock music that’s inspired by garage rock, but isn’t quite garage rock itself. It’s a brutal pounding assault with soaring screeching guitars, thumping bass, pounding drums, and vocals that sound emphatic, yet casual. The result is a four track EP that’s hard-hitting and raucous, with a wall of fuzzed insistent music that won’t let you escape. Exciting shit here. The one drawback is that the EP is over in a scant seven minutes. I want more BEEF, and I’m a vegetarian!

THE BLACK PACIFIC – Here Comes Our Wave (Dine Alone Records, dinealonerecords.com)

The Black Pacific is a side project for Pennywise front man Jim Lindberg, along with various friends from other bands. They formed in 2010 and quickly released a debut LP and announced more new music would be forthcoming. But they’ve been pretty silent since – until now. “Here Comes Our Wave” is the band’s sophomore LP, now recorded with the band’s quartet configuration (as opposed to the initial LP’s trio). Upon starting to listen, it sounded exactly how I expected it would – like 90s melodic punk, in the same vein as Pennywise, Bad Religion, and that ilk. There are plenty of crunchy guitars and vocal harmonies creating a familiar sound in the opening track, “I Think I’m Paranoid.” And the second track, “Superhero,” similarly mixes speedy beats, a metallic punk edge, and strong melodic sensibility to create that 90s sound. But that’s not the only sound we get on “Here Comes Our Wave.” “Won’t Make a Sound” has a hint of Nirvana grunge mixed in. “Here We Come” is one of the better tracks of the LP, with a brighter sound, sort of like garage mixed with 80s new wave; the vocals on the chorus for some reason remind me of Duran Duran’s “Rio,” with a melodic croon. “Best Day Ever” has a great pop melody sung over loud fuzzed and distorted guitars, in the way Hüsker Dü used to do it, though the song doesn’t sound like a Hüsker Dü song. “When Paper Burns” has a 90s punk sound, but less of the west coast variety and with more of a Midwest sound – I hear hints of Pegboy in there, which is pleasing to my ears. And things seem to keep getting better as the album evolves. A lot of these tracks do have varying levels of 90s melodic punk sounds, but there’s enough variety in this album to keep it from getting dull and repetitive, like so much 90s melodic punk can do. This exceeded my expectations.

CHRISTOPHER LEE LEWIS – They Still Haven’t Figured Out What’s Wrong with Me (Sweet Cheetah Records, www.sweet-cheetah-records.com)

Christopher Lee Lewis and his acoustic guitar return, a mere two months since his last LP, “They Haven’t Figured Out What’s Wrong with Me.” Once again, the release benefits a worthy cause, with all proceeds from the sale of the record being donated to Doctors Without Borders. And again, the album consists of ten songs that are subdued and relaxed. The folk influences remain, though there’s less psych than before. Again, the songs are delicate and the singing is heartfelt, such as with “Not Sticking Around,” a song with overdubbed acoustic guitars and pained vocals crying out, “Who am I, anyway?” and “Who am I kidding?” It’s a refusal to confront one’s own feelings and experiences, choosing instead to run away from uncomfortable realities. I enjoy “Family Secrets,” a song with a less delicate and more emphatic sound, again with overdubbed dueling acoustic guitars, plus what sounds like acoustic bass guitar. There’s a steady rhythm and brighter sound, Lewis’ vocals singing in a higher register. It almost has the sound of an indie pop song. I also enjoy the album’s closer, “Wheel Spinner,” a folksy song about creating one’s own problems and spinning your wheels, not moving forward. If you liked Lewis’ previous LP, you will enjoy this one, too.

THE MERINGUES – Pavlova’s Dog (themeringues.bandcamp.com)

The Meringues are a Canadian outfit that mixes indie and psych, reminding me of Playboy Manbaby but with a lighter touch, less punk, and more indie. The general feeling is an album of big time party music. “Shambles” leads off the album with a song that sounds fun but sings about a toxic relationship involving insults, threats of break-up, and confusion. It has a great bounce and bright party-like vocals, belying the dark lyrics. “Royalty” has a cool mix of new wave and psych, with shimmering guitars and keyboards, and the big party-like gang vocals that make The Meringues who they are. “Outta Time” has a big striding vibe and sassy sounding vocals, and “A.I. (Actually Incredible)” sounds like a lighter indie PUP. Some songs have a garage punk sound, too, like “Medusa” or “Nvr Rlly Hnst,” with a strong beat, fuzzed up guitars, electric organ, and simple chords. The vocals still have a B-52s party mix vibe, so despite the instrumentals trying to sound serious, the songs still sound too darn fun. “Time to Breathe” and “Speed” are a couple of the more rockin’ songs, with a harder edge and with the vocals still sounding quirky, but angry rather than partying. If you like fun, you’ll like this album.

NO GUIDANCE – Late to the Party (Thousand Islands Records, noguidancepunk.bandcamp.com)

No Guidance is a band with a split personality. Are they a skate punk band? Do they play melodic hardcore? Or are they a pop punk band? We get all of this on “Late to the Party,” the German band’s sophomore LP (and their first for Thousand Islands Records). It’s an album filled with anger over the greed and corruption of people who destroy the planet to feed their greed and lust for power, about the rightward tilt toward fascism running rampant in the world, and about the lack of regard for the rights of equality for all by the very people who swear to uphold such rights. The album begins with “Oh Hell,” a metallic melodic hardcore track filled with anger and aggression and lyrics about the quest for power, the monetization of war, and the extraction of wealth from the most vulnerable people on the planet. Several of the tracks have this sound, blending skate punk speed and Bad Religion influenced melodic hardcore. “OK Boomer” is another, a song about aging people who selfishly choose conspiracy theories and fascism over equality and freedom for all. But I must say I resent the title; not all Boomers think this way. There are plenty of us who want a better, fairer society where everyone has a seat at the table and shares in the fruits of our shared labors. There are also emotional songs about loss of loved ones. “Shores” is a poppier sounding song, blending the speediness of slate punk with the brightness of pop punk to create a song on a melancholy topic: the despondency in the aftermath of loss of a loved one, and how such a departure often leaves us feeling lost and rudderless. Other poppy songs include “Back To You,” and “Where She Belongs,” a track that verges on indie rock, with a slower pace and thicker sound. A favorite of the album is “Constitution.” It successfully melds a poppier melody with the harder edge of melodic hardcore on a song of accusation targeting those who would eliminate liberties and elevate others to special status. “Adequate Salary Blues,” too, brings together pop punk, super speedy skate punk, and the angularity of melodic hardcore, making it one of the more interesting tracks of the album. If you like a mix of pop, hardcore, speedy playing, and politics, check out No Guidance.

SATANIC TOGAS – “Illusions” b/w “1998” (Goodbye Boozy Records, goodbyeboozydigital.bandcamp.com)

Italian garage punk label Goodbye Boozy Records brings us another pair of stripped down blasts from Aussie band Satanic Togas. Guitar, bass, drums, and 80s style synth play a thin arrangement of frenetic punk, with simple chords and distorted shouted vocals. This is raw lo-fi stuff, harkening back to the earliest days of punk rock. “Illusions” is about living a life filled with distractions from reality, pursuing material wealth instead of real connections. “1998” is about the slow march of society towards deeper authoritarianism. While both tracks are fun, the B-side is a little more raucous, focusing more on guitar-driven punk and less on synths. If you’re a fan of retro garage punk, check this out.

THE SHITDELS – Where’s Your Head? (Mono) (Big Neck Records, bigneckrecords1.bandcamp.com)

The Shitdels are a noisy distorted garage punk band that plays impossibly bright, poppy, and fun songs. The layers of noise and the careening nature of the songs makes The Shitdels sound like they’re maybe a little sloppy, always on the verge of falling apart, but no, they’re proficient and hold it together. The opening track, “Headstone,” sparkles and shines in a way that’s totally unexpected for garage punk. Sure, there’s plenty of grit, but the lead guitar and vocals and even the bass sound so damned elated and happy, you can’t help but smile and dance. “Hold On” has a bouncy 50s doo-wop sound that transforms into 60s mod toward the end, with the addition of bubbly backing vocals. I like the gritty psych sound of “Electric Cars,” while the garage surf vibes of “All I Wanted” and “Raybans” make for perfect fun-in-the-sun music. The title track is very simple, yet it’s got a compelling energy, making it a favorite of the album. And “Any Girl” has a great retro 60s mod-pop sound buried under layers of distorted garage and psych. It’s clear The Shitdels are having a blast making this music, and that makes it fun to listen to.

THE SLACKERS – "What We Gonna Do Now" b/w "Pick and Choose" (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

New York City’s ska-reggae band The Slackers are back with a new single, just in time for election season. The title for “What We Gonna Do Now” comes from the Clash song, “Clampdown,” and is a jazzy tune that asks the far right MAGA types, who have spent the last four years parroting conspiracy theories and who rioted in the US Capitol to try to overthrow the government what they plan to do now. It accuses them of having a “psychotic break” and asks if they’re ready to “rejoin the human race.” It’s a bouncy finger-snappin’ song that features smooth sounds, a big band worthy arrangement, plus powerhouse sax and trombone solos. “Pick and Choose” is a more traditional reggae tune, with a more soulful sound and more emotion. It’s about how words are meaningful, but only if they’re backed up with action. Otherwise they’re meaningless. Another winner from The Slackers.

STOKE SIGNALS – Make Dying Fun (stokesignalsband.com)

Stoke Signals is a newer band out of LA (they played their first show just this past January) that plays powerful melodic punk rock that’s poppy without being pop punk, but also doesn’t veer into “melodic punk” territory that most associate with 1990s and 2000s punk. A mix of big gang vocals and solid melodies makes some of the songs on this album more akin to PUP. Songs like “Alternative Medicine,” which opens the album, have a big striding sound with the sort of nerdy punk lead vocals and group singing that PUP are so well known for. Or “Neon,” with vocals shifting between leads and the group. Some of the songs have a darker emotional cast to them, like “Burning Daylight,” “Holy Fangs,” or “Take the Wheel,” yet still have a strong urgent and speedy sound. Stoke Signals say they decided to hit the ground running and debut with an LP rather than releasing an EP or a demo. I think they made the right choice. This is exciting stuff, with a big wall of guitar, bass, and drums and passionate vocals. I see big things for them in the future, if they’re able to get outside of Southern California and tour.

SUNSET RUBDOWN – Always Happy to Explode (Pronounced Kroog, pronouncedkroog.bandcamp.com)

Sunset Rubown began life as a solo project from Spencer Krug (of Wolf Parade). It since has grown to a full band, toured extensively, went on hiatus, and finally have reunited for this, their first new recordings in fifteen years. The PR materials call it an “art rock” band. Well, all music is art, but I don’t know if I would call Sunset Rubdown an “art rock” band in the traditional sense of the term. But they do play unique music that doesn’t neatly fit into any specific genre categorization. And that, right there, starts them out with a plus. There are plenty of good bands that write and play good songs that sound like several other bands. But when a band creates something new and different, that becomes more intriguing to me. The songs are generally spare in arrangement, with guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and vocals – which sounds like a lot, but the arrangements sound thinner and more delicate that would be expected. There’s a melancholy feel in the nine songs, a sense of sadness and loss. Like on the opening track, “Losing Light,” a song about living lives of quiet desperation. It’s about the daily compromises we make, following in the footsteps of others to stay safe and comfortable instead of striking out on our own and exposing ourselves to the accompanying risks. The deep bass, with its slight distortion, creates quite a texture on “All Alright,” along with dueling lead vocals. “Candles” is bouncy and tries so hard to be bright, but still has a shadow of wistfulness to it, a blue cast in the synth-heavy tune about loneliness and patience (at least that’s what it seems to me). “Call me if you still need me I’m still here / I am in the last place you went looking for me,” says the chorus. On some songs, piano is added to the synths, like the deeply sorrowful “Snowball,” a slow waltz that starts out quietly and has some big epic moments, too. “Reappearing Rat” is one of my favorites of the album, with a sense of quiet urgency and lyrics about how we try to make things just the way we want them, but just as things are getting good, there’s always something going wrong to ruin it – the “rat” reappears. And that rat is us, self-sabotaging. “Worm” is, perhaps, the most mournful of all the songs, with heavy buzzing wavering synths and a morose melody. The closing track, “Fable Killer,” is quietly stunning. A piano strikes some chords as the vocals sing plaintively. A lovely sad album.


KAL MARKS – Wasteland Baby
(Exploding In Sound Records;
kalmarks.bandcamp.com)

This latest album from Kal Marks is a concept LP, one that’s close to frontman Carl Shane’s heart: his fears about fatherhood and bringing a child into this mess of a world we have made for ourselves. It still bears the hallmarks of a Kal Marks LP, in that it blends melodic indie-rock with sonic art experimentalism, but this time there’s a singular focus to the songs. The first track serves as an intro, a lullaby of sorts, with muffled keyboards and warbled vocals, punctuated with occasional digital noise and artifacts and blasts of static. As the track progresses, the noise increases until it overwhelms everything else. It’s an omen or fear of bad things to come. “Insects” has the sound of alarm, the guitar acting as a siren and the drums beating out a martial rhythm, with lyrics likening people to vile, violent insets, all trying to cash in before the collapse of everything. As the song evolves it becomes an aggressive alt-rock tune, with angular guitar jabs stabbing and the vocals rising with desperate anxiety. I love the sweeping epic that is the wish for “A Functional Earth,” and “All God’s Children” is a chilling interlude, with a bell tolling and echoing in an empty landscape, with the sounds of pained screeching growing louder and louder. The closing title track is a promise. It has a much more optimistic and hopeful sound than anything else on the album, and lyrics that declare, “We’ll keep the Hellscape at bay/ And doom is on the rise, oceans of blood and decay. There’s only one thing in this world I don’t despise, it’s in her eyes.” Love wins out, as it always does, and despite the state of the world, everything will be OK as long as we keep that love in our hearts. Kal Marks is a unique voice in today’s musical world that deserves to be heard more widely.

MK ULTRAS (Big Neck Records, bigneckrecords1.bandcamp.com)

MK Ultras is a band that crawled out of the pre-pandemic punk ooze of the Cleveland punk scene, released the 5-song “Secret Tape” EP, and now presents their self-titled debut full-length. Four of the cassette’s songs make the cut here, and there are four additional songs to boot. Musically, MK Ultras presents a mix of punk, old school hardcore, and garage. It’s edgy and aggressive. It’s a gut punch and it’s a back stab. This is the music listened to and made by the people you’re afraid to meet in a dark alley. “Target Killer” sounds like the title track to some twisted indie film about punk rock assassins for hire, while “Your Face” reminds me of the great Texas band, Radioactivity, but with electric organ included in the mix. It’s a bit poppy, but it’s also rapid-fire garage punk. “You Say” is classic early 80s hardcore, from the music to the lyrics, and “Listen to Me” reminds me very specifically of early 80s Midwest hardcore, especially Chicago’s Naked Raygun. “License to Steal” is a slow burner bluesy garage punk tune that closes the album, with sax, dripping with grease and sleaze. If you’re a fan of old school garage, punk, and hardcore, this is for you.

OH, ARE THEY? – Guilt (oharethey.bandcamp.com)

Oh yes, they are. Philadelphia band Oh, Are They? is well worth the time spent listening on this, their third record. In a departure from their previous releases, titled, “i” and “ii,” they’ve titles this one with a word rather than a number. The title is “Guilt,” and it’s a harbinger of the topical nature of the ten songs here. There are themes of guilt here, guilt about one’s identity, guilt about indecision whether to remain stagnant or to embrace change, guilt about whether to stay or go. These songs are more than solid. They’re in the post-hardcore realm, with strong, heavy, aggressive instrumentals and powerful, emotion-packed shouted and screamed vocals, but the songs are much more compelling and complex than typical post-hardcore. Unexpected chord changes and thoughtful arrangements with a sometimes near orchestral sensibility are evident. The songs get better and better as the album evolves, going from good to strong to phenomenal. The intro, “Movable Headstones,” is a quiet eerie song that tells of a dream that one’s home is inhabited by a ghost trying to escape. But more than a ghost story, it seems to be a story of how we sabotage our own attempts to get out of bad situations or improve our lives. “And it tried to escape through a door / And I was behind each time pushing it closed,” the song says. It tees up the rest of the album’s themes of self-sabotage and uncertainty of one’s own identity, with songs like “Stop Hitting Yourself” and “Mistaken Identity.” The latter track is about imposter syndrome, the feeling that you aren’t who others think you are, that you’re somehow “less than,” and the uncertainty of whether you should strive to live up to those perceived expectations or not. “A Stranger Revelation” is jaw-droppingly good, showing impressive dynamic range, with sections shifting from loud to soft to loud and with rhythms that shift on a dime. In addition to the huge songs there are quieter ballads with a thinner arrangement and slower pace, but the vocals are, perhaps, even more angst-filled and forceful. Such is the case with “Perfect,” a song about being in denial of the need for change in one’s life. “Don’t make me change!” the chorus demands, “Because everything’s perfect.” “Everything the Light Touches” moves from quiet to loud, but rather than sounding aggressive, the song has an almost breezy sound through most of it. The lyrics are about knowing self-destruction and avoidance of responsibility. “I’m slowly killing myself / And I know you’re concerned about my health / Am I doing my best / Or am I playing a trick on everyone else?” the song asks. “I’m going away for awhile / I hope that you come too.” “I’m so afraid to be alone,” the song chimes, as if to reveal the recognition that you may be pushing others away, but you don’t want to. The song builds and builds, the guitars distorting and all the instruments sounding like a bell tolling. The climax of the album is reached with “Dweller (On the Threshold),” an amazing tour de force, a sweeping epic of a song. It seems to be about being on the threshold of change, at the point of choosing life or death, choosing to move forward or sink deeper, and the struggle to decide. The album’s postscript, “Removable Headstones,” is a bookend to the album’s intro, featuring just piano and vocals. “Your dreams, they don’t matter to me,” the song states, “You don’t matter to me,” it concludes. The interpretation is left open. What decision was made at the threshold? Is it the dream of the ghost or is it the sense of self that doesn’t matter? It’s up to each of us to decide for ourselves what matters. What would you decide? Whatever course you choose, do buy this record. Do it now. It’s that good.

SPACE AGE ZEROS – Strange New World (spaceagezeros.bandcamp.com)

Space Age Zeros are a newish band from the Chicago area, formed just over two years ago. But these aren’t newbs; Space Age Zeros is made up of five veterans of the Chicago punk scene. The band has an EP under their belt, released mere months after coming into being, but Strange New World is the band’s debut full-length. They primarily play a variety of pop punk that focuses more on melody than on speed, and the band is tight. Close multi-part vocal harmonies add to the appeal. The opening track, “Fireworks,” is a celebration of American summers, with references to the Fourth of July, convertible Camaros, fun in the sun, and being an irresponsible teenager. It’s played at a mid-tempo pace and is laden with nostalgia for simpler times. Some songs have a dark cast to them, such as “Save Me,” which has more of a 90s melodic punk sound. A real favorite is “Smile,” a song with more of a jangly indie-pop sound than pop punk. And another is “No More Heroes,” a song that has a big Naked Raygun sort of sound, complete with gang vocals of “whoa-ohs.” The closing track, “You Hate Me (I Love You)” is very different from the rest; it’s a solemn ballad with acoustic guitar and piano, more of an Americana track than pop punk. I’m not sure of the intent here, but it does feel out of place. Though Space Age Zeros aren’t treading new musical waters, I appreciate the solid musicianship and production quality here. And I like the injection of various samples on some of the tracks. “Merry Go Round” starts off with a calliope playing a familiar circus sort of melody, while “Jet Lagged” features air traffic control chatter throughout the track. These sorts of thoughtful details add to the enjoyment of the songs. Thumbs up.


CITY MOUSE – So Far Out (It’s Alive Records, www.itsaliverecords.com)

It’s always a great occasion when a new City Mouse album comes along. Miski Dee Rodriguez has a powerful voice and can really belt it out on her songs. She’s also a good songwriter, producing melodies that instantly sound familiar and get you moving around. Many of the songs have become staples of City Mouse live sets recently, which may account for the familiar sound, but even so, her songs have always had that quality. This latest LP is no exception; the dozen songs are all solid bangers. This album is even bigger and stronger than past efforts, if you can believe it. The opening track, “Four Leaf Clover,” is harder and more driving than any City Mouse song I can recall, yet it’s still eminently melodic and poppy, like a good City Mouse song should be. The title track, too, feels bigger and more powerful than expected. Just listen to Miski’s enormous voice! Check the near grunge quality of “repairgirl,” a song that sounds gritty and tough while still being bouncy and fun. I love the blend of retro rock and roll rhythms and modern indie-pop-punk of “Mood,” something City Mouse has done successfully with several past songs. And a real favorite is the loping paced track, “Not Lonely,” which has more of a power pop feel than typical City Mouse pop punk tunes. “I’m alone and I’m not lonely,” the song’s chorus declares, in an anthem of independence. We can be whole people and live our best lives without a partner. The title track from last year’s EP, “Magnitude,” makes an appearance here, too, in a newly recorded rendition that’s a little more polished than 2021’s EP version. I really like the tweaks to the City Mouse sound made on this album, and it’s my favorite City Mouse record yet.

FIG DISH – Feels Like The Very First Two Times (Forge Again Records, www.forgeagainrecords.com)

Fig Dish may be one of the more underappreciated bands that came out of the1990s Chicago scene. Too melodic and not heavy enough to fit in with the Seattle grunge sound, but too gritty and gruff to fit in with the burgeoning indie-pop scene, Fig Dish seem to have been relegated to the phantom zone between these opposite poles of musical attraction, thus not gathering enough of a following themselves. But they made solid, powerful songs that moved the body, mind, and soul. Their story is a common one: local band gets signed by a major label and then gets dropped when sales don’t meet expectations. Because of this, the band’s third LP sat unreleased for two and a half decades, as the band first tried to find a new label and then finally drifted apart and onto new projects. But no more! “Feels Like the Very First Two Times” is here and consists of the songs slated for that ill-fated third LP. It is, therefore, the band’s first new music in some 28 years, though the album was recorded way back in the late 90s. The band’s songs, as mentioned, mix melodic pop with noisy tough instrumentals. They, therefore, have a distinctly Midwest sound, sharing more in common with bands like The Replacements and Hüsker Dü than any from the Pacific Northwest. The album’s opener is a perfect example; “Burn Bright for Now” is eminently poppy and bouncy and will get your head bobbing and your feet moving. But at the same time it’s noisy and a bit chaotic. “Science Goes Public” is one of the band’s harder, grungier songs, with a deeper heavier fuzz to it in the verses, but the chorus is more garage pop rock than grunge, with a stronger melodic content. At the opposite end of the spectrum is “Tear the Atmosphere,” which, though it has its big epic moments, is more of a solemn pop ballad than grunge anthem. I really enjoy “Cellophane and Suffer,” which has a 60s pop rock rhythm undergirding a song that’s both poppy and bouncy and tough and gruff. There are even Beatles style handclaps and “hoo-hoo!” vocalizations. “Senior Circuit” has moments of Hüsker Dü noisy gritty pop in the chorus, making it a favorite. And “If Not Now When” has a sound hard to compare to another band, but there’s something distinctly Midwest about it. It’s very melodic, yet tough and gruff without sounding hard and heavy. Maybe there’s a mix of Hüsker Dü and Smoking Popes in there, with a dash of Naked Raygun. It’s another solid favorite of the album. The reunited band is playing a pair of record release in Chicago this weekend, but good luck getting in; they’re both sold out. You should pick up this new LP before it, too, sells out.

JON FLYNN – Cherry Cherry (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

Jon Flynn, half of the power pop duo, Diamond Hands, returns for his second solo outing. He must have a thing for fruit, because his first solo LP was titled “Citrus,” and this one is “Cherry Cherry.” In any case, Flynn takes the “solo” in “solo LP” seriously, and he handles all the instruments here, the production, recording, and even the mixing himself. The music shares much with power pop, because it’s hook-filled and poppy, but there’s more than that. There are new wave influences, as well as smooth electronic ambience in some songs, and retro rock and roll in others. The opening track is something right out of the 80s, with a mix of new wave and power pop sounds, but there are some cool electronic samples mixed in, blending retro music with modern production to create a cool tune. The song itself is somewhat subdued, reminding me a bit of Richard Bone’s early 80s music. “Where to Start” has less new wave and more rock and roll with a hint of retro, while “Peking” is a lovely light song with delicate electronics and the feel of rolling through sunny fields. “Brush Your Hair” has the vibe of 50s rock and roll mixed with 70s Beatles, and “Make You Mine” has some influence from 60s and 70s acid rock. This LP is an eclectic collection of varied pop music.

MASSIVE NIGHTMARES (massivenightmares.bandcamp.com)

This is the debut EP from Massive Nightmares, a four-piece from Boston, who play emotion-laden music that echoes 2000s melodic pop and emo punk. The EP’s five songs are big and soaring, with sincere vocals, from the breezy “Worth It” to the gritty thump of “Stick Around.” “Worth It” opens the EP with thick instrumentals and harmonized vocals, creating a rich sound that’s grounded in indie rock and punk. “Back to the Beach” has an even bigger sound, informed by the sort of emotionally charged pop punk that was a big thing on the west coast in the last decade, making it a favorite. “Haunt My House” is smoother indie rock with hints of dreaminess in the guitar tone and vocals. While Massive Nightmare isn’t breaking new musical ground with this debut, it’s a solid listen, especially if you’re a fan of this style of music.

THE OKMONIKS – Afterparty Fever!!! (Slovenly Recordings; theokmoniks.bandcamp.com)

Well, it’s released by Slovenly, so you know this is going to be garage punk, right? The San Francisco band’s sophomore LP comes some 16 years since their debut, “Party Fever!!!” With their upbeat tempos and electric organ in the mix, the nine songs on this LP sound impossibly bright and fun, more than any garage punk band has a right to be. Usually garage punk is aggressive, angry, and sardonic, but The Okimoniks exude nothing but, well, party!!! The sheer joy in the songs makes this a hell of a fun album, but the songs are ridiculously short, the whole album flying by in seventeen minutes. But what a quarter hour of excitement! A real highlight for me is “Don’t Wanna See You,” a song that has soulfulness, yet rocks out hard. “Next Worse Thing” is a great raucous track, with a quicker pace and a more manic feel. “Summer Break Up” is a standout, too, because it’s so different from the rest of the songs. It leaves out the warmth and bubbliness of most of the songs and focuses on melancholy guitars and vocals, with a slightly slower tempo, but it still has a great bounce in its stride. If you like garage and poppy punky music, this is recommended. And I look forward to checking the band live; they’ll be at Gonerfest in late September, followed by a west coat tour in the first half of October. I plan to be at one of those shows.

PRIM – Move Too Slow (Sunday Drive Records, sundaydrive-records.com)

It seems to be a common theme these says in punk scenes around the country: as they get older, musicians tire of hardcore and punk and form bands that are more focused on indie rock and indie pop. Such is the case with Prim, a band formed in 2020 by Kevin Flores and Mark Ramos, who have been active in the Houston, Texas scene. While still firmly rooted in the DIY spirit, Prim focuses more on indie, with more melodic and even poppy content, sometimes even veering into bits of dreaminess, rather than on hard, edgy, angry music. Now based in Seattle and with a handful of EPs and singles under their belts, Prim presents their debut full-length LP. You can hear the Seattle influence, with a thick layer of grungy distortion laid over the music, but the songs are hook-filled and bouncy. “I’ll Drive” opens the album with a song with a great sense of forward motion, perfect for a road trip. The distortion in the guitars is a wonderful contrast to the smooth easy vocals. “Cruisin’” is another in this vein, though the vocals are brutal in comparison to the instrumentals. I like the emo-pop sound of “Make Your Bed,” with its mix of spoken and floating vocals. And I enjoy the bright wobbly guitar tone in “Golden Tooth,” the lone song with some angry sounding vocals (in the chorus). “Gonna Be,” too, has that wobbling in the lead guitar, and it’s kinda cool to hear in contrast to the pretty lead vocals. For the most part, this is bright, fun sounding stuff. One exception is “But It’s Hard,” a song that relates the difficulties in getting through life. It has a morose sound, with a lonely guitar and weary vocals that, as the song escalates, relates how she’s trying to make it and shouts, “I’ve been trying” over and over again, but it’s hard. The music gets louder and more chaotic as the frustration grows. And the final track, “Livelihood,” has a dark cast to it, as well. This is a well-written and well-made debut that makes me look forward to more.

SYBRIS – Gold On Hold (Absolutely Kosher Records, www.absolutely-kosher.com)

This is a wide ranging EP of indie pop and indie rock, and it ranges from quiet stolid stuff to huge, impassioned, and emotional, often within a single song. Such is the case with “Watermelon,” which opens the LP. It starts out simply, with bass and vocals, but it slowly builds, as other instruments join in, increasing the tension. The arrangement gets thicker and louder, until it explodes with excitement and then quiets again. The process repeats, this time getting even bigger, thicker, and lusher in the arrangement, with feeling dripping from every note. It’s the best way to open a new LP, especially when it’s the band’s first record in fifteen years and when it’s the record label’s official relaunch after almost as many years on hiatus. “Gold on Hold was recorded way back when, but it never made it out because Absolutely Kosher was forced to close its doors due to mounting debt. “Gold On Hold” has songs that are very theatrical (“Dead”). It has songs that blend indie-pop and emo (“Sing Along” and “Girls Spice,” two of my favorites of the album). It has songs that are both raucous and dreamy (“Horny”), and it has songs that are smooth and solemn, and even a little eerie (“Stag Party,” “South Dakota”). This is an album full of great hooks and varied sounds that all work great together. Solid.

TEXTURE FREQ – What May Come (Dirt Cult Records, dirtcultrecords.com)

Texture Freq is a band hailing from Minneapolis, Minnesota, but they don’t sound like most Minneapolis bands I’m familiar with. Instead, they play chaotic modern hardcore. Hardcore punk has gone through multiple transformations since its emergence in the early 1980s, from fast and loud rock music with simple chords and politically charged lyrics, to heavy guttural, almost metallic, music in the 90s, with lyrics focused on scene unity, personal relationships and betrayal, to today’s frenetic noise covering a wide range of social ills. Texture Freq falls solidly into this latter camp. My favorite tracks off this four-song EP have to be the two in the middle, “I Fucked the U.N. (and Lost)” and “So What? It’s the Future,” because they’re the two that have a discernable sense of melody and song structure. They’re still loud and noisy, but there are songs in there. “Golden Pavilion” and “Head Machine,” by contrast, are chaos incarnate, pure pandemonium made with musical instruments. I know some people go for that sound, and Texture Freq do it well, but I’ve never understood the appeal.

THE ARMOIRES / ROY CRANK – Songs for Ukrainian Independence Day (bigstirrecords.bandcamp.com)

To make a statement in support of Ukrainian independence, as the war-torn nation endures its third year of invasion and attacks at the hands of Russia, Big Stir Records presents a new split single, featuring The Armoires and Roy Crank. Big Stir co-founder and Armoires member Christina Bulbenko is a first generation Ukrainian American, and Roy Crank, hailing from Kharkiv, Ukraine, is the host of the “Crankin’ Up” radio show, syndicated world-wide. The Armoires’ song, “Snake Island Thirteen,” appears on the A-side, and refers to the Ukrainian soldiers who famously told a Russian warship to “Go fuck yourself” when ordered to surrender the island. The song is a mix of jangly pop and sweet solemn lullaby, the former from the jangly guitars, the latter from the simple singsong melody and beautiful violin. The B-side is Roy Crank’s “Don’t Kill the World I’m Living In.” It’s a glorious mix of 70s soul, relaxed jazz, and classical music, with smooth guitars, deep funky bass, fluttering flute, warm electric organ, and soaring soulful vocals. All proceeds from sales of this split single will be donated to the humanitarian aid organization, United Help Ukraine. So you get good music and support a good cause at the same time.

HUTCHIE / COMA TWINS – Split (Loud Circles, www.loudcirclesvinyl.com)

Seattle’s Hutchie and San Pedro, California’s Coma Twins are a perfect match. Both bands play great guitar-fueled poppy music that’s not quite pop punk but not quite power pop, either. The songs lie somewhere between, with just the right blend of melody and edginess. So it makes sense that Loud Circles took a pair of songs from each band and put them together on a split 10” piece of vinyl. Hutchie’s pair of songs are bright and bouncy, much of the brightness coming from Michelle Pannell’s sparkling lead vocals. The guitars jangle madly, and the lighter touch from the bass and drums complements the vocals and guitar perfectly. Though the songs are quite effervescent, they also have a cool breezy feel to them, which is really nice. Coma Twins have a more laid-back vibe in their two songs, which befits their Pedro punk roots. A lot of the punk bands that have come from that working class port city play with a similar mood, sounding more like a bunch of friends hanging out, singing along together. Like picking the perfect wine to go with a gourmet meal, selecting these two bands for a split shows great taste. Recommended.

WRONG WAR / COMPULSION – Split LP (Council Records, council-records.bandcamp.com)

Wrong War keeps getting better and better with every release. The Chicago band wears their love of mid-80s Dischord/DC Revolution Summer music on their sleeve. It’s a genre near and dear to my heart. Think Swiz, Rites of Spring, Embrace, and that era and you’ll have a good idea what Wrong War sounds like. On this latest release they split a full-length LP with Compulsion, another Chicago band, not the 90s Irish band. Each gets a full side of five songs to win us over, with Wrong War taking the A-side. “Comfort or Aid” is my favorite of the five, sounding like it could have been a lost Rites of Spring song, but they’re all strong songs. “Belief Before Design” is a little harder and edgier, with more of a tough Swiz sound, and the others fall somewhere between these two ends of the spectrum. Compulsion has a harder, grittier hardcore sound than Wrong War, a little thrashier, just a bit metallic, but just as energetic and intense. I like the angular chord changes of their self-titled track, and the ferocity with which it’s delivered. “Building” starts and ends with a slower heavier dirge, but speeds up in the middle with a rockin’ Motorhead meets hardcore thing. The rest of their songs, too, fall on the same spectrum as these. If I had my preference it would be for the Wrong War songs, but you can’t go wrong with this split at all.

VARIOUS – Red Scare Industries: 20 Years of Dreaming and Scheming (Red Scare Industries, redscare.net)

Red Scare Industries has been around for 20 years now? Way to make us all feel old, Toby! Toby Jeg, the “brains” behind Red Scare Industries, has been putting out quality music from quality bands for two decades, and to celebrate, he’s gotten many bands to contribute previously unreleased tracks for this anniversary compilation. Some of the bands are current roster favorite, while others are past label-mates who have moved on to bigger things. Some are even bands that had broken up but still managed to provide new music for the birthday party. There are seventeen tracks in total here, offering up three quarters of an hour some of the best music Red Scare has to offer. The most exciting track of this comp, at least to me, is “Overpromised,” by Sludgeworth. It means that the two tracks they released on a single a few months ago is not the only new music they’ve got, and maybe there’s more yet to come! It’s a solid song, even better than either of the two songs released in May! Almost as exciting is the emergence of a new track from Dead to Me, “Don’t Be Mad.” There was a lot of noise nearly a decade (!) ago when co-founder Jack Dalrymple rejoined the band and in 2016 when a new EP was released with the promise of a new LP to come. But since then there’s been silence. But here we have a new unreleased song! It’s classic Dead to Me, striding punk rock that builds, and Dalrymple’s crooning can be heard in the backing vocals!

But that’s just two things that excited me from the get go; there are fifteen other songs here too, and every single one of them is great. Another standout to me is Cobra Skulls’ “You Know I Know,” with a retro doo-wop rock and roll vibe mixed with more modern pop punk. No Trigger’s “Super Beef” is nicely aggressive, and Good Friend’s Ramones-core song, “Bonzo Goes to Belfast” is a lot of fun (and a pun on The Ramones’ “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg”). I really like, too, The Lippies’ “Host Bodies,” which blends punk and rap in this feminist manifesto.

As is to be expected, Chicago bands show up in force on this compilation. In addition to the aforementioned Sludgeworth track, we get new music from The Falcon, Won’t Stay Dead, The Brokedowns, and The Bollweevils. The latter two had new LPs come out last year that both made my best of 2023 list, so you know these are great tracks.

Laura Jane Grace, as far as I know, never released anything with Red Scare Industries, but it was Red Scare boss Toby Jeg that signed Against Me to Fat Wreck Chords when he worked there. So Grace joins in the celebration with her track, “Baby, Baby.” Other big names represented here include The Menzingers, who offer up an ode to Chicago with their song, “Second City.” Nothington may have broken up in 2019, but they’re here too, with an unreleased song, “Aware.” And Colorado’s Elway offer up some “High Drama, Low Comedy.” Rounding out the rest of the comp, with excellent tracks of their own, are Heart & Lung, Sam Russo, And The Holy Mess. It’s an old trope, but this really is an all-star lineup on a great comp.

The month of September is also going to be seeing a series of live birthday shows for Red Scare in various parts of the country. I know I’m headed to one of them. I hope to see you there!


ZACH BAROCAS NEW FREEDOM SOUND – Two Freedoms (newfreedomsound.bandcamp.com)

Zach Barocas is best known as the drummer for DC area band Jawbox. New Freedom Sound is a New York-based collaborative improvisational musical group led by Barocas, who has expanded his musical repertoire considerably. Notable participants in New Freedom Sound include Mark Cisneros, J Robbins, Gordon Withers, and Lenny Young. The two freedoms presented here include the “Fourteenth Freedom” and the “Twelfth Freedom.” The Fourteenth Freedom begins with vocals and cello, both bright and solemn. After a time, it becomes a mélange of Afro-Cuban and classical styles that feels both celebratory and subdued. You can hear exuberance in the music, the off-kilter rhythms, and the brightness of the instruments. But it’s tempered by the melancholy of the cello. One might interpret the “Fourteenth Freedom” as relating to the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which granted US citizenship to all people born here, including the recently freed slaves. It also guaranteed equal protection under the law for everyone. The joy in the newly granted rights is heard in the music, particularly in the lively ebullient soprano saxophone, but so is the sorrow of both lives of servitude and of promises unfulfilled, even to this day. “Twelfth Freedom” has the sounds of the North African desert coursing through it, evoking images of caravans trekking across the sand in the hot sun. But there’s also some free jazz that could represent the random wanderings of nomads, and the Afro-Cuban beats return here, as well. It’s harder to determine the intent behind the “Twelfth Freedom,” because the Twelfth Amendment is about electing the Vice President together with the President on a single ticket. Maybe the “Twelfth Freedom” represents the freedom of movement, to wander about and go where one will. Either way, the New Freedom Sound is a fascinating project and a joy to listen to.

CADDY - S/T (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

Though Caddy have been around and making music for several years (their previous LP of forgotten power pop covers was reviewed here at Jersey Beat a few years ago), this fifth full-length is their self-titled LP. The moving force behind Caddy, Tomas Dahl, calls Oslo, Norway home, but the music here is as American as apple pie. This is modern power pop, guitar-fueled music that’s equal parts grit and pop, bright and bouncy, yet tough and punchy. My only previous exposure to Caddy was the covers LP, so it’s nice to hear some of their originals, and it makes me like and respect them even more. The opening track, “In a Heartbeat,” in particular, is heavy and grungy while still having a solid power pop feel, making it a real standout. “Why Worry,” too, has a thick heavy arrangement full of gruff distortion and tough as nails guitars and bass, but the pop content in the melody and vocals lightens things up. “Smalltown Operator” is another in this vein, and it cements my appreciation for this tough bouncy blend. “Into Oblivion” is a bit darker, and seems to channel Fugazi with its repeating riffs. There are some cool guitar effects used to provide eeriness, yet the vocals are filled with smooth gorgeous harmonies. As fun as the covers LP was, the ten originals on this new LP are so much better, and the blend of styles is a unique twist on a classic genre.

GIANT DAY – Glass Narcissus (The Elephant 6 Recording Company, www.elephant6.com/)

Giant Day is the teaming of multi-instrumentalist Derek Almstead (The Olivia Tremor Control, of Montreal, and more) with singer Emily Growden. Their music fuses krautrock, dream pop, and jazz, resulting in music that flows smoothly and energizes both mind and body. Right from the start, with “I Can Take It,” the music is hypnotic, with repeating riffs, brash synths, and subtle subdued vocals. I love the fluid tranquil quality of the tracks, how they ebb and flow with understated energy. “Walk With a Shadow” is a favorite for its alternating light and dark chord progressions and the minimalist repeating riffs. “Overtone” is loaded with urban beats that are a throwback to the 1980s, particularly in the bass, yet it’s also got jazzy vibraphone and ethereal synths. I like the chill new wave vibe of “Suspended Animation,” and “Patience,” with its jazzy rhythms, spacey synths, and a grounded bass is a real favorite. It’s lush and glorious. It ends abruptly and is replaced by the final track of the album, “Reflections On Kettle Black,” which is a quirky digitized track, a multitude of beeps and boops over a rising tide of ambience. While Giant Day’s brand of music isn’t something I seek out on my own, I’m glad I got this, because it’s a nice soundtrack for chilling out.

LITTLE HAG – Now That’s What I Call Little Hag (Bar/None; littlehag.bandcamp.com)

Little Hag are Asbury Park’s (NJ) self-proclaimed “bitch rockers,” and their latest LP proves it, with a ton of attitude and swagger. I mean, the opening track, “The Machine,” is about being over the whole dating scene, and “how a vibrator is more satisfying than any man,” says Little Hag’s Avery Mandeville. She says she started writing it when she broke up with a boyfriend and finished it when she met her girlfriend. Musically, the song features dark fuzzed up synths with a funky pop vibe going on, sort of like Ministry meets Taylor Swift meets goth-rock. It’s the perfect introduction to an album filled with music that’s both dark and bright, with synths and guitars melding into something that’s danceable, but with lyrics that will make you think and feel. While some of the songs have that industrial pop vibe, there’s quite a variety of sounds here, like “The Suburbs,” a song with an appropriately smoother sound, more relaxed and less adventurous, just like the suburbs of a city. “1000 Birds” focuses more on guitar pop than synths, while “All 3” and “You Blew It” make uses of some cool sampling, hip-hop beats and DJ production work (making it a favorite of the LP). I love the torch song stylings of “King Cake,” a slow passionate number that’s a throwback to the past. “Hell Yes” has a unique honkytonk Americana meets old timey jazz vibe going on, with very dark lyrics about severe depression and suicidal thoughts. And “God I’m So Annoying” is a quiet acoustic folk tune with self-deprecating lyrics. Little Hag’s album has a wide range of sounds, yet it remains solidly cohesive, and Mandeville’s vocals sound like she came to us from the Golden Age of songstresses.

MELT-BANANA – 3+5 (A-Zap Records, a-zap.com)

To state that Melt-Banana’s latest LP is full of manic energy would be the understatement of the year. The Japanese duo play music that’s experimental, electronic, industrial, rock, and punk, all fused together into a mass of ordered chaos played at breakneck speed. It sounds like it was recorded at a more normal pace and sped up, especially with the incredible vocals, but it’s all real and natural. Supersonic high-pitched vocals, hyperactive guitar, and tumultuous synths blend together and race by in the blink of an eye, making you question your perceptions of reality. The album starts with a few tentative beeps and boops, followed by seemingly random guitar noise, but then the vocals start blurting out what sounds like a message in Morse code – and maybe it is, because the song is called “Code.” And in between the coded messages, the music explodes into a glorious triumphant sound. A favorite of the album is the glorious “Scar,” with arpeggiated synth lines speeding by in a glistening sped-up 70s space-synth sound. “Whisperer” is another favorite, with some glorious bold chords driving the mayhem. Melt-Banana’s “3+5” is one of the most breathtaking albums I’ve listened to this year. You’ll be physically exhausted just listening to it. Highly recommended.

PSYCHIC LINES – Sunset on Sunset (psychiclines.bandcamp.com)

This new LP from Psychic Lines is different from previous releases. This one is less minimalist in the arrangement, with a thicker, lusher sound. It’s also less varied than their last record I reviewed, 2020’s “Late Night Psychic” EP. Where that record had a mix of jazz and Americana, this new LP is more firmly in the indie camp. The songs are soft and calming. Front man Phil Jacob’s vocals are as smooth as butter, as is his saxophone. There’s a breezy quality to the eight songs, and together with the light melodies, I feel like I’m on a warm sunny island as I listen. Check out the opening song, “Lies I Tell Myself,” and tell me you don’t sense a warm Caribbean breeze blowing as the mild jaunty rhythm plays and the guitars twang with gliding notes. “Mind Control,” sound like what Joy Division might have been had they been raised in the Caribbean, with island beats and gorgeously smooth instrumentals and vocals. “The Darkest Mountain” has a ton of jangle in the guitar, a warm electric organ beneath that, and the same lovely lithe rhythms as the other songs. “In the Trunk of a Chevrolet” is different from the others, with a darker lonelier sound. The island breeze is replaced by a dirge of unknown European ethnic origins. And the closing track, “Everyone’s a Critic,” is also very different; it’s also got a deep melancholy to it, rather than a light breeze. It’s also two to three times the duration of many of the other tracks, with plenty of meandering instrumentals, including a saxophone solo that crescendos into free jazz, possibly representing anguish at criticism we get from others. This is nice soft, relaxed music.


BLAKE JONES & THE TRIKE SHOP – and still… (Big Stir Records, www.bigstirrecords.com)

Blake Jones was one of the earliest artists to release records with Big Stir Records. When I last heard from him it was his solo pandemic project, “Homebound Tapes.” But he’s back with his full band, The Trike Shop, offering up a full-length full of light power pop with rich arrangements and stage-worthy melodies. Many of the songs are related to records or record stores, including “Record Cover Girl” and “Used Record Stores.” “Fascist Bumblebee Winter Formal” is a cool quirky tune about the Proud Boys, who wore a black and yellow “uniform” (thus “bumblebee”) when they invaded a particular area of the country. The song slams them for choosing the wrong heroes, doing anything to feel they belong, and jumping for dog whistles. I love the arrangement, with piano and bongos, plus a chugging bass and guitar, giving the song a slightly Latin flair. “Mock Stoner Voices” is a funny song based on a real-life experience. Jones explains that one time in a record store he was goofing with some friends, and one aisle over was his future wife with her friends, who whispered about Jones being a stoner. Oh yeah, they snuck record stores in there again! I really enjoy “Dreaming About Sleeping,” which has a David Byrne/Talking Heads vibe going on, musically. The lyrics are pretty simple about just what the title says – dreaming about the big fluffy pillows and the darkened room, sleeping soundly. Another record store reference comes in the instrumental, “You Put Theremin on My Hype Sticker.” Yes, it’s got a Theremin in the arrangement. A song with a British theme appropriately has influence from The Beatles: “The Queen Is Dead” is a topical song written in the aftermath of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Piano, bass, and vocals provide the spare arrangement for this somber tune. There’s an outlier among these light power pop tunes: “Shake Your Dress” is a soulful bluesy ode to the joy and beauty of movement. One previously released song shows up here: “String Lights and Hold On” appeared on last winter’s Big Stir Christmas sampler, “The Yuletide Wave.” It’s got an interesting arrangement with loads of jangle in the guitar, and with flute and sleigh bells. While Blake Jones & The Trike Shop aren’t groundbreakers, the album is pleasant, particularly if you like power pop and modern musical productions.

THE CLE ELUM – It’s OK If It Falls Apart (Winston Sounds, thecleelum.bandcamp.com)

The Cle Elum is a two piece band featuring Sarah Sargent Pepper and Ian Lee. Though they may or may not have named their band after the tiny town in central Washington State, they’re actually from Chattanooga, Tennessee, though they say they’re from nowhere and everywhere. This new LP sees Sargent Pepper on drum duty, with Lee singing, playing guitar, and playing keyboards. But the band has deep friendships in the music community and has some notable guest vocals on some of the songs, including Josh Caterer of the Smoking Popes and Matthew Caws of Nada Surf. Both Sargent Pepper and Lee have extensive history in the music scene, with Sargent Pepper both playing drums and as a tour manager and merch pro. Lee has seen time in bands like Woolworthy Not Rebecca, Tom Daily, Electric Airlines and more. But The Cle Elum sounds nothing like those bands. Instead, The Cle Elum is an eclectic mix of indie rock and power pop. Imagine mixing Guided By Voices, The Replacements, and Cheap Trick and you get an idea of the mix of sounds here. Lots of jangle, plenty of bouncy beats, tons of pop hooks, and thick lush arrangements that belie the tiny size of the band add up to a solid thirty-five minutes of listening, especially if you’re into the music of the 80s and 90s. Favorites include the lovely title track, which not only has some great pop riffs, but it’s also got a cool arrangement that ranges from minimalist martial beats to thick orchestral sounds. “Why Did I Get High,” one of the songs featuring Josh Caterer on backup vocals, has a serious power-pop glam vibe to it, while “I Touched the Stars” is a raucous 80s rocker. And the closing track, “Night Falls,” has the feel of an old-timey pop waltz. The Cle Elum even ventures into Americana, with “I Need Your Harmony,” a song featuring acoustic guitar, a folksy melody, and a more relaxed tempo. If you’re into the 80s and 90s indie thing, check this out.

LOST IN SOCIETY – The Distribution of Comfort (Wiretap Records, www.wiretaprecords.com)

While Lost in Society has been around a while, this is their first new recording with some significant lineup changes. The constant, though, has been the 20-year musical collaboration between Zach Moyle and Nick Ruroede. The quartet again recruited Bouncing Souls’ Pete Steinkopf to record them, and the result is a four-song EP of solid indie rock with a punk edge. “Pascal and Sabine” has a big anthemic quality to it, while “Skeleton Painting” is a little broader and more relaxed sounding. The other two songs, “I Said” and “Wake Up,” feature a grittier sound, with the former fairly dark and the latter with a 90s pop punk melody. While Lost In Society isn’t shaking up things with this new EP, and it’s less aggressive sounding than their excellent 2022 EP, “Love and War,” it’s a solid listen.

SHARIF DUMANI – In Search of Memory (Broken Clover Records, brokenclover.com)

Sharif Dumani may not be a well-known name in the indie music world, but the LA musician has played as a sideman with such luminaries as Alice Bag, Nikki Sudden, Kim Fowley, Mark Mothersbaugh, and in bands such as Sex Stains, Buford, The LA Times, and LA Drugz. When putting together a band for his debut solo LP, Dumani called on friends like Kevin Rutmanis (Melvins, Cows), Imaad Wasif (Folk Implosion, Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Stephen McBean (Black Mountain), and Zander Schloss (Circle Jerks). This debut LP is an ambitious effort, with 21 songs spread across three quarters of an hour, and it spans multiple genres and sounds. Some songs are subdued and others are raucous. Some fall into the indie-punk realm, some are more psychedelic, and others could be categorized as power pop. There are R&B-influenced tunes, too. The common thread through all of them is a retro 70s and 80s vibe. Some of my favorites are the quieter ones, with acoustic guitar and Dumani’s gentle vocals. “Cool As Night” is a perfect example. The LP opener is soft and gentle, yet mysterious, with feelings of trepidation. I love “Somewhere in the Abstract,” with acoustic guitar and Dumani’s double-tracked vocals, giving the song a hollow lonely sound. Similarly, “Dusty Past” has a simple acoustic guitar, a lovely melody, and vocals that are reminiscent of a male Julee Cruise, with that very soft and gentle approach. There are some songs that are more in line with indie and punk, like the gritty “Another Asshole,” or the psychedelic, cacophonous, and wild “Cheerleaders and Chocolate Cake,” while “Tight Lipped” and “Torrential Downpour” represent a smoother indie rock sound. And “Point of Contention” reminds me of latter day Hüsker Dü, as they evolved deeper into the indie rock sound. There’s even 70s inspired folk rock in “All We Are,” with hints of early urban sounds. “As Far Out As We Can See” has a lovely delicate arrangement like the folk-rock songs of the 70s but with a great power pop melody and solid guitar jangle. It’s a definite favorite from the album. Dumani’s singing style is perfect for the quieter, more relaxed songs; his tone and timbre are soft and easy, just like those acoustic numbers. But even when the songs get loud and raucous his singing is still smoothed out. This is a gorgeous and varied debut.

UPSET BOY AND THE QUEENS – Trying to Get to You / Think Too Much (Sweet Cheetah Records, www.sweet-cheetah-records.com)

Upset Boy and the Queens try to answer the question, what do you get when you mix an alt-country front-man with a queer all-female southern rock band? The resulting double-A side record sounds like neither alt-country nor southern rock. Instead, we get some solid indie rock. “Trying to Get to You” is the better song of the pair, with a nice power pop bounce, deep harmonious bass, and a big open sound. “Think to Much” has a slower pace and an insistent rhythm, with a hint of bluesy rock. The instrumentals are a little grunge, but the lead vocals are more indie-blues-rock. Solid debut here from this Nashville band.


HAUNTU – "I" EP (Sell the Heart Records, www.selltheheartrecords.com)

Hauntu, based in San Diego, featuring former members of bands such as Fluf, Holy Tears, and more, offer up their response to the post-pandemic world. As a result, the two songs on this limited edition 7-inch are dark and foreboding, angry and desperate, with hints of goth and angry indie rock. The A-side, “Panic,” has an urgent feel, even though it’s played at a loping pace. There’s a desperation to the sound, with the steady pounding drums, the rhythmic growl of the guitars, and the feeling of despair in the lead vocals. “End of Days” is on the flipside, and it’s got an even darker, more deliberate sound. The rhythm section provides an insistent martial beat, while the vocals sound a warning. It’s not a call to action, it’s a resignation. Dark music for dark times.

MECHANICAL CANINE – To My Chagrin (Don Giovanni Records, dongiovannirecords.com)

PR materials call this Philadelphia band “emo punk,” but with the exception of the ending of the album, that’s not what this is, at least musically. Instead, Mechanical Canine’s third full-length LP (and first for Don Giovanni) is a mix of indie pop and pop punk. The music is plenty crunchy and melodic, just like good pop punk, and it’s loaded with amazing hooks, like good indie pop. The record flies by in a flash, with thirteen songs occupying a mere 24 minutes. Most songs last until about the one-minute mark, with only a couple extending past two, and the ending track is the sole song of length at five and a half minutes. But it’s not the quantity that’s important, it’s the quality. And Mechanical Canine has enough quality efficiently packed into these miniscule tracks to make it very worthwhile. One interesting aspect of the band is how they’ll shift moods and genres during a song, like on the opening track, “The Catcher’s Balk.” It starts out as a catchy bouncy indie pop track full of crunchy guitars and tight hooks, then evolves into an gliding and soaring tune, and then ends as a somber introspective song, all in the space of less than two minutes. Yet none of the musical ideas presented feels shorted. “Raisins and Peanuts” has a downhome American twang without sounding “country,” with some nice guitar picking, but at the end becomes a driving indie rock song. “Property Line” is one of the more powerful songs of the album, with a bigger, harder-edged song that would be right at home with the Awesome Fest or Insub Fest sounds. I really enjoy “Insulation Hole,” which starts out as an indie rock song with a smooth glide, turns into a crunchy pop punk tune, and ends in quiet melancholy. The juxtaposition of the solemn “My Own Bed,” with just vocals and electric keyboard (and a bit of guitar) and the noisy raucous “Hey Buddy” is jarring, in a good way. “Crowboss” is the first hint we get of “emo,” with alternating between screamed and sung vocals and a solid 90s Midwest emo arrangement. Then “Mechanical Canine Saves Emo” gives us a mix of mathy rhythm shifts and pop punk melody, and the final track, “Watercourse,” is a five plus minute journey through emotions, slowly building in intensity until it can’t be contained any longer; the meter shifts, the arrangement is thick and lush, and the vocals rise to a pained scream. The song ends in a hush, with just vocals and guitar. Mechanical Canine’s latest LP is a tour de force that I strongly recommend.

SEIZED UP – Modify the Sacred (Pirates Press Records, www.piratespressrecords.com)

Seized Up have been around about five years now, and they’re still pissed off as hell. The Bay Area band, which features members of Bla’st!, Good Riddance, The Distillers, and Fast Asleep, have a full length LP and an EP to their name, and are now adding their sophomore full-lengther with “Modify the Sacred.” Sonically, the band mixes 90s hardcore and post-hardcore, with the heaviness, power, and metallic aggression of hardcore and the more intricate rhythms, crunchy riffs, and intense vocals of post-hardcore. The best example of this sound is “Omen of Despair,” with pounding fury from the drums, crunchy rolling lines from the bass and guitar, shifting rhythms, and vocals that are spoken and shouted with spite and malice. Sections turn to speedy hardcore with angular chord changes increasing the urgency. “Forum of Decay,” too has the intense crunch and anger of post-hardcore and the desperate insistence of hardcore. “Turn Christian and Move Inland” is another great one, leaning more toward the 80s hardcore sound, but with some fantastic post-hardcore dissonance. Throughout the album, the guitars, bass, and drums alternately stab at you and pummel you – but not into submission, into open-mindedness, into thinking and reasoning, and into action. Seized Up’s latest is powerful vital music for today.

TURBOSLACKER – Pixelated Lithiums (turboslacker.bandcamp.com)

The influences apparent on this album are wide and varied, from grunge to dream pop, from funk and disco to 80's new wave. Mostly the latter. The album ranges all over the place, so it’s hard to get a sense of the band’s identity. But I will commend them for putting their best track first. “Sleep Like Hell” is intensely gritty, with loads of powerful grunge, but also with loads of vivid dreaminess, with Bowie glam mixed with Ian Curtis baritone vocals. The other reasonably intense track is “Masquerade,” which successfully marries funk, 90s industrial dance, and new wave pop into a three-way love child. Funk runs through other tracks, too. “Shake Your Love” is full of soul and funk, while “Casket Lounge” mixes 80s new wave and funk. The latter reminds me somewhat of 80s New York synth-pop duo, Ebn Ozn. 80s synth pop makes itself felt strongly, too, in “Moonwalk Dreams,” an up-tempo tune that sounds like it fell through a time warp and landed 40 years into its future. It has a synth dominated arrangement and brisk dance club rhythms. Playing with the 80s new wave pop vibe is “Dracula,” mixing things up with some Latin lounge pop. “Queen City Kills,” one of the lead singles, has hints of David Bowie glam mixed with edgier rock that still feels dreamy – or maybe nightmarish, given the topic of the lyrics, the psychological effects of living in a big city, with its innate competition to survive and its social struggles. As different as all of these tracks are, there’s a spectrum, running from grunge, 90's industrial, synth pop, new wave pop, and glam. The title track, though, is off that spectrum. It’s a big dreamy synth rock tune, without any disco beats, no new wave, and no grunge. It’s got higher emotional content, too. And “Modus Vivendi” closes the album with vocals that channel the late Ian Curtis, a deep tuneful baritone lead, with ethereal guitars and backing vocals. It’s hard to know what to make of Turboslacker. I think the first and last tracks are my two favorites, though they couldn’t be more different.

VICIOUS DREAMS – Turn Off My Brain (Dirt Cult Records, dirtcultrecords.com / Brassneck Records, brassneckrecords.bigcartel.com / GC Records, www.gcrecords.com / Swamp Cabbage Records, swampcabbagerecords.storenvy.com)

Well, damn, this is so poppy and bouncy! Vicious Dreams are a band out of Orlando, Florida, which accounts for the sunny sounds, but they’re also buzzy and lo-fi, with a garage punk meets Buzzcocks vibe. As sunny as the songs are, there’s also a hint of somber gloom, too. It’s as if someone crossed Radioactivity with Bad Cop/Bad Cop, with gritty garage power pop and sassy pop punk blended together. Amanda’s lead vocals are belted out with clear power in contrast with the distortion of the guitar and bass, while James’ leads on some of the songs are a little more matter of fact and blend in with the garage punk and power pop sound. I personally like Amanda’s leads better, but both do a fine job. Favorite tracks include the bold “Tomb,” a song with a particularly nice chord progression and melody. “Burying Yourself” has a darker garage sound that appeals, and “Not Enough” has a great power pop melody on top of a gritty punk arrangement. I also like the closing truck, “Out of Luck.” It’s a cover of the song by Pointed Sticks, a Canadian power-pop-punk band that was active from 1978 to 1981. After a slower subdued intro, Vicious Dreams pick things up both in tempo and thickness of the arrangement, and it comes out fairly faithful to the original. Vicious Dreams are a band that’s been around nearly a decade, but this is my first exposure to them – and it surely won’t be the last, because this is good stuff!

CHRIS BROACH / PALM GHOSTS – Shoulder Your Own / Fellow Immortalists (Sweet Cheetah Records, www.sweet-cheetah-records.com / Poptek Records, www.poptek.com / Steadfast Records, steadfastrecords.net)

Chris Broach and Palm Ghosts have teamed up on this split single, with one song each. Broach, perhaps best known for his time with Braid, had announced he planned to do a series of splits this year, and this one with Palm Ghosts follows one he released not long ago with The 1984 Draft, which I’ve previously reviewed. His song here, “Shoulder Your Own,” is very different from his previous split single. Where that one was very guitar driven and up-tempo, this song is much more keyboard driven and has a slower more deliberate pace. Where that one featured shifting rhythms, but kept a steady texture, this one keeps a steady rhythm, but the texture shifts from heavy and gritty to smooth and cool, with an almost dub vibe. This song is much darker, too. The previous song was more or less what we might expect from someone who came up in the era of Midwest emo and math rock, this new one is very unexpected and a nice surprise. Palm Ghosts has gotten some recent reviews in these internet pages, too, as they’ve embarked on a year-long journey releasing EPs that will be collected together with other tracks at the end of the year to create a double LP. If you like the band’s other releases, you’re going to enjoy this new song, because it slots in perfectly with their catalog of songs. It’s got the Ian Curtis/Joy Division thing going on, with the crooning baritone lead vocals. The arrangement is thick and lush, and though the song shifts between major and minor chords, much of it feels very haunting, especially at the start and finish. The two songs are somewhat different, but I feel they make for a good match on this split.



SEMI-FAMOUS – Destroy Ourselves (Rare Bird/Duck! Records, rarebirdlit.com/rare-bird-duck-records-1)

No, Semi-Famous is not related to the movie, “Almost Famous.” It’s a new “super-group,” fronted by John “Jughead” Pierson, perhaps best known for co-founding Screeching Weasel, but also for his other excellent bands like Even In Blackouts, The Mopes, and Mitochondriacs. The album is a concept, based on his semi-fictionalized, semi-autobiographical 2001 book, “Weasels in a Box” (which is also the title of the album’s first track). To mark the book’s first time in paperback and audiobook forms, Pierson decided to bring the book’s pop punk band to life, and he worked with Ryan Rockwell (of Mixtapes) to begin writing. They recruited other friends to help bring the songs to life, including Scooby Don’t’s Tyson Cornell and Billy Brown, of Crash and Burn, Ashers, and Unseen. Poli van Dam, formerly of The Bombpops and currently of The Poli van Dam Band, filled out the lineup. The record marks Pierson’s return to writing snotty pop punk songs after a long detour through other creative endeavors. And, while he purposely wanted to avoid sounding like Screeching Weasel (he claims he doesn’t have the vocal talents of Dan Vapid or the dark humor of Ben Weasel), they definitely evoke the Screeching Weasel era of smart-aleck sassy pop punk. The first introductory track, “Weasels in a Box,” is a perfect example. The lyrics brag about being semi-famous, insincere, and having “a lot of problems.” Sound familiar? It could be a thinly masked description of Screeching Weasel. But the short song also talks about fallen friends and sullen feelings. “I don’t wanna be wanna be famous,” the song declares, either insincerely from the past perspective or very sincerely with a backward view of life. “Middle School Monster,” too, was written explicitly to sound like a Vapid song from the “Wiggle” era, “I Was a High School Psychopath.” They do a good job of it, too, matching the vibe and twisting the concept from the perspective of someone who’s bullied and snaps to that of a kid with emotional development and mental health problems.

The songs on the LP are generally exactly what you would expect: brash, flippant, rude pop punk. The 14 tracks are short mid-tempo blasts of punk rock with simple melodies and chord progressions and mischievous impertinent lyrics. Like “Pedestal In Hell,” about putting someone in the titular place of dishonor for “what you’ve done to us,” which the person can’t see because “the flames made it so hazy hazy hazy hazy,” in the king of bitter punk rock breakups. “What’s a Metaphor” is a humorous jab at silly punk rock lyrics that attempt and fail to describe the horrific condition of the world and humanity. It’s solid poppy Ramones-core with a handful of obligatory whoa-ohs. “Obvious” is a favorite, another loping track about the troubles with writing pop punk songs, throwing them away, trying again, getting older and sitting around “waiting for the world to end.” It’s also one of the songs on which van Dam takes some of the lead vocals, and her powerful pipes are a good match for Rockwell’s.

There are a couple of guest-written songs on the album. “Clown in the Window” is the darkest track of the album, and it was written by another pop punk luminary, none other than Dan Vapid himself. It’s a mysterious sounding track about creepers that lurk in the lives of semi-famous bands. And J. Prozac contributed “Not Ready,” a depressing song of the slow deterioration of a relationship and the denial that it’s happening.

Not everything on the album is pop punk. “Sun’s Waning Moon” is more like something from Even in Blackouts, as it’s a pretty acoustic instrumental, with guitars and gorgeous harmonized lyric-free vocals used as additional instruments. It’s a clear favorite of mine here. I’ve not read Pierson’s book yet, but this new paperback edition gives me the chance and reason to do so. Probably with this record playing on repeat.

LOS SAINTS – Certified (ENCI Records, encimusic.com)

Los Saints is an alternative rock band hailing from sunny San Diego – well, suburban Chula Vista to be precise. They may come from sunny climes, but their music sounds anything but. They’ve got a dreamier, more introspective quality, with thick reverb-drenched arrangements. The songs are danceable, but not dance music. Los Saints is more firmly rooted in the indie rock tradition, with buzzy guitars and thumping bass. But there’s a deliberate rhythm from the drums that makes your body want to move. There are ethereal synths and vocals that range from diaphanous to smoky. Some of the songs seem to mix 80s gloom rock (such as Joy Division) with modern dream pop, to great effect. Some highlights for me: “Where We Goin” has strong grunge guitars, huge fun gang backing vocals, fluttering synths, and deep baritone lead vocals; with such disparate elements it would seem on paper to be a confusing mélange, but it works really well. I enjoy the roller coaster that is “Never Said,” a song that ranges from shrill to smooth, from thin to lush, but always with a steady beat. It speaks to the ups and downs, the good and the bad of the dating experience, particularly in the Tinder age. “Stupid Move” has an unsettling dark sound and lyrics about making an error in judgment that could have catastrophic consequences. It’s got a sinister saxophone sound repeating an ominous riff and the whole track has a pall hanging over it. And “Doctor” is a favorite for its melancholy. It’s much slower and quieter than the other tracks, with a sound of profound sadness. According to lead vocalist Angel Mariscal, it’s a song about mental health, about a particularly bad year he had when he was in high school. It’s got a haunting quality, especially in the outro, when we start to hear a confusing array of voices in the background and some metallic hammering. It’s quite stunning. As is the whole LP.

CHRISTOPHER LEE LEWIS – They Haven’t Figured Out What’s Wrong With Me (Sweet Cheetah Records, www.sweet-cheetah-records.com)

Christopher Lee Lewis is a Midwesterner who made the move to Los Angeles, and though he started his musical life playing drums, his debut solo LP is just him and his acoustic guitar. The record serves a worthy cause, as all proceeds will be donated to The Trevor Project. The ten songs on this LP are subdued and relaxed; with just acoustic guitar and vocals there are definite folk influences, but more than that I can hear hints of psychedelia. The PR materials are spot on when mentioning Roky Erickson’s “For You” and Kurt Cobain’s “Do Re Mi” home demo. What immediately came to my mind was Erickson’s “You Don’t Love Me Yet,” because the songs have the same relaxed yet emotional feel. And even though the musical vibe is relaxed, the lyrics often are not. Such is the case with the album’s opening track, “Enmity.” The song is quiet and delicate, but the words are harsh and biting, about a hostile relationship between two people. “Palm Meets Pine,” too, has an easy sound, but the title references the palm tree that sways and moves with the wind, as opposed to a pine tree, which is hard and rigid and unmoving. Such are relationships where one person uses and abuses the good nature of the other, who accepts the abuse and comes back for more. Broken hearts appear often on this album, including “Sewing the Heart,” a simple song with lyrics mostly consisting of a plea to “Sew my heart back up.” Thoughts of suicide sometimes creep into some of the songs, too, such as “Pixel Debris” and “Did You Get a Chance to Look at the Moon?” Both talk about selling off or throwing away all belongings. The former repeats over and over that “It’s time to say goodbye,” while the latter speaks of a hurting heart and “All my problems / Sorted out so soon” and “All my solutions / Are silky smooth.” I particularly love the flowing sound of “Pretty Boy,” with hints of Latin folk and lyrics about dueling self-images: the one we portray to the world and the one we feel inside. This album is filled with quiet desperation, seething pain below the easy-going surface.


COASTAL CLUB – All the Things You Said (wearecoastalclub.bandcamp.com)

Coastal Club is an Ohio band formed in 2017, about a year after The Happy Fits and eleven years after Vampire Weekend, the two bands that most come to mind when listening to this, the band’s latest release. While the band has released a few EPs and a handful of singles, and despite the PR materials calling this an EP, I’m going to declare it’s the band’s sophomore full-length. At seven songs and 31 minutes, it meets that metric. Their first LP was an expanded version of the EP, “I Get Nervous Sometimes.” Coastal Club makes joyous pop music with an indie flare, the same sort of songs that endeared me to The Happy Fits when I was first introduced to them during the pandemic. They sound so sunny and warm, even when they’re being a little more introspective, like on “Are You There.” The song is pulled back in intensity from most of the rest, and you can hear the feelings being expressed. But the synths, drums, guitar, and bass are still bright and bubbly. It’s like when you’re sad, but you’re also happy and know good things are coming, and you can’t contain your excitement. Speaking of excitement, “Cigarettes,” the song that opens the album, is filled with it. It’s a song about youthful exuberance, and the song has that in spades. I love the production, mixing solo singing with harmonized backing vocals, and the cuts from quiet parts to massive ones. With songs like this, the band will surely be on a fast rising trajectory, should they want that. Alex Hirlinger’s lead vocals croon with vibrato, giving the songs a romantic feel and a devil-may-care swagger. When he sings like this, he reminds me a lot of The Happy Fits’ Calvin Langman. When his vocals smooth out they’re more like Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend. Besides sounding euphoric, the songs on this record seem breezy. You can practically feel the sun on your skin and the ocean breeze blowing through your hair when you listen. At the opposite end of the spectrum is the subtle “Too Close,” which feels more like watching the sun setting in a city than the beach day of many of the songs. The throbbing in the bass and synths and the mechanical guitar riffs give the song that urban hubbub effect. The lyrics even mention “sunlight fades away,” which I caught after the music had already given me that vibe. Of all the songs on the record I think my favorites are the first and the last. I already mentioned “Cigarettes,” but the album’s closer, “Lost My Head,” has the feel being out of time. It’s got the atmosphere of a 1920s or 1930s pop tune, but with modern production techniques and instrumentation. I love the way the synths are used to provide a mix of strings and flutes and how the track shimmers with romance, like the pop songs of a century ago. What a bright, fun record!

SAMMY KAY – July 1960 (sammykaynj.bandcamp.com; Sell the Heart Records/Engineer Records)

Take a large spoonful of Americana and another of Tom Waits. Mix together in the studio. Sprinkle liberally with acoustic and steel guitars, mix in some upright bass, and occasionally dust with harmonica. Serve with heartfelt lyrics. You’ve now got the recipe for Sammy Kay’s latest solo LP. The world has changed quite a lot since Kay’s last LP, “civil/WAR.” That LP was little livelier and more raucous, even though it was stripped back from earlier efforts. In comparison, “July 1960” is softer, gentler, and more introspective. There’s a sense of loss and melancholy in the songs, and in Kay’s vocals you can feel weariness from bearing the weight of the world. It’s a delicate record that, despite the palpable sadness, has a sense of hope. The opening track, “How Fast to Run,” sings of “the slim, slim chance that you’ll say yes,” and offers “the time to try.” It’s acknowledgement of life’s difficulties, but dares to dream of something better. You can hear the loneliness of the road in “Greyhound Bus,” a song featuring just acoustic guitar, vocals, and harmonica, and you can hear the pensive remembrance of better days in “Lovesong.” “Don’t Like Surprises” is even more stripped back, to just acoustic guitar and vocals, yet it’s got the sound of a spiritual. Kay’s guitar work is simple yet transcendent, and his vocals have the quality of a devotional. Another favorite is the gorgeous waltz, “Meet You in Mexico,” the steel guitar weeping, dripping tears, and the upright bass providing a deep rumble underneath. There’s a hidden track at the end after “A Better Way.” It’s a wonderful dirge with morose brass choir with the sound of a desperate plea, Kay’s vocals crying out in a forlorn appeal. You’ve seen my past reviews of acoustic material ad I know it’s not for everybody. But this is a beautiful record.

PALM GHOSTS – "Façades 2: Masks" EP (palmghosts.bandcamp.com; Sweet Cheetah Records/Poptek Records)

“Masks” is the second EP in Palm Ghosts’ ambitious plan to release four EPs this year, culminating in a double LP collection of all four. Like the first installment, “Façades 1: Escape,” this installment features five new tracks, but while “Escape” featured a genre-hopping ride, “Masks” has more consistency, with a mixture of bright pop and dark brooding post-punk pop. There’s a comparison to The Smiths to be made, with songs sounding brighter than the vocals and lyrics. Joseph Lekkas’ lead vocals are similar to those of Ian Curtis, the late front man of Joy Division, with a deep baritone croon. That croon borders on lounge singing (in a good way) on the wonderful “Hush the Beggars of Love,” as Lekkas’s singing effortlessly glides through the lyrics. “Wild in Every Way” is a standout for its huge anthemic quality, synths ringing out like bells, even as the vocals are more subtle than on other tracks. Guitars are pulled back in the mix, and have an Americana quality with sliding notes. Another solid effort from Palm Ghosts.

SMUG BROTHERS – Another Bar Behind the Night (smugbrothers.bandcamp.com; Anyway Records/Just Because Records)

The last time I reviewed a Smug Brothers release it was the “Emerald Lemonade” EP, at the end of 2022. In that review I commented that they were clearly influenced by power pop and British Invasion pop, that the music was enjoyable, but that the songs were awfully short and seemed to be fragments rather than fully realized songs. Several months after that, they released a full length LP, and nearly a year after that we have a new 6-song EP. The power pop and British Invasion influences are still there, but so are others. And though some of the songs are still quite short, at right around the one-minute mark, they feel more fleshed out, more complete. “Javelina Nowhere” opens the EP with a delicate pop tune that has a definite retro sound, with guitars jangling and a flute providing embellishment. The flute is particularly lovely, and the injection of surf guitar licks provides a Southern California beach sound. We get psych-glam pop in “Seamus and the Younger,” and “Alexander for Two” uses acoustic guitar and keyboards playing a rising chord progression to create something well suited for a stage production. But it’s “Shedding Polymer” that’s the biggest departure from the band’s usual sound. Though it’s still a power pop song, it has a grittier sound, mixing garage and grunge elements in. Good stuff.


THE REAL NUMBERS – Thank You (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

This is an album that almost never happened. After a 2015 self-released EP called “Wonderful,” the band began work on a new LP. But after much writing and recording, a hard drive failure caused all the work to be lost. Following this was the global pandemic, and it almost did the band in. But perseverance paid off, and as it became possible, the band reconstructed and re-recorded the songs anew. And the result is bright, bouncy, jazzy, folksy, and poppy. Much of it sounds like stage show music, in the vein of what you might hear on the old Prairie Home Companion show. You can hear this distinctly in the opening track, “Lucy’s In Love,” which has a cool beat, ska rhythms, and a horn section giving it a jazzy pop vibe, like sunshine pop of the 70s. Immediately after this is “I Love to Sing,” with glockenspiel, acoustic guitar, and lyrics about learning to love simple fun songs as a child. It almost feels like a song that Bob would have sung to the kids and Muppets on “Sesame Street,” complete with a down home harmonica solo. “You, Me, and the Sunshine” is another perfect example of the Prairie Home Companion-like material, with acoustic guitar and clarinet in the arrangement. The album also has 70s funky rock with a Beatles influence in songs like “Lydia Pinkham” and “News of the Day.” Some tracks try to be more modern indie, like “Sorry for the Mess” or “Spin,” and these don’t succeed, coming across like an older square white guy trying to be hip and current. And the cover of the “Golden Girls” theme, “Thank You for Being a Friend” could have been left out. The LP ends with “Souvenirs,” a song right out of a sentimental film soundtrack. It starts quietly and builds and swells with an arrangement that includes strings. It’s quite lovely. I really like those stage show and sunshine pop songs. I wish The Real Numbers focused on more of those songs rather than trying to be something they’re not, like indie rockers.

SNOW TRAIL – Abandoned Capsule (itselevenrecords.bandcamp.com)

Remember when some punk and hardcore bands in the mid-80s started experimenting with other styles of music? Remember some of them tried a Goth-like post-punk style, particularly TSOL? This is the sort of sound you’ll hear from Snow Trail, a band from Jena, Germany. The music is reverb-laden and the guitar tone has a treble-filled surf tone, with vocals emphatically spoken with great intention and ire. There’s a definite retro vibe going on here, and the bulk of the LP is this style. Hypnotic rolling bass lines, a strong snare and high hat dance beat, and big sustained guitar notes are de rigueur. It’s well done stuff, and if you’re a fan of the genre it’s a must, but for some people it may be a bit much. I like it, but the tracks I like best are the ones that deviate a little bit from the standard sound. The rolling bass and mesmerizing rhythm of “Fragments Repeated” are, well, mesmerizing. The most interesting track of the LP has to be “Murky Acrylic Windows,” which features saxophones in the arrangement, particularly strongly in the intro and on the bridge. The song ends with amazing jazzy keyboards and the saxes. I like the ethnic influence of the mainly instrumental “Global Village” (there’s some periodic spoken vocals), and “Gravity” is sort of a noisy ambient track. And I love the grandiosity of “Infinity,” another instrumental and the penultimate track of the LP. One great thing about this album is that upon first listen it sounds fine, but maybe too much of the same thing. But upon repeated listens, you can hear more and more interesting intricacies in the arrangements. That’s the mark of a good record.

THE SWINGIN’ UTTERS – Boots 'N' Booze Issue #4 (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

Pirates Press has published a new issue of their graphic novel series "Boots N Booze," and this one comes with a new Swingin’ Utters 7-inch. This time out the Utters give us two Cock Sparrer covers. The A-side is “I Got Your Number,” while the B-side has “Sunday Stripper.” They’re solid covers, true to the originals, the A-side being a great bouncy Oi classic about seeing through the lies of fake people and the B-side being more of a “novelty” sort of rock and roll song about a sexy woman. The A-side will always be relevant and always be a great sound, but that B-side is definitely a throwback to less enlightened days. Gimme more of that A-side! The Utters play the song at a sprightlier tempo than the original, making it sound more urgent. The B-side’s original track is much more stripped back and primitive sounding. The Utters’ cover features an arrangement that’s thicker and harder rock and roll. If you weren’t a Cock Sparrer fan already, this new record will make you one – and of course you’re an Utters fan already, right? Because they do a great job with both tracks.


BAD IDOLS – Popstar (Say-10 Records, www.say-10.com)

Bad Idols? I would never call them bad! They’ve got a casual pop punk sound, yet are incongruously tight and energetic. Their label likens them to Lookout Records bands like Crimpshrine or Fifteen, and it’s not far off – except Bad Idols are way bigger and tighter than those bands ever were. The same sort of pop punk snotty attitude exists, but the dozen songs are more expertly played, less sloppy. The comparison is best heard in the vocals, with a bunch of throaty swagger, and even extends to the occasional injection of ska into the punk rock, as heard toward the end of the song “So Bold” and throughout “Denial.” The album also contains a new version of the band’s song, “Grind Me Up Grindr,” which previously appeared on the LGBTQ+ compilation, “Never Erased.” I reviewed that comp, as well as the band’s four songs on “Get Stoked Vol. 2,” and this LP shows the growth of the band; as good as those earlier recordings were, this new LP is even better. Songs like “Scorn,” which opens the album, showcase this, with a tight performance and a mastery of dynamics, with the song ranging from quiet and simmering to huge and boiling. I love the huge hammering tone of “Hatred,” a song whose relentless music matches the intensity of its lyrics. And in the big punk waltz, “Former Friend,” you can feel the intense pain and regret. The one issue I have with these songs is they’re way too short, with many of them clocking in under a minute and a half. A lot of them seem to be just getting started when they end, and they leave me wanting more. If you like the late 80s and early 90s Bay Area sound, but amped up, you’re gonna love this. I know I do.

THE DROWNS – “Just The Way She Goes” b/w “1979 Trans Am” (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

The Drowns are just tireless, constantly touring and pumping out new jams. This 2-song 7” single is a preview of the new LP the Drowns will be releasing early in 2024. The A-side may be one of my favorite recent Drowns songs, with a decidedly power pop bent, loaded with great melodic hooks and riffs. It’s a bouncy tune sure to get your motor revving. Speaking of revving a motor, “1979 Trans Am” is a more straight-ahead rock and roll track with just the right amount of glam. The Drowns may not be the punk band or event the street punk they used to be, but they sure as hell are still a ton of fun and hella good musicians and songwriters. I can’t wait for the new LP.

LET’S GO – Smile (High End Denim Records, highenddenimrecords.com)

Hailing from Kamloops, British Columbia (that’s in Canada, ya hosers!), Let’s Go is a power-punk trio with a strong melodic skate punk streak. The songs on this sophomore LP are up-tempo and thunderous, with a bigger sound than one might expect from three people. Metallic flourishes make their way into some of the songs, and huge gang vocals are plentiful. Many of the songs feature themes of class struggle, rebellion against the elites, disgust at the corporate sponsored destruction of our planet, and unity in the face of oppression and exploitation. My favorite song has to be “Never Gonna Die,” because it reminds me of a mix of Naked Raygun, skate punk, and metal, with plenty of syncopated “Hey! Hey! Hey!” interjections. The lyrics are a love song to fans, with lyrics like, “Nights like this they fuel the machine / You are the power in our scene,” and “You make us feel ten feet tall.” And another favorite is “Our Song,” a bright hopeful anthem with fun lyrics about unity in the face of greedy oppressors and rounding up the rich who exploit our labors and lopping off their heads and/or eating them. “Pixels” closes the LP with a song very different from the rest, with a poppy opening before the punk spigot is turned on. Lyrically, it’s about the crazy thoughts and questioning the nature of reality that cross one’s minds as we lie in bed at night, halfway between wakefulness and sleep. With some decent sonic variety within the larger skate punk genre and with some lyrics that speak to urgent issues, “Smile” is a solid record.

SAM RUSSO – Mistletoe Pier (Red Scare Industries, www.redscare.net)

UK singer-songwriter Sam Russo is getting into the holiday spirit with a new single from our friends at Red Scare. And these songs are like nothing we’ve heard from Sam before, both heart-tugging ballads. “Christmas Under The Pier” features a twangy acoustic guitar and a saxophone to present a subtly bluesy song filled with lonesome nostalgia for better times. It’s got a retro jazzy doo-wop feel, and you can hear the heartache in Russo’s scratchy vocals. “Merry Christmas (Baby, I’m Sorry)” has a huge dream pop sound, with heavy reverb in the electric guitars and vocals, still with a very melancholy vibe. The fluttering flutes are a gorgeous touch, and the lyrics are dripping with regret over having hurt and lost one’s love, someone who has moved on and has a new lover. These songs may not reflect the joy the holiday season supposedly brings, but they do certainly represent the sadness many feel this time of year. These songs are destined to be underground holiday classics.


AUTOGRAMM – Music That Humans Can Play (Stomp Records, stomprecords.com)

Autogramm is a band that spans the North American continent, with members in Seattle, Chicago, and Vancouver. They play music that ranges from the power pop of the late 70s to the new wave of the early and mid 80s, with synth-fueled arrangements alongside guitar, bass, and drums. I hear the influence of bands as disparate as The Cars, Cheap Trick, Devo, OMD, and even Vangelis. All of these can be heard in varying ratios throughout the eleven tracks on this, the band’s third LP. On just the very first track, “Born Losers,” you can hear bouncy power pop, with subtle new wave dance beat that could have come from Kraftwerk, and when the synths get really big I hear the sweeping epic sounds of Vangelis. It’s a pretty unique mix of sounds and genres and it works remarkably well. “WannaBe” is the hardest, edgiest track of the album, with gritty synths providing the beat to this song that leans the heaviest into rock and roll and has the least new wave in it. The variety continues with “Hey Allie,” which is a sort of pep talk to the titular woman and has a 60s jangle to it, for the most part, but the synths in the bridge scream new wave. “Why Do We Dance” is a favorite. It starts with an eerie sound, but after the intro it’s got a cool minimalist Devo sort of sound (or, more precisely but more obscurely, a Richard Bone sort of sound). “Plastic Punks” is a fun one, reminiscent of early punk/new wave crossover music, with synth sound effects. And it’s got a great line in the lyrics: “Rock ‘n’ roll is for adults so what’s left for the kids? / Sex and drugs and video games just doesn’t have the same ring to it.” And “Always Gonna Be My Girl” has the sound of early OMD, deep synths and dark lonesome sounds, but the chorus has the sound of 50s rock and roll. The nostalgic sounds make this a fun record, and the variety in sounds keeps the nostalgia from sounding trite and boring. Good stuff!

DEATH CASSETTE – Get Rid of It (High End Denim Records, highenddenimrecords.com)

Whoa! This is some heavy, aggressive grunged up punk rock with a strong garage element right here. This is a six-song EP, and within that short span we get a variety of sounds. “Storm” opens the EP with some strong powerful punk-fucking-rock, with a thick arrangement and a surf punk vibe going on, The rhythm section veritably throbs, the vocals shout with incredible rage, and the lead guitar injects some of that East Bay Ray surf sound. “Reflector” maintains the big hard punk sound, drops the surf, and pummels you into submission. “Trapped” will submerge you in 1990s Seattle, and you’ll emerge needing a shower to rinse away all of the thick grunge. “Get Done” and “Leech” are a couple more solid punk tracks that pull no punches, and “Solstice” is the lone ballad of the bunch with a wistful 80s punk ballad meets goth-grunge sort of thing. It’s the only track of the EP that didn’t knock me off my feet. This gets a real “hell, yeah!”

DEECRACKS – 20 Years: A Frantic Effort (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

Is it possible that DeeCracks, the Austrian punk rock band, is twenty years old? Indeed, they are, and to celebrate, the band went into the studio to record new versions of a whole slew of songs that span their catalog, as well as a couple new ones. And just a casual listen to this new collection provides a very convincing argument for the continued popularity of the band. They play strong poppy street punk mixed with a Ramones-core feel. Solid musicianship melds seamlessly with powerful gritty lead vocals and robust harmonized backing vocals. And, since this needs to span a hefty two decades, there are a lot of songs here; 28 tracks in 51 minutes. And I am impressed with the level of energy brought to each and every song. “Burnt Out,” one of the new songs, opens the collection, and it’s a short, bright song about facing one’s demons. It opens with the satirical poem, “Roses are red, violets are blue, I’m a schizophrenic, and so am I.” The song has a huge bounce to it, with big shining guitars to go with the dark lyrics. “Where We Belong” is the other new song, and it appears near the end of the track listing, on the B-side of the third of three 10” records. It’s a twangy pop punk love song with more of a loping feel. Sandwiched between these are a multitude of tunes, with a lot of your favorites and more whoa-ohs than you can shake a stick at. The band do a remarkable job channeling The Ramones on songs like “Not Another Minute,” “Gimme Gimme Plastic Surgery,” “I Need a Nurse” (which includes the famous lyric from “Pinhead,” “D-U-M-B everyone’s accusing me,” and the anthem, “Adderall,” about the miracle drug that’s one of the most commonly abused. There are other songs with a more easy going pop punk sound like “Shambles” (from the “Sonic Delusions” LP), “We Can’t Help It” (from the “Serious Issues” LP), which has some great power pop chord changes, and “Valentine” (also from “Sonic Delusions”), a sweet sounding poppy punk song. The LP ends with a live recording of “Beach 90,” off the EP of the same name and also released on the “Totally Cracked!” LP. This collection is essential listening, not just for Dee Cracks fans, but also for fans of all poppy punk rock music.

DIAMOND HANDS – Cookie (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

The prolific Diamond Hands has returned with their fifth LP in a mere seven years as a band. The duo of Joel Wall and Jon Flynn, operating out of Los Angeles, play a mix of 60s pop, 70s power pop and modern indie and dream pop, loaded with jangly goodness and hooks. The arrangements are quite lush and rich for a duo, and the vocal harmonies are done very well. An example of this sound is on display on the opening track, “I Want You,” which has 60s jangle, modern dreaminess, and a 70s dance beat. “Fruit Trees” has hints of psychedelic era Beatles, such as was found in some songs on Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, complete with strings, tempered with 70s soft rock sounds. The song includes a lovely homage to the song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” in the instrumental break near the end, too. I also hear Elvis Costello power pop in the song “Better Way,” primarily in the vocals and melody, while the instrumentals are filled with psychedelic twang. And interestingly, “Take You Home Again” blends George Harrison-like songwriting with John Lennon style vocals and a modern dreamy vibrato in the big guitars, the lead getting a bluesy solo. With such disparate influences and solid songwriting, this is a fine addition to Diamond Hands’ catalog.

DROP NINETEENS – Hard Light (Wharf Cat Records, www.wharfcatrecords.com)

Drop Nineteens were a short-lived band back in the early 90s, releasing only two LPs, two EPs, and a single in the few years they were active. They played quietly gorgeous shoegaze/dreamy alternative pop music, and then dissolved in 1994. Guitarist/vocalist Greg Ackell gave up on music, and moved on with his life. That is, until 2021, when Ackell was contacted about making some music. And instead of automatically shutting it down, he gave it a go. And the result is this new LP, the band’s first in thirty years. True to form, they pick up where they left off, playing lovely understated pop music that’s lighter than typical shoegaze and focuses on guitar, bass, drums, and vocals rather than on the big synths of modern dream pop. The songs waft and whirl and there’s a wonderful introspective quality to them, with lightly jangling guitars and plenty of reverb. Backing vocals swirl around and the songs seem to cuddle you with comfort. The eleven tracks are just so smooth and easy going, and they’re all so nice it’s hard to pick favorites. But “Gal” does stand out with hints of Eastern music and gorgeous backing synths. It’s almost epic, but in a very elegantly restrained way. Drop Nineteens never get raucous and rowdy, but “Tarantula” is the closest they get. The song’s got a brighter sound and quicker tempo than most, stepping away from the dreaminess toward a more animated pop bounce. I love the somber tone of “Rose With Smoke,” a melancholy instrumental interlude around the halfway mark of the album. And the penultimate track, “Policeman Getting Lost, featuring acoustic guitar and what sounds like somewhat processed vocals, is the sort of soundtrack for that period between wakefulness and sleep, when you’re not quite dreaming, but the mind wanders freely. Welcome back, Drop Nineteens, and keep on being gorgeous.

TURN N FIRE – Dying on This Hill (turnnfire.bandcamp.com)

Turn N Fire, Chicago’s self-proclaimed “Midwestern spilt beer despair rock” band, join a host of others who spent the pandemic lock-down writing songs, passing demos back and forth, and adding their parts. They say the baker’s dozen tracks represent who they’ve become as people, for better or worse, and call it “campfire rock.” As vocalist/ guitarist Jon Kelly puts it, “It’s sad songs over happy chords you could play around an open fire with cheap beer and the best of friends.” There are even songs that reference this: The chorus of “Happy Hill” sings of “whiskey and cheap beer” as a panacea to cover up the ills of life. And “Good Drinks & Goodbyes,” which has hints of Celtic punk and western rock in it” also has references to sharing drinks with friends when parting company. Musically Turn N Fire can be categorized with those bands that play emotionally charged pop punk, with dark lyrics over happy melodies, featuring angsty lead vocals and big gang vocals. It’s a solid sound, the kind I enjoy hearing as I hang with friends in tiny dive bars that have bathrooms that smell bad and are falling apart. These are the kind of songs that will find you crowding to the front and shouting the lyrics with the band. It’s good time/bad time punk rock at its best. A couple of songs stand out among this solid release. “F.O.M.O.” has a huge broad sound, more indie than pop punk, and I love the darkness and the big throaty vocals of the wonderfully titled, “D.I. Why?” “Montezuma” has a big indie jangle in the guitars, and I particularly enjoy “America, Goddamn,” which starts with a humorous instrumental, and when the song gets started in earnest, it’s got a bit of dark twang and beat-poet spoken and shouted lyrics, and it speaks to the many ills we’re experiencing in our country, such as wages that are too low to live on, rampant drug abuse, high bills we have to pay, and the general difficulty of “making it” today, particularly when employers who shut down during the pandemic welcomed employees back with a pay cut. The refrain, “Hang the bastards” sums things up nicely. Then there’s the closing track, “Everybody’s Favorite Bar,” an acoustic tune with a singer-songwriter feel, completely different from the rest of the LP. It’s a song about the struggles with substance abuse, rehab, and trying to be a better person. I was not familiar with this band prior to receiving this record, but I’m now a fan.

WOOLWORTHY – Electric Heartbreak (Boss Tuneage Records, www.bosstuneage.com)

Woolworthy? With a name likely taken from a now defunct five and dime store, Woolworthy are, themselves, defunct no more. “Electric Heartbreak” represents the Chicago alternative band’s first LP in some 25 years, and their first release of any kind since their retrospective collection, “Recycler,” released way back in 1998. Now reunited, Woolworthy continue with their 90s brand of alternative rock with a pop aesthetic. The music is broad and expansive sounding, with the same influences from emo, grunge, and pop punk that’s common for the genre. I like “Break the Law with You,” which leans more into the pop punk side of things and has some nice rhythmic angularity. And the opening track, “Hand Grenade,” has a bright guitar sound that contrasts well with the darker emotional feel of the song. But some of the songs are a bit generic alternative rock. “Where Have All The Glad Girls Gone” fits this category, with a very repetitive melodic line, and vocal angst that feels forced. “The Hard Goodbye” is the hard rock end of the alternative rock spectrum, with a heavier guitar sound and an arena rock guitar solo. The album concludes with the obligatory acoustic number, “We Are Ruined.” And I’m always a sucker for acoustic, because I think when you strip a song down you expose the emotion more fully. And that’s the case here, in a song about loving someone who’s broken and loaded down with baggage, wanting to fix things and make it work, but it just can’t. If you enjoy the alternative rock sound, check this out, but I find most of it to be average.

40 REPS – Heads Up (Say-10 Records & Skateboards, www.say-10.com)

40 Reps, hailing from Richmond, Virginia, play that familiar sound of emotional “pop punk” with gruff, gritty vocals. After releasing their debut EP a couple years ago, “Heads Up” represents the band’s debut full-length LP. When I mention “emotional pop punk with gruff gritty vocals,” you know there’s a very distinct sound I’m talking about. And, while the band is extremely able, and taken individually most of the songs are pretty solid, put together as a whole the LP comes off as somewhat generic, particularly with many of the songs sounding too much alike and blending into each other For example, as you listen to the ending of the first track, which is the title track, and then the opening of the second track, “Looking for Trouble,” they sound nearly identical, with the same rhythms same tempo, same guitar tone, same dueling lead guitars, and so on. Of the ten tracks, “Nail & Tooth” probably is my favorite, because though it is played at the same tempo and with the same tone as all the other tracks, it does change up the rhythms and riffs somewhat, making it stand out as the most different from the rest. A couple of other tracks are a little bit different, too; “Judy” and “White Pickett Fence” both have a country pop vibe dressed up as punk going on, making them my least favorite tracks of the album. I mean, I bet I would enjoy seeing 40 Reps live at some dingy dive bar with friends, but listening to these songs back to back on a LP isn’t doing it for me.


CHICKEN HAPPEN – IV (chickenhappen.bandcamp.com)

Chicken Happen is a clever band name. It’s also a band that’s hard to classify, and that’s a really good thing. It’s also hard to pinpoint why I enjoy this album so much. Maybe it’s Lilly Choi’s lovely yet matter-of-fact vocals that remind me of many of my favorite indie pop bands of the 90s. Maybe it’s the gorgeous keyboards used throughout the dozen songs, both electric organ and acoustic piano. Maybe it’s the varied genres explored or the clean production from Meatwave’s Chris Sutter, who also contributes some guitars and vocals. Whatever it is, this is a wonderful glorious listen. The album starts out with “Turn,” a soulful spiritual. “When’s it my turn?” the song asks, “When’s it my chance to live the life that I want?” The solemn song is all about asserting a sense of self, becoming your own person, and breaking away from the rules others impose. And when I say the band is hard to pin down and moves through various genres, I mean it. We get bright poppy songs like “Easy” (a song about taking the easy way out difficult situations). We get the ironically smooth flowing pop song, “Rage” (about anger at the selfishness of others). There are various retro sounds here, too, including the 70s soul sounds of “Matter” and the 50s doo-wop of “Fly.” And I love the dreamy waltz, “Use,” a song about trying to keep focused when all you want to do is daydream about possibilities. “What’s the use in dreaming when dreams never come true?” asks the chorus, in a despondent surrender to a depressing reality. Despite the genre hopping going on here, the songs all remain unmistakably Chicken Happen. This is a wonderful record.

FINE DINING – No Reservations (finediningpunkrock.bandcamp.com/)

Fine Dining, out of the Los Angeles metro area, play speedy, crunchy, metallic punk rock in a 90s vein. The dozen songs on this LP are as aggressive as they come, with fast ‘n’ loud tracks that will pound and pummel you, and gang vocals that will make you want to sing along. Imagine mixing 90s skate punk, metal, and youth crew hardcore and you get an idea of what Fine Dining sounds like. Lead vocals are belted out with power in a higher tenor range with a good deal of rasp and grit, drums walloping away, smashing you to the ground, and the guitars and bass provide an impenetrable wall, occasionally embellished with metallic licks and flourishes. The aggression extends to the lyrics, too: “Reprisal” is a song about exacting revenge, and has lyrics including “I grit my teeth and I knock you out.” But the reprisal is in the form of music, rather than actual violence, as the song says, “With all this pain I play my guitar.” The melody and arrangement are relatively simple, but quite effective, and this may be my favorite track of the album. Some songs add in bits of variety in the sound, even though the basic formula remains the same. For example, “Rinse, Repeat” has a soaring quality in both the lead guitars and the lead vocals. And I love the bass on “Vacant Parts,” with its deep rich tone. The track is a bit slower and has the feel of a sweeping epic, the guitars still raging and keeping up that wall of sound. While this isn’t the sort of stuff I listen to on a regular basis, I can appreciate the execution here, and fans of this genre won’t go wrong checking it out.

HOOPER – Swim the Races Nobody Wants (Snappy Little Numbers Quality Audio Recordings)

Hooper’s been around awhile, for over a decade. In that time, though, this is only their third full-length LP (though they’ve released a number of EPs and singles), and all of their releases have been with Snappy Little Numbers. Musically, the band plays the sort of indie rock that hardcore bands started making in the 80s and 90s, as they “matured” and “outgrew” hardcore. The music is more melodic than hardcore, edgier and more complex than power pop, less chaotic than the emo of the day. When this sort of music was being made back in the day it was labeled “college rock,” because a lot of college radio stations were playing it, and it was championed by publications like CMJ – College Music Journal. The members of Hooper acquit themselves well in the genre with this new LP, eleven songs in 34 minutes, with music that shows some great dynamic range, mastery of guitar tone, and some excellent choices in arrangement. Some tracks are just nice and melodic, while others make effective use of dissonance. A couple of good examples of the latter are “List of Don’ts” and “This Song Is Fake.” Both have some cool heavy unresolved chords, with the former resolving into a more melodic song with some noisy guitar jangle and the latter devolving into controlled chaos. Another standout track, possibly my favorite of the LP, is “Good Grief,” with more bounce in it and alternating some awesome guitar noise and cleaner sounding parts. I also love the opening track, “Latitudes,” particularly for the guitar sound on the intro. The song has a lovely melody and shifts from big and melancholy to introspective indie to folk-pop. It uses being out in the sea and GPS tracking as metaphors for feeling lost and like your drowning. At one point in the song it speaks about finding a landmark in some glass on the coast and having the ability to point the raft home, and asks the question, “When does it start to count as lost if it happens slow?” as if to ask, if your life slowly drifts out of focus, when do you become a lost soul? If you miss the “college rock” of the late 80s and 90s, check out this new LP, I think you’ll enjoy it.

ODD ROBOT – Deathmates (Wiretap Records, wiretaprecords.com / Bearded Punk Records, www.beardedpunk.com / Bypolar Records, bypolarrecords.com / Disconnect Disconnect Records, disconnectdisconnect.co.uk)

It’s finally here, the long-awaited third LP from Odd Robot! And, though the perfectly crafted pop songs and wondrously crooning vocals are still there, the overall sound is somewhat different. In the interim since their sophomore full-length, “Amnesiatic,” was released they’ve added two more members: First Logan Barton took over bass duties from Mike Doherty, who moved to guitar, and then Nate Phung joined on keyboards. Guitarist/lead vocalist Andy Burris and drummer Damian Monroy, remain. Sometimes Phung’s contributions come in the form of a warm electric organ, other times it’s in the form of buzzy new wave synth. And we’ve got guest vocals from Poli Van Dam (formerly of The Bombpops) on “Anti-Revolution,” too! Odd Robot has been slowly evolving its sound since their first LP, “A Late Night Panic,” which owed so much to front man Andy Burris’ love of Alkaline Trio and The Smoking Popes. And while “Amnesiatic” played around with more complex melodies and arrangements, “Deathmates” simplifies the songs’ melodies even as Nate’s addition makes lusher arrangements possible. A perfect example of this is “Lost Inside Yr Ocean,” one of the lead singles released in advance of the LP. The melody is much simpler and straightforward than many on previous LPs, but the arrangement is thicker and richer than before, including not only the keyboards, but also the harmonized backing vocals made possible by the increasing size of the band. The one song that seems the most like those from earlier LPs is “You’re a Fucking Nightmare,” with a driving power pop punk feel, but even this one includes keyboards, a technical guitar solo, and backing vocals. The songs feel just right, but peeking at the runtimes shows they’re impossibly short, with most under the two-minute mark and a precious few reaching past three minutes. As a result the LP has a whopping seventeen tracks but still manages to clock in at a mere 37 minutes. This LP definitely mixes up the sounds a lot more than the previous LPs, too. We get some country and western sounds in both “Secondhand Noose” and “California Emptiness,” the latter of which has a really dusty sort of vibe. And we get strong retro sounds from “Let’s Start This Over” and “Take a Look at Yourself Sinner,” the former with a great R&B ballad feel, the latter with a doo-wop thing going on in the melody, mixed into the gloriously intense wall of guitar noise going on. The title, “Snakes! Snakes!” might make you think the song would be crazy and raucous, but instead it’s delicate and lovely. I like the way the riff at the end of “Death Mates” is repeated in the intro to “Alone Together.” Not sure whether it’s intentional, but it works well. And the trombone on Along Together heightens its sense of grandness, already both lovely and epic with the inclusion of strings and multi-tracked trombone in the arrangement. This third Odd Robot LP slots nicely into their discography, and it’s nice to see them working to distance themselves from past influences and honing their own sound.

PALM GHOSTS – I Love You, Burn In Hell (palmghosts.bandcamp.com)

Imagine blending today’s dream pop with 80s synth pop and the moody post punk of Joy Division or early New Order and you get an inkling of what Palm Ghosts is going for. Guitars mix with synths that subtly soar as the baritone lead vocals intone with melancholy. The band mixes equal parts jangle and wistfulness to create something quite pleasing to listen to, and it’s even something you can dance to at the club. Some highlights: the album opens with the somber sounding “Tilt,” Joseph Lekkas providing some glorious Ian Curtis inspired singing. “She Came Playfully” is a favorite, for its minimalist rhythms and riffs and great chugging feel. Conflicting emotions in relationships make for a good song topic in “I Love You, Burn In Hell,” its bright dance beat contrasting with the angry guitar injections and morose synths. “Automating for the Modern Age” is a brighter tune than most, with a spryer rhythm and more hopeful sounding vocals, drums pounding emphatically and guitars and synths providing a lofty feeling. And I love the sweeping cinematic quality of “Disassociate.” However, my favorite track may be “Enemy Mine,” which has a very strong 80s sound, and the higher pitched harmonized vocals remind me a bit of The Police, while the guitar and synth work sounds somewhat like the stuff Wire was doing in their more experimental phase. While there’s a strong streak of nostalgia in Palm Ghosts’ music, there’s more to it than that. Good stuff.

TRASH KNIFE – Weird Daze (Big Neck Records, bigneckrecords1.bandcamp.com)

Trash Knife, a band from Philadelphia, are finally releasing their debut full-length LP after more than seven years as a band (though “full-length” is stretching it a bit. It’s ten tracks, but only spans 19 minutes!). They play old school punk mixed with early hardcore, but also have a somewhat tuneful melodic sensibility in the songs. The vocals, however, careen uncontrollably all over the place with an intense fury. The result is a collection of tracks filled with controlled chaos. It’s hard to tell through the noise, but there’s either a sax or a guitar with a really interesting tone in the mix, and it works extremely well. Song topics range widely from keeping some people you spend time with at arm’s length (“Party Friends” chorus lyrics include “They are just my party friends / They are not for real / They are just my good time buddies / They are not my ride or die”) to people who don’t fit in (“Weirdo”) to the supernatural (“Zombies”). “Somedays” is a favorite for its melody and the vibe in the vocals that seem to be half asleep/drunk/high. And I love the chorus of “Zombies.” Remember: “You cannot escape! Zombies everywhere!” And even more tuneful than the rest of the LP is “I.i.l.” which stands for I’m in Love.” Well-done, if overdue, LP.

THE YOUNG ROCHELLES – Kicked to the Curb (Sounds Rad, www.soundsradical.com)

The Young Rochelles ain’t so young anymore! They’ve been a band for ten years, but they still sound young! They play a brand of pop punk that’s heavy on the pop, with smooth silky vocals that glide like butter and gorgeous multi-part harmonies. The tunes here aren’t particularly aggressive, but they’ve got a nice punk edge in the guitars to contrast with the beautiful singing. And though the melodies are deceptively simple, the arrangements and chord changes sometimes contain unexpected surprises. The album opens with gorgeous a cappella vocals that ring out clearly like bells before launching into a wonderful pop punk tune that clearly demonstrates The Young Rochelles’ sound: poppy, a little punky, with amazing vocals that put nearly every band to shame. “The End of Us” leans more heavily toward the punk side of the equation, the vocals adopting a bitter tone in this anti-love song about a breakup. Immediately after is the next chapter of the story in “Today is a Beautiful Day,” about surviving and thriving after the breakup. I love how the lead and backing vocals play off each other toward the end of the song, tossing the lyrics back and forth to each other. “Fractured Fairy Tales” is a song that likens the intricacies of love and relationships to the pitfalls fairy tale princes and princess encounter on their journey to love, and there are some great chord changes here leading into the chorus that really emphasize the unexpected sadness when things don’t work out. Also, the song takes its name from the hilarious J Ward Productions cartoon series, so it has that going for it. “He Says” is a favorite with both a harder punk side and more unexpected parts in the arrangement, plus more of those fantastic harmonized vocals. This album seems to get better and better with every listen. Highly recommended!


EMPTY COUNTRY – Empty Country II (emptycountry.bandcamp.com)

Joe D’Agostino, best known for his stint leading the storied Cymbals Eat Guitars, began making music under the name Empty Country a few years back, releasing their debut self-titled LP just as the pandemic paralyzed the world. An album of demo recordings, mostly from the debut LP plus a few others, shortly followed. And then silence for more than three years, as the world slowly clawed its way out of the clutches of the virus. Now D’Agostino and company return with their sophomore LP, simply titled “Empty Country II.” And while the songs still have an aggressive edge like CEG (D’Agostino received the moniker “Joseph Ferocious” for his vocals in that band), these songs have richer arrangements, more sophisticated melodies, and a stronger range of variety. For instance, after an eerie ambient opening, “Pearl” brings us a somewhat soulful R&B flavor that could have been performed by a 70s Motown group, except it’s performed with indie guitars, bass, and drums that range from quiet and delicate to huge, dreamy, and epic. D’Agostino’s use of falsetto works well, a stark contrast from “Pretty Years,” CEG’s final LP, in which my review decried his changes in vocal style. The arrangement is lush and gorgeous, and the lyrics dark and dismal, about dysfunction in daily life and a cycle of drug abuse to escape the pain. “Erlking,” on the other hand, is even darker, with a bigger rock sound. It’s a song that uses European mythology about the evil king of the elves that stalks and kills children who linger in the woods too long as a metaphor for the dark forces that entice us in the modern world. By saying that “Erlking stowed away on wooden ships” it implies that the evil spirit followed migrants out of Europe and to the New World, where young people still face the dangers of an evil that lures them to their doom, where people who seem friendly and the kind of person “you wanna crack a frosty beverage with” are more likely than not to send you to an early grave. The variety continues with “David,” a soulful and funky tune, with more than a bit of 70s R&B, complete with fluttering piano, funky bass, strong syncopation, and angelic backing vocals. “Dustine” is a huge epic song, and it shows D’Agostino is still at the top of his game, both vocally and as a songwriter. The song has huge dynamics, ranging from subtle indie rock jangle and fuzz to huge wall of noise that mixes dreaminess and grunge in an incredible way. “Syd” is, without a doubt, the most raucous track of the LP, faster and louder with a simpler melody and beat; if not for the melodic content it would almost be a punk tune, but instead it’s a rowdy indie rock song bursting with energy. Next up is “Bootsie,” a track with a cool post punk vibe mixed with dreamy pop. This one has a big of an experimental edge to it mixed with an 80s new wave vibe that has a nice groove. “FLA,” a song about the state of Florida, is both delicate and epic, another showcase for Empty Country’s mastery of dynamic range. Starting with just piano and vocals, the song takes a journey from introspective melancholy to passionate, huge, and epic, a harmonica, of all instruments, piercing through the mix, screaming out and sending a chill down my spine. “Lamb” starts with a lovely pastoral feel, guitars jangling quietly, and grows to be a smooth pretty indie tune. And the album closes with Cool S,” a big emotional track that ranges from quietly soulful to a big rocker to dreamy masterpiece. At nearly an hour long (it’s released as a double LP), D’Agostino makes up for the lengthy gap in releases with a sweeping epic of an album here. While it’s not as explosive as Cymbals Eat Guitars, the writing and arranging are superior, and I think it’s some of D’Agostino’s best work yet.

ENDEARMENTS – It Can Be Like This (endearments.bandcamp.com)

Endearments are a Brooklyn-based trio that play 1980s synth-pop, with smooth vocals, guitar and synths, and with a disco beat in the drums. It’s very retro stuff. “It Can Be Like This” is a five-song EP that has songs about love, lust, and rocky relationships. The music is somewhat dreamy, in that 80s synth-pop way, but to my ears it’s just too slick and early MTV sounding. The opening track, “Hazy Eyes,” is about the intensity of feelings and emotions on molly and wondering if the person you’re with feels the same about you as you do about them. This seems to be the nicest lyrics of the EP, because other songs seem to be about awful people. “Open Hand” has a bit of a dark edge and lyrics about rejecting someone to chase after someone else. “Selfish” is about someone who uses another for sex: “You could be who I adore / But in my bed and nothing more,” as if to say I could never actually love you, but let’s fuck. And we get the closing track, “Sober,” about the ending of a relationship and a protagonist who isn’t sober enough to be sincere and hides his true feelings. Between the slick synth-pop and the outdated attitudes about relationships and love, Endearments seem like the sort of people I would avoid associating with.

BILLY LIAR – Crisis Actor (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

Scottish folk-punk performer Billy Liar went big into the full band thing in 2019 with his Red Scare Industries release “Some Legacy,” and continues with this new LP on a new label, jumping over to Pirates Press Records. This latest LP is bigger and brasher than past releases, and even though the arrangements are a bit thicker than in the past, the raw emotion still punches through to your gut. The eleven songs feature great street punk renditions of Liar’s personal singer-songwriter fare, with a raucous feel and honest lyrics. The album starts with “Oblivion,” a powerful self-affirming declaration that, despite struggles in life, Billy is determined to remain: “The only way I win is by not giving in to oblivion.” But it’s not easy, as he sings that he’s got one pack of cigarettes left from the night he gave up, just in case. He sings about having enough pills stashed away to do himself in, and how he’s come close to giving in. The closing track, “Troubled Mind,” brings us back to Billy Liar’s acoustic roots. It’s just Billy and his guitar, emotions pouring out, as you can hear him literally break down as he’s recording. He sings about his struggles with mental health and questions whether it’s time to stop trying to fake it and get help, about how someone slipped something into his drink in a green room one time and instead of picking him up it sent him spiraling down. It’s gut-wrenching stuff, hard to listen to, as he struggles to keep it together and finish the song, and we hear someone ask him if he’s OK. In between these bookends we get nine more powerful songs with the full band. The guitar, bass, and drums, are joined by electric organ, helping give the raw punk songs and personal lyrics some warmth and soul. This is an excellent album that will make even the most stoic punk shed a tear, and it makes me want to give Billy a hug and tell him everything is going to be OK.

RID OF ME – Access to the Lonely (Knife Hits Records, knifehitsrecords.com)

Rid of Me is a “melodic noise punk” outfit, according to their bio, and they hail from Philadelphia. It’s a reasonable description. I hear plenty of post-hardcore in the eleven songs on this, their sophomore full-length LP. I also hear plenty of emo influence and a bunch of metal, too. The whole package is very depressing, with the band name, album title, and many of the song titles conveying themes of isolation and sadness. The track that opens the LP, which shares its title with the band name, is very spare in its arrangement and slow in pace, providing a suitably somber beginning. Following is a throbbing track called “I’m So Lonesome I Could Die,” with a Hot Snakes sort of sound, including lead vocals that channel the late Rick Froberg, which may be my favorite of the LP. We get heavy songs like “Cut,” which pound and pummel with a 90s Melvins sort of aesthetic. This particular song is about lead vocalist Itarya Rosenberg’s experience as identifying as a trans man, about the confusion and feelings of isolation that are part of the process, the feelings of being judged. And “Hell of It” is a pounding start-stop dirge with angular melodic jabs. “Libertarian Noise Rock,” besides having a cool title, is another heavy one with a strong post-hardcore vibe, though I could have done without the metallic arena rock guitar solo. “How You Say It Is” has a smoother style that blends post-hardcore and indie rock, in the sort of way that Jawbox did/does, but somewhat heavier. I hear a crossing of Pearl Jam and 90s emo in “Gutted.” And “Feel You” channels early Black Sabbath mixed with post-hardcore. If you’re a fan of heavy, emotionally charged, post-hardcore metal hybrid music, check this out.

TEARJERKER (Sell the Heart Records, www.selltheheartrecords.com / Little Rocket Records, littlerocketrecords.co.uk)

This is not the dream pop band from Toronto. This Tearjerker hails from Sunderland, in the Northeast of England, and they play emotionally charged 90s melodic punk. This LP is the band’s debut, and it’s a solid effort. The opening of the LP, “Done & Dusted,” which was previously released as a single, hooked me right away with its scratchy guitar jangle at the very start. When the full band comes in we get powerful vocals, throbbing bass, chugging guitars, pounding drums, and lyrics about recognizing and escaping from a toxic relationship. It all adds up to a mighty start to a strong debut. Mick O’Brien’s vocals really make this album, as he’s able to morph them to fit the song. For example, while “Done & Dusted” features big angsty singing, “California Dreaming,” which comes next, has much lower key grittier vocals. And in “CPP” the verses are sung in a much smoother voice with less grit. The other band members, Christopher “Frenchy” French (lead guitar), Marty “Jacka” Jackson (rhythm guitar), and Brent Copeland (drums) all contribute backing vocals that are slickly harmonized and emphasize the 90s punk sound, and they do a fine job of it, but that sound isn’t my thing, to be honest, and the record could have reduced the amount of that. I love the dark melodic jangle of “Love Being Alone,” especially the instrumental breaks in the song, and the dichotomous lyrics of missing and wanting to be in someone’s life but also enjoying being alone. The repeated line at the close of the song is a little creepy: “I’ll see you in your nightmares,” a line which is repeated in “CPP.” “Dear Malcolm” speeds things up, taking the band closer to a hardcore sound, though there’s still a strong melodic content. Toward the end of the album we get two tracks are a little different from the rest. “You & Me” is quieter, more subdued, starting with acoustic guitar and melancholy vocals on a song about a breakup, and while the full band comes in and while the chorus is explosive, the verses are very understated. And the album ends with “Heart of Darkness,” a very introspective song with acoustic guitar and crooning vocals (and lonely whistling!), something very different from the rest of the LP, and another example of O’Brien’s vocal versatility. As I said, this is a solid debut and not just for fans of the 90s melodic punk sound.

TERRITORIES – Colder Now (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

I’ve previously reviewed a couple of releases by Calgary’s Territories, and this new LP, the band’s second full-length, does not disappoint one bit, and indeed is their best record yet. The band plays strong poppy punk rock that’s not pop punk, with catchy melodies, great gang vocals, a great tone, and great messages. My favorite tracks are probably “Pacific Ghost,” which opens the album, and “7 Lbs. of Hope,” appearing toward the end. They both have a similar sound to early Naked Raygun, a Chicago band near to my heart. It’s got soaring melodic lines and wall of guitar sound, like hardcore that’s been poppified, if you will – just like the sound Naked Raygun and other early Chicago bands pioneered. “Pacific Ghost” even incorporates some great whoa-ohs. “7 Lbs. of Hope,” too, uses similar melodic lines and tone, but the faster pace and rapid guitar strumming has echoes of Radioactivity, as well. This being released by Pirates Press, there are street punk tunes, too, including “Hello Outsider,” “Powder Keg,” and “The Company,” all with great loping and working class vibes and lyrics. Some tracks include an electric organ that injects a sense of warmth and personality on songs like “10A Street,” a track that straddles the line between old school Chicago melodic punk and modern street punk. The energy level, powerful guitars, big gang vocals, and emphasis on equal parts gruff punk and great melodies make this record a true winner.

TIME SPENT DRIVING – Estrangers (Negative Progression Records, www.negativeprogressionrecords.com)

Time Spent Driving may be a familiar name to fans of the late 90s and early 2000s emo scene, the sort of music that’s dark and melodic, not the angsty post-hardcore stuff that came out of Washington, DC in the mid 80s or even the screamo sort of stuff that was prominent in the late 80s and early 90s. This stuff is much smoother, more indie sounding than punk, with somber music and melancholy vocals. This is the band’s first new LP since 2015’s “Passed and Presence,” so they’ve got some time to make up. And they do so by providing ten songs that are wide and expansive, with room to breathe. The opening track, “Trust No One,” announces the band’s return to studio releases with several bars of explosive guitars before the song settles into a smoother more flowing dark sound, with lyrics about keeping your guard up at all times and, well, trusting no one. The song sounds angrily lonely, befitting a song about keeping people at arm’s length. This is a common sound through the LP, but there are others, too. The music flows and swirls on tracks like “Under the Weather,” with a smooth gliding sound, more delicate guitar riffs, and ambient keyboards that rise and fall in the background. And “Wake up and Smell the Daisies” has a harder edge in the instrumentals but remains smooth in the vocals. This one has an even darker tone than most other tracks, with a deep sense of foreboding. “Closed Circuits,” on the other hand, has a slightly brighter, almost poppy sound, but the vocals still retain a pensive quality. Though this era of music was never my thing, the band executes these songs quite well, and fans of the genre will enjoy this immensely.

THE WIND UPS – Happy Like This (Mt. St. Mtn., www.mtstmtn.com)

The Wind Ups s really the work of one Jake Sprecher, who, operating out of his Northern California bedroom, writes, records, and performs all of the tracks himself. The songs are noisy, frenetic, power pop meets garage meets early punk, and it’s a cacophonous wonder. Most tracks aren’t speedy, per say, but they’ve definitely got a manic thing doing on. The opening track, “Petri Dish,” is only played at a moderate loping tempo, but it’s got a real head-bobbing retro rock and roll feel buried under the noise. The mostly instrumental track spends its first minute and twenty seconds this way before the scant few lines of lyrics come in for the last fifteen seconds: “Close your eyes and make a wish / Living in the petri dish!” The title track which follows reminds me somewhat of Ohio’s Vacation mixed with The Ramones; it’s got the distorted garage pop of the former and the pop punk sensibility of the latter. Some tracks slow things down, but don’t take away any of the distorted punk goodness. “My Rene” is one such track that sounds like a lo-fi Ramones under the influence of barbiturates. And there are some real punk gems on the LP, such as “Oh I Know,” “Tell Me Again (How Pretty I Am),” and “Starting to Lose You.” This last may be my favorite track of the LP, with a mix of familiar punk riffs and simple minimalist spoken lyrics. “Tell Me Again” has a retro rock and roll sound mixed with a strong punk twist. I could go on and on – all of the songs are pretty worthy. The bad news? The whole eleven track LP flies by in only twenty-one minutes, and it feels like the record was just getting started.


CATBELLS – Partly Cloudy (SQFT Records, catbells.bandcamp.com)

Soft, dreamlike vocals over relaxed acoustically based indie pop runs through the thirteen songs on Catbells’ debut full-length LP. These are quiet, melancholy tunes, perfect for a cold rainy day, curled up in front of the fireplace with your cat and a good book (the opening track, “Fade,” even has “Rainy Day Demo” in its title). The arrangements are fairly spartan, with acoustic guitar and quiet electric guitar, bass, and subtle drums. On occasion the electric guitar gets faintly noisy, with grunged distortion, like on “Gone Too Far,” a particularly moody sounding song with lovely layers to the arrangement. And there are a couple of songs with a subtle bounce, such as “Same As You,” with a stronger, brighter beat, the layered arrangement still providing a rich varied backdrop to the smooth ethereal vocals. Keyboards show up sometimes, too, providing an added dimension to the songs. “Distant Star” is one, using spacey synths and retro doo-wop melodic styling to give the song a wistful, faraway feel. The closing track, “Riding Tides,” uses ukulele, scratchy production, and band-limited vocals to give the track a vintage sound, and it’s the most different track of the album. One piece of constructive criticism is that, as lovely as the sound is, there’s too little variety across the three quarters of an hour length. But it’s a nice fall record.

GRAVE SECRETS – Til Your Lungs Fall Out (Wiretap Records, www.wiretaprecords.com)

Based out of LA, Grave Secrets pays homage to 90s and 2000s music with their blend of post-hardcore crunch and melodic pop sensibilities. The trio has an impossibly big and expansive sound, and they demonstrate mastery over the big dynamic range of some of their songs, going from raging to a whisper at the drop of a hat. The guitar wails and screams as passionately as the vocals, and the bass and drums pound mercilessly, on the opening track, “Mood Ring,” whose lyrics provide the album’s title. But beside the massive post-hardcore instrumentals, the band has a penchant for modern pop music, and one could imagine that with different instruments and arrangement some of these songs could be preformed by today’s pop artists. “Drugs” has a cool 90s melodic emo sound, guitar melodies gliding over crackly bass and drums, vocals going from matter of fact to intense unease, and with a cat meow to end things. I really like the bounce in the guitar line and rhythm of “Preacher’s Nightmare,” and “Fuck Shit Up,” one of the lead singles, is a powerful angry post-hardcore track. The two tracks, which are adjacent, couldn’t be more different, demonstrating the band’s ability to excel in different sub-genres. The latter track is an explosion of anger from the point of view of a frustrated youth who lashes out in defiance of all societal constraints. While some of the tracks do feel a little like 90s/2000s generic melodic hardcore, there’s enough good stuff here to recommend this, not only for fans of melodic hardcore, but more generally.

JOHN HINCKLEY – “Neverending Quest” b/w “Majesty of Love” (Rad Girlfriend Records, www.radgirlfriendrecords.com)

Yes. That John Hinckley. The one who attempted to assassinate Ronald Reagan in order to impress child actress Jodie Foster, thus inspiring Arizona skaters to form a hardcore band called Jodie Foster’s Army, or JFA. Besides being a former psychiatric inmate (he was released in 2016), he’s also an artist and musician, of sorts. Up until 2020 he wasn’t permitted to release his works under his own name, and had to do so anonymously. Since then, however, he’s been releasing music on his YouTube channel, and now Rad Girlfriend is giving him a vinyl release of two new songs. These are folksy singer-songwriter affairs, with just acoustic guitar and vocals. The B-side is the better of the pair, with a more interesting melody, more akin to indie music, and a bridge with a little more going on. The songs are rather basic, though, and the appeal seems to be more the novelty of who the performer is rather than the songs themselves.

OLD CALIFORNIO – Metaterranea (oldcalifornio.bandcamp.com)

After slumbering for more than a decade, Old California awakened a few years back and started recording again. “Metaterranea” is the band’s third LP since restarting back in 2020. True to form, the band remains a stalwart of Americana, with country-tinged rock and roll, with plenty of twang mixed with rock and roll soulfulness. The songs range from light and folksy to down home rocking, from the twangy warmth of “Old King’s Road” (listen to that electric organ rock out!) to the melancholy acoustic of “Timeless Things.” “Weeds” is a lovely acoustic affair, a delicate waltz with light picked guitar, upright bass, brushed snare drum, and Rich Dembowski’s suave smooth vocals. There’s a wonderful jazzy quality to the song, and the fluttering acoustic guitar is gorgeous. The song is about the freedom to roam where one will (“I am a drifter / I come on the wind / I know no fences / And no fences keep me in”), and finding beauty everywhere (“I’m a weed in the garden / We’re all weeds in the garden / But weeds are all wildflowers / Where no gardens are”). I think this may be my favorite song of the LP. Some tracks have hints of the softer side of 70s classic rock, like “Destining Again,” with a variety of textures in the song, from rocking guitars to soulful electric organ and sweet intertwining harmonized vocals. Or “The Seer,” which blends power pop, soft rock, and Americana. The album ends with “Just Like a Cloud,” a song which is alternately an easy jazz tune, a down home Southern rock tune, and a spiritual. It gets bigger and bigger over the course of its five minutes. This isn’t my usual musical fare, but it’s a nice one for a change of pace.

PSYCHOTIC YOUTH – Happy Songs (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

Swedish power pop band Psychotic Youth was active from 1985 to 1999, making waves internationally before breaking up. They reunited in 2016 and found the reception to exceed expectations, so they’ve been going at it ever since. This new LP contains fourteen songs that span thirty-seven minutes, loaded with power pop goodness, with hints of Elvis Costello and The Buzzcocks influence lurking in there on a few tracks. “A New Plan” starts the album with a bang on the Ramones meets Elvis Costello sounding track. The simple melody screams Ramones-core, while the smoother sound, the electric organ, and vocal stylings are clearly influenced by Elvis Costello. It’s one of the strongest tracks of the album and an example of great track sequencing. Some of the more enjoyable tracks are in the front half of the LP, including “Can This Be The One,” a hard-driving tune with some top-notch guitar work and a peppy bouncy melody. “She’s Gonna Do You In” puts the “power” in power pop, and “Teenage Itch” is a raucous favorite. “Out Of This World” has the sounds of The Paul Collins Beat in its fun chorus. But parts of the back half of the album leave me cold. For example, we get ordinary hard rock from “Can’t Talk To That Girl,” while “I Don’t Wanna Go Now” tries too hard to be a Ramones tune and doesn’t quite work. And “Go” sounds too much like a Cure cover band. The bulk of the album, though, is pretty solid stuff.


CUT PIECE (Dirt Cult Records, dirtcultrecords.com)

Dirt Cult may have relocated across the country, but their connection to Portland remains strong. Cut Piece is a new band that formed there last year and this self-titled four-song EP is the band’s debut 7”. Dirt Cult seems to go through cycles in the type of music they release, and Cut Piece is part of their old school hardcore revival period. The band plays music that’s fast and loud, simple and abrasive, with angry shouted vocals. Three of the four tracks are like that, with one having more a more melodic feel (though the vocals are still shouted). “Life Goes Dark” has a cool 80s goth-punk tone in the guitars and a strong back beat. The other three tracks have a sharp, thin guitar tone, and the bass and drums pound emphatically to go along with the enraged vocals. Of those, “Accept Defeat (Don't Sabotage Me)” may be my favorite. It goes through a couple of shifts in tone; it’s faster and louder, and definitely more furious than the most of the EP. Except maybe for “Mind Regression,” which closes the EP. Its mix of speedy hardcore and angular melodic line reminds me a bit of some early Descendents material. Solid debut here.

THE INCITERS – Bring Back The Weekend (Pirates Press Records, piratespressrecords.com)

The Inciters are a long-standing 10-piece outfit out of northern California. And in the best tradition of cinematic R&B bands like The Blues Brothers and The Commitments, The Inciters play music with soul. The songs don’t just ooze soul, it’s pouring out everywhere. The vocals are smooth and suave, but it’s the instrumentals that really make this LP. The full band includes a trumpet, trombone, tenor sax, baritone sax, guitar, bass, drums, and electric organ, so it’s got a full, rich sound. And if these tunes don’t inspire you to get out onto the dance floor, you must be dead inside. The Inciters have played with a variety of ska, punk, and Oi bands, and I get why Pirates Press scooped them up for their first new full-length LP in a long while. There’s energy and exuberance galore in the eleven tracks, and it’s got a “live” quality to it, likely due to the method used to record it. The rhythm section recorded together in one room, and the horns together in another, with a large window so they could see each other. This ability to play off each other increases the spirit and strength of the music, and the songs seem to get bigger and better as they evolve. It’s hard to pick out any favorites, because every damn track is a banger. We’ve got soulful stormers like “Bring Back the Weekend, “If I Didn’t,” and “Boot N Soul.” And we’ve got the passionate burning tunes like “Love Comes Around,” and smooth, gliding pop like “Always, Sometimes, Never.” “Up in a Puff of Smoke” is more bouncy pop with an injection of soul, making it a fun one. The mix of classic R&B and modern soulful pop makes this a standout LP.

DAVE KUCHLER – Love + Glory (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

New Jersey born and bred Dave Kuchler, formerly of Soul Engines, found himself sitting at home with nothing to do in the spring of 2020, like a lot of us. So he began writing and recording new songs. The result is a bit of a mixed bag, with some good power pop tunes, some classic AM pop, some Bruce Springsteen inspired music, but also some bland southern rock. The best tracks come early on, with the opening song, “In It With You,” being one of the best. It’s a solid power pop tune with hints of Elvis Costello influence, quite bouncy and hook laden, and Kuchler’s vocals are belted out with power and passion. We get Beatles-esque AM pop in songs like “She’d Rather Be With You,” a song that has the same rhythm and very similar vocal styling that one would hear on early Beatles songs. I like the acoustic-based “This Old Car,” even though it’s got a bit of old-timey feel, with mandolin and piano in the mix. But then there are also twangy tracks like “All I Need,” “Lovers Talk” (which has a country blues feel to it), and “Prequel (Maggie),” which just don’t do it for me, sounding a little too white bread. And then there are a couple of very New Jersey tracks, like “Slow Day,” and especially “Chasing Glory,” with The Boss seeming to be in residence. It’s strange, it’s like there are three different bands playing on this record. Like I said, a mixed bag.

MUTAGÉNICOS – El Cuarto (Dirty Water Records, losmutagnicos.bandcamp.com)

The fourth LP from this Spanish band comes some four and a half years after their third, titled “3.” The band plays music that’s loosely garage rock and roll, with mixes of power pop and classic rock. He tracks are generally played at a loping mid-tempo pace, with no slow ballads or speedy burners. A couple of the tracks include some cool sci-fi synths, including the opener, “Cruella de Vil,” and “La Virgen.” I love the bouncy garage power pop of “Hermano Siamés,” with a bit of 60s Beatles feel and some great vocal harmonizing going on. “Arácnidos Ibéricos” (Iberian Arachnids) is one of the most pure garage tracks of the album, but even this one has its own genre bending, including some cool 80s new wave guitar minimalism and some 60s surf pop guitar riffs. Another track of note is the retro doo-wop sounds mixed with big Americana surf guitars and warm R&B electric organ on “3 Lustros,” making it one of the more unique songs of the album. Like their previous LP, “El Cuerto” is an enjoyable listen for all fans of poppy garage rock.

SEAGULLS – The Rapture and Resurgens (Say-10 Records and Skateboards, www.say-10.com)

This is not the shoegaze pop band Seagulls I reviewed a few years back. This one is an emotionally charged pop punk band from Atlanta, Georgia. They play raucous rowdy street punk rock, with plenty of poppy riffs and melodies, scads of gang vocals, and plenty of gritty emotion. Lead vocals are gruff and tough, and the whole album makes the sweaty dive bar aesthetic come alive through the speakers. As the LP opened, with “In the Beginning,” I thought this was going to be a crunchy hardcore record, because that short track starts with an intoned “prayer,” followed by speedy hardcore, followed by slowed down huge emo. But then “Four Long Years” started up with its loping tempo, big melody, and huge, brusque, crusty vocals, and I knew I was in for a treat. The ensuing 34 minutes is filled with the sort of music you crowd into a tiny space to hear, pressing to the front of the crowd with all your friends and crowding around the mics to sing along, beer sloshing all over the place. The pinnacle of this style on this LP has to be in the big, broad “Antedilluvian.” It’s veritably epic and expansive. “Brand New World” is a bit different, with a hint of Celtic punk sounds, accentuated by the gang vocals in the chorus. I love the bright melody and the topic of the cleverly titled, “Sinners in the Hands of a Non-Existent God.” Clever song titles abound on the LP, including also, “Symphony for the Righteous Destruction of Humanity in E Major,” “HellHoleBoob,” and “A Tale Told by an Idiot.” “Symphony…” is a great up-tempo tune with a fun broad chorus, “HellHoleBoob” is one of the bouncier, poppier tracks of the album, and “Tale…” closes the album with the perfect broad anthem. While there are plenty of bands playing this style of music, it’s always a good time listening, and especially seeing this sort of band live. Seagulls do a fine job here.

SUPERDOWN – Return to Sender (Count Your Lucky Stars Records, cylsrecords.com)

Superdown, hailing from Boston, have hooked up with the musically reliable Count Your Lucky Stars for their debut LP, “Return to Sender.” And I can safely say I won’t be returning this to sender, because it’s an enjoyable LP. Superdown play emotionally charged punk with a pop-influenced melodic edge (I can’t bring myself to lump it in with pop punk, because that’s not what it is). Think about 90s bands like Samiam or Hot Water Music for one point of reference. Songs have a sense of gravitas to them, distorted guitars providing a stoic support for the gritty vocals to lean on. Those vocals drip with sincerity, while belting out catchy melodies. While the ten songs have not a single stinker over the course of their thirty-three minutes, there are a few highlights that stand out above the others. “Wasted” is the album’s nod to grunge and pop, and gives the guitars the room to noodle around with some cool riffs over a simple melody loaded with fuzzed up sounds. I love the gliding feel of “Backbone,” while “Ships” remind me a lot of classic Jawbox, with its 3/4 waltz time emphasizing the off-beats and mixing in hints of post-hardcore heaviness with a lighter, airier sense of dreaminess. One thing I wish for on this album is a bit more variety in tempo; the songs are generally all at the same mid-tempo clip, with the exception of “Patterns,” which picks up the pace somewhat, injecting more energy and a brighter sensibility to the proceedings. And “Stare” slows things down to ballad pace. As the song starts, the guitars quietly jangle behind the subtly pleading vocals, but as the song evolves it gets bigger, the guitar jangle turning into a quiet roar, the vocals growing to a snarling accusation. It’s a great way to close a great LP.

TEENAGE HALLOWEEN – Till You Return (Don Giovanni Records, www.dongiovannirecords.com)

Teenage Halloween, a band formed nearly a decade ago, waited until the pandemic to release their debut LP, three years ago. They now return with their sophomore full-length, and there’s no sophomore slump here! This LP is even more urgent sounding and energetic than their excellent debut. Part of this may be a change from the band’s rotating lineup of its early days to the solidified roster of Luke Henderiks (vocals, guitar), Eli Frank (guitar, vocals), Tricia Marshall (bass, vocals), and Peter Gargano (drums). Part of this may also be the personal lyrical content; The LP opens with “Supertrans,” a song about gender identity, perceptions, and misunderstanding (Henderiks identifies as non-binary). The tracks which follow are powerful, exciting, and compelling, never letting up a bit over the ensuing 31 minutes. “Takeaway,” the second song of the LP, may be my favorite. The gang vocals, bright hopeful melody, and insistent lyrics remind me somewhat of the late great RVIVR. Another change: Henderiks isn’t the only lead vocalist anymore. Tricia Marshall also takes the lead on some songs, including “Getting Bitter,” and “Say It,” with a sound that, while less manic than the Henderiks fronted songs and maybe a little more jangly, bouncy, and poppy, are no less powerful. I love the bubbly and aptly titled “Good Time,” as well as the angst-driven anthem, “Armageddon Now.” The two songs feel like complete opposites, but they’re equally essential. The albums closes with two massive songs with a big dreamy edge, “Lights Out” and “Oh the Drama” are a lot more introspective sounding than the rest of the LP, even as that closing track alternates between ballad and barnstormer. What a great record! And even better, as you read this, Teenage Halloween are embarking on an extensive nation-wide tour to support it. I highly recommend this record, and I highly recommend you catch them at their nearest stop.

THE VILLAINTINOS – Come and Get It (www.thevillaintinos.com)

The short review is: Hard driving rock and roll that sounds like it comes from Los Angeles, but it comes from Columbus, Ohio. A longer review: Imagine late 70s LA rock, mixing the urgency of punk bands like X with remnants of the 70s hard rock and garage scene and you get a feel for what The Villaintinos sound like. Their debut EP consists of four songs, three of which lean more toward hard rock vibes and one that’s got more of an early punk attitude. That punker tune is “Come Closer,” and it’s got a faster tempo and more insistent sound than the other tracks. Leah Hanson’s vocals sound both smoother and angrier here, and the instrumentals feel more visceral. The other three tracks, “Bitch,” “Hands Tied,” and “Irish Goodbye” are raucous good fun, in a black leather jacket over faded torn blue jeans sort of way, and they would be right at home in a playlist with bands like Motorhead or AC/DC.


BENJAMIN JAYNE – Broken (www.benjaminjayne.com)

Benjamin Jayne is a solo act performed by the head of psychiatry at the nation’s smallest hospital, Benjamin Wright. The album is moody folk-rock loaded with experimental and ambient electronics. The PR materials accompanying this release say that he’s been compared to Nick Drake, and I can see that. The music is subtle and understated, and Wright’s vocals are sung almost in a whisper. The lyrical content of the album deals with how we change over time, and how we sometimes don’t recognize who we’ve become. The songs have a dark melancholy to them, too, just as Nick Drake’s songs do, but where Drake only had his guitar, Wright uses acoustic guitar and plenty of electronics, giving these songs an even deeper sense of foreboding and sadness. Some songs focus more on the electronics and others on guitar. One of the former is the opening track, “A Million Miles,” one of my favorites. The deep bass electronics at the start of the song provide a menacing feel, while the acoustic guitar tries to brighten things as much as it can. At places in the song, the music stops and we hear what sounds like the wind blowing on a desolate post-apocalyptic landscape. Toward the end of the song we get a refrain that’s brighter and more hopeful sounding, with string synths swelling and the vocals lifting up in a major key. It’s a very evocative track. An example of the latter is “Don’t Give Up,” which follows, with fluttering acoustic guitar, subtle electronics, and pensive vocals. I hear hints of Pink Floyd in the bridge of “Somewhere Far Away,” a song that’s otherwise a straightforward easy pop tune. I love “(Numb) I Can’t Feel a Thing,” a song that showcases Wright’s baritone vocals, coming out a bit more, bending notes, and veritably soaring on the chorus. The title track is probably the most somber of the album, a song of self-reflection, with the refrain, “I think I’m broken” and “I think it’s all broken.” The lyrics reflect a life out of control, needing “something to go my way.” This is a wonderful album, and perfect for listening to on this cool, cloudy, misty day I’m experiencing today.

THE DOLLYROTS – Night Owls (Wicked Cool Records, wickedcoolrecords.com)

For those who aren’t familiar with The Dollyrots (have you been living under a rock?) they’ve been around since 2000 and have released records with Lookout, Panic Button, and Joan Jett’s Blackheart Records. They’ve released a grip of LPs and EPs and played over 2000 shows, including on TV, on “The Price is Right.” Their latest LP is their second for Wicked Cool Records, and finds the band in fine exuberant form. They’re sort of halfway between the sounds of top pop artists of today and that of pop punk of bands like Bad Cop/Bad Cop. Some of the thirteen songs on this new record could even be slightly rearranged and become big pop hits. My favorites are the songs that lean more heavily into the punk side of things, like “5+5,” the track that opens the LP. It’s a bright love song about the every day, loving someone even when they just woke up a mess, and about loving without having to try. Loads of bounce and big gang vocals on the chorus make it a standout. “Hey Girl,” too, is more pop punk than just pop, and the guitars growl while the vocals are delivered with a snarl. “The Vow” is a favorite, easily the loudest and most raucous tune of the LP. It’s a song about everlasting love, throughout all of the ups and downs of life, and it exudes pure joy. Some of the songs are punked-up arrangements of straight-up pop tunes that could be performed by Taylor Swift or someone similar. The title track, “Night Owl,” is one such tune. It’s got edgy guitars and vocals with loads of attitude, but a simple pop melody right out of the top 40. Another is “Hot Mom with the Skinny Pants On,” an ode to all the cool moms who play drums, smoke weed, been in the pit, and listen to Rancid. And “Tonight With You” is another; the instrumentals are hard and gritty, as are the vocals, but the melody and lyrics are pure pop. Then there’s a song like “When We’re Sober,” which is in between, with softer verses and a punkier chorus, but always with sweet pop. “Trees Sway” is an outlier, a lovely, melancholy acoustic number with violin and cello, completely different from anything else on the record. And the album closes with a cover of “New England,” a song that was a huge hit for Kristy MacColl back in 1985. The Dollyrots trade in MacColl’s new wave jangle and angelic vocals for something edgier, but the melody is timeless. This is a little poppier than the stuff I normally listen to, but The Dollyrots sure are a fun and accomplished band.

RINEHEARTS – Full Bloom (Kool Kat Musik, www.koolkatmusik.com)

Rinehearts have been toiling away making music in their native Australia for the past seven years, and even longer than that when you consider that the members have been playing in bands going a lot further back than that. The music they make isn’t flashy, but if you’re a fan of 70s power pop, this is a record for you. The ten songs are solid power pop, the kind that used to rule the airwaves back in the day. They put a workmanlike effort in here; the band is tight, the sound is pleasing, there are earworm riffs and pop hooks galore. On some of the songs the guitars jangle furiously, on others they growl, as the song needs. While the whole album is a stalwart representative of the genre, there are a few standout tracks. “Power Lines” is an outstanding example of what power pop can be, with great vocal harmonies, jangly guitars, and a poppy melody that’ll instantly imprint on your brain. I like the loping feel of “Blue Jeans,” while the ballad-like “Falling Down,” with its harmonizing and dueling vocals and acoustic guitar is just lovely. “Piling On” to me sounds like the kind of song Mission of Burma might have done if they were a power pop band. It’s got a bit of minimalism in the melodic line, and just listen to that big repetitious chorus! Really, there isn’t a bad track on the album. If you’re a fan of power pop you need to check this out.

BRADLEY RIOT – Dark Side of the Road (bradleyriot.bandcamp.com)

I saw Bradley Riot live at a recent show, and was immediately taken with this passionate performer. He was playing solo acoustic, and the angst came through clearly and honestly. So when I was told he had a new LP coming out today, I was anxious to listen to it. There’s more than solo acoustic here, though acoustic guitar is the primary instrument (besides Riot’s vocals). Backing arrangements include piano, electric guitar, strings, and more. They’re there to support Riot, subtly adding to the background rather than taking the forefront, leaving the acoustic guitar and vocals to shine. The topics of the seven songs on this mini-LP are fairly somber, particularly the opening track, about writing one’s own obituary and planning one’s own demise. There’s an ironic lyric, too, where Riot sings, “Well, the words on the page all bleed, makes me envious / Remember me when I’m gone,” as if to say that life is better than we sometimes realize. The song lists all the loved being left behind and decries the wasted time. “I know I should fight,” Riot sings, “But I’m leaving here at midnight.” I love the backing electric guitar of “Don’t Say Goodbye,” giving the song a dark dusty sound, the acoustic guitar being strummed ruthlessly to give the song a raucous edge. Even more raucous is “Falling Down,” which adds drums and bass to the mix, and is an ode to all the bad mistakes we make in life. The hey-heys in the chorus remind me of something Naked Raygun might have done back in the 80s and leave a warm feeling. The closing song is a rousing number that bookends the record with “Obituary.” It’s called “RIP” and though it’s a lively song, it’s about suicide, too, and a belief that “it won’t matter much.” This one has an ironic line, too: “You know I’d say I’m still afraid to die / But I just want to get there quicker / And take this pain off of me.” Yes it’s an acoustic album, but it’s so much more. I’m really glad his other show that night was cancelled and he jumped onto the one I was attending. Recommended.

WIMPS – City Lights (Youth Riot Records, youthriotrecords.com)

The PR for this record calls Wimps “slacker punk,” and that’s probably a pretty apt description. The music is right on the edge between indie rock and punk. The arrangements are fairly minimal, with guitar, bass, drums, and piano. The guitars are distorted and fuzzy, the bass is given opportunities to step to the front, the drums are solid, and the vocals are stoically matter of fact. It all adds up to music that’s pretty bouncy and enjoyable. Wimps have garage rock tendencies without going full on delinquent. It makes for a very even, balanced, and enjoyable sound. The band ranges within those parameters from 60s pop to 90s indie. For example, “Animal” has a 60s pop beat mixed with a 70s Rolling Stones aesthetic and a 90s post-grunge garage tone. Getting even further into the 90s post-punk garage sound is “Fits,” which immediately follows. I love the introspective sound of “Lake Washington,” with a sparer arrangement, a gliding melody, and the warmth of electric keyboards. Lyrically we get songs about the mundane things in life, like living on automatic in “Doing It.” The chorus sings “I don’t know what I’m doing but I’m doing it” on repeat, and verses sing about being a parent when you’re still just a kid, doing what others expect of us, laughing at jokes we don’t understand, and so on, living life on others’ terms instead if our own. “Mind Reader” is about the difficulty in communicating with others, because no one really says what they mean and we all need a mind reader to help us understand others. “Never Leave the House” is a song many of us can relate to, especially after a couple of years of a pandemic. It’s about staying home, letting yourself go, never washing your hair, never changing clothes or making the bed, and so on. “Rut” is about living life stuck in a rut, and liking it because the routine is predictable. Wimps have been compared to bands like the Breeders, the Pixies, and even the B-52s, and I can hear the influence, especially B-52s, though Wimps are less quirky and not new wave, but I can hear some of them in the melodies. All of these seemingly disparate elements blend together into a really good record.


BURNER HERZOG – Random Person (burnerherzog.bandcamp.com)

I didn’t know anything about Burner Herzog going into this review, but I love the name. Reading through the band bio, it appears that the band is the brainchild of Jasper Leach, who had a band with this name in the San Francisco Bay area for years until relocating in 2019 to New York City. There, he found like-minded musicians, including another Bay area transplant with whom he had previously played music, and a new Burner Herzog lineup was born. This new LP is hard to categorize, which is fine by me. Leach’s vocals are quirky, in a good way, sounding very casual and matter of fact, while the music ranges across and in-between various genres, from the bombastic rock and roll of “Lucky Girl” to the grunge-folk of “Sometimes It’s Hard to Break Free.” There’s the mix of retro folk-rock and modern indie in “Nobody Sees Me Like You Do,” which reminds me somewhat of the late great Chicago singer-songwriter, Steve Goodman. I’m not a fan of country, but the subtle twang of “Memo to Persephone,” and its alternating between smoothness and grittiness is lovely. And “Bliss of Love” may be my favorite track of the album; it’s got a David Byrne/Talking Heads sort of thing going on. One of the best things about Burner Herzog is the fascinating variety of textures in the instrumentals, with all sorts of different sounds showing up in the mix. I can’t give you “RIYL” type references, because, like I said, this is hard to categorize. But I will tell you it’s a good listen.

MIRRORS ON THE MOON – Whiskey & Wine (www.mirrorsonthemoon.com)

Mirrors on the Moon, a new New Jersey band, presents a curious mix of classic rock, psych, and Americana on their debut recording, a five-song EP. Upon initial listen, I couldn’t get into the opening track, from which the EP takes its name. It reminds me a lot of those 70s smooth jams that were dominant back in the day, and I swore I could almost smell the patchouli oil wafting through my room. But the EP got better from there. “Marigolds” has a bit of a funk and soul thing going on, mixed with Pink Floyd-like hazy psych rock. And “Waking Up” is absolutely gorgeous, a quiet folk-rock tune with beautiful strings, gorgeous melody, and wonderfully harmonized vocals. “Get Lost” takes us back to the 60s and 70s, this time to an acid rock jam sound. And “Don’t Panic” closes the EP with some classic chill out 70s stoner rock. Mirrors on the Moon are not the kind of band I normally listen to, but they do a good job at what they do, and I really do like “Waking Up” a lot. If you’re into this sort of genre, check this one out.

THE ROUTES – Reverberation Addict (Topsy-Turvy Records, soundflatrecords.de)

What would have happened if The Buzzcocks had appeared on the music scene a decade or so earlier and were an instrumental surf band instead of the influential power pop and proto punk band they were? That’s the question The Routes endeavor to answer on their latest LP, featuring covers of the beloved band’s songs. The album title, of course, is a takeoff of “Orgasm Addict,” one of their most famous songs, and the cover art is even a reworking of the original single’s cover and was put together by longtime Buzzcocks graphic designer Malcolm Garrett. The album starts out strongly with the wonderfully arranged version of “Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've),” one of my favorite Buzzcocks songs, and though it’s almost note perfect, the tone gives it that great gliding surf sound. Departing from the original more emphatically is the surf version of “Orgasm Addict,” which eschews the simple punk melody for a more complex, flowing, and technical Dick Dale style version. I love how the rhythm and melody of “Something’s Gone Wrong Again” are retained, but the whole tone of the song changes from manic punk to easy-going surf jam. There’s a similar transformation for “Whatever Happened To,” though this time out the cover is a little edgier, but not nearly as high-strung as the original. It’s a cool sound. And the classic, “What Do I Get” is reimagined as a spaghetti western sort of anthem; you can even hear the horses galloping! There are fifteen reinvented Buzzcocks tunes here, and the concept is so fun and it’s really well executed.

YOUNG HASSELHOFFS – Dear Departed (Mom’s Basement Records, www.momsbasementrecords.com)

As they approach the quarter century mark as a band, these “young” musicians from America’s heartland return with their fifth full-length LP. The band has been called “pop punk for grown ups,” and that may be reasonably accurate. They tend to lean a little closer to the power pop end of the spectrum, but definitely come from the DIY pop punk scene. The ten songs here feature bouncy poppy fun tunes filled with vocal harmonies and hooks. The arrangements and production are thoughtfully done, and some songs feature horns, electric keyboards, and/or piano, contributing to the nice sonic texture. It all adds up to an unexpectedly slick package. Some of the songs almost feel like they could have been radio hits from the late 70s or early 80s, when guitar-driven pop filled the airwaves. The album starts out strongly with “Hold Me Now,” a track fills with awesome hooks and shifting sounds, from staccato piano to lush flowing guitars and vocals. The title track is easily my favorite, with a big power-pop-punk sound and an arrangement that uses bright horns with dissonant chords at various intervals. The use of single lead vocals in places (instead of the usual harmonies) gives the song an appropriately lonely sound. “Something Wicked” opens with an electric organ, making it feel like we’re about to hear a sermon. The song is a little slower and a bit melancholy sounding. And I love the gorgeous strings and acoustic guitar on the closing track, “Still Got Time.” In between these are other songs just as worthy, though “You Belong to Me” does seem to stray too closely to the commercial pop sounds of the AM radio of my youth. But this is a good LP, especially for fans of power pop.


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JerseyBeat.com is an independently published music fanzine covering punk, alternative, ska, techno and garage music, focusing on New Jersey and the Tri-State area. For the past 25 years, the Jersey Beat music fanzine has been the authority on the latest upcoming bands and a resource for all those interested in rock and roll.


 
 
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