Reviews

Tony Party

The Spiky Tops Let’s Go! Pogo! EP

I mean, look at the cover. You already know. The songs are snotty and beer-fueled BLANKS 77, the CASUALTIES, the PIST, and the QUEERS-flavored punk rock. Sometimes in their photos, they have spiked-up hair, so I wonder if the name SPIKY TOPS comes from that. The songs are brimming with energy. The lyrics, although a little formulaic, are honest and heartfelt. For example, in the song “Going Down to the Bar,” I really believe that the guy wants to meet up with me and go down to the bar. Furthermore, in the song “Let’s Go Pogo,” I feel like the SPIKY TOPS want me to go pogo somewhere. This is a catchy, hands-in-the-air, chuggin’ 40oz of beers or seltzers music, and when they sing “Party till your guts spill out” in the song “Party Till Your Guts Spill Out,” I know that these folks would be laughing as they hold my hair back while my guts spilled out of my mouth.

V/A Calgary Calling LP

I’m half-Canadian, like left ear to right ankle or something, so I’m really connecting with this comp right now. Local scene comps are my favorite because I feel they really take the time to give an accurate slice of a community. On the other hand, one of the biggest issues with local comps like this is that bands will sometimes give their throwaway tracks. I don’t feel like this is at all the case here. Some of the standout bands for me start at the beginning, with the BREAK INS’ opening shouts of “One, two, fuck you” energetically blending parts of the OBSERVERS and the BAGS. GALATICAS, JULIET’S GOT A GUN, and LETTERS TO NORMA continue on with punk, thrash, hardcore, and indie vibes, and I thought MEDUSAS’ song “Block Him” was a hockey song, but upon further listen, it is a scathing review of dude that I think is harassing one of the people in the band. For the most part, the only job of a compilation is to give some new bands a try, and moreover, to provide something new to track down, and this does just that. Calgary Calling has everything from art-punk, punk, math-rock, SoCalL riffs, indie, ’90s DC-core, riot grrrl, and hardcore, which means there is something on here you’ll certainly be turned onto. REBEL GIRRLZ have a great BIKINI KILL-ish tune that completely knocked my socks off. Just when I thought I’d found my favorite song, TIPLESS comes in with “Emetophobia,” which has a sound like SONIC YOUTH blended with chaotic hardcore. Look, if I was a non-dirty mayor, completely unlike the mayor that JULIET’S GOT A GUN talks about in their “Dirty Mayor” song, I would post this on Calgary’s city website to attract tourist punks that might not stop into Calgary traveling through doing black bear and moose research. There are fifteen bands, and both the CD and LP come with a twelve-page booklet. There is something on Calgary Calling for almost everyone. I think you should consider grabbing this from wherever you grab things from.

Chumhuffer Slaughterhouse Five EP

I’m often reluctant to hear anything that comes out of NYC these days, because all too often the band is reaching for the lowest rung or overextending themselves for their art. However, CHUMHUFFER is bustin’ out of the gates with a perfectly crafted and accessible five-tune EP. I did a little research on CHUMHUFFER, and found to my delight that the band stole a copy of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five novel from a huge chain store and remarkably used the themes of the book as the architecture for this EP. In other words, CHUMHUFFER, like Vonnegut, is plain spoken and incendiary with their self-reflection and observations on current affairs. This EP has East Coast AVAIL/SILENT MAJORITY elements while adding a little bit of the NYC oddball phrasing. Overall, I think this is a great EP that combines enough melody and hardcore to be much more than a one-time spinner.

The Gamits Endorsed by You LP reissue

I have a group of pals, and once a year we meet somewhere for five days and we make an album of songs. In May 2010, we went to a Denver, CO recording studio and two things happened: I have never written a better song than I did on that trip (the song is called “God Killed My Grandma”), and secondly, the guy that was recording us said he was in a band called GAMBITS that I might enjoy. I went home to look for the GAMBITS and I never found anything about the band or even a band with that name, so after spending something like eleven hours a week on the internet for nearly fifteen years searching for the GAMBITS, I gave up and I stopped looking. Until today! As I was doing research on the band the GAMITS, I realized that fifteen years ago, I heard a “B” in the name of the guy’s band (and there is no “B”)! I’ve been chasing a shadow, and now I get to check out his band as though it was May 2010, only ten years after it originally came out rather than twenty-five years after it was initially released. From the first track “15 Minutes,” this record sets a high-energy pace with tight, heavy guitars while still leaving room for the bass and drums to come through very nicely. This could easily fit in with the ERGS, DOC HOPPER, HOUSE BOAT, DIRT BIKE ANNIE, the HUNTINGTONS, and folks of that ilk. The lyrics are smart, clever, and biting from time to time. If any of the above bands I mentioned tickle you, then you shouldn’t sleep on this twenty-five year anniversary edition. I am over the moon that I can finally bring this GAMITS ship to port. The fifteen-year search is over. Full circle, brother. Full circle.

None Shall Sleep A Slow Steady Decline / Hope Dies at Dawn LP

NONE SHALL SLEEP has captured elements of MISFITS, the FIENDZ, GASLIGHT ANTHEM, and BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, blended them into their very own sound, and put out a perfectly New Jersey brooding and catchy record. This isn’t a beer-soaked bar-stomper, although it does have those pieces, but it is more driving late at night through the little NJ towns scattered around from the shore to the mountains and falling lyrically into lost hope and melancholy choruses. There is a lot of introspection in these songs, and a maturity giving me the feeling that these gentlemen have been around the sun a few times and seen some shit. It’s hard to write from a point of view centered around your disappointment and not have the songs sound whiny after a while, but they do it and keep it interesting. A couple of the longer songs bring in EFFIGIES and parts of NAKED RAYGUN to round out the entire batch of tunes. I’m not entirely sure where this would fit in my record collection, but I know it definitely fits in there somewhere. Also, the song “Is This My Uniform?” has the Bill Murray speech from the movie Rushmore, so that’s worth it right there.

Skappository For Your Health! CD

If anyone at any time in the last 30 years would have bet me that I’d find a ska band in 2025 that I like, I would have taken that bet and ended up broke. SKAPPOSITORY, with charm and humor, applies the classic sounds of the SPECIALS, BAD MANNERS, and MADNESS, as well as a more modern feel from the likes of MUSTARD PLUG and the SLACKERS. I know that typically in a review of ska that folks would throw around OPERATION IVY for points, but this ain’t that. I think SKAPPOSITORY has a more refined sound and a tuneful maturity that OPERATION IVY didn’t have. If I haven’t sold you yet on SKAPPOSITORY, how about the fact one of the folks in this band plays a keytar? Yeah, I said it. Go click into your favorite online search engine and look at pictures of them from basements to clubs and you’ll see a fella with a keytar strapped onto his body. I think it’s pretty bold to be a ska band these days, but SKAPPOSITORY pulls it off well.

Blockage I Owe You Everything CD

charming while congruently being heartbreaking. For me, I sometimes forget about the RAMONES and the impact they had on me, and the shape of their impact on everything I like about myself and the people I love and value. RAMONES songs, with their simplicity, helped the left-of-center folks find others like us. BLOCKAGE does not back away from their RAMONES love, but there are also elements of the early-to-mid-period MR. T EXPERIENCE when Jon Von brought in those garage guitar riffs and solos. The second tune, still with the RAMONES feel, seems to also bring a couple grams of ALL songs, after Dave Smalley left. “Filthy,” the last track on this CD, is very upbeat musically, and lyrically starts in the morning sun but quickly trots down of mineshaft lit only by a candle in one hand with a mirror in the other so that as you plunge into darkness, you only see your own stupid face in front of you. This band was born in L.A. and now is in NYC, so there ya go.

Half Built Homes Dreams CD

HALF BUILT HOMES has been a band for a while, with a good chunk of releases going back at least five years. Simply put, this is the only way that an Oi! punk band from the petri dish of Northern Indiana, contaminated by Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois, is supposed to sound. They have just enough musicianship to keep it interesting, but then fuck it up the exact perfect way that the Middle West does every time. It has all the Oi! and sing-along punk stuff, but with Eeyore cloudy days that only Lake Michigan can bring in. Perfect NAKED RAYGUN bits, KRABS parts, tied up in a nicely sorrowful upbeat-tempo kinda way. I live in Michigan and I consider these people to be neighbors of sorts, and by the end of the seventh song on the CD, gosh, are we really this fucked-up here? I mean, I still swim as often as I can, have my laughs with pals, and although I’ve been through a fair amount of stuff, this HALF BUILT HOMES cloud cover is bumming me out. OFF WITH THEIR HEADS plops into this category of melancholy, singable tunes, and although this is a great record, I’m tired of hearing hopeless Midwest songs about maybe trying to be better. This album bends you around a couple corners, as it starts out as a boot-stomper then becoming sad about old friends passing away, the sunrise/sunset thing. The last track reminded me of a pal that died, and although I told him that I loved him every time I saw him, the song reminded me that maybe I don’t say it often enough or to more people or something. In the best and worst ways, this Dreams CD by HALF BUILT HOMES is wonderfully Midwest pop punk/Oi! punk.

Broken Barcodes / Feral Housecats Runnin’ Wild in the Streets of Columbus split 10″

BROKEN BARCODES has nothing groundbreaking here, but oh my golly, is this catchy! I’m certain that their shows are a bunch of pals jumping around and singing along. All the catchiness of the EGRS, STEINWAYS, HOUSEBOAT, DIRT BIKE ANNIE, and LOST LOCKER COMBO. I get the feeling that these guys are best friends and their kids or dogs or cats prolly have play dates together while they play behind a warehouse or at the bass player’s aunt’s retirement party. This is the best way to do pop punk as an adult, wherein you abandon all the songs about crushes (because it gets creepy when you’re no longer under twenty) and dive headfirst into the silly, fun, everyday stuffs. FERAL HOUSECATS, with their terrifying band name, hit just as hard, but they pull their silliness from late ’70s and early ’80s Ohio à la DEVO-esque B-sides, RUBBER CITY REBELS, PAGANS, or BALONEY HEADS. FERAL HOUSECATS, still a very terrifying name, continue to impress with a charming, inept quality that is almost hypnotic and always on the cusp of falling apart. Both of these bands complement each other very well, and I wish there was a way I could make them my friends and make them want to drive to Northern Michigan and play in a forest near me for the squirrels and deers and me and such.

Weatherwise Demos cassette

The vocals remind me of one of the singers from the band ALL, and a different singer reminds me of one of the singers from the ARRIVALS. Musically, I feel like there is way too much going on in these songs for it to be interesting. Maybe I have to be driving in the wee hours of the morn blasting this for the two-hundredth time, knowing all the changes in the music and the yell parts and such. This is a complicated demo to talk about because it pulls from all the great punk, indie, emo, mosh, and metal things that are loved, but hovers an atom’s width under delivering something memorable. Maybe like a PLANES MISTAKEN FOR STARS kinda thing. I’m not familiar with this style of emo-pop, change-heavy, almost-exciting style. “Sticks & Stones May Break My Bones (But My Actions Will Haunt Me Forever)” is my favorite song on here, with the straightforward structure ringing in an AGAINST ME! and THIS BIKE IS A PIPE BOMB vibe. I’m interested to see how this band evolves.

No Dreams All Bent Out of Shape CD

For fans of that style of ’00s songs by twenty-somethings talking about crushes, heartbreak, everyday pleasures, work and stuff, maybe parents, too. I like the sound of it, but I’m also instantly bored. It’s the movie soundtrack songs that you skip over to get to the song you bought the movie soundtrack for. I’m thinking the lesser JIMMY EAT WORLD, SIGNALS MIDWEST, PROMISE RING, TEXAS IS THE REASON, or SENSE FIELD songs, and on and on. This is completely adequate, but I think if you’re going to hit this style nowadays, ya gotta go for more than regular. Maybe they could consider switching instruments clockwise and see what happens. It could be genius or it could be horrible, but it won’t be medio-core.

Sick Move Intrusive Thoughts LP

DIY from Baltimore that could fit on any Fat Wreck Chords or Epitaph comp or even be on one of those two labels. The LP is orange-ish or brown-ish in color and has a lyric sheet to follow along to all words, or to karaoke along if you’d like. Vocals are on the gruffer side of things, but the hooks are very hooky and completed by “ohhhhh”s and group choruses. It’s fast and tight like NOFX, BAD RELIGION, AMERICAN STEEL, BRACKET, GOOD RIDDANCE, and PENNYWISE. I think I expected something a little more challenging or more Baltimore from a Baltimore band. This record is great but, for me, it sounds a bit formulaic from such an iconoclastic city.

77 Lies Love Songs, Vol. 1 CD

As they say in their Bandcamp bio, this is a “three-piece punk band from Charlotte, NC.” Easily singable, straightforward, zero thrills, and on-point. Their messages are clear, from being scared of the United States in the opening track “United States of Fear,” to getting wasted as lyrically illustrated in the song “Wasted.” The third track “Fight” shows us where they got the name for the Love Songs, Vol.1 CD with the lyrics “Let’s fight, let’s fuck”. All four songs clock in at under six-and-a-half minutes, so that’s pretty cool. If you’re a fan of the CASUALTIES, BLANKS 77, SWINGIN’ UTTERS, or ANTI-FLAG and can take your punk milquetoast and uninspired, then I’d say you can’t go wrong with this.

Motoloaf No Happy Endings LP

This could 100% be an early No Idea Records release, and in fact, I thought it was. Like for realz, though. The cover art alone looks striking like a No Idea release. The sound has all the RADON, HOT WATER MUSIC, CLAIRMEL, TILTWHEEL, GUNMOLL, DON’S EX-GIRLFRIEND, FLUF, etc. similarities, not because it sounds like any of those bands but it vibes in that orbit. What this does have in common is great players and insightful, sarcastic, poignant lyrics, e.g. “We are a race of assholes / We deserve to be erased.” I love the cover art with the lose/lose situation these two beasts find themselves in, and neither is backing down from their mutual destruction. I’ve listened to this all the way through three times, and not only is this on split-colored vinyl, but it also has a lyric sheet to follow along. This is the whole package in one whole package. Oh, they are from Atlanta, GA, so there’s that.

Amusement Holding On EP

With their third EP, AMUSEMENT continues to straddle the line between East and West Coast luminaries of the likes of SEAWEED and MOVING TARGETS, while bringing in a level spoonful of aggression just under the tasty melody. It only makes sense that AMUSEMENT is what happens when you have a combined one-hundred-plus years of experience from folks that have played in DIY bands spanning all Maximum Rocknroll’s favorite genres. It’s also impossible not to hear itty-bitty flavors of the thirty or so bands that these folks have been part of, or deny the dazzling RADON and ARRIVALS influences. Each of these three songs is melodic and contains an urgency and style individualized enough from each other to make this feel well-rounded. If it were 1991, I would be putting each of these songs on different themed comp tapes, like “Running From the Cops Jamz” or “Room Cleaning Jamz” or “Tyler’s Basement When His Parents Aren’t Home Jamz.”

Gristle Maximum Power CD

GRISTLE is a brand new band that, to me, sounds like East Coast-style late ’80s/early ’90s hardcore. Fast, clear vocals akin to RAW DEAL, BREAKDOWN, a little SLAPSHOT, UPPERCUT, DEADGUY, PITTBULL and the like. There are five songs on this CD that leave me wanting an LP. Look, I’m in my mid-50s and I grew up on this sound, and hearing this style again is a memory flood that is transportive in all the right ways. I don’t know if this would make a top ten list, but it will certainly be something you pull out when you want to yell out and put your fist up.

Magic of the Marketplace Jealous Moon CD

Four great songs that are fine in both execution and melody. I think this band would be okay with me drawing a LEATHERFACE comparison, and if you’re good with a LEATHERFACE similarity, and a likeness to LEATHERFACE inasmuch as that songs contain emotive personal songs as do LEATHERFACE, and wherein personal journey through LEATHERFACE-styled songs are those in which you find your soul being pulled, then this is a near-perfect four-song EP that is akin to the better mid-tempo LEATHERFACE songs. You could grab it right now if you’d like to.

Smackbeat Little Letters LP

This LP starts this with a high school soundtrack-type tune (“1999”) about life and growing up and stuff. I can see this as a summertime record that plays loudly from cars with windows rolled down, arms flailing, and everyone inside shouting the lyrics. Perfect mid-tempo GIN BLOSSOMS, with elements of POLITICAL ASYLUM, STATE DRUGS, and the OFFSPRING sorta, with a general Fat Wreck Chords feel. Personally, I’m on the fence with this one, because I know that this will be the favorite 2025 release for some people. However, for me there’s just not quite enough for me to sink my teeth into. Take this for what it is: I was playing SMACKBEAT loudly in an effort to really dig into it, and my ladyfriend popped her head in and asked if I was listening to Christian rock, so there’s that.

Amazing Transparent Man Print is Dead (20th Anniversary Edition) LP

Recorded at Sonic Iguana Studios, which is prolly best known for SCREECHING WEASEL, BOLLWEEVILS, SQUIRTGUN, and so on and on. This is the 20th anniversary edition of this LP, so it just goes to show that someone is still interested. This is a fine record in the vein of BLINK-182 and such. I read on the band’s Bandcamp page that the original CD, released in 2005, was a “North Star for early 2000s pop punk” enthusiasts. I somehow missed it when it came out, but now we all have an opportunity to grab a piece of history or whatever. The CD cover looks like The Catcher in the Rye, whereas this LP (20th Anniversary Edition) doesn’t so much.

Last Bias The Sea Hates a Coward LP

Dang, duder! The Sea Hates a Coward is a time machine of sound and character that has transported me back to the mid-1990s, in a good way. From the first song “I’m Not Down,” I was back in a basement, sweating through the fabric of a double extra-large T-shirt (because everyone wore clothes too big for their spongy body back then). Think of CARBOMB, ASSFACTOR 4, MOHINDER, MUKILTEO FAIRIES, the YAH MOS, and so on when the needle drops. These songs blend melody and disorder in equal parts while still making this musically fresh and relevant. I couldn’t be happier for this release, and you should not be happier, too.

Alpha Sub Alpha Sub CD

The start of this is frantic and catchy not unlike the DWARVES, and snotty like the VINDICTIVES. Some of the songs walk the line between charming, funny, and dumb. I really couldn’t find any info on the band. I even tried to search what I imagine is their most famous local songs, “Two Handed Piss” and “Stepdad Goatee,” but nothing came up. Their song titled “Fuck the Police” takes on a double meaning with lyrics about bad cops sung to the tune of “Every Breath You Take” by the POLICE. This record is meat-and-potatoes punk that falls somewhere between reliable and consistent. There are eleven songs on this CD that are waiting for you to have a round.

Remedy Feelin’ Back to the City CD

REMEDY FEELIN” is reminiscent of the HICKOIDS with the VINDICTIVES’ singer singing. This has a very particular boot-stomping honky-tonk twang to it. From “Gas Station Blues” to “Fast Fast Woman,” REMEDY FEELIN’ lets you know exactly who they are. I did a little digging and found out they are from the Bay Area, so I wonder if they will be playing 924 Gilman any time soon. Keep a lookout. I wonder if they roll their own cigs and chew tobacco. I want to be clear; I bet this is a lot of fun live. There was a great band in Michigan doing this style around the late ’80s through early ’90s called GOOBER & THE PEAS, so if you are into this type of thing, please look them up, too.

The Miller Lowlifes Pinch Hitters LP

Who the, what the, when the, where the, are MILLER LOWLIFES? The singer reminds me of the DILLINGER FOUR songs that Erik sings, and the band BROCCOLI from Scotland. These songs all have a plucky spirit and a crisp, clean finish leaving you wanting more, and these ten tracks don’t leave you bloated and feeling overindulgent. Anyone looking for that classic A.D.D. and No Idea Records feel will not be disappointed. MILLER LOWLIFES’ formula is as clean and simple as mixing barley, hops, and water, yielding a full-bodied aural experience. This isn’t going to shatter your world, but it will 100% get you through a pleasant evening of porch-sitting and having sips with your best pals.

Hedge Better Days LP

Straight out of the gates, HEDGE starts kicking you in the chest with a catchy tune that builds on all the better melodic bands from the late ’80s and ’90s. Imagine the first time you heard MOVING TARGETS, RADON, the LEMONHEADS (Hate Your Friends to Lick, none of that solo Dando crud), TILTWHEEL, middle-period HÜSKER DÜ, and even JR. JUGGERNAUT. This record has a comfortable and familiar sound while retaining its newness, entwined in well-crafted and memorable songs.

Demmers / The True Faith split 7″

Council Records in recent years has become a trusted name in underground music. Wherein, whether you like what they release or not, the underlying thread is one of quality craft and toned to a mature listener. TRUE FAITH’s side is a perfect synth rock song akin to HOME FRONT, 1985–1990 CURE, TALK TALK’s “It’s My Life,” FLOCK OF SEAGULLS’ “Space Age Love Song,” or those first few HUMAN LEAGUE LPs. The DEMMERS side is more of a 1981–1983 CURE vibe, starting from the first rhythmic bass through to the very last ringing guitar note. Both songs could easily slide into any mid-’80s mixtape that your art school friend recorded off their college radio station, and I say that in the best, most delightful way possible.

Lidské Zdroje Pedalling Through (…Part 1) LP

Dang, duder! Anyone that knows me can attest to the fact I hold my “dang, duder(s)” for only the most outstanding things. From the cover alone, I could tell this band was into physical fitness, and that dedication to self-help and preservation will always be paramount to a successful band. Musically, you are pulled into a lo-fi garage, which is where I imagine their home gym is located, with instantly hummable and toe tapping tunes not unlike SO COW, or HEAD. I could see this on Goner, Dirtnap, and Rad Girlfriend. Some of the tunes have a charming BUZZCOCKS feel, and others have a charming early BLACK FLAG feel. As the record moves on, it gets a bit more refined and loses some of the rustic feel, but still a very solid record that I will be spinning frequently.

Another One Never Again EP

Eleven songs are on this 45 repress that originally plopped out in 2014. There is a strong LEGENDARY WINGS, BIG DRILL CAR, and DOC HOPPER impression to the songs. I really wish there would have been a lyric sheet instead of a bunch of almost legible writing on a bedroom wall; I’m certain they didn’t get their security deposit back. I heard a bunch of “she” and “her” and the one line I made out clearly on the first pass was “My sex drive’s lacking and she wants to get fucked.” If you like any of the above-mentioned bands, then you will most certainly enjoy this platter as well. I think there are only 50 of the splattered version, so act now while supplies last. Or don’t act now. Free will, baby.

Saidiwas Saidiwas LP

SAIDIWAS was a “vegan straightedge band that was influenced by the Revolution Summer DC bands’ politics and violent dancing,” from Northern Sweden from 1995 through 1999. File this under Fans of USA Basement Emocore. If you are a fan of ORDINATION OF AARON, NATIVE NOD, STILL LIFE, CAR VS DRIVER, STRUGGLE, quiet/loud, talk/yell, and then a lot of people yell, and the “someone pulls out a trumpet but thankfully they never play it” type of thing. This is perfect for being a snapshot of the “if you were there” category, but it isn’t a new perspective or missed gem.

Empired Finding Calm in the Chaos CD

EMPIRED kicks off this LP with a catchy little number called “Unite,” and it has the same clean and catchy sound of the best JIMMY EAT WORLD songs. The record’s sequencing is a bit disjointed. Also, just because a band is from SoCal, it doesn’t mean you have to toss in Long Beach ska upstrokes at all, or ever. I feel like this is a trap. A lot of good bands try to overextend themselves and could have used a producer, or a friend, to let them know that it is better to do fewer songs that are great versus putting songs in to fill an LP. By the time you get to “Fences” and “Paradise,” tracks four and five, the songs anneal in a way that brings out more sense of a good band staying in their lane and writing great songs—specifically with the song “Fences,” and bringing in Brenna Red (the LAST GANG) for backups completely catapults the song and band to the familiar late ’90s No Idea Records era of RADON and BITCHIN’, and I even hear some of the MUFFS in her delivery. Overall, this is a great start for a band. This would have made an outstanding four- or five-song EP.

Zephr Past Lives LP

Oh man, I’m a sucker for when the whole band sings, and they hooked me from the first tune. This record has a very No Idea Records feel. Through these songs, you can also feel that these folks like each other and have a lot of fun hanging out. I think they are actual friends. For fans of RAGING NATHANS, GRABASS CHARLESTONS, RADON, a little bit of HOT WATER MUSIC, DEAD BARS, a little DILLINGER FOUR, and so on. You get it.

Blanket of M Fever on Front Street… CD

Not to be confused with M BLANKET, BLANKET OF M plops out a bouncing live album that leaves you with a good understanding of what the band is all about. Although they hail from Tyler, TX, there is a heavy East Coast and WESTON sense to their pop punk that comes off more on the non-live tracks on their Bandcamp page. The slower tunes have a definite RAMONES vibe with a side smile to the MISFITS. I usually hate live punk recordings as they tend to sound horrible, muddy, and the band, overall, is far, far less interesting than in their recorded material, but this stands out. Great crowd sounds with tons of tight friends, a few inside jokes, and probably jumping around and such. I would most certainly go check them out if they ever played within 40 minutes of where I live.

Power Pants PP7 cassette

I love this. With my whole heart, I love this. For me, it is checking all of the right boxes: sounds like it’s recorded in a bucket at the bottom of a well under 3/16” of water, they got a keyboard down there, the SPITS and LUMPY & THE DUMPERS botched a cloned baby experiment, could be on Total Punk or Goner Records, bouncy like some and creepy like others, and on and on. I would wish this tape would be my valentine for Valentine’s Day. I bet we’d chug Yoo-hoo and talk shit all evening. I’ve heard people call this style egg-punk or DEVO-core because of the satirical lyrics, quirky structure, and lo-fi sound with high-tech equipment. Call it whatever you want, as long as you allow it to find a way into your ear holes. This isn’t something that is going to change your life, but it is something that you would probably play once a year to reset your own botched clone baby brain.

2Amature / The Snorts DCxPC Live Presents, Vol. 32 split LP

The DCxPC concept is simple: two friends who want to capture what is happening in their tiny spots on the planet, this case Central Florida and Upstate New York, and give back to the fans and bands that trickle through their area. They do limited pressings of live bands, which ensures that everyone who was at the show has the option to take home more than just a memory; they get to have a physical piece of something that they’d helped create. From the DCxPC records I have heard, the quality has always been clear while still maintaining the feeling of being inches from the band. With this volume, the SNORTS kick off Side A and musically fall in line with SIDEKICKS, CARPENTER, or JIMMY EAT WORLD—I think all five songs on here are about being broken up with and being bummed out. They probably have songs about other things too, but these are all about that. At least one of these people needs a hug, and it is a bummer that the band isn’t there to do that for him. On the flip, 2AMATURE blasts out six songs of snotty hardcore not unlike the VINDICTIVES, musically chaotic and landing somewhere unpredictably between LOVE SONGS and BLACK FLAG. This is another delightfully, unsurprising DCxPC Records release. Everyone who was at these shows should grab a copy of this ASAP.

Chance to Steal Learning to Be Sad CD

Politically conscious and kinetically-charged Epitaph/BAD RELIGION-styled hardcore pop punk. These folks can certainly play their instruments in a way that reminds me of early PROPAGANDHI. I feel like CHANCE TO STEAL, for some, could be gateway punk to deeper scene involvement in the same way that GREEN DAY was. Their lyrics are thoughtful and it’s easy to understand where they stand on cops and other things. Each of the ten songs are three-minutes or longer, which was immediately intimidating to me. The song length had me convinced this was going to be physically draining to sit through. Let’s be honest, three minutes is a long time for a hardcore pop punk song; however, these CHANCE TO STEAL people manage to keep the listener involved sonically as well as reading along with the lyrics, which is what a record should do.

Action Park Bum Ticker LP

“Pressure Cooker” blasts right in with a definite nod to Rad Girlfriend and Dirtnap Records. I would plop this right in between the RAGING NATHANS and DOPAMINES, with a sprinkle of mid-period DAG NASTY and early DOWN BY LAW. The sequencing of this LP takes you on a white-knuckled ride, and then out of nowhere comes a perfect note-for-note cover of the BIG BOYS’ unforgettable classic “Which Way to Go”. The ten original songs are well-crafted and arranged perfectly together to make this a great listen. To me, one of the more charming aspects of this record is that it isn’t overproduced and the songs take on a collaborative and holistic impression, giving way to a cohesive-sounding record. I get the feeling their practices are a hoot and they talk a lot of shit to each other. I am excited to see what is next.

Puddy Knife Flowers cassette

There are eight songs on this lo-fi, four-track, sweaty ’90s, “I know a basement in Kalamazoo we can play,” charming, “bring a change of clothes” cassette. I love this. The energy oozes. ASSFACTOR 4, ACTION PATROL, and UNION YOUNG AMERICA are bands that PUDDY KNIFE songs catapult me to stylistically, and not in mimicry. Like, these fuckers are invested; what I mean is, I bet they put on a killer show even if the room only has a couple teenagers making out and a hobo dancing in front of them. Imagine if DROPDEAD and BORN AGAINST did a pop punk band with ORDINATION OF AARON kinda thing. I have no idea what they are saying, but I feel like they mean it, whatever it is. I hope it’s a good pizza dough recipe or a song about a puppy on a turtle’s back. Look, whatever they are going on about is something they also feel deeply about. Maybe by song five out of eight, you want to read along so you can pump your fist and sing “Half-cup yeast / The fluffy pup licks the shell / Add the water / This island turtle delivers me to better smells” or something—again, I have no idea what they are mad at or happy about, but I really like all of these songs. I hope when PUDDY KNIFE reads this, they will send me lyrics or pizza dough recipes or pictures of their puppies riding their turtles.

Florida Men Dive Bar CD

This band is from the Netherlands, and they spell it out as plainly as possible—RAMONES-core, heavily influenced by SCREECHING WEASEL, the QUEERS, CHIXDIGGIT, TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET, et al. Let’s be honest, by the bands I mentioned above, you already know if you want this or not. There is zero chance that you are on the fence with the FLORIDA MEN at this point. Here’s the question, though: in twenty-plus years, will FLORIDA MEN be the kind of significant band that will be mentioned as an influence and peer to the list above? The answer is “I don’t know.” The impact is for you to gauge. These twelve pop punk songs time out in just about twenty minutes. For me, the FLORIDA MEN’s Dive Bar album is undoubtedly a faultless example of what they say they are, with entirely no surprises.

On the Cinder Heavy Handed LP

Tucked under the surface between fast-shouting hardcore band parts and indulgent ’90s pop emo sections lies a thoughtfully formed album. For easy comparisons, I’ll plop in STRIKE ANYWHERE, LAGWAGON, A WILHELM SCREAM, and I‘m not sure why, but “Coffee Achievers” by 76% UNCERTAIN comes to mind. I’m certain that kids will drive around at night, scream some of these songs, and hit the steering wheel during their favorite parts. The LP’s cover is a home being torn in half during a party thus dumping the kids into the basement, and I think the sleeve completely captures the spirit of the record. The music is energetic, musky, damp, probably smells like cigarettes and stale beer, lots of friendly smiles bumping into each other, all with equal parts of hope and regret but in a familiar way.

Rad Gnar Rad Gnar cassette

This tape brings to mind SIDEKICKS, the GET UP KIDS, SOMOS, JIMMY EAT WORLD, and SIGNALS MIDWEST, but with far less intensity and instantly forgettable. I researched this band and they have a covers LP, and by looking at their choice of covers (GUIDED BY VOICES, DINOSAUR JR, DEAD MOON, SEBADOH), I feel like they think they are something that they are not. This band is very musically competent, but overall, these songs sound compromised, which in this case has led to diluted songs being plopped along by bored people. I say this with the best of intentions; this band should break up and go start four new bands. I have been in bands like this before, and I know that half to three-quarters of the people in this band are bored and don’t want to compromise anymore, they want to make their own thing. I’m being 100% honest when I say that I will be the first Bandcamper to purchase whatever their new bands become, but this will be a thing I listen to once and then file with stylistically similar bands that don’t feel like their songs are muscle memory or gap-fillers. This cassette is ten regular songs of medio-core.

Already Dead Something Like a War CD

The first track starts off musically similar to a SOCIAL DISTORTION tune, while vocally, it has a street punk Oi! vibe. This is fine USA-styled blue collar Oi! with a little HOT WATER MUSIC and most of the No Idea Records catalog in a blender. I hear some mid-period DWARVES and Dave Hause influence as well. They have been a band for five years and have consistently put out this working class flavor of driving street punk and singing on the downstrokes. The CD has fourteen songs, some are shorter and some are longer. I think that if these folks were forced into a room for three days to write ten songs, throw all ten in the trash, and repeat this until they have written and garbage-binned thirty songs, that the next ten songs we hear could be the kind of record that inspires. That next record could be on a best of the decade(s) list, but this record, even with its memorable chunks, still has the feeling of a reporter talking about observable events, whereas they could be the stroke that makes the spectator take action, or whatever.

Shelter Cat 66 Percent Strength LP

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS, LEATHERFACE, and almost-Lookout! bands like ONE MAN RUNNING and M-BLANKET are bands I think of when I listen to this. It is hitting in all the right spots but, for me, I have a difficulty with their song “Toothlessness.” The song “Toothlessness” sounds remarkably similar to a THORNS OF LIFE (Daniel Sea, Blake Schwarzenbach, Aaron Cometbus) song called “New York is Giving Me the Creeps.” I get that there are only so many guitar chords, but this goes further than parallel thinking. The band seems to swipe the changes, the vocal cadence, and even lyrics from the song “New York is Giving Me the Creeps.” Maybe because THORNS OF LIFE didn’t ever officially record anything, it seemed open to grab. But,come on, all three of the people in THORNS OF LIFE were in some of the most known Bay Area bands of the punk scene, ranging from G’RUPS, to CRIMPSHRINE, to JAWBREAKER. Each person in the band has their own Wikipedia and IMDb page, for gosh sakes. This entire record feels a bit dishonest to me. I don’t want to be cruel, but fuck it, something smells funny. I now question every song on this LP, and I can’t un-smell it.

Norcos y Horchata Unkind Sometimes / Don’t Come Crying to Me 7″

“Unkind Sometimes” starts off with such gross, distorted, driving bass that it could be the dumpster baby of your favorite FEEDTIME or NO BAILS tune. When the song kicks in, the vocals remind me of the darker NAKED RAYGUN songs, with a little NOMEANSNO seasoning for that extra aural punch. The flipside of this lil’ spinner hits with some guitar feedback/pedal knob-twisting that pulls me back to the TRANS MEGETTI’s 1999 opening track “Rio Nexpa,” wherein it builds a tension that makes my legs sweat. It bursts into a ’77-style thug bar pounder, and out of nowhere Annie comes in delivering “Everyone hide your head, everyone will soon be dead.” She only plops in once to deliver this, which emphasizes the band’s attuned craftsmanship to impact and craving more. I mean, come on, a great song with a greater hook only one time in the song! It is both genius and irritating. I don’t know if this song is about the end of the world or the end of a friendship, but either way, it is worth a spin. This is the perfect two-sider that makes me bummed that I slept on getting their LP. I think I should mention this has folks that were in BILL BONDSMAN, BUMP-N-UGLIES, DEVIOUS ONES, the PUTZ, and many others.

Turnarounds Turnarounds LP

Musically, I hear FACE TO FACE and PROPAGANDHI in the best ways possible, if you can imagine. Although saying that this could be an Epitaph or Fat Records release will deter some readers, I believe that this record lends itself to the better side of those label’s releases. Unlike many of the bands that step into any genre of DIY, these TURNAROUNDS seem less like they are trying to purposely pattern themselves around a sound as much as they are compelled to make music that sounds like this (e.g. ASEXUALS, DOUGHBOYS, NILS, STATUES). Ten songs total, and each song feels honest and musically thoughtful in a very Canadian way that only Canadians take the time to do, methinks. I can see this record making a 2024 top ten list.