Everyone should be listening to Fucked Up. That’s a fact. Unfortunately, hardly anyone does. That’s a sad fact. I mean this in the sense that this band should be much much bigger than they actually are. For one thing, they play glam punk, fuzzy and complex, and layered. They release a plethora of vinyl and take it on tour with them. They’ve proven twice now that expansive concept albums are well within their skill-range. Of course they’ll try it (Pitchfork...

Rebel Without A Cause Wanna talk about the influence Rebel Without a Cause has had on pop culture? Phillip J Fry’s outfit in Futurama is a direct reference to James Dean in this movie. Tommy Wiseau’s “You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!” is fully copied from Dean’s delivery here, and much more. And, of course this movie is going to be in the spotlight after James Dean’s tragic death. This movie is in the American conscience and sometimes as a...

DorohedoroThe Complete Collection (Vol 1-23)by Q Hayashida I’ll never stop singing Dorohedoro’s praises. Something about the 2020 anime struck a chord with me with its colorful characters, rich story, and peculiar setting. It’s been years and I still find myself looking up clips of it on Youtube. The anime has only had one season, and looks like it’ll stay that way, so to quench my thirst I turned to the manga. I didn’t know what I was going to find,...

Miles Davis Live: What it is Montreal 7/7/83 There’s this story of Miles David being confronted by a fan in the 80s or whatever and the fan saying to him that he can’t really get into the new style and direction of his music. Miles supposedly replies, “Should I wait for you, motherfucker?” By all means, Miles. Artists should be allowed to pursue their art the way they want to. They should be allowed to express themselves the way they...

Few bands are flying the hardcore flag these days as successfully as OFF! It’s a mix of things that makes this band stand out. Sure, it’s fronted by Keith Morris of Black Flag and the Circle Jerks, who is still at the top of his game both vocally and lyrically. But, the appeal OFF! has for me are the hardcore riffs provided by Dimitri Coates. They are both musically innovative and undeniably hard and catchy. This band has already released...

Seeing Dinosaur Jr for me is a loaded affair. First off, because I had the chance to see them before, 15 years ago, but I was much more preoccupied with interviewing and seeing Mike Watt, who was opening for Dinosaur Jr, than sticking around to see them perform. I knew who J Mascis was, and stuck around backstage to meet him, but I think I met him more than he met me. A week later I was recounting the story...

Flores y Fuego – Altar LP – “Soy tu Voz” A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Altar LP by Flores y Fuego. It’s startling when one realizes how far punk as progressed over the last thirty years or so. It could be argued that the turning point in the history of punk’s greatest evolution was when Epitaph Records broke the barrier between pop and punk in the Nineties; suddenly, production values and styling began to change dramatically....

Permanent DistortionHow the Financial Markets Abandoned the Real Economy Forever Let the record show that reading the “Books and Arts” section of a newspaper can actually be worth your time. Not that arts and books aren’t important. I love books. I love art. But, who has the time? If I hadn’t read the recommendation for Nomi Prins’ book in the Nation, I would have been worse off for it. And quite honestly, financial markets are a topic I have a...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Porterhouse Records reissue of SC.U.M.’s Born Too Soon LP. Listening to the reissue of Montreal-based punk/hardcore outfit SC.U.M.’s Born Too Soon LP really takes me back. I mean, I understand that the idea of a reissue is supposed to recall a time where the album in question was new and is capable of allowing a listener to inhabit that moment for a while – but the reissue of Born Too Soon...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the So Dumb, So Stoked 7” by Teenage Bottlerocket. In 2023, calling something instantly gratifying feels as though it might be a setup to defuse potential disappointment, but that is simply not the case when it comes to the So Dumb, So Stoked 7” – Teenage Bottlerocket’s first release for Pirates Press Records. In about nine minutes’ time, Teenage Bottlerocket illustrates that they haven’t slowed down, haven’t lost a step and haven’t...