punk

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...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Light one-sided 12” EP by Hunting Lions. While the quality of Hunting Lions’ Dark EP can’t be denied, anyone who hears the band’s Light EP (which will be released later this month and in the same format – with all the music on one side and a graphic on the other) may be inclined to argue that the band really held the best songs back for this release. From note one,...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Kepi and Friends – Full Moon Forever LP by Kepi Ghoulie. After having already reviewed Kepi Ghoulie’s “other” album released this year (the Ramones In Love LP), I can say with regret that I approached Ghoulie’s output this annum in the wrong order. Full Moon Forever is a really good album which features covers of songs by bands like The Cure, Iggy Pop, Nick Cave, The Cars and the Jesus and...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Lies They Tell Our Children LP by Anti-Flag. After thirty-five years in circulation documented by twelve full-length albums, eleven EPs, a multitude of singles, videos, split releases and other releases in addition to innumerable miles logged on the road, it goes without saying that Anti-Flag has paid its dues – but Lies They Tell Our Children proves that, at least in their own eyes, the band still has something to prove...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the “Lost Boys Of Suburbia” b/w “One More Time” split 7” single by The Drowns & Plizzken. It doesn’t feel as though it happens very often, but some releases (and their contents) defy explanation. Like, how does a song appear on a single and nowhere else – particularly when the song in question features such a high quality level? It might not feel like it makes sense, but it happens – and...

Anti-Flag Lies They Tell Our Children (Spinefarm) It might sound a little counter-intuitive but, throughout their career (which has run for thirty-five years now – as of this writing), Anti-Flag has always proven to be at their best when people have already counted the band out – that’s when they have something to prove and that’s when they shine. Most recently, the band shone after they’d finished their two-record contract with RCA and the band released The People or The...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the All Killer No Filler (1977 – 2001) 2LP by The Senders. It’s funny how, as perfectly well-exposed as a scene and its associated lore might be, there are always bits which are obscured by shadows. In the New York punk scene of the 1970s, for example, everybody knows many of the stories and associated minutiae for The Ramones, Talking Heads, Blondie and many others – even The New York Dolls and...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into NastyFacts’ Limited Edition “Drive My Car” 12” single. As every punk knows, it’s not terribly uncommon for many bands of a certain vintage to have a pretty abbreviated catalogue of releases. The idea of “one and done” isn’t uncommon at all, really – but it’s still saying something when a band’s total output was limited to ONE SINGLE before they closed up shop. That’s not small, that’s infinitesimal – so of course...

POST-GENRE MUSIC My favorite album of the past year or so is Emily Wells’ Regards to the End. It is beautiful, emotionally powerful and transcendent, even; and it is unclassifiable. It is not really rock, or pop, or electronica, or hip-hop, although it contains elements of all. It’s not classical, or jazz, or soul. The best qualifier is simply to call this album Music, with a capital M. Pure music. Then take Nels Cline, one of the most innovative guitarists...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into The Slackers’ “New York Berlin” b/w “Tell Them No” 12” one-sided single. I confess that, while the two songs which comprise the new Slackers single are good, solid cuts, I do not understand why this single has been pressed the way it has. First, both “New York Berlin” and “Tell Them No” are perfectly average songs in length – one is almost three and a half minutes long and the other is...