A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Do You Really Wanna Know? LP by Plizzken. I confess that European punk (the stuff from mainland Europe – not from the British Isles) has often been a pretty hard sell, to me. I don’t mean that to come off as a slight or cultural bias, the music is just often hit or miss for me; even going back to albums like The State of Punk To Come and albums by...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into 45 Adapters’ Unstoppable LP. After having released a series of records of different sizes and speeds since the band formed in 2008 (to date, the band has released six EPs, splits and singles), it’s kind of funny when one realizes that Unstoppable is only the second full-length album which bears 45 Adapters’ name; they just always seem to be working on promoting something, so that their output includes just two full-length albums...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Beggar Weeds’ Tragedy in U.S. History LP. It’s funny how, sometimes, there’s a collision between music and time which ends up leaving people to feel like they showed up late to the party, or walked in by accident without knowing there was anything happening at all. It’s not one of those occasions that anyone enjoys, but the reward which comes with the music still leaves those who came upon it glad that...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Porterhouse Records-pressed, 45th Anniversary reissue of the Teen City EP by The Modernettes. Isn’t it funny how, in punk rock, being known for only a couple of songs can still make a band superstars? It’s funny, but it’s true – really, Vancouver’s Modernettes have a catalogue which includes just one full-length album (1981’s Gone… But Not Forgiven) and two EPs (1980’s Teen City and 1982’s View From The Bottom), but the...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the 45th anniversary, Porterhouse Records reissue of the Perfect Youth LP by Pointed Sticks. It might sound tragic at first, but it is a fact that some bands are completely incapable of fitting in with their peers because the verdict is always out regarding whether they’re ahead of their time or completely anachronistic. Vancouver’s Pointed Sticks exemplified that logistical dilemma perfectly; formed in 1978, the band successfully came in behind the first...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the “Subculture Rock N’ Roll” b/w “Pleaser” split 7” single by The Drowns and Last Gang. Few things are as potentially harrowing for artists as a split 7” single release. Granted, a 7” can present several potential decisions which could make or break a band on the back of that release, but it’s even harder when a band has just one song to work with AND potentially has to compete with another...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Tropical Breakdown LP by Pierre Omer’s Swing Revue. Ever since Swing Kids came out in 1993 featuring a cast of very talented dancers, hipsters have wanted to revive swing music and dancing and make it their own. The reasoning for that desire is really easy to understand; the music is wildly infectious even without the benefit of distortion pedals, and the gymnasts who dance to it in the movies make it...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Volores’ Ages LP. It may come as a surprise, but there’s a reason that I elected to review Ace Of Wands’ newest LP and Ages by Volores back-to-back: the albums feel like the work of two bands who could easily share a stage or a tour together. Both bands’ sounds feature a bit of goth and alt-rock in their artistic/creative DNA but, where Ace Of Wands clearly features some classic rock in...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Plays Music For Airports LP by Psychic Temple. Whatever you think you should expect from the Plays Music For Airports LP – Psychic Temple’s third album, chronologically – you’re going to discover that you’re wrong. First, the recently released vinyl record is a limited-press reissue; Plays Music For Airports originally came out on Joyful Noise Recordings in 2016 between Psychic Temple II in 2013 and Psychic Temple III which was originally...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Human Reaction LP by mssv. While Mike Watt’s early career was defined by the bassist’s time with The Minutemen, it can’t be denied that since the end of The Minutemen, Watt has been viewed as a solo entity. That isn’t to say that the bassist hasn’t played with other bands since then (there have been several), just that Watt has stood as very much an individual entity – even when playing...