Mr. P. Reviews Dope Music
Fireman Releases New Song: “World Peace, Eventually”
This is some rad ass politically charged hardcore punk rock. It mixes the veins of 80’s hardcore a la Minor Threat and Gorilla Biscuits with late 90’s hardcore of bands like Strike Anywhere and Lifetime with touches of Bad Religion.
The Ivy League Want You To “Be Anything You Need” and Get “Everything You Ever Wanted”
Have you ever felt alone? Like you didn’t belong? Like no matter how hard you tried, you’d never find those people that get you? You’d need to spend your whole life code switching to fit in with others at school, work or even in social situations? Then the Ivy League is for you. They want you to join their family. Not in a cultish way, in a we’ve all been there before, and we all want one thing in life–to be accepted for who we are with all of our flaws and our nooks and crannies out in the open. Their new EP, Everything I Ever Wanted, opens with their title track and lays down some indie/emo-punk posicore that would fit in at any diy show full of disaffected youth or adults with lyrics like “We can be anything we need, welcome to the Ivy League. Just to be a part of this is all I ever wanted” The this being the place that we can call "home". This is literally felt when I discovered punk rock. It wasn’t just a third place between home and school/work, it was my actual home–it was a collection of misfits that knew how to accept me for who I was and not what they expected of me.
1983’s New Album, Ne3, is The Banger Release of the Summer!
I first saw 1983 at Bloodfest 2 in 2019 at Uncle Lou’s put on by Violent Breed Records. They were totally rad dudes, and put on a sick show filled with aggressive 80’s style hardcore. I’d seen them off and on over the years with the final time being at the Ft. Pierce Punk Rock Flea Market this last fall. And if I dug them before, I was literally wet in three places for them now. Their new bassist and drummer just took their shit to the next fucking level. So it was with great excitement that I checked out their newest release, Ne3, this last week.
Estonia’s Feel Hope Harkens Back to the Hardcore of the Late 1990s
Estonian hardcore punk at it’s best….
Your Best Nightmare is the Kind of Nightmare that I’d Wish on My Kids
I still remember being stoked to see Eddie Vedder on his ukulele tour, and then I got sick and couldn’t make the show. From that point on ukulele went deep into the recesses of my mental filing cabinet of short lived DIY musical styles. Since then I have recorded a great horror punk band in Florida that uses a ukulele, Swear Wolf, with a live album pending, discovered The ukulele punk rock of the Margaret Hooligans from Philly and now found out about Your Best Nightmare who use horror themes, punk rock soul and a ukulele to make some damn fine music.
What if the robots from Mystery Science Theater 3000 joined with The Aquabats to Form a Ska band?
What’s that? A band called Satanic Puppeteer Orchestra? Okay–You’ve got my attention. Wait! What? It’s robo-rocksteady? What the F is that? Okay. Let’s take a step back. I got this. I have seen the metal band Captured by Robots, so I can get down with the idea of robot ska.
Simesky+Fritch’s Newest Singles Have Me Wanting to Dance All Night at The Local Goth Bar!
The moment I heard Simesky + Fritch’s newest single, “Back and Down Again”, I was immediately taken back to 1991 when I was all of 15. My boss at Roy Rogers, Mr. Feldt (The one and only time in my life, I couldn’t call a boss by their first name–kinda like Mr. Burns in the Simpsons), took me and my girlfriend to see Depeche Mode and The The. I was a metal head who was slowly becoming a hardcore punk, but I had a soft spot for gothic dance music especially with that 80’s New Wave sound. In other words, that soft spot went all gooey when I heard this song as well as the other song they shared, “Colour Running Away”.
Goodbye Sunshine Lit Up My Day with Their New Album: People Will Like You When You Stop Being Yourself
Whether you’re a nearly 50 year old punk like me who loves to be taken back to the glory days of Lookout Records with bands like Screaching Weasel, The Mr. T Experience, The Queers, The Riverdales, The Donnas i.e. any other pop punk band with Ramonescore overtones or if you’re a recent convert to the oooh aaaahs and joy of pogoing in your room to “happy” sounding tunes with lyrics that are often more sardonic or acerbic than joyful, then this newest release by Goodbye Sunshine, People Will Like You When You Stop Being Yourself, is for you! (That is one long ass sentence. Hmmm Hemmingway might be proud…of course Faulkner would scoff at the insignificance of my word count).
From The Other Side’s Newest Single, “Toxic Heart”, melds pop punk and melodic metal in all the right ways!
You mention Australia to someone and ask them to name a band, most will say AC/DC and then depending on their age they might say Men at Work or Silverchair or if they are a punk like me they might mention The Saints, Frenzal Rhomb or A Living End (I played a sick show with them in 2004 in DC), but nobody would mention From the Other Side….yet. Give it time. I’m trying to decide if their name is because they are on the other side of the world…at least from my northern hemisphere perspective, if they are fans of Fallout Boy or if they love the soundtrack and movie Greatest Showman. I’ll accept either as a viable answer.
Two Man Giant Squid’s New Single “Progress” Questions the Very Existence of Such a Thing
When you hear a band name like Two Man Giant Squid, it really gives you little to know idea what a band sounds like which is perfect for a band like this that blends garage rock, punk, and psychedelic into a rocking but also danceable and catchy rock song.
Rebels in Stereo’s Newest Single an Anthem for Survivors and Thrivers!
Maybe it’s the former middle school teacher in me or the father of two teens that made me connect with this song right away. I don’t have the full story, nor do I think I need to in order to feel the emotion of the song. From the song and the press release, I know that the singer’s cousin was attacked and “had to fight for her life” and during her recovery lost her mother. And yet this 15 year old managed to push through and thrive. This song is in her honor. I share this because I dug the song at first listen, without context, with context, it’s the sort of song I hope my daughters would rock out to while hoping that they avoid the same strife. With that being said, I also hope that they’d handle it as well as Lacey.
The Bingo Boy’s Newest Album, Freak Out and Leave, Makes Me Want to Crank that Shit All Night!
Hot damn! I love that midwestern punk rock! These dudes bring the mother fucking noise! They are a three piece–my favorite type of band, and their sound is so friggin’ thick! They meld so many great influences in their slice of punk rock. Think: Replacements meets Melvins meets The Dicks with hints of proto punk i.e. Stooges and MC5. They just opened for the Subhumans, one of my favorite bands, so I hope everyone dug that as much as I did. They have released a new album–though it doesn’t seem to have a physical option which sucks, ‘cause I’d buy it if they did. Here’s my one time listen review of each song. Keep in mind that I’m a drummer and not a musician:
Bullet to the Heart’s Newest EP: Death, Oddities, and Romance will be a Goth Metal Classic!
Bullet to the Heart have just released their newest EP: Death, Oddities and Romance not be to be confused with the 1990’s album by the Circle Jerks: Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities although I’d have loved have heard Bullet’s vocalist, Audrey Queen do the same backing vocals that Debbie Gibson did in her surprise appearance on that punk classic.
Pondering the Meaning of Life? Start with listening to “What Kind of Donut are You” by Margaret Hooligans
“What Kind of Donut Are You?” Is one of those nonsensical humorous songs that harken back to the days of The Dead Milkmen, Beck, Butthole Surfers, Atom and His Package or They Might Be Giants all of which never quite fit into the strict paraments of the “punk” world per se but all of which had fans of punk that enjoy and continue to enjoy the nature of what they brought into what’s oft a far too serious genre of music.
“Surrender” by the Power Trio of Stoner Doom Metal that is Craetor is an EP that Everyone Should Be Cranking Up!
From the intro filled with heavily distorted fuzzy guitar that any stoner metal fan would love to their final track, “Wither” with its sick leads layered on top of the fuzz, these dudes bring the rock. Their second track, “Riot”, is my favorite. The fuzzy guitar harkens back to The Melvins or Kyus or Clutch or to more recent bands like Weedeater. The vocals are nasty and gritty in all the ways that feel good to my metal loving ears. Drums and bass lock into a great groove especially during the wah heavy guitar solo that crescendos with a throaty wail. When the song ends, I find myself wishing there was more even though the punk rocker in me almost always prefers shorter songs.
Looking for a dark, angry rocker that you can sing along to? Look no further than “Jesus’ Tears” by Coma Beach!
Hailing from Würzburg, Germany, Coma Beach bring their mix of punk alternative to us with their new single, “Jesus’ Tears”, off their latest album, The Scapegoat’s Agony. I always listen to the band before I read how they describe themselves in their press release, so I clicked on this song, and my first thoughts were rad guitar intro, nice dirty bass line, dope fuzz guitar riff, solid drum beat that drives the song, and then the vocals hit. This was the highlight for me. The main vocals are guttural, raspy and give the song its decidedly punk feel. They immediately reminded me of the vocals of Leatherface and The Beltones, two of my favorite British punk bands. Then the second vocals popped in that have the same feel and tone as classic 70’s British punk bands like The Adverts, The Members and The Addicts.
DCxPC Live Reviews All This Time is Yours Now by GODDAMNIT
It always kills me when I discover a “new” band only to find out they’ve been around for over a decade, and I just somehow missed the memo. Such is the case with Goddamnit, but like my childhood in the comic book stores, I’m checking out what’s new while digging through the back issues to get my full exposure.
Panic Theory by Vacant Skies
Vacant Skies is a band from Flagstaff, AZ. They just released a new album, Panic Theory, on Allegedly Records, one of my favorite labels because it’s run by some of the dopest people in the scene and puts out rad tunes to boot.
Dead End Town EP by Mitch Kramer
So I’ve been aware of Mitch Kramer due to common friends, Some Kind of Nightmare, but until recently I’d never listened to him and his rotating cast of supporting artists. What a mistake that was because this shit rocks!