Mr. P. Reviews Dope 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).
Inherit The Ashes’ New Single, “Idolmaker”, is a Black Metal Banger!
Inherit the Ashes may have spawned from the proverbial remains of Rage Of Samedi, but they’ve left behind the doom and sludge metal and moved into classic death and black metal! That doesn’t mean there aren’t any slow parts. Their newest release, “Idolmaker” starts off with a slow build but quickly moves into a thrashtastic banger! I always love metal drumming even though it’s outside of my ability, that’s why I play hardcore punk–it’s fast but simple. This dude is great. Sick timing and rad fills. The chorus where that snare is hitting machine gun like steady blast beats is just killer!
Guitarmy Of One’s Recent Single, “Top Secret Agent Man on a Wire Tapped Phone at Sea” melds surf, spycraft, and punk vitality!
The song’s title, as well as its musicality, pays an homage to Johnny River’s song from the 60’s “Secret Agent Man” but mixed with surf, a Spanish guitar, and that punk essence that clings to everyone one of us that has come of age as a punk.
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.
On’s Newest Single “Make Me” Opens with a Killer Riff and Keeps on Killing!
Right from the outset when I hit play, I was feeling this song. The opening riff is one of those classic guitar riffs that every band hopes to come up with. The kind that leaves a legacy and will be taught in guitar 101 classes for generations to come. Having it slowly increase in volume until the drums come in adds to the intensity. Not only do I love the snare sound, but I love the guitar “screech” that occurs with each snare hit early in the song. Great accent and really interesting to hear.
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.
The Fades Newest Single, “Off the Record” should be on everyone’s record player!
The Fades describe themselves as “reminiscent of early Nirvana, elements of Faith No More and the snarl of Idles”. On their new single, “Off the Record”, I can most certainly hear the early Nirvana a la Bleach. It’s got the same sort of heavy buzzing distorted wall of guitar with the pre-dave grohl drums of Chad Channing. I totally get the feeling of listening to one of my favorite Nirvana songs: “Negative Creep”.
Need the Perfect Soundtrack for Bike Week? Modern Day Outlaw’s “Devilscorned” is it!
When I saw the album imagery for Modern Day Outlaw’s album Through the Gates of Hell, my first thought was this is going to be some raunchy motorcycle club kick ass rock n’ roll of the type that I would hear on the soundtracks for episodes of Sons of Anarchy or The Mayans, and I was totally correct! Right from the opening riff of “Devilscorned” into the wrenching scream, I could tell this would be a scorcher. There are aspects of it that remind me of Pantera’s Cowboy from Hell album, but I’d most closely relate it to Zakk Wylde’s band, Black Label Society, a band I could totally see these dudes opening for.
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.
Doll Riot Releases New Single: “Those Days”!
Yes, some might presume that Doll Riot are an all-female band, but in our non-binary world, I’m not going to make that assumption. Others might want to make mention of their age–i.e. high school age-ish, but seeing as how my favorite bands from the DC area: Minor Threat, Scream, Void, Fath, etc. were all in high school, I’m not going to focus on that either. I’ve found that when reviews focus on age or gender it’s usually accompanied with an implicit unspoken phrase, “good for being ________”. This band doesn’t deserve or need such a qualifier. They are just fucking good!
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!