New Red Archives (2012, Reissue)
I will be the first to admit that I'm going about Samiam all wrong. I never really listened to them much back in the 90's, but was inspired to start relistening to their albums to give them another shot. Needless to say, I like them much better now than I did then, so it's been a quest to start adding LPs to the collection. Luckily every label on Earth seems to think it's a good idea to reissue Samiam records, so they're very easy to come by at the moment.
The bad part of getting into this band now, is that I'm tending to listen to all of their records out of order, so even though this is the first Samiam LP, i've already heard the albums they put out 5, 10, 15, 20 years later. It gives me some perspective on how the band has evolved over the years, but it definitely makes this first album stand out from the initial batch of the Samiam releases I've picked up.
Compared to albums like Clumsy & You Are Freaking Me Out (the two I am most familiar at this point), the self titled album is significantly rougher around the edges. It takes much more of a hardcore influence and doesn't have the pop sensibilities of their later work. That's not to say the album doesn't have its catchy hooks, it does, but in general it's a much louder, angrier affair than some of their other records. That probably makes it sound like I don't like this record, but that isn't true at all. This album has bursts of energy and enthusiasm that are not as obviously apparent on some of their other albums and it's fascinating to see the band's growth.
I still have a lot of Samiam records to get through. I have had Whatever's Got You Down for a bit but have only played it once as it came during a busy end of the year rush of new records. I got Soar for Christmas but haven't given it a spin yet, I have Astray on it's way over to me and I have to pick up Billy still, so there's a lot to go on my continuing Samiam education.
Samiam - A Youtube Playlist of a bunch of songs off of the self titled LP:
www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ALBTKoXRg38BDUJ1qEpIv9ZaI0S...
Friday, January 31, 2014
Samiam - Samiam LP - Purple Vinyl
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Autistic Youth - Nonage LP - Clear Vinyl (/200)
Dirtnap (2013)
Autistic Youth is one of those bands that I've been keeping tabs on over the years. I buy their records when they come out, I listen to them and enjoy. I'm never blown away, but I'm never disappointed, they've just been a good reliable band. That is until their 3rd LP Nonage. You can mark this record down as the moment that Autistic Youth became a great band.
The biggest change from their past work is that they've slowed things down quite a bit. Rather than sap the songs of their energy, this shift in tempo allows everything room to breathe and expand. The backing vocals are more pronounced and effective and the underlying lead guitar adds so much in the way of dynamics.
The songs are catchier than anything the band has done before, but without giving up their identity. I would never call this a pop record, it's far too dark, but the hooks and choruses are so well written and instantly grab your attention. It's dark punk rock, but it's catchy in the way a band like The Wipers are, with less downstroke guitar though.
The fist 200 were on clear vinyl through Dirtnap mailorder, but those seem to be long gone at this point. Absolutely worth picking up on good old fashion black vinyl though.
Autistic Youth - Nonage LP:
dirtnaprecords.bandcamp.com/album/autistic-youth-nonage
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Sam & Dave - The Best of San & Dave LP
Friday Music (2012)
This was a Christmas gift, but was a record that had been on the want list for a while. The original pressing of this came out on Atlantic Records back in 1969, but Friday Music did a fancy reissue in 2012. Though you could find an original cheaper for sure, there are times where I'd rather not play the hunt for a copy that some 60's teenage didn't beat up game. Sometimes it's just easier to get the reissue and this is a good one.
Sam & Dave are favorites of mine, stemming from my love of the Blues Brothers. Ass the Blues Brothers were my first favorite band as a 3 year old, I've explored their influences over the years and you'd be harder pressed to find a better influence than Sam & Dave (Though I will certainly hear arguments for Wilson Pickett and Otis Redding). Though maybe this LP isn't as chocked full of songs as some of their CD compilations, this 14 track set is lean and mean. Truly the best of. From "Soul Man," to "Soothe Me" to "Hold On I'm Comin'" these songs are simply amazing even all these years later.
The reissue itself sounds outstanding and I appreciate the little details like the reworked red, white and green Atlantic label on the record itself. This label is reissuing one of the most important records to me in February, Briefcase Full of Blues. After hearing the Best of Sam & Dave, I'm pretty confident that one will be worth picking up as well.
Sam & Dave - Hold On I'm Comin':
www.youtube.com/watch?v=AREppyQf5uw
Monday, January 27, 2014
Spells - Take Time 7" - Red Vinyl
I can't say I was familiar with Spells, but when I ordered the Hooper record from Snappy Little Numbers I decided to pick up a couple of 7"s from them as well to try out some new bands. That ended up a smart move as I really dug The Knew 7" I wrote about on here a few weeks ago and I like this Spells 7" just as much.
This 7" is something I'm going to call higher level pop punk. There's a lot of pop punk bands that are kind of generic, to the point where the word became something of an insult to throw around. But for me the phrase pop punk will always take me back to the 90's when the term allowed for a bit more variety within the genre. So we'll just call Spells higher level pop punk, it's a group of people getting together and writing a couple of supremely catchy songs with big sing along choruses, tons of backing vocals and a real appreciation for that old time rock and roll music. Looks like this band has some more tunes kicking about, and I will have to start tracking those down as well.
The Spells - Take Time 7":
snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/take-time-slice-away
Friday, January 24, 2014
Wax Packs: The Hundred Acre Woods / Boxer - Split 7"
This is the 5th and final 7" from my Wax Packs hobby box. Full review of the box itself was posted on Monday at: www.ibuywaytoomanyrecords.com/2014/01/wax-packs-casual-cr...
2 more bands that I was completely unfamiliar with. The first band on this split is The Hundred Acre Woods. Right off the bat, I think they've picked a pretty great band name, so I'm hopeful that they sound good too. They're probably the best surprise from this batch of records along with John Moreland. The Hundred Acre Woods plays upbeat, banjo tinged, light & catchy folk-punk. Not in an Against Me/Gainesville arnarcho way, but in a laid back, build up that chorus and tap your foot way. The singsong vocals mix with the slightly twangy, but still crunchy guitar to create a song that's definitely one of the best I've heard from this series.
Boxer doesn't blow me away quite the same way that The Hundred Acre Woods does. They're a little more by the numbers agnsty rock. They kind of feel like one of those old Jade Tree bands that I know a lot of people liked, but never really stood out from the back for me. The band plays at a slower, more melodic speed, but counters that melody with some crazy electric guitar noise swirling in the background. I could actually see this being something that others would gravitate to, but it's not really my speed.
That wraps up my Secret Audio Club Wax Packs reviews. 5 records out of 1 hobby box. There's 5 more split 7"s out there, which I would definitely be curious to get my hands on. The question is now, is taking a chance on 9 more bands I've never heard of worth the risk? Maybe, I was pleasantly surprised by some of the bands from this batch. We'll just have to see.
The Hundred Acre Woods:
thehundredacrewoods.bandcamp.com/album/pipebomb-wax-packs
Boxer:
boxerrva.bandcamp.com/album/secret-audio-club-wax-packs
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Wax Packs: Marathon / Fire When Ready - Split 7" - Test Pressing (/20)
Wax Packs: Marathon / Fire When Ready - Split 7" - Test Pressing (/20), a photo by Tim PopKid on Flickr.
This is 7" number 4 from my Wax Packs hobby box. For a recap on the box as a whole and the story behing the set, please read Monday's review at www.ibuywaytoomanyrecords.com/2014/01/wax-packs-casual-cr.... This split was the 2nd "hit" variation I pulled from my mystery box. I think in trading card lingo, the used to call this a chase card. This particular variant is a limited to 20 copies test pressing for the record. I'm not really one who collects test pressings, so there may be others who would consider this a bigger coup.
As for the 2 bands on the split, again I'd never heard of either prior to putting this on the turntable. I do have to say of all of the bands I've heard from the Wax Packs set, these were the bands I was least impressed with. Marathon's 1st song was a good, upbeat rocker. Big chugging guitar with a catchy chorus, but the vocals didn't hold up to the music. The 2nd songs was an acoustic number with more vocals that just don't work for me.
Fire When Ready is playing a minor chord driven, wacky guitar noodling, late 90s off-beat-drum-signature style that kind of reminds me of some of the Polyvinyl bands from the late 90's era. Again, it's the vocals that I'm just not into with these guys. There's also a bunch of shouting at the end of the 1st song that feels like it comes out of no where. Their 2nd entry is faster and more upbeat, so I like it more than the 1st, but it's still not the sort of band I could see myself listening to very much.
As I said in my first review of the series, there's 19 bands contributing songs to this project. The odds of everyone liking every band seem pretty slim to me. This is just the record that I didn't like of the bunch. I could only find 30 second clips of some of these songs, I couldn't find the whole songs streaming anywhere.
Marathon:
soundcloud.com/plugola/closing-time-at-the-distortion
Fire When Ready:
soundcloud.com/plugola/the-whole-long-while-demo
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Wax Packs: Broken Field Runner / Gifthorse - Split 7"
This was 7" number 3 from my Wax Packs box set. You can read a synopsis of the entire set here: www.ibuywaytoomanyrecords.com/2014/01/wax-packs-casual-cr...
Once again, we had two bands that I had not only never heard before, but I had never even heard of prior to this set being announced. Perhaps I'm getting older and falling out of touch with music a bit more than I'm willing to admit. Broken Field Runner chime in with a dynamic, but mid tempo number. Light guitars mesh with cymbal heavy drumming and strong vocals to produce a sound that reminds me a bit of the old 90's band Tugboat Annie. Maybe Broken Field Runner doesn't achieve highs quite as high, but it's a pretty good song.
Gifthorse runs in the acoustic world, but in an early Against Me or Frank Turner sort of way. Both songs on their side of the record are alright, but there's a totally unnecessary lead guitar that weaves through the first song that I find distracting. I think the song is strong enough to stand on its own without the extra noodling.
Broken Field Runner:
brokenfieldrunner.bandcamp.com/track/im-in-a-bad-way
Gifthorse:
gifthorsede.bandcamp.com/album/wax-packs-split-with-broke...
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Wax Packs: John Moreland / Austin Lucas - Split 7"
Secret Audio Club (2013)
This is the 2nd 7" from my Wax Packs box set. For a full description of the series and the trading card-esque way they are rolling out this record, I described it in detail in Monday's review: http://www.ibuywaytoomanyrecords.com/2014/01/wax-packs-casual-crybaby-split-7-violet.html
This split 7" holds the distinction of being the only one in the group with an artist I had actually heard of before, Austin Lucas. I knew he was part of the growing folky acoustic punk "revival tour" crew, but I can't say I had listened to much of his output. His song, "Splinters" has more of a country twang than I would have originally thought. There's certainly no reinvention of the wheel going on, but it's a strong song that I did enjoy.
However for me, John Moreland stole the show on this record, he may have stolen the show on the entire series (though there is another band in the running for that; we'll get to them later in the week.). Moreland's track "Cataclysm Blues No. 4" is just great. Like a lost song from Bruce Springsteen's Devils And Dust album (My favorite Springsteen release for those keeping track at home), this gruff vocaled, slow, somber number is just an incredibly well written song.
I was very excited to pull this 7" from my Wax Packs box as it was the one I was most interested in hearing, As I said yesterday, this is a novel concept and certainly leads to more excitement opening your record when you don't already know what's inside.
John Moreland - Cataclysm Blues No 4:
http://secretaudioclub.bandcamp.com/track/cataclysm-blues-no-4
Austin Lucas - Splinters (Live At New West Records):
https://soundcloud.com/plugola/splinters-live-at-new-west
Monday, January 20, 2014
Wax Packs: Casual / Crybaby - Split 7" - Violet Vinyl (/154)
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| Wax Packs Hobby Box |
 |
| Box Break |
 |
| Casual / Crybaby - Split 7" |
Crybaby Side:
http://crybabypa.bandcamp.com/album/split-7-w-casual-2
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Tony Molina - Six Tracks 7" - Gray Vinyl
Matador (2013)
Alright, with this record I am all caught up on the Matador Singles Club 7"s that have been sent out to date. As I said earlier in the week, there's still a few more out there and I'm hopeful that they're good ones. No singles club from Matador in 2014, but I'm hopeful to start getting them from the Merge Records series soon. Again, I am a real sucker for singles clubs...
Tony Molina is another great surprise from Matador. Again, I was unfamiliar with him prior to this release, but I'm pretty impressed by the songs here. Everything is short fuzzy pop blasts that cram an awful lot of hooks into such short spans of time. Molina even manages to squeeze in some wacky Minibosses like guitar solos. It's a lot of bang for you buck during a 90 second long song.
It appears that there is an out of print Tony Molina full length that is being reissued by Slumberland in a few weeks, I have a feeling you may end up seeing me review that at some point as well. As has been the theme with these Matador singles, I wasn't able to find any of these songs streaming online anywhere.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Dick Diver / Lower Plenty - Split 7" - White Vinyl
Matador (2013)
I'm still trucking along with the Matador Singles Club releases I've fallen behind with, I have 1 more for tomorrow and then I'll be caught up. Today's record is actually a split 7" by 2 bands I was not familiar with prior to listening to this record. While it does hit the highs of the Smartboys 7" it comes nowhere near the lows of the Bits Of Shit single, so this ends up being a middle of the road release for Matador's club.
Dick Diver's song starts off with a Pixies Gigantic-esque bassline that leads into some clean, treble heavy guitar work. The vocals remind me a lot of the most recent (and frankly sub par) Soft Pack album. It's a decent enough little song, but it's kind of boringly mid tempo and never really goes anywhere.
Lower Plenty's contribution is built off of light acoustic guitar. While it doesn't actually sound like the Silver Jews, it kind of reminds me of that sort of subset of 90's indie rock, the bands you'd end up hearing if you decided to dig deeper than your Pavements or Built To Spills. Again, it's a fine song, but nothing really earth shattering.
I couldn't find either song available to share online. I'm wondering if that was some sort of deal with these Matador singles, the vast majority of them are really hard to listen to unless you have the records. Not that that's a bad thing, I always like people to be encouraged to actually buy records, but it certainly is unusual these days.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Smartboys - A Different World Now 7" - Blue Vinyl
Matador (2013)
Though I haven't heard of them before, Smartboys has 2 members of the band Fucked Up at the helm. After listening to this 7", along with the solo exploits of Young Guv, I can only assume that Fucked Up secretly wants to unleash the world's best fuzz pop record.
Smartboys deliver 2 tracks of lo fi guitar pop. This is one of a few bands that I think could probably sound even better with a bit more fidelity, but in general I really like both songs. The A-side "A Different World Now" builds the verse over some light background guitar noodling, but pays off with a big chorus.
B-Side "Sacked" is just as good, though for both songs, the vocals are buried just a bit too far in the mix. I wish I could hear what they were saying a little more, but I like both of these songs enough to go hunt down the band's other 2 7"s. So I assume you'll see reviews of them soon enough.
Smartboys - A Different World Now:
soundcloud.com/smartboys/smartboys-a-different-world
Monday, January 13, 2014
Bits Of Shit - Riders 7" - Red Vinyl
Matador (2013)
I fell a little behind writing about 7"s I received from the Matador Singles Club last year, so I'm going to try to go through my backlog this week. I'm pretty sure I'm still waiting on 4 more records from the club, but I read somewhere that they'd be wrapped up by February. This one is by a band with a simply delightful name; Bits Of Shit.
I'd never heard of these guys prior to receiving this 7", but I guess with a terrible band name like Bits Of Shit and even worse cover art, I shouldn't have been shocked that the music is pretty bad too. The A-side "Rider" is a slow, plodding mess with a ton of unnecessary pick slides. The vocals are a bunch of yelling with no real melody to speak of.
The 2 songs on the B-side. "Lazy Cowgirls" and "Total Recoil" are thankfully faster than "Rider," but no less annoying. They are both generic, shouty hardcore-ish songs that sound a lot alike to my untrained ears. I love singles clubs, but every so often you just end up with a bunk record from the bunch. The Matador club has had some highs and some lows for 2013; we'll chalk this one up as one of the lows.
Unfortunately, I couldn't find any of these 3 songs online to stream anywhere, but if you gaze intently at the artwork and try to imagine what Bits Of Shit sound like, you probably wouldn't be too far off.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Jawbox - Tongues 7"
Dischord (1992)
To me Jawbox is an awful lot like the band Seaweed. Not really in terms of what each band sounds like, but in the way that both were pretty popular bands in the 90's that I completely blew off for some reason. With Seaweed I corrected that problem and am now the proud owner of every LP and 7" of theirs. Now I'm beginning to see that I'm going to be headed down that same path with Jawbox.
This first 7" in the collection (well aside from the Jawbreaker split that has been in the Jawbreaker section for 100 years) is Tongues. Pretty much the easiest, cheapest one to find, but man is it a good one. Two great melodic songs with dynamic guitars and a real comforting 90's vibe that just makes me so damn happy.
This is likely the beginning of a slippery slope. I have actually picked up a few of the Jawbox LPs already as well, I'll be reviewing 2 of them in the next few weeks.
Jawbox - Tongues:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9tMXJKzXZI
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Ween - The Mollusk LP
Plain (2009, reissue)
As mentioned yesterday, this was a Christmas present from my wife and a mighty fine gift it is. The Mollusk represents the last Ween album that I love from start to finish. Sure, there were some good songs on albums that came after this like White Pepper and Quebec, but for my money the Pure Guava to The Mollusk run was the best of Ween.
Like 12 Golden Country Greats before, 1997's The Mollusk was another concept album of sorts. The album has something of a nautical theme to it. While only a couple of songs blatantly deal with aquatic issues, most everything has something of a jaunty feel to it. This especially rings true for my favorite song on here, "The Blarney Stone." It's as if a traditional Irish folk song was overtaken by pirates and then peppered with a rousing amount of profanity. Not only is it a highlight of The Mollusk it's one of the very best songs in the entire Ween catalog.
The quality of this release is just as good as the 12 Golden Country Greats reissue. It's on 180g vinyl, and the sound quality is top notch. Again, worth replacing your old CD if you ask me.
Ween - The Blarney Stone:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA5x_qnJSRY
Ween - Johnny On The Spot:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=s26XpHL214s
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Ween - 12 Golden Country Greats LP
Plain (2009, Reissue)
You know that you are loved when someone cares enough about you to get you a Ween record. I received this as a gift from my wonderful wife for my birthday last month (She then scored another home run by getting me The Mollusk for Christmas, but I'll write about that tomorrow). I had been wanting this for a while, ever since the reissue came out. It was one of those records I kept putting off buying in favor of grabbing something new. I'm just glad it didn't go out of print before I got one.
This is the Ween album that came out when I was in college back in 1996. I vividly remember the first time I heard it sitting in the office of my campus newspaper. After the insanity that was Pure Guava and Chocolate And Cheese, it was kind of surreal to be listening to a straight up country record. But Ween's great lyrics and off beat attitude shine through any genre.
In addition to having some of my favorite songs on it, this record also has my all time favorite Ween joke: 12 Golden Country Greats. There are only 10 songs on the record. I don't know why, but I just think that's genius. The sound quality on this reissue is very good. The record sounds warm and full, arguably better than I'd ever heard it before. Definitely worth upgrading your CD copy.
Ween - Piss Up A Rope:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7M3EEHYkJ0
Ween - Japanese Cowboy:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mui4CM2SKWM
Monday, January 6, 2014
Dan Padilla / Down And Outs - Split 7" - Yellow Vinyl (/100)
I believe the All In Vinyl 7" series #3 is winding down with only 1 more release to come after this record. Aside from the Steve Adamyk Band 7", I was most excited about this split 7" by Dan Padilla and Down And Outs, mostly because they were 2 bands I already knew I liked. Both hit a home run with this split.
Dan Padilla has been putting out consistently strong records for years, but the first song on their side of this 7" "Why Bother" might be my favorite song of theirs yet. With a big chorus, dual vocal dynamics and their usual killer guitar work, it's just an incredible song.
Down And Outs also tear up their side of this record as well with 2 songs of sing along anthemic punk rock. It's on par with anything the band has released previously and I really need to pick up their new full length at some point. It's always tough when new records come out at the very end of the year after you've blown through your record buying budget!
Dan Padilla / Down And Outs - Split 7":
allinvinyl.bandcamp.com/album/split-7-12
Friday, December 27, 2013
The Absolute Best Records Of 2013
The top 5 records this year were so strong, it really could have been a coin toss to select who got number 1. In the end I gave it to the Night Marchers. As I've been listening to John Reis bands for over 20 years now, it just feels the most like home if that makes any sense.
However, I want to make a special case for some records on this list that really deserve a little extra attention as the bands aren't quite as well known as some of their peers. The Dead Mechanical record could have been a number 1 record in almost any other year. It's just flawless and I really encourage people to check it out if they haven't heard it. Chestnut Road brought me back to my favorite scene of the 90's and they felt like the second coming of Broccoli, Hooton 3 Car or Leatherface, If you like fast guitar pop like The Marked Men, you're a fool if you don't give the Tight Bros record a listen. And finally, that Hooper record I reviewed a few days ago is just incredible. It may have ended up higher on this list had it come out a bit earlier so I could have spent even more time with it.
All of the records on this list are amazing in my humble opinion. I couldn't have asked for a better year in music. Sure, I spent an awful lot of money on records this year (I tracked all of my purchases in 2013, my advice is don't do that, it's depressing), but it was worth it. It's crazy that there's even more records from this year I wasn't able to pick up. I'd like to grab the new Young Leaves record and I'm pretty sure I would like that Sweatshop Boys LP, but as you may have noticed, as it is I buy way to many records. Maybe next year.
Thanks again to everyone who reads this website and an extra special thanks to the folks that have emailed, tweeted to me or sent me records to review. Here's to more good rocking in 2014.
01 - The Night Marchers - Allez Allez - Swami
02 - Dead Mechanical - OK Night - Toxic Pop
03 - Radioactivity - Radioactivity - Dirtnap
04 - The Steve Adamyk Band - Third - Dirtnap
05 - Chestnut Road - Chestnut Road - Brassneck / Speedowax
06 - Warm Soda - Someone For You - Castle Face
07 - Tight Bros - Tight Bros - Rad Girlfriend
08 - The Blind Shake - Key To A False Door - Castle Face
09 - Obits - Bed & Bugs - Sub Pop
10 - Audacity - Butter Knife - Suicide Squeeze
11 - Mrs. Magician - B Sides - Thrill Me
12 - Hooper - How To Become A Ghost - Snappy Little Numbers
13 - Rumspringer - Stay Afloat - Dirtcult
14 - Dirtbombs - Ooey Gooey Chewy Ka-Blooey - In The Red
15 - Superchunk - I Hate Music - Merge
16 - Boat - Pretend To Be Brave - Magic Marker
17 - Low Culture - Screens - Dirtnap
18 - Plow United - Marching Band - Jump Start
19 - Sundowners - The Larger Half Of Wisdom - Dirtcult
20 - Crusaders - Perhaps You Deliver This Judgment... - No Idea
21 - Iron Chic - The Constant One - Bridge Nine
22 - Humanoids - Humanoids - Throwing Things
23 - Murmurs - Fly With The Unkindness - Dead Broke / Drunken Sailor
24 - The Resonars - Crummy Desert Sound - Burger
25 - Deltron 3030 - Event II - Bulk
26 - The Thermals - Desperate Ground - Saddle Creek
27 - RVIVR - The Beauty Between - Rumbletowne
28 - Shy Mirrors - Negative Collector - Big School
29 - Off With Their Heads - Home - Epitaph
30 - Wrong Words - Everything Is Free - Trouble In Mind
Other records I bought & enjoyed this year:
A Giant Dog - Bone - Tic Tac Totally
Autistic Youth - Nonage - Dirtnap
Bad Sports - Bra - Dirtnap
The Dagger Eyes - The Dagger Eyes - Ptrash
Dumpster Babies - Dumpster Babies - Tall Pat
Heavy Times - Fix It Alone - HoZac
Leatherface - More Mush - Bootleg
The Men - New Moon - Sacred Bones
Mind Spiders - Inhumanistic - Dirtnap
Paper Dragons - Die To Please - Toxic Pop
Southport - Southern Soul - Yo Yo
Space Wolves - IV - UT
Terry Malts - Nobody Realizes This Is Nowhere - Slumberland
The Visitors - Yeti - It's Alive
Wavves - Afraid Of Heights - Mom + Pop
Your Pest Band - In My Doom - Snuffy Smiles
Yuck - Glow & Behold - Fat Possum
Zebrassieres - I Am Human - Ptrash
Previously:
2012
2011
2010
2009
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Los Straitjackets - 'Tis The Season For... - Red Vinyl
Yep Roc (2002)
Every year I try to add at least 1 new Christmas album to the collection. I just love Christmas music, but I really tend to listen to the old classics for the most part. Modern day Christmas music just bums me out. Now, this record came out 11 years ago, so I'm not sure that it totally qualifies as modern day, but it's a heck of a lot newer than the Gene Autry Christmas albums I listen to anyway.
Los Straitjackets are picking up right where The Ventures left off with their Christmas album. Up tempo surfy Christmas instrumentals. The Venture Christmas Album is far and away my very favorite, so another release in the same vein is a welcome addition to my collection. There's a few repeats from the Ventures' classic, but there;s also fresh songs like "It's A Marshmallow World," "Feliz Navidad," and "Here Comes Santa Claus." It's great and I've been playing it pretty non stop for the last few weeks.
This is going to be my last album review for 2013. In a couple of days, probably Thursday or Friday, I'll be posting my annual, big year end best of list. 2013 was the best year for new music since the mid 90's if you ask me, so it's been a real task trying to rank all of this incredible music. I'm still working on it, but I have just about locked everything down. Happy happy to everyone this holiday season.
Los Straitjackets - Frosty The Snowman:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVtmqhr6X6M
Monday, December 23, 2013
Masked Intruder - Under The Mistletoe 7" - White Vinyl
I'm a real stickler when it comes to Christmas music. I just absolutely love listening to it this time of the year, but I am a bit of a traditionalist and don't really like many modern takes on the genre. I especially don't usually like punk rock Christmas songs. They just always seem so goofy.
Masked Intruder's foray into this field is pretty much what I expected. Now, they obviously are just having a laugh and not trying to create any modern day Christmas classics. I can appreciate this 7" on that level. The songs are kind of funny and Masked Intruder has a knack for this kind of thing, but I can't imagine ever putting this on in December as legit Christmas music. it's fun, but it's no Bing Crosby.
Masked Intruder - Under The Mistletoe:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgn2F6jhbu8
Friday, December 20, 2013
Murmurs - Fly With The Unkindness LP - White Vinyl (/100)
Dead Broke / Drunken Sailor (2013)
I find it hard to imagine that anyone is more excited than I am that so many new bands are creating records that are taking so much influence from bands of the 90's. For a while it seemed like music was turning its back on my favorite decade, but over the last few years there's been a complete renaissance. I'm just thrilled.
Murmurs are playing right into my wheelhouse as they're culling the sounds of some of the 90's pop punk kings. I'm not talking about the really poppy bands like Zoinks or Sicko, but rather the grittier, early Jawbreaker-ish bands. There's at least 2 main vocalists (the liner notes list every band member as contributing vocals, and never having seen them live I couldn't tell you who sings what for sure). 1 of the singers has a smoother, slower voice and tends to front songs that have a Dear You or late Knapsack feel to them. The other guy is grittier like Unfun era Jawbreaker and his songs tend to be closer to earlier 90's, faster punk rock.
It's a great combination and just keeps me engaged throughout the record. This is another band that is brand new to me, and I'm just thrilled to have gotten the chance to hear them, but truthfully, I will always give a chance to anything that comes out on Dead broke or Drunken Sailor. Those folks know how to put out records.
Murmurs - Fly With The Unkindness:
deadbrokerekerds.bandcamp.com/album/fly-with-the-unkindne...
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Hooper - How To Become A Ghost LP
My favorite thing about doing this website is the thought that somewhere there is someone buying a record by a band they hadn't heard of previously because I said it was good. I just love listening to new music and sharing it with people. I don't always think that I write well enough to really articulate how good a record is to someone that hasn't already heard it, but I do my best to convey the feelings I have about the record. Allow me to convey; this Hooper record is flat out great.
I had picked up a 7" by them on a lark a while back. Padding out a distro order to qualify for free shipping. It was a good 7" and I have been waiting to hear more from them. They delivered and then some with their debut full length. How To Become A Ghost is steeped in the 90's, rolling together influences of some of my favorite sounds of that era.
Musically you get the guitar work and song structure of a Tugboat Annie, but with a much crunchier sound reminding me of maybe a less polished Fig Dish. Vocally, I'm very much reminded of poppier punk bands like Zoinks!, but with a ton more emphasis on backing vocals and harmonies. This doesn't sound like a throwback to the 90's, it sounds like it could be one of the better records that was actually released in that decade. Don't take that as if I'm saying this record sounds dated, as I still think that there are 20 year old records that sound as fresh and exciting as the first time I listened to them.
I'm just extremely impressed by Hooper, a band that probably doesn't have the noteriety of a lot of the bands I tend to write about, but a band that really deserves to have a few more people check them out. I do wish the whole album was streaming somewhere as I don't feel the one song the band has up on their site really conveys just how great the record is as a whole. But it's still a snappy little number. Go check it out.
***Update - The whole album is available to stream, go listen!***
Hooper - How To Become A Ghost:
http://snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/how-to-become-a-ghost
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Crusades - Perhaps You Deliver this Judgment... LP - Red Vinyl (/300) &Pink Vinyl (/130)
Crusades - Perhaps You Deliver this Judgment... LP - Red Vinyl (/300) & Pink Vinyl (/130), a photo by Tim PopKid on Flickr.
No Idea (2013)
I've been waiting for this 2nd Crusades LP for what seems like forever. Their first album was one of my favorites of that year. I loved the way it took a darker spin on the poppier side of punk rock. It had some of the same calling cards as many of the other great bands from Canada, but took everything in a more serious & somber direction. So it was with eager anticipation that I put Perhaps You Deliver this Judgment with Greater Fear than I Receive It on the turntable for the first time.
The band has definitely grown since the last album. If anything, the songs are even darker and taken on more of an influence from hardcore and metal than they had previously. The band certainly hasn't given up on writing a good hook, but the record feels a lot heavier than previous outings. It fits the band and it's a logical progression progression for the band, though for me personally, I think I like things a bit lighter and a bit more obviously pop.
I originally just pre-ordered the limited to 300 copies mailorder opaque red vinyl version. However, there were a few limited Fest only pressings that were being sold down in Florida in October. When the chance to grab one off the No Idea website came up, I just couldn't resist adding a pink vinyl copy to the collection as well.
Crusades - Perhaps You Deliver this Judgment with Greater Fear than I Receive It LP:
crusades666.bandcamp.com/album/perhaps-you-deliver-this-j...
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Sick Sick Birds - All The Fins In The Sea 7" - Black Vinyl & White/BlueA/B Vinyl (/150)
Sick Sick Birds - All The Fins In The Sea 7" - Black Vinyl & White/Blue A/B Vinyl (/150), a photo by Tim PopKid on Flickr.
Ghostbot (2013)
I'll just talk a bit about how amazing the packaging is on this record as I have written about the music previously (www.ibuywaytoomanyrecords.com/2013/09/sick-sick-birds-all...). To sum up the music portion of this review. It's great and one of the best things the band has done so far.
Now the packaging on this 7" is amazing. The shark fin design on the front cover is die cut. Behind it is a single square image of the see, with record information & lyrics on the other side of the square. The White/Blue A/B colored vinyl looks fantastic, particularly the side that's mostly white. It adds even more to the nautical theme of the packaging. I just can't say enough good things about how great this record looks. it's absolutely helpful that the music is stellar as well, but good artwork like this doesn't crop up all that often.
Sick Sick Birds - All The Fins In The Sea 7":
sicksickbirds.bandcamp.com/album/all-the-fins-in-the-sea-ep
Friday, December 13, 2013
Audacity - Butter Knife LP - Yellow Vinyl
Suicide Squeeze (2013)
Audacity's newest album snuck up on me. I had no idea the band had moved over to a new label at Suicide Squeeze. I didn't know they were working on anything new, I was just sort of basking in the afterglow of their last LP, Mellow Cruisers. Suddenly I was going through a new releases list on some website and there it was. Hopped over to the Suicide Squeeze website and got in my pre-order, though at that point I think I only waited a week or so for it to actually come out. I was glad they still had the limited colored vinyl left, but when said limited vinyl is out of 1000 copies, my guess is they're not going to go flying out the door for anyone buy the absolute biggest of bands.
But let me tell you that after spending some time with Butter Knife, I firmly believe that Audacity should be one of these biggest bands. This record is flat out amazing. It's such a leap forward from their already pretty great last LP and I'm honestly pretty floored. The band throws around hooks with such effortlessness, piling vocal melodies over bouncy, yet scruffy guitar. There's a good mix of garage influenced faster pop songs as well as some songs that mellow things out a little bit, adding in some flourishes like piano to the party.
This is one of the most perfectly crafted summertime pop records I've heard in an awful long time. Sure it's the winter and the outdoors pretty much suck right now, but all I need to do is pop this record on the turntable and it's summer vacation all over again. Highly recommended.
Audacity - Butter Knife:
soundcloud.com/suicide-squeeze-records/sets/audacity-butt...
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Iron Chic - The Constant One LP - White w/ Splatter Vinyl (/300)
Bridge Nine (2013)
Being a professional wrestling fans really pays dividends when you least expect it. My love of wrestling is what made me check out Iron Chic way back when they put out their first self released demo tape in 2008. I was very impressed by them right off the bat and continued to keep tabs on them whenever a new record came out. As much as I liked them from the get go, I don't know that I would have ever imagined a record as great as The Constant One from them.
It's just track after track of fist balling, finger pointing, sing along anthems. Not in the cheesy hardcore way either. Iron Chic posses such strong songwriting chops and they are able to effortlessly weave together passion & energy into melodic, but powerful songs. This is a band that is able to show some real emotion, but manages to not come off seeming lame or contrived. It's a rare talent. Plus they have a song called "(Castle) Numskull," so really, who needs more reason than that to buy this record?
I'm a broken record this year, but again, this is yet another truly great album for 2013. Iron Chic is really helping to close out the year just as strongly as it started up.
Iron Chic - The Constant One:
bridge9.bandcamp.com/album/the-constant-one
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Bad Sports - Bra LP - Yellow Vinyl (/300)
Dirtnap (2013)
I'm feverishly trying to get through all of the full lengths I have left to write about from 2013 in the next 2 weeks. it's about that time of the year to get my top albums list together, but I don't want to put anything on my list that I haven't written about yet. I'm only a few albums back, so I should we should be in good shape. One record I had to get to was the new one from Bad Sports.
Bra is just a blast from start to finish. High octane rock and roll that may lean a bit more to the garage/glam side of things than their more pop-centric 2nd LP. Don't think that means that Bad Sports doesn't still know how to write a toe tapper, they absolutely do, but there's a bit more attitude on their latest.
Honestly, you really can't go wrong with just about anything that Dirtnap releases, they just don't put out bad records. Bad Sports is no exception. While maybe not quite as poppy as their last LP, Bra definitely picks up points for energy and good old fashioned oomph.
Bad Sports - Bra LP:
dirtnaprecords.bandcamp.com/album/bad-sports-bras
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
The Knew - What's Hip (Long Walk) 7" - Red Vinyl (/300)
Snappy Little Numbers (2013)
I was on the Snappy Little Numbers website to order the new Hooper LP (review of that one coming soon as well) and decided to pick up some of their new 7"s while I was there. The first one is a band called The Knew, and boy have they just floored me.
The combine the infectious energy of a party band like W.H. Walker, with some slick vocals and a horn section that understands how to keep it subtle, yet sounding massive. Think the foghorn saxophone of Circa Now era RFTC. The band has a couple of full lengths out as well, and you can be sure I'll be checking them out very soon.
The Knew - What's Hip (Long Walk) 7"
theknew.bandcamp.com/album/whats-hip-long-walk-world-war-...
Monday, December 9, 2013
The Wrong Words - Everything Is Free LP - Green Vinyl (/500)
Everything Is Free is the 2nd full length from San Francisco's The Wrong Words. In the past I've heard them called the West Coast Gentlemen Jesse, and while I don't think that comparison is 100% accurate, it is a pretty decent jumping off point if you're looking for a reference.
As with their debut, the new record is full of upbeat, clean guitar with pop hooks and a little bit of vocal fuzz. Their are times where the vocals can borderline on being a bit weird when the singer is aiming for some of the really high notes, but it's not often and the band keeps the songs straightforward and catchy.
Everything Is Free is just as strong as the Wrong Words' debut, so it should please prior fans of the band. It may even prove to be a better starting point for those that are new to the party. This album may be destined to be slightly overshadowed by the never ending stream of amazing records that have come out in 2013, but it's absolutely worth making some time for.
The Wrong Words - And It's Not So Pretty:
troubleinmindrecords.bandcamp.com/track/and-its-not-so-pr...
Friday, December 6, 2013
The Flatliners - Caskets Full 7" - Black & White Split Vinyl
Fat Wreck Chords (2013)
I had never listened to The Flatliners. When they were announced as the opening band for the Rocket From The Crypt show I saw at the Double Door in Chicago in September, I thought it was an odd pairing. I just blamed Riot Fest for it and moved on with my life, who cares about the opening band, really? Then I got to the show and was right up front for the Flatliners. I was pretty darn impressed. Not at all what I was expecting and they kept my interest despite standing between me and RFTC. I was even more impressed that the singer from The Flatliners was out there when Rocket played, singing along to every word.
So, I figured I'd pick up one of their records, and it's always best to start with a 7" I think. This one has 3 songs. One from the band's most recent full length, one exclusive B side and a Tony Sly cover. Again, I'm pretty impressed. All 3 songs are good in a current, gritty punk rock meets a slight Social Distortion greaser vibe sort of way. I liked it enough that I think I'm going to pick up the last full length as well.
The Flatliners - Wynford Bridge:
soundcloud.com/user3105090/the-flatliners-wynford-bridge
Thursday, December 5, 2013
The Visitors - Yeti LP - Blue Vinyl (/200)
It's Alive (2013)
Yeti is the 2nd full length from Ottawa based band The Visitors. They are very much part of the incredible punk rock scene of that wonderful city and you can immediately hear the influence of city peers like The Steve Adamyk Band as soon as the album starts spinning. However, The Visitors are tied a bit more to the traditional pop punk sound as pioneered by The Ramones. Vocally I'm often reminded of the Italian band Love Boat as well. Aside from a few out of place, wacky guitar solos, Yeti is a record that just flies by with it's catchy choruses.
The first pressing had a limited variant on blue vinyl that was limited to 200 copies. As of right this second, the It's Alive webstore still has copies of the blue vinyl in stock, if colored vinyl is your thing. Obviously, it's my thing.
The Visitors - Yeti LP:
itsaliverecords.bandcamp.com/album/yeti-2
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Cleveland Bound Death Sentence - S/T LP - White Vinyl (/200)
No Idea (2013)
First ever vinyl pressing of the Cleveland Bound Death Sentence CD that came out on Lookout records back in 1999. Sure, most of the songs were out on vinyl from the 7"s that the CD was a compilation of, but this is the first time everything is all in one place. The white vinyl was limited to 200 copies, and the entire pressing was only 500. No Idea is pretty good about keeping their records in print, but if it's important to you to grab the first press, you may want to act quickly.
The record itself is as fun as ever. With Paddy from Dillinger Four and Aaron Cometbus in the band, it does sort of feel like D4 meets Pinhead Gunpowder. The songs are fast, loud, catchy and over before you even realize they started. That's not a critique, the album moves at such a fast and exciting clip that it amplifies the energy of the band and kind of makes them sound like they're about to implode at any second.
While I've never liked Cleveland Bound Death Sentence as much as the other bands everyone has been in, this is quite simply a great punk rock record.
Cleveland Bound Death Sentence - Rumble Seats & Running Boards:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QplTQWA1-8U
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
The Blind Shake - Key To A False Door - Yellow Vinyl
Castle Face (2013)
While I am very picky about the bands I like, the vast majority of them have a common thread. I like catchy songs with big hooks & choruses and I like some good vocal harmonies. The Blind Shake do not fit in this mold at all. Every once in a while an album comes along that is so good, even if they are outside of my usual musical taste, I can't help but love it. Key To A False Door is one of those albums.
Sure, they do pack in a lot of my other favorite attributes into their songs. In general everything is fast paced, with lots of downstroke heavy riffs, so it's not a total shock I like this as much as I do. But overall this is way noisier than I typically go for. The songs are soaked in fuzz and scratchy production. The vocals are a barely understandable roar, but there is so much energy and enthusiasm crammed into this album it's just addictive.
Key To A False Door is absolutely one of the best records to come out this year and is making a beeline into my top 10.
The Blind Shake - Key To A False Door:
theblindshake1.bandcamp.com/album/key-to-a-false-door
Monday, December 2, 2013
The Resonars - The Greatest Songs Of... - Brown Vinyl (/500)
Trouble In Mind (2013)
The Resonars were one of those bands that so many people seemed to love, but every time I gave them a chance, I was let down. I'm not exactly sure why, but they just never grabbed me the way they did others. That was until they released a really great 7" on Trouble In Mind followed up by their last LP Crummy Desert Sound. That album blew me away and opened my eyes up to this band again.
So I signed up when Trouble In Mind put out this greatest hits album, which culls songs from their pretty significant back catalog. At the end of the day, I can definitely say that The Resonars are much better than I gave them credit for initially, but I do thing that the greatest songs they are releasing are their newest ones.
You'd be hard pressed to find a band that can replicate the harmonies and catchiness of 60's British invasion rock better than The Resonars. Throughout this album's 14 tracks it's really impressive to listen to the way the vocals are layered and the songs are crafted. I would personally still start off with Crummy Desert Sound as the first Resonars record to buy, but if you have that and are ready to hear more, this might be the next best option rather than trying to figure out which of the band's many other releases should be picked up next.
The Resonars - The Greatest Songs Of...:
soundcloud.com/troubleinmind/sets/resonars-greatest-songs...
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
ИO///sé - Beach Bathroom Bingo 7" - Blue Vinyl (/100)
1859 / Different Kitchen (2013)
Since I wrote about the ИO///sé full length yesterday, I figured I'd keep it going and take a picture of their brand new 7" as well. Seeing people talk about this 7" is actually what made me hunt down the full length. Luckily, I wasn't a year late to this one and was able to secure a copy of the limited to 100 copies blue vinyl version.
Musucally, this 7" picks up right where the LP left off; fast downstroke heavy songs with amazing hooks. I mentioned Wipers, The Marked Men & Leatherface yesterday and those comparisons all hold true, though this time out I also heard some more vocal similarities to some of the shoutier Plow United songs. Any way you want to compare it, this is one hell of a 7" and it should be picked up right away.
ИO///sé - Beach Bathroom Bingo 7":
noxse.bandcamp.com/album/o-s-e-p-7
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
ИO///sé - S/T LP - Test Pressing (/10)
Rotten To The Core / Challenge The Throne (2012)
Every year I miss at least one amazing record. No matter how many records I buy, no matter how carefully I try to pay attention to what is going on, I always miss something incredible. 2012 was the year I missed ИO///sé. I'm lucky I figured it out and have this fantastic record in my collection, but the bigger problem is that I missed the colored vinyl version. No excuses, I just blew it. I've made up for it slightly by being able to pick up a copy of the test pressing on Discogs for a really cheap price, but I don't collect test pressings. In fact I'll trade this to someone for the regular colored vinyl version if anyone out there wants to make a deal.
As for the record itself, it's just perfect. Loud, fast, full of hooks. It's like The Marked Men meets The Wipers meets Leatherface. Start to finish, it's just a hurricane of a record and I only wish I could have been listening to it for a whole year as opposed to just the last month. The regular pressing is still out there and I give my highest possible recommendation. This would have been a top 5 record last year, had I been smart enough to buy it right away. Again, help me find the colored vinyl version!
ИO///sé - S/T:
noxse.bandcamp.com/album/o-s-s-t-lp-black-vinyl
Monday, November 25, 2013
People's Temple - Brand New Thing 7" - Purple Vinyl (/500)
Trouble In Mind (2013)
I wasn't expecting too much going into this 7" as I wasn't really the biggest fan of the People's Temple full length that came out on HoZac earlier in the year. I was mostly picking up this 7" to keep my Trouble in Mind singles collection complete. While certainly not a record I see myself going back to over and over again, I ended up liking the songs more than I anticipated.
In particular the A-side, "Brand New Thing," builds a gentle vocal melody over the strumming of acoustic guitars. Not ground shattering, but it's a nice simple song that doesn't fall into any of the cheesy psych cliches that so many bands are doing these days. While I wouldn't call it a must buy or anything, it's a nice little record to just kick back and relax to.
People's Temple - Brand New Thing:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_RaN-TlE04
Friday, November 22, 2013
Maniac - Dim Sum 7" - White Vinyl (/150)
La-Ti-Da (2013)
This 7" is the latest from the La-Ti-Da singles club from 2013. While the label doesn't really get the press or notoriety of some of the other singles clubs out there, I really can't think of one that puts out a never ending stream of stellar records like La-Ti-Da. Sure, you can buy the records individually as well, but let's be honest, how do you not sign up for the subscription and get the limited colored vinyl?
Maniac is another hit for La-Ti-Da. The A-side, "Dim Sum," builds shorts bursts of drawled vocals over a Rocket-From-The-Crypt-On-A-Rope-esque guitar riff. The B-side "Pepe" slows things down just a bit, but really shines with a lead guitar driven singalong anthem. This isn't a band I was familiar with prior to receiving this 7" and I don't know that I would have heard of them or bought it otherwise, but that's the joy in subscribing to a singles series like this. I love being surprised with great music.
Maniac - Dim Sum 7":
latidarecords.bandcamp.com/album/dim-sum-pepe-ltdr015
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Radioactivity - Back To Me 7" - Yellow Vinyl (/100)
Alien Snatch (2013)
Since I spent all that time raving about the new Radioactivity full length yesterday, I figured I may as well just keep that theme going and write about the accompanying 7" that came out on Germany's Alien Snatch records. Like the full length, there was a limited version on yellow vinyl, in this case limited to 100 copies and only available via mailorder direct from Alien Snatch. It's hard to tell if they're still available from the label, but if you are interested, I'd hit them up quick.
On the record we have 2 songs, one a repeat from the full length. The 2 new songs would fit in perfectly on the album. Fast, catchy, all the cliche words I use over and over to describe the records I truly love. Even though buying records from Germany can result in paying more for this 7" than you pay for the actual full length due to the postage costs, it's just so worth it even to get 2 more songs. I will, without question, continue to buy everything this band puts out.
Radioactivity - Back to Me:
soundcloud.com/aliensnatch/radioactivity-back-to-me
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Radioactivity - S/T LP - Black Vinyl & Yellow Vinyl (/300)
Dirtnap (2013)
Yesterday I wrote about Mind Spiders, Mark Ryan from The Marked Men's current band. Today, it's time for Radioactivity. Radioactivity is the brainchild of the other primary singer from The Marked Men; Jeff Burke. While Mind Spiders have carved out a path distinct from The Marked Men's prior work, Radioactivity embraces, expands and sometimes even improves on The Marked Men's legacy.
Much like the Lennon/McCartney debates of yore, there have always been those that have discussed the Ryan/Burke dynamic. Both incredible song writers, responsible for one of the best bands of the last decade. But everyone has their slight preferences. I've always been a Burke guy. Not that Mark Ryan hasn't contributed flawless songs to The Marked Men catalog, it's just that Jeff's have always hit home with me just a bit more. Having an entire album full of these songs is like a dream come true.
This record sounds like a greatest hits album. It combines the best aspects of The Marked Men with the best aspects of Jeff's other band The Potential Johns and still manages to create moments that surprise you with their greatness. Song after song of insane hooks, fuzzy, but melodic vocals and driving guitar with riff changes that you don't see coming, but always work perfectly.
Flat out, this album is simply awesome. 2013 has been an incredible year for music and I've gone on and on about how this record has been one of the best and that record has been one of the best. Well, this is instant top 5 of the year. Realistically it's top 3 and a strong case could be made for the best album of the year. Any other year it probably could be, but 2013 was just unusually packed with great, great records.
Radioactivity - S/T:
dirtnaprecords.bandcamp.com/album/radioactivity-s-t