Music Reviews - October 2004
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Agnostic Front - Another Voice
Nuclear Blast Worldwide Taking it back! / New York Hardcore! / Agnostic Front Those lyrics pretty much sum up the commitment and sentiment behind the latest release from this seminal band. The music is heavier than a Mack truck filled with lead and is complimented well with those classic style of backup group singalongs that are the staple of any "bro-down" record. The sound quality is killer and owes just a bit of the nod of the hat to bands like Hatebreed (Jamey Jasta produced this album) who are keeping this type of music a viable threat to the music scene and a force to be reckoned with. There's little touches of metal interlaced here and there with some absolutely foreboding sounding riffs courtesy of Vinnie Stigma and crew, and Rogers voice sounds as rough and tough as ever. You may take me out of the streets / But you'll never take the streets out of me... love that lyric. Anyways, this album is just another jewel in the crown of the Kings of N.Y.H.C. and is a must have for anyone that likes their music brutal and menacing. |
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Sum 41 - Chuck
Interscope Records Sum 41, along with a few other notable "Punk" bands, have apparently matured and now play a weird analogous mixture of Headbangers Ball meets VH-1 type of music. At one point it's Heavy and Metal sounding, and at other times it's all sincere and heartfelt, weird. It's like all these bands are finally acknowledging the fact that they listen to and Slayer and Oasis albums! But if that's your thing, then you probably already are a fan of this band. Gone are the days of rhyming about El Camino's and kicking it with the homies drinking 40's. Instead they're talking about such issues as Love lost and world affairs and Mortality and chicks leaving them and stuff. I guess that being dumped by Paris Hilton can break a mans heart... lol. It's the same 5 idiots in the band, but it seems that a conscious effort was made to broaden their horizons on this album, but not in a good way unfortunately. I hope that this bands sudden maturity can lead them into the same territory trail blazed for them by such notable bands before them like Sugar Ray and Wax to become fodder for every advertising executive with a product to push. |
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The Dragons - Sin Salvation
Gearhead Records I've always had a soft spot in my heart for these guys, but god damn, this is one seriously fucking amazing album. It blows my fucking mind. Every song on here is just a steel toe boot to the face... just beautiful stuff. I can't stop listening to it. It's God-sent. This band has long been considered one of San Diego's best kept secrets, but now I think it's all gonna change. They might not become millionaires, and they're way too ugly to ever be on MTV, but this album puts them back on the map and just slaughters any competition they may have had. You wanna rock the fuck out? Put this album on and just be prepared to lose your shit. I've already broken hundreds of dollars worth of stuff while listening to this album, and I plan on breaking thousands of dollars more. Full of Catholic Guilt and Rock and Roll Sin, the Dragons have gone back to their early raw days, serving up a record that will take it's rightful place alongside such early classics like Cheers To Me and R.L.F. 3 days folks... this masterpiece was recorded in 3 FUCKING DAYS!!! FUCK!!! That's how it's supposed to be done... fast and dirty, like my sex life. They even play a Johnny Thunders cover! Does it get any better? Not in my opinion. Seek out at any costs this outstanding release from the Los Maricones de Rock. |
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Beastie Boys - To The 5 Boroughs
Capitol Records I dunno... I think the Beastie Boys have sucked ever since they became all P.C. and embraced the teaching of Tibetan monks and stopped smoking pot. Now it just seems that they're 3 businessmen with a product to push that they know people will buy no matter what. The music on here is hit or miss, sometimes the 808 is kicking some good beats, and other times the music just limps along. They sample themselves and their previously releases heavily, which is kinda weird, but they also "borrow" riffs and clips from E.P.M.D., Public Enemy, Chic, Big Daddy Kane and even the Dead Boys!!! Nice. I liked 3 The Hard Way, Hey, Fuck You, An Open Letter To N.Y.C., That's It That's All and Triple Trouble. But the one thing that irks me about this CD is the rhymes. Not only are they all non-offensive and sensitive to other humans, but man, they're just flat out shitty. Rhyming party with Bacardi? Head with lead? Hella with Mandela? Total weak sauce. This would be a good album if it wasn't so god-damn P.C. In one song they say Fuck the KKK!... but I long for the days when they would just say who cares and have a beer with the person, KKK member or not. Maturity... boooooooooooo. The Beastie Boys should leave the leftist liberal leanings at home, smoke a fatty, drink some Budweiser and get back to having fun on vinyl again. |
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Sin City Ghouls - Six Feet Under
Ghoulish Records Who is this? Who is this? Sin City Ghouls! Hell yeah! I like this CD a lot, and it's not because Jason & Brookelyn are very good friends of mine, and it's not because I have a weakness for female punk rock screamers, but I like it because it's full of catchy riffs, great vocals and some nice toe tapping beats. Except for that drunken banter at the end of the CD... I don't know what they were thinking when they put that on, but the rest of the CD is excellent, and with songs like Hot Rod Special, Prostitute and Rotten, it's easy to see why this band is building some momentum gigging around here in town. The vocals reminded me of Daisy Chainsaw, if you can believe that, and Jason's guitar work on here sounds excellent. Christians China crash cymbal has been toned down (Thank Allah) and the bass player isn't even with the band anymore, so I ain't gonna say shit about him. You can probably find this at all the local spots in town, and I'm sure that you can get one of these at any one of their shows. Brookelyn may bite you on the neck, or Jason may give you the Evil Eye, but it'll be worth it. Trust me. Good stuff from the Sin City Ghouls. |
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S.N.F.U. - In The Meantime And In Between Time
Rusty Rake Records Fuck yeah. I've always had a soft spot for these guys, so when I saw that they had a new album out I jumped all over it. Full of the same creative aggressive riffs (courtesy of the Belke bros., Marc & Brent) and impractical lyrics and song titles (blame Mr. Chi-Pig for those) that made this band a force to be reckoned with beforehand, this album is a pleasant surprise and very fucking catchy. I can't get over how good the guitars sound on here. I'm glad they ditched Epitaph Records, or vice versa. On this record, released on their own Rusty Rake records label, they sound like S.N.F.U. again. Chi-Pig sounds just as crazed as he ever has, and the subject matter he's singing about sounds like it was lifted from tabloid headlines (One Legged Bridge Jumper Breaks Good Leg, Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump, The Birdman Of Malmo). All the songs are full of entrancing riffs and quirky tempo changes and accents that keep it from getting mundane. The album title re-instates the tradition of having 7 words in all of their album titles (think about it), and it also re-instates S.N.F.U. back into the world of the living. The beats will have you nodding your head and the lyrics will give you a twisted perspective on things you may not be aware of. Thank Allah this band is back, I missed them. |
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In Honor - A Benefit To Fight Cancer
Vagrant Records It's not really a matter of the bands on here as much as it's all about the cause it supports, which is a very good one. Sean McGrath (ex-Saves The Day) lost his battle to cancer recently, but before he did he set up the Sean McGrath Foundation to help cover the costs of his cancer treatment. Your purchase of this album benefits that foundation, as well as the Syrentha Salvio Endowment, which was created to help cover the costs of cancer treatment for those who cannot afford to pay for it. Buy this album for those reasons alone. If that's not enough, you can always check out the butt load of live, rare, acoustic and unreleased tracks from Descendents, Thursday, the Bouncing Souls, My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, Melee, Thrice, the Casket Lottery and many more. I'm not into 98% of the bands on this 2 CD compilation, but like I said earlier, it's for a great cause that is worthy of your hard earned money. |
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China White - Live Cheap CD
Malt Soda Records Fuck yeah! I'm a huge China White fan, and when I saw this at Mad About Music in Lake Tahoe I grabbed it immediately. I knew it was gonna be pretty poor sounding, but I didn't care. Sometimes it's all about capturing a moment... closing your eyes and remembering the shitty smelling club that you saw the band in, and just reliving the memory... recalling all the nights events and tribulations. Yeah. Some of the tracks on here are priceless, like the demos or the Live @ The Whiskey A Go Go stuff, which I believe was originally only available on a 7" bootleg. The rest of the live stuff is OK, better recorded but a lot slower in pace. The Quicktime videos included with this release didn't do much to enhance the China White legacy, since it's from a show a few years ago in front of a mostly indifferent crowd. Now if they would of included some of that classic video footage that I know they're sitting on, I would have been hyped about this release. As it is, it's good, but not crucial. First-rate shit if you're a fan like me. |
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The Dirty Babies - Demo
Wood Shampoo Records I don't even know if Jamie wanted me to say anything about this or not, but dammit, when you hear something this good you just gotta share it with someone, and let me tell you, this new Dirty Babies demo, which was recorded by Joe 1/2 Ast on a 4-Track recorder, sounds amazing. It's not as frantic or sloppy sounding as some of their other demos are, but what it lacks in energy it more than makes up for in pure catchiness. I heard this demo at the Club House and days later the songs are still stuck in my head, and every now and then I find myself singing along to one of their soon-to-be classics (Experimental medicine is what I need / It’s good for you and it's good for me). If the Dirty Babies don't start touring heavily and shipping this demo to each and every record label that they can think of, in order to become the rich bloated rock stars that they deserve to be, I'm gonna personally kick each and every one of them in the nuts! This stuff is that good, and it'd be a shame if they didn't do anything with it. |
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New Line Records - 2004 Sampler
New Line Records While walking around high in the Lake Tahoe mountains, I found this sampler in a record shop that is run by Mr. Boyd, an ex-Las Vegan who now lives up there. I grabbed it cuz I was buzzed and stupid, but now that I'm listening to it, it's not as bad as I thought it was gonna be. I don't know who New Line Records are, nor do I know about any of the bands on here, but judging by the sounds they all produce, I'm sure some of these bands will be on TRL in the immediate future, especially if they have some moody looking cute boys with shitty hair in the band... a sure route to MTV popularity. All the bands on here sound like B.R.M.C., the Vines, Rooney, and every other pretentious college art rock band. Hell, I even heard some Fugazi styles thrown into the mix, which I'm not sure is a good thing. Oh well, check this comp out if you’re into this sort of thing. Me, I'll pass. |
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The Killers - Somebody Told Me
Lizard King Records HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA... what a fucking joke. Can you say the Strokes? Can you say Rooney? Can you say ABSOLUTE PRETENTIOUS PIECE OF SHIT? I bet you can, and so can the Killers. Fuck them and fuck this CD. Fucking Rockstars. Glad I didn't pay for this crap. |
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T.F.M.U. - Demo
Self-Released Man, does this demo come off a lot better than their live performance did. T.F.M.U., which stands for The Fuck Me Up's, play a style of aggressive Metal tinged Punk Rock with a singer fascinated by all things Glen Danzig. The guy looks like him and tries to sing like him, and although it doesn't really show on these songs, if you ever see this band live you will know exactly what I'm talking about. This band is more A.F.I. than Samhain or Misfits, but if you can get past that minor annoyance, there's some OK stuff on this 3 song demo. |
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Smut Peddlers - Coming Out
TKO Records I saw this band in S.F. and was really impressed with their old school Punk Rock sound, and I bought this CD immediately after the show. Fuck bands like the Casualties and the Virus - the Smut Peddlers are more Punk Rock than any of those fashion conscious Homo-Punks, and on songs like Rebatron Party, Exit Plan, FTW and My Old Addiction, these guys (and one amazing girl on drums) take their rightful place alongside such classic newer CA. bands like the Humpers and the Streetwalkin' Cheetahs. I love the lyrics on this disc, I can totally relate to all of them, since they’re about things like drinking and taking drugs and banging whores. And hey, I used to practice at that place in Vernon next to the Farmer John meat packing plant (Vernon Girl), but the only chicks I met down there were hookers. And you gotta love the smell in that area... mmmmm... rendered hog fat. Anyways, this CD sounds awesome, comes with 14 soon to be classic Smut Peddlers songs and you should run out and get it immediately if not sooner. |
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Descendents - Cool To Be You
Fat Wreck Chords Man, I gotta tell you, this album is seriously gonna be on the Top 10 List of everyone that hears it, and it's a wonderful return of the Descendents to the Punk Rock music scene. Thanks to Frank @ Balcony Lights for kicking this down to me on St. Patty's day... I haven’t stopped listening to it ever since, and if I can ever get it away from the Club House, I'll burn you a copy of it ASAP. Anyways, the new album sounds amazing, and is full of some classic material from Professor Milo and Pals, songs like Dog And Pony Show... Cool To Be You... She Don't Care and One More Day. I don't know why everyone and their Mom had doubts about how good this album is... I mean it's the Descendents for Christ's sake! The only thing I can complain about is the crappy cover art, and the fact that there's not enough songs on here! Everybody was asking me "Is it good? Is it good?", I mean, have they ever made a bad album? I don't think so. And Cool To Be You continues with the high standards they have set for themselves, and once again passes that mark with more than flying colors. It's fucking beautiful, and I wish I had more hands, so I could give this album 4 thumbs up! heh heh heh |
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