by Karl Bakla

Quite often I cum across Punk Rock bands that wear leather jackets, woman's stretch pants, & Converse All-Stars that seem to be more influenced by Ramones-worship bands, than they are the Ramones. Sure this is an assumption, but I have never been afraid to make an ass out of you and me or bring great shame to my family. These bands aren't bad, but I'd rather listen to Boogadaboogadaboogada! by Screeching Weasel or I'd rather just go to the source and listen to Rocket To Russia, which is one of my all-time favorite records*.  So I was stoked to hear Dee Cracks, they are from Austria & they are an exception to this rule. They pull off those buzzsaw Ramones riffs we all love so much and throw in harmonies that are usually only executed perfectly by the Beach Boys or the Queers.  Unlike a lot of Pop Punk bands, Dee Cracks don't have a whiny singer that makes you want to pull out a hammer from your tool box & beat 'em in the face. I'm not saying this to make a point, I am saying this as a warning to singers in Pop Punk bands that sing stupid songs about their ex-girlfriends; I will eventually hit you in the face with a hammer. Your ex dumped you because you are safe, a total wimp, & you have a savings account, your ex prefers me because I am fun & for the first three months my drinking seems charming… I am what some call a-fixer-upper! Don't feel too bad, I'm sure there will be a story in Amp Magazine about some homeless looking guy from the East side that attacked your band's singer. Get over it already, I'm over it… I feel better for putting that out there.  If you aren't a total dick, I would highly suggest checking this record out! This album has 14 tracks that will make you want to chew bubble gum & put on your leather jacket that no longer fits because you are now a fat fuck. Available from Monster Zero Records.

*this only comes into play if I am in a situation when a copy of Pick Your King by Poison Idea is not available.

by Karl Bakla

When I heard that the Post Teens was comprised of a member of Asshole Parade I was eager to hear them, & assumed they would play lighting fast hard core… If you ever got a hold of my fanzine TV Casualty, you’d know I love Asshole Parade so much that I dedicated a whole page of my zine to their song Launch Ramp.
 
 I prepared to listen to this record by drinking 8 pints of beer & a child size bottle of Jameson (200ml), by the time I put this record on I was ready to party to a blistering thrash attack, when the needle hit the vinyl I quickly learned I would not be doing a boneless off the sofa, this was not the second coming of Asshole Parade. In fact my old friends who hate bands that sound like AP, who only listen to bands on Modern Action Records would really like this. What you have here is some Punk Rock ‘n Roll. The perfect soundtrack for holding a bottle of beer in the air while doing your best dance moves. Well, worth checking out & with 6 songs in 6 minutes it’s not like you are investing much of your time in doing so. Available from No Idea Records.