Osaka based pop-punks Something Holiday have premiered a music video for their latest track “What The Hell.” You can watch the video below.

The track marks the first for the band in three years, and will be one of the 5 tracks on the band’s upcoming EP Four Reasons. You can check out the announcement and cover art here, and the tracklist below the video.

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Kansas City, MO’s Radar State, who boast Matt Pryor and Jim Suptic (The Get Up Kids), Josh Berwanger (The Anniversary/Berwanger) and Adam Phillips (The Architects/The Gadjits) as members, have signed with LA-based Wiretap Records and will release their debut LP ‘Strays’ in January 2019.

The band embark on a tour through January and February to mark the release – dates are below.
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Lucero are no strangers to the Boston area, but it’s been a few years since they played a proper club show of this sort; 2016 saw them headlining the Copenhagen Beer Fest, last years saw them playing on a boat in Boston Harbor. At the tail end of the East Coast run in support of their latest album, Among The Ghosts, the band made a whirlwind return to the city the weekend before last, returning to the legendary Paradise Rock Club for the first time in half a decade. Lucero have played some rather legendarily raucous shows in prior ventures to the greater Boston area, and while the craziest of those days are largely in their collective rear-view mirror, the fact that the band are on a pretty great run right now and that the show took place on a Saturday night resulted in a pretty high-energy affair.

The band kicked things off with the title track from Among The Ghosts, and in rather atypical fashion for Lucero, played largely the same core set they’d been playing on most nights of this particular run (albeit without a visible setlist in the house). What it might have lacked in improvisation, though, the set more than made up for in style and variation. Of course the new album was rightfully best represented throughout, but the band’s self-titled 2001 debut and sophomore album Tennessee, released the following year, combined to make up roughly half of what we’d call the “main set.” The return to prominence of underrated songs like “No Roses No More” and the more recent “I Can’t Stand To Leave You” are particular highlights for yours truly; the latter being an example of a song that, though Nichols wrote it during a different time in his life, has taken on new meaning and in light of more recent events in his life, and perfectly connects some of the grittier musical tones of early Lucero with the family-centered lyrical content so prevalent on Among The Ghosts. And fear not, old-school fans, the night wasn’t exactly formulaic — it’s a Lucero show, after all — as the quintet mixed things up in the latter part of their set, opted to play more music instead of leaving the stage and returning for an “encore,” and caved to audience-led peer pressure by pulling out “Bikeriders” late in the set.

Support on this run came from Brent Cowles and his stellar backing band, the Foxhole Family Band. Sadly, I admittedly wasn’t all-too familiar with the Denver-based singer-songwriter prior to the announcement of his opening role on this tour. Shame on me. Though small in stature, Cowles, the son of a preacher, sings and shreds with the kind of full-bodied soul that would make Sam Cooke look down and smile. Check out Cowles’ work here.

While you’re at it, check out our photo gallery from the evening below. You can find upcoming Lucero tour dates here. Among The Ghosts, as you should be aware, was released August 3rd on Thirty Tigers.

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One of my favorite things about punk, as a genre, is when chaos is expressed through mixing different genres and creating a sound that is unique. Millie Manders and the Shutup’s new release Shutup – EP gives us a glimpse of this magic.

The album opens with a soulful raspy solo vocal but quickly explodes into a cacophony of horns which is then subsequently mixed with an aggressive lyrical delivery that is equal parts UK grime and the punk-ska stylings of Sonic Boom 6. “The Right to Life”, a song about animal rights, showcases Millie’s vocal chops. From the opening jazzy solo, to the fast as lightning rap, to the growl through clenched teeth, this track blends a lot of influences and Millie is more than capable of delivering with style.

The second song “Brave” continues to explore the boundaries between grime and punk with some fantastic instrumentation. I cannot decide which part I like most, the bass and drum lines, the slick guitar work or the jazzy horns during the breakdown. It truly is allowing Millie Manders and the Shutup to “break the walls, burn down the doors, and recreate our (their) world” in a unique way.

“Lollipops” follows this with a more straightforward punk rock jam that has infectious guitar work pushed by a driving drum line and punctuated by a very busy horn section. In a song about the refugee crisis, they display both a high degree of empathy and rage.

The last of this four song trip is “One That Got Away” and it is a more traditional ska-core ripper. Featuring the classic back and forth between metal guitar riffs and loud blaring horns, it’s a song that would be at home on a Devils Night Out era Bosstones playlist. This song showcases Millie’s outstanding rockstar voice.

My concern with this album is that there is magic in the first two songs and they seem to move away from that as the album progresses. There is a unique sound that stands out among the plethora of ska/ska punk releases this year. Even “Lollipops” seems to be a natural derivative of this formula if you want to mix up the ingredients. Then comes “One That Got Away” which from a technical standpoint is a great ska-core song as it is catchy, poppy, and has a memorable chorus that will have you singing along. But so will a lot of other albums that have been released this year. The reason you will return to this album more often is found in the earlier songs.

Shutup – EP gets 4 stars from me, mainly because of the sample size. 3 out of the 4 songs are beautifully mashed chaos that demand attention. The fourth, while still being super solid ska-core, degrades the energy of the album. I know the math does not quite add up, but the album is so excellent otherwise, I rounded up on the stars.

4/5 Stars

I recently had the opportunity to share some words with The Reverend T. Sinister of New Jersey’s premiere Ska-Punk band Hub City Stompers and below is what he had to say about his life and coming up in the New Jersey and New York Hardcore/Ska/Skinhead Scene.

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Hardcore legends Sick Of It All are going release their 12th studio album, “Wake The Sleeping Dragon!” on November 2nd via Century Media but to tingle the tastebuds and get you all going, they are now streaming their title track “Wake The Sleeping Dragon” ahead of the record. 

Check out the new digs below and let us know what you think!

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Albany native punks Drug Church (s/o to NY, fellow New York-er speaking) have just released a new video for their track “Unlicensed Hall Monitor.” 

The track comes from their third release of “Cheer” which is expected to hit the streets on November 2 from Pure Noise.

Drug Church last released Hit Your Head in 2015.

Check out the new video below!

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UK thrash punk act Crooked Little Sons are now streaming their new single “Thick as Thieves” off of Black Sail Records. 

These guys’ last release was Crooked Little Cassette for their sophomore release.

Check out the new single below!

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Lauren Denitzio’s melodic punk act Worriers have just signed to 6131 Records. In addition to the new label, Worriers are now streaming the new re-issue of “Survival Pop” with a new track titled “The Saddest Little Waffle House in Eastern Pennsylvania” and a newly mastered “No More Bad News.”

You can stream the new release here.

Lockjaw Records have announced that they’ll be adding melodic thrash punk act Wolfrik to the family! These guys boast a super technical, and impossible to ignore sound that offers a bit more of a palatable take on thrash for those of you that are into more melody-oriented genres. Lockjaw definitely picked up some fresh talent, and we can’t wait to see what comes from them!

These guys are now streaming their debut EP “Skeleton City,” which you can listen to here.

Congratulations, Wolfrik!