Wow.  Way to go Epitaph.  This might have made more sense 15 years ago, but better late than never; legendary punk band Social Distortion has signed to Epitaph Records.

Here’s what Social Distortion frontman, Mike Ness had to say about the signing:

“We feel that Epitaph has a natural understanding of Social Distortion; both the history of the band and the direction we want to go.  Combine that with their successful track record and it felt like a good next step for us. We’ve always been open to new ideas and pushing the envelope, but we have also been very conscientious about the decisions we’ve made. We considered a lot of options, but in the end, Epitaph feels like the right home for us. We’re looking forward to taking this step forward, opening some new doors with this upcoming album and this next chapter of Social Distortion.”

In March the band entered a Burbank studio to record their yet to be titled seventh studio album, produced by Mike Ness, which is slated for release this fall.

“We went back to tape, old compressors and old microphones,” Ness recently told Spinner.com. “We’re just really trying to fight modern technology as much as possible.  The record reminds me very much of Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell (the band’s 1992 release), but also I’m bringing elements of early New York ’70s punk,” said Ness.

Social Distortion also recently announced a U.S. summer tour with Dan Sartain and The Action Design. The tour kicks off July 27 in Poughkeepsie, NY and makes seven stops in the Northeast before the band heads to Chicago for an August 7 main stage performance at this year’s Lollapalooza. Dates with Dan Sartain and The Action Design resume in Green Bay, Wisconsin on August 8.

To check out  a full list of tour dates check out the band’s Dying Scene Shows page.

Below are a couple albums that hit stores today. Listen to a few of their tracks – if you like what you hear support the bands and go buy an album.

Stephen Egerton: Seven Degrees Of Stephen Egerton (Paper+Plastick)

Listen to the entire album right here.
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Business: Doing The Business (Sailor’s Grave)

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Hollowpoints: Old Haunts On The Horizon (Sailor’s Grave)

Listen to 2 album tracks on the band’s MySpace.
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As I Lay Dying: The Powerless Rise (Metal Blade)

Listen to the entire album on the band’s MySpace.
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Smartbomb: Nowhere To Be Found (Mightier Than Sword)

Listen an album track on the band’s MySpace.
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Imadethismistake: Bow & Quiver (Bermuda Mohawk Productions)

Listen to album 5 album tracks on the band’s MySpace.
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Listen up rude boys and girls! Legendary English ska band The English Beat (also known simply as The Beat) might be releasing new material later this year.  The ska band’s frontman Dave Wakeling recently told Billboard.com that he has demos of 17 tracks ready to go. However, the issue remains of how to get them properly produced and distributed. To read the full article go here.

We’re gonna treat this one as an “official rumor” until we have more details. It’s been almost three decades since the band released their last studio effort, 1982’s Special Beat Service.

Death To False Hopes has a whole slew of new releases available for free download today (donations accepted, you stingy bastards).

You can download 2 EP’s from Hold Tight! titled Brother Bear and To The Kittens as well as Alexander Hudjohn‘s (ex Anchor Down) solo album Acreage right here.

One of the releases is a really awesome comp we already wrote about but if you missed the post check it out here.

They’re the best thing to come out of Sydney, well…ever.  They are Lungs and they are streaming The Machinations of Gilbert Ryle on their MySpace page.  The song will appear on their upcoming release The Two Chief World Systems which will be unleashed July 5th through Poison City Records in Australia and No Idea Records in the US.

If you need to get up to speed, grab a copy of the 2008 EP, Solitary, Poor, Nasty, Brutish, Short which also came out through Poison City.  You’ll be doing yourself a favor.

From the ashes of Australian punk staples, Bodyjar, Cola Wars (ex members Bodyjar) have announced June 18th as the release date for their debut album, Invader. They’ve also released the video for Giving It Up to boot and you can check it out here.

Alternatively, you can also stream it and The Man In The Glass on their MySpace page if you don’t want to be sprung by the boss for watching videos on the company dime.

Check them out in the studio along with some questionable dance moves, here.

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You can check out the video for Common Enemy’s song The Thrill Will Kill right here.  The track appears on the band’s last album Living The Dream?, which was released in September, 2009.

Common Enemy are currently on tour.  Check out their Dying Scene Shows page for dates and locations.

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You can download a B-side from The Riot Before right here.  It’s titled Blank Slate.  Uh huh.

Rebellion, the band’s most recent album, was released April 27th on Paper + Plastick Records.

California’s Avenged Sevenfold has given us some details about their upcoming album, which has yet to be titled. The album will be released on July 27 in the United States on Warner Bros. Records and the first single,  titled Nightmare, will be released on May 18. The track clocks in at 6 minutes and 17 seconds, and you can hear a 30-second clip from it right here. The cover art for the single has also been released – take a look yonder << and you’ll see it. Guitarist Zacky Vengence has been quoted as saying, There are no words that will ever describe the feeling of listening to this album while driving home alone at 4 am.

This will be A7X’s first studio album since their self-titled release in 2007, and their fifth full-length effort to date. Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater has temporarily taken over the skins for Avenged after the unexpected death of drummer Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan late last year. Portnoy will also tour with the band on the Rockstar Uproar Festival – the details of which are available here.

Rhode Island is a little bit different from the rest of the United States. Nothing is further than 20 minutes away by car. Prostitution is still legal. And last weekend, Four Year Strong played to a crowd of 100 kids, while the security at the show was the staff of a college radio station. It wasn’t what I expected, but it was 10 times more fun.

After the show, I caught up with guitarist and vocalist Dan O’Connor from FYS (pictured <<< there). Aside from having enviable facial hair, he is a super nice dude and we talked about comic books, touring, and his love/hate relationship with Denver shows – read the interview here!

Thank you to Dan and to the following people for helping me interview & photograph one of my favorite bands: Mara Frankel from I Surrender Records, Kelly Ahern from WQRI, FYS tour manager Josh Lovell, and the DyingScene editor-in-chief Dave, who continues to let me risk ruining his good name and the site’s reputation. And my girlfriend, Ania, without whom I would not have been in RI in the first place.

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