Every Friday the punk rock geniuses here at Dying Scene are going to unleash a little bit of punk scene trivia all over your asses.  Today’s “fun factoid” comes from Canada’s premiere horror-punk group The Creepshow:

The Creepshow originally formed in 2005 and released their first album, Sell Your Soul, with Jen “Hellcat” Blackwood belting out the band’s horror film based lyrics.  Shortly after their first release the band began to grow significantly in popularity but when Blackwood became pregnant she decided that being a mom took precedence over being a punk rock star and decided to leave the band.  The remaining members didn’t have to look too far to find a replacement however, and ended up tapping Blackwood’s younger sister, Sarah “Sin” Blackwood, to fill her big sister’s shoes.  The fill-in was supposed to only be a temporary one but one album later and a ton of touring, it seems Sarah is here to stay.

Know an interesting story or bit of punk rock trivia?  Share it with us here and if we publish it, we just might send you a reward.

In a recent update, hardcore veterans Sick Of It All have announced a release date as well as a title for their new album. In a RoadRunner Records blog, we learn that,

“New York hardcore legends SICK OF IT ALL have set “Based On A True Story” as the title of their new album, due in April via Century Media Records ….Regarding the direction of the new material, SICK OF IT ALL singer Lou Koller told the LimeWire Music Blog, “It’s typical us. It’s a mixture of what we love — old-school sing-along Oi! music mixed with modern hardcore. That’s what we do.“”

Based On A True Story is the latest album from Sick Of It All, following their 2006 release Death To Tyrants.

Some of you may have heard the rumors about who will take over vocal responsibilities for Pennywise after the departure of Jim Lindbergh in August. Let me tell you, IT’S TRUE!!! I’m as happy as a little girl! Destiny Tourbooking has announced that Zoli Teglas of Ignite has signed on to tour with Pennywise for their upcoming European tour.  Who knows if Zoli will end up being the permanent replacement for Lindbergh, all I know is I wish I lived in Europe to see a show.

Keep checking back on Dying Scene for updates in the world of Pennywise, and if you do live in Europe, check out the band’s Dying Scene Shows page for more information on where and when they’ll be playing.

In a recent post on his website, keyboardist Franz Nicolay made the  announcement that his days with The Hold Steady are over. He had this to say about his decision,

“You should know: I’ve left The Hold Steady. I told the band I’d be leaving in early September, played my last show with them in Minneapolis around Thanksgiving, and dotted the t’s and crossed the i’s this week. Five years seemed like a nice round number. Thanks to everyone who was a part of the experience, especially the Unified Scene, who are nice folks. I’ll see you all soon in any case.”

Don’t worry folks, Mr. Nicolay is keeping busy these days. He is currently preparing for the publishing of his first written works, Complicated Gardening Techniques, which is said to be a collection of short stories and Nicolay’s observations. You can expect 3 zines to be released over 2010, which will culminate into one full novel of Nicolay’s work.

Learn more about what’s going on in the life of this wonderfully talented musician on his official website.

As you may know, Florida metalheads The Absence recently began recording their 3rd full length album, Enemy Unbound. The band has been keeping fans up to date by documenting this endeavor of album proportions on video. This is the second video diary by the band, keep checking back for more updates as the album progresses.

Watch the video here.

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In a new update about their upcoming album, the boys from Before Their Eyes have just announced they have two new songs available on their MySpace page. The band has given their page layout a nice makeover, and it is up and running with two new tracks – Sing To Me and Bulletproof. The songs will appear on the band’s upcoming album, Untouchables, due out March 9 on Rise Records. The artwork (image to the left) and track listing have also been revealed to the eager public. Go to the band’s MySpace page to check it all out.

Before Their Eye’s last album, The Dawn Of My Death, was released in 2008 on Rise Records.

The Friday Night Boys have posted a new video prior to and about their upcoming music video, set to be released tomorrow.  The video shows the making of Stupid Love Letter, the band’s official music video.  To watch the band sing and goof around on set and to get all the exclusive, behind the scenes footage, click here. [Read more…]

Breathe Carolina will be playing yet another tour starting in early March.  The Artery Foundation Across the Nation tour begins in Ohio and continues around America, ending in New York.  The participating bands are I See Stars, Asking Alexandria, and Bury Tomorrow. For a list of tour dates, click here. [Read more…]

Damn it, the list of epic acts performing at St. Augstine, FL’s, Harvest Of Hope Fest just keeps growing!  Just confirmed are 80s hardcore punkers 7Seconds (!), New York’s Crime In Stereo, Fat Wreck’s Smoke Or Fire, three-piece pop-punkers Brodway Calls, Matt Pond PA, Japanther, and Yesterday’s Ring!  Already on the tab are Anti-Flag, Doc Oc/Kool Keith, Florida’s own Dead Prez, Small Brown Bike, Mercury Program (more FL natives)… screw it, just go to HOHFest’s site to get the whole lineup.

The Harvest Of Hope Fest is a three day, multiple stage alternative music festival that will benefit and raise awareness for the Harvest of Hope Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides financial, educational, and medical aid to migrant farmworkers all over the country.  The second annual event is taking place March 12th through 14th, 2010 in St. Augustine.

Gonna be off the chain!

This past Tuesday, Motion City Soundtrack gave a short live acoustic performance at Newbury Comics in Boston, MA, to promote the 19 January release of My Dinosaur Life.  Check out “Disappear” and “Fell In Love Without You” here.

I rather enjoy the fact that the production was done sans skins.  Kinda gets to me when bands do acoustic performances set to the steady beat of an overpowering snare (ie. most of Flogging’s acoustic stuff that sounds, essentially, like a full ensemble live recording).  Good show, fellas.

Get My Dinosaur Life out now on Columbia Records.  Motion City Soundtrack is also currently on a US tour.  Check out the dates here. [Read more…]