Charlotte post-hardcore act Reason/Define are out to smash stereotypes in the hardcore scene. The all female post-hardcore act looks to break into the male dominated genre and take it by storm. Since being named Carolina’s 2016 Rock Band of the Year, Reason/Define has released their sophomore album In Memory… 

Comprised of lead vocalist Paolina Massaro, bassist, and vocalist Caitlin Rutkowski, guitarist and vocalist Sav Ruff, drummer Syd McVicker, and guitarist Shelby McVicker. They draw inspiration from a range of different rock groups, including Tonight Alive, Every Time I Die, State Champs, Beartooth, A Day to Remember, and Phinehas.

Reason/Define released their debut album Far From Strangers in March of 2017, and have since been playing shows in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, Iowa, Kentucky, and Indiana.

Today Reason/Define release their captivating music video for their remarkable single “Inferno”. They recently released their album In Memory… which included eleven personally crafted and polished songs that don’t lack personality, heart, or quality. Reason/Define is thrilled to début their video for the song “Inferno”. Which you can check out below. Reason/Define pour who they are and what they stand for into their music, and it is authentically represented in visual form with this video. [Read more…]

New York hardcore and oi punk veterans, Will Shepler, (Agnostic Front, Madball) Scott Roberts, (Biohazard, Spudmonsters) and Carlos Congate (45 Adapters, Urban Noise, Legion 76) have joined forces to create the next highly anticipated New York sensation, The Take… I know, right? This shit is fucking titillating.

Shepler, a drummer of legend, is back on the scene after a long hiatus, in which time he’s gained a family and a degree. He never rejoined Agnostic Front after their initial breakup in ’93 due to increasing obligations with his other legendary hardcore band Madball, except briefly when occasioned to fill-in. After Madball, Shepler’s focus fell on his family, respectively, playing in smaller circumstantial acts, and still somehow finding time to go to shows. He says now, however, that he’s ready to let music retake a more prominent role in life, and he’s bringing it back with the help of these other fine gentlemen to their other family.

That’s you and me, young scenesters, and today is your lucky day.

We’re bringing you the first look at The Take’s debut music video for “The Elitist”.

“The Elitist” was directed and put together by noted videographer – legendary in his own rights – Drew Stone, in collaboration with Jeff Plisken of Raised Fist Propaganda. Stone is known for the documentary The New York Hardcore Chronicles, as well as producing videos for a host of reputable musical acts including Run-DMC, Vanilla Ice, and Insane Clown Posse, and currently has a documentary streaming on Netflix called Who the Fuck is That Guy? The Fabulous Journey of Michael Alago.

Keep an eye out for the band’s self-titled album to drop soon on Demons Run Amok Entertainment sometime this spring. Of the album, Shepler says, “The influences are from everything we grew up listening to and were a part of : oi! / punk/ hardcore / rock’n’roll, that is our roots. It’s in our soul. It’s in our DNA! We are not trying to copy something, we are just playing what is within us already and trying to give it a new voice, a fresh sound.”

The band is excited. Here’s one for the punks and skins!! Premiere the music video for The Elitist below.

Photo credit: Rich Zoeller [Read more…]

News of the dramatic upswing in the sales of vinyl albums over the course of the last decade – to levels not seen since prior to the digital age – should come as no surprise to faithful Dying Scene readers. While reissues of classic albums from the 1970s and ’80s tend to rule the popular charts, the punk and hardcore and metal and indie scenes are well represented in the area of sheer volume of new releases and options and variants being cranked out week after week.

Leading the charge in the vinyl revolution has been none other than dyed-in-the-wool punk rock label Pirates Press Records. Founded by Eric “Skippy” Mueller back in 2005 as the advertising arm of the vinyl manufacturer that shares its name and was started a year prior, Pirates Press has built a name and reputation as putting out some of the more special and innovative releases available, particularly under the street punk umbrella. Cock Sparrer “Essentials “boxed set? That was Pirates Press. 46-album Rancid 7-inch boxed set? Pirates Press. Noi!se 12-inch single featuring three-dozen assault rifle-style bullets milled out of the vinyl itself as a fundraiser to tackle gun violence and school shootings? Pirates Press. Playable The Ratchets hologram vinyl (yes…effing playable hologram vinyl!)? Pirates Press, of course. New The Old Firm Casuals full-length that allowed me the opportunity to chat for like an hour with the great Lars Frederiksen a few weeks ago (okay, maybe that one’s not necessarily cutting edge, but it’s my story, dammit)? You guessed it: Pirates Press.

We caught up with the one-and-only Mueller over the phone from his Bay Area, California, office a little while back and found in him a kindred spirit right from jump street; despite living in and operating Pirates Press from the Bay Area, Mueller is a native of Massachusetts and, as such, a diehard – and we mean DIEHARD – card-carrying member of Red Sox Nation. Yet his level of passion for the Red Sox is surpassed by leaps and bounds for his level of passion for the punk rock community and for giving back to a scene that’s given him so much. Case in point: his loves of punk rock and his label and his manufacturing business and his two hometowns collided last weekend when Mueller attended the San Francisco record release show for The Old Firm Casuals’ Holger Danske, left early, caught a red eye flight to Boston in time for Lenny Lashley’s gig at the in-the-shadow-of-Fenway-Park House Of Blues supporting Dropkick Murphys, complete with a hockey bag full of Lenny Lashley’s Gang Of One-themed merch…then flew right back home to San Francisco.

Mueller is endlessly positive and energetic (perhaps more accurately “shot out of a proverbial cannon”), equal parts ultra-confident salesman for his cutting-edge business and, in many ways, quintessentially proud papa for a label that he literally grew out of his old bedroom. In a nutshell, it kinda works like this: Pirates Press, the manufacturer, presses products – mostly vinyl albums and mostly in the Czech Republic – for labels and products of all shapes and sizes. Revenue from the manufacturing side gets infused into Pirates Press Records, the label, offering the opportunity to put out albums for bands and projects that they personally support. And if they come up with a cool new idea or technology or color variant in the manufacturing side, they can use that first on Pirates Press Records releases, allowing an album from The Ratchets or Noi!se or Bar Stool Preachers or Lenny Lashley to effectively become a real-life business card, showing the world via the label the things that the manufacturer is able to do, thereby drawing more labels and artists and brands into the fold on the manufacturing side, and so on and so on. Mueller remains vigorously committed to putting out new and unique and innovative products on the manufacturing side of the business, using the label to showcase some of the things they’re able to pull off, and reinvesting the money earned from larger manufacturing projects into the label, helping bands he loves and respects to put out new, vital music. It’s a fascinating win-win cycle that should continue to provide constant wind into the sails of the good ship Pirates Press for many years to come

Head below to check out our chat with Skippy to find out just what goes in to pulling off some of the seemingly endless options that Pirates Press’ manufacturing arm is able to pull off, particularly their recent run on flexi vinyl and how they were able to reverse engineer new presses to expand their line, and how the label offers Mueller and his fellow Pirates to invest in a record label that offers a home for projects that they – and we – love and support!

[Read more…]

Reno punks Boss’ Daughter are streaming their new song, “Ace of BAC/DC”, which comes from an as of yet unannounced upcoming release.

You can give the song a listen below.

Boss’ Daughter last released Sleep in May 2016.  [Read more…]

Dan Vapid And The Cheats are streaming their new album, Three, which was released on March 15th via Eccentric Pop Records.

You can give the album a listen below.

Dan Vapid And The Cheats last released Two in July 2013. [Read more…]

Louisiana pop punk act Sorry Ghost have released a music video for their latest single, “Bumper Cars.”

You can check it out below.

Sorry Ghost last released Win By Default in December 2016. [Read more…]

Florida’s Dial Drive are streaming their new album, Wasted Time, which was released on March 8th via A Jam Records.

You can give it a listen below.

Dial Drive last released Viva Le’ Jit in January 2018. [Read more…]

Blink-182 fans rejoice? Travis Barker, drummer to the stars has announced some details about the upcoming Blink-182 album. The band worked with writing partners John Feldmann of Goldfinger and Pharrell. I know, I know, how damn punk rock does that sound?! But they have announced the new album will be released before the upcoming Warped Tour shows, and to quote Travis (can he have a single name too?) “the same vibe” as Blink-182 from 2003. While not a huge Blink-182 fan I suppose it’s always good to know they are still at it. No exact release date has been announced, but one can only hope it’s out before former band mate Tom Delonge finds those pesky aliens. 

Blink-182 last released California back in 2016. Their first new music without Delonge and their first new music with Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio.

Canadian acoustic-punk act Chainsaw Bitch Acoustic has released a video for his song “My Meds”. If you’re unfamiliar with Chainsaw Bitch Acoustic, he is sort of Canada’s more maple-covered version of Beans On Toast. The thoughtfulness of Beans On Toast but with a french twist.

Take a peek at the new video below and be sure to check out Chainsaw Bitch Acoustic’s Bandcamp page here to keep up with all his latest releases.

“My Meds” comes off Chainsaw Bitch Acoustic’s latest release 2018. As I said above if you’re a fan of Beans On Toast you will thoroughly enjoy the ninja-acoustic punk of Chainsaw Bitch Acoustic. [Read more…]