The Manic Standstill is the latest project from Adam Bones, who you may know from his work with Save Ferris, Richie Ramone, The Two Tens, and Josie Cotton – among others! Hot on the heels of their killer debut single “Reasons Why”, they’re back with another absolute heater, their brand new track “Bulletproof”. We’re stoked […]
The Manic Standstill is the latest project from Adam Bones, who you may know from his work with Save Ferris, Richie Ramone, The Two Tens, and Josie Cotton – among others! Hot on the heels of their killer debut single “Reasons Why”, they’re back with another absolute heater, their brand new track “Bulletproof”. We’re stoked to bring you the exclusive music video premiere for this one; check it out below!
“Bulletproof” features Go Betty Go’s Aixa Vilar (drums) and Michelle Rangel (bass), and its music video was also conceptualized and directed by Go Betty Go singer Nicolette Vilar, who had this to say about the project:
“It was a pleasure working with The Manic Standstill on this very fun music video. The concept came to me when listening to the chorus of the song and knowing how tall everyone in the band is. I played with the surreal idea of a woman who goes from being tiny to crazy tall. I’m also inspired by the colors I see out in the California desert. I had a lot of fun directing the band and putting it all together in post.”
The Manic Standstill’s debut LP Moving is set to release later this year on Wiretap Records and Double Helix Records. Other notable guests making appearances on the record include Kody Templeman (The Lillingtons, Teenage Bottlerocket, SACK), Ian Fowles aka EagleBones Falconhawk from The Aquabats, and a shitload of other awesome musicians. Stay tuned for more to come!
This premiere is brought to you in part by Punk Rock Radar. If you’d like your band’s music video, song, album or whatever to be premiered by Dying Scene and Punk Rock Radar, go here and follow these instructions. You’ll be on your way to previously unimagined levels of fame and fortune in no time.
In a genre defined by passion, grit, and raw emotional honesty, EUCHARIST has emerged as a powerful new voice. Born out of a long-standing friendship between vocalist Michael Lombardi and guitarist Andrew Formale, this hardcore duo blends aggression with melody, introspection with intensity — a sound that hits as hard emotionally as it does sonically. […]
In a genre defined by passion, grit, and raw emotional honesty, EUCHARIST has emerged as a powerful new voice. Born out of a long-standing friendship between vocalist Michael Lombardi and guitarist Andrew Formale, this hardcore duo blends aggression with melody, introspection with intensity — a sound that hits as hard emotionally as it does sonically.
From Childhood Bands to Reigniting the Flame
Lombardi and Formale first bonded over music growing up in New York, playing in bands together throughout their youth. As adult life took them down different paths — Lombardi to Philadelphia and Formale to Connecticut — their connection never truly faded. “One day, about a year ago, he hit me up and asked if I was interested in starting a new project with influences like Comeback Kid and With Honor,” Lombardi shares. “I said yes, and we began writing together, sending riffs and ideas back and forth.”
Working remotely, the two began layering voice notes, demos, and ideas into a cohesive, emotionally charged sound that reflected their shared history.
Why ‘Eucharist’?
The band name emerged naturally during early songwriting sessions. “It’s kind of funny,” Lombardi admits. “We started throwing names around, and when we said ‘Eucharist,’ we both thought it sounded cool. Obviously, the word has religious roots, but that’s not why we picked it. For me, music — especially hardcore — has always been like a religion. It’s something I sought out and went back to throughout the difficult times in my life.”
That reverence for music’s healing power bleeds through every track, especially on their debut EP, Some Things Never Change, released in March 2025.
Official EUCHARIST EP Cover Art
Creating Across Distance
The physical distance between members forced a different kind of creativity. Formale, a multi-instrumentalist, handled guitars, bass, and drums, while Lombardi focused on lyrics and vocals. “Every song began with a feeling,” Lombardi explains. “When I heard the instrumentals, I let them guide the vocal patterns and mood. Sometimes I’d send him riffs, and he’d turn them into something way better than I imagined.”
That push-and-pull dynamic created an EP that feels cohesive yet deeply personal. A raw document of friendship and shared history turned into music.
Image created by Golden Amplifier (Monica Ritchie)
Themes That Hit Home
Some Things Never Change is unflinching in its honesty. “Life’s not always fair, and as you get older, you have to deal with different challenges, hardships, and loss,” Lombardi says. “The important thing is figuring out how to overcome it, while staying true to who you are and remembering where you came from.”
Songs like “Familiar Spirits” capture the rawness of grief. “The story for me is about losing someone you love and struggling to figure out how to move forward. It’s about the confusion and anger that come with loss,” Lombardi shares.
At its core, the EP leaves space for personal interpretation. “One of the most beautiful things about music is that what it means to me can be completely different from what it means to someone else,” he adds. “And sometimes, anger feels better than sadness.”
Influence and Evolution
Their sound is a collision of musical worlds. Lombardi grew up on bands like Glassjaw, Have Heart, and H2O, while Formale leans more metal, citing Metallica, Bleeding Through, and Converge. Together, they bring the melodic intensity of early 2000s hardcore and post-hardcore with a deeply emotional edge.
Official Eucharist Photo: Left to right — Andrew Formale and Michael Lombardi
Lyrics as Therapy
“My lyrics are how I process it all,” Lombardi shares. Eucharist has become his outlet, evolving into brutally honest music that speaks to anyone carrying unseen scars.
His hope is that listeners find comfort in the chaos. “If even one person hears a song and feels like they’re not alone. That means everything.”
What’s Next for Eucharist?
Eucharist is just getting started. While there are no full tours planned yet, the band is already looking ahead. “We’re hoping to record another five-song EP and play some shows,” Lombardi shares. “We might evolve a bit, but at the core, we’re focused on making the music we love.”
Their message to others looking for a place in the hardcore scene is simple but powerful: “We’re still aspiring musicians ourselves, but if we had one piece of advice, it’s this: stay true to yourself, and never be ashamed of where you came from.” In a world that demands conformity, Eucharist stands as a reminder that music can be sacred, not because of tradition, but because of the truth it carries.
There’s a name popping up all over the place lately that has people intrigued. On flyers and festival lineups all over the US it seems that Portland’s Distorted Times are very quickly making their mark on the punk rock scene, but just who is this band of ambitious upstarts? I sat down with singer and […]
There’s a name popping up all over the place lately that has people intrigued. On flyers and festival lineups all over the US it seems that Portland’s Distorted Times are very quickly making their mark on the punk rock scene, but just who is this band of ambitious upstarts? I sat down with singer and guitarist Kevin Hudson to shed some light, share the new single “Another Wasted Night” and shoot the shit. Check out the new single below and read on to see what all the fuss is about!
DS: Hey bud! Just to get it out of the way, we’ve known each other for a long time now, but can you give a little introduction to our readers?
KH: Thanks Andy! I’m Kevin Hudson, I write songs and sing and play guitar for Distorted Times. I played my first punk show in December of 1994 with My Goldfish Ned and have just been playing punk around the Northwest for the last thirty years having fun and touring out across the country a bit here and there. I guess bands I’ve been in that your readers might recognize since My Goldfish Ned were Devour, Freelance Terrorists, The Knuckles, Acoustic Chaos, and Ground Score. Distorted Times is just kind of a continuation, or maybe the evolved form of Ground Score really. The core of Ground Score was myself on guitar and vocals, Jay Crash on bass and vocals and Ian Jackson on drums, and the three of us have been friends and done a bunch of musical projects together over the last probably 25 years or so.
When Covid hit back in 2020, Ground Score was really doing a ton of shit, but coming out of the pandemic we had expanded the musical vision a little bit and shuffled around members and instrumentation, so we decided we needed to move forward with a new name. Distorted Times was the name of a punk zine I used to put out with some friends back in the late 90s so when that came up as a possible direction we all kind of latched on to it, given the state of the world and everything right now.
DS: You guys have been popping up on a bunch of high-profile festivals and runs lately. Congrats, by the way! I was fortunate to be able to catch you guys opening for Ignite and Death By Stereo, as well as your recent weekend run with Koffin Kats and The Last Gang. As musicians you’ve all been around the block a bit with previous bands, but considering Distorted Times is such a new face on the scene, how has the reception been and what have been some standout gigs so far?
KH: We played our first show as Distorted Times in August of last year and have played maybe 15 or 16 shows over that span and it’s been fun as fuck and cool as hell to see that our history and friends around the scene have helped us get off to such a great start. The shows with the bands you mentioned were really fun and we were grateful just to be invited. It was great seeing you at those shows and that’s one of the things that has been really fun is to start traveling around a bit again and reconnecting with friends and just being part of fun fuckin shows. The run we did with DFL was a good one. We toured around a little bit with DFL as Ground Score back in 2018 and 2019 so it was awesome to see those guys again this year, plus Berzerk was part of that package and we all go back with them to the late 90s as kids in the Portland punk scene so getting to hang out and play shows and get nostalgic and shit backstage with them was cool. Berzerk still kills it by the way, which you love to see.
DS: You’ve been dropping some killer singles lately! Your most recent release “Hella Highwater” even had a guest spot from Jay Navarro of The Suicide Machines! How did that come about and what was the experience like?
KH: We have been approaching this first set of songs a little differently than we have in the past. Partly just due to how releasing music has evolved and partly because we’re just completely DIY and self-funding this stuff. We’ve put out four singles in the last 8 months with four more to come over this summer. Like I said, we’re doing it all ourselves so we’re just releasing the songs as they’re done, and we’ve been working really hard to get them just right, especially Jay Crash, who has kind of adopted the producer role for these songs.
Having Jay Navarro sing a couple of verses on “Hella Highwater” was really a dream come true for us. I mean, Jay Crash and I fucking bonded hard over Destruction By Definition back in the mid-90’s and we’ve always carried a torch for those guys. It’s one of those things where if you’re just involved in the scene and doing fun stuff and not being an asshole you make relationships over the years, and if you know how much Jay Crash has contributed to so many bands over the years behind the scenes you’re not surprised when he walks into rehearsal and floats the idea of having Jay Navarro sit in on some vocals on a track. I mean, I was surprised for sure but knowing Jay Crash the way I do it’s not totally shocking when he pulls off something like that I guess. We had our local buds Eric and Stevie and the Los Mal Hablados crew on that track, too, as well as on “Thieves & Leeches”. It’s been a big family effort really. We have Pete Steinkopf from Bouncing Souls playing lead guitar on “High Times” for fuck’s sake, which is another crazy thing Jay pulled off. If I were going to give you a scoop it would be that we have singles coming up this summer with Chris from Crazy and the Brains doing some vocals and Joey Steel from Cop/Out and All Torn Up doing some vocals as well.
DS: Your newest single “Another Wasted Night” is a bit of a departure from the previous releases. It definitely stands out as a triumphant emotional release in your set. Can you tell us a little bit about the song and what it means to you?
KH: “Another Wasted Night” is the song we close our set with when we play out, so it’s an important one. I think that’s just because even though it is a bit of a heavy emotional song it ends on kind of an inspirational or uplifting note, so that’s a nice thing to leave hanging in the air when you leave the stage. For me it’s pretty intensely personal. I wrote it during a tough time when I was going through a bunch of upheaval in my personal life, so performing it is always pretty cathartic. The song starts in a dark place but it evolves pretty steadily into a positive note. By the end of it I’m actually just kind of singing things that I felt like I needed someone to say to me when I was in that place, so I think it’s a worthwhile message to put out there. We had a guest appearance on this one too, funny enough. The violin you hear throughout is Kyle from Beggar’s Canyon, who are some local friends of ours. To put another fine point on that, our keyboardist Brit, who is also Jay’s sister, is married to Beggar’s Canyon’s accordion player Matt, and our lead guitar player Luke is a friend we’ve seen play in his band Pi Fire around town and also works in production at a few venues, so like I said before this project is really just friends and family having fun and trying to expand traditional punk music in some way and in an organic way.
DS: Given the steady flow of single drops this year, can we expect a full-length or a physical ep release from Distorted Times any time soon?
KH: Yep, once all eight of these songs are out, we’ll re-master them for vinyl and put them out that way. Maybe a Cassette or a CD, too, we’ll see. One thing that has been fun and unique about our single releases is how we’ve had stand-alone pieces of art made for each one, and each song is intended as a stand-alone piece of art in that same vein. We were hoping to have it all pulled together sooner for a full release, but I think it’s working out okay given that we’re doing all of this by ourselves. We also dropped our first music video last month for “Thieves and Leeches”, so we’ve been staying busy.
DS: Right on! I look forward to checking it out. So, what is coming up next for y’all? Any big plans in the works that you can share with our readers?
KH: We’ll have another single coming out next month, and then we’re off to Montreal to play Pouzza Fest, followed by a little run down to Punk Rock Bowling to play a club show with Strung Out, Good Riddance and our buds in The Last Gang. After that we’re back to Oregon to play the Coastal Choas Festival out in Astoria, and then probably the biggest show of any of our lives when we play Portland Waterfront Park for Punk in the Park on June 28 with Descendents, Propaghandi, 7 Seconds and so many awesome bands I won’t even list them. It’s insane! If you’d told me when I was a teenager running around playing punk shows at EJ’s, Satyricon and Stage 4 that someday they’d be throwing punk shows of this size at Waterfront Park with all of these legendary punk bands, I would have thought you were out of your fucking mind! It really is kind of insane to think about.
DS: Sounds like you all have a busy year ahead of you! Thanks for your time, Kevin! It’s always a pleasure to catch up with you. Any final thoughts or messages you’d like to finish with?
KH: Nope, just that I know these are some really weird and distorted times, but that’s when communities like us punks and weirdos come together and help each other out, so let’s all keep that in our minds and hearts. Be good to each other out there, people!
Catch Distorted Times out in the wild at the dates below!
May 16 – Pouzza Fest – Montreal, Quebec
May 21 – The Sound Lounge – Grants Pass OR – w/The John Dough Boys, Sucker Punch
May 24 – Fremont Country Club – Las Vegas NV – w/Strung Out, Good Riddance, The Last Gang
May 25 – Punk Rock Museum – Las Vegas NV
June 28 – Punk In The Park – Portland OR – w/The Descendents, The Interrupters, Screeching Weasel, Propaghandi, 7 Seconds, Mustard Plug, Swingin Utters
BlackWristBand‘s debut album, My Escape, has many moods and journeys through different genres, but mostly punk. It’s an album from the mind of John McGeown, who wrote all the songs and played all the instruments in what is an exercise in life, heartbreak, and reflections throughout its ten tracks. If there’s one thing apparent, it’s […]
BlackWristBand‘s debut album, My Escape, has many moods and journeys through different genres, but mostly punk. It’s an album from the mind of John McGeown, who wrote all the songs and played all the instruments in what is an exercise in life, heartbreak, and reflections throughout its ten tracks. If there’s one thing apparent, it’s that McGeown wears his heart on his sleeve through a myriad of genres, and that is by no means a bad thing.
My Escape opens with “Split Open,” a Jawbreaker-esque song about friendship and growing up. It’s a great opening to an album that has the influential band’s fingerprints all over it. “Soap Box” is about as political as this album gets, establishing that these songs will be his mouthpiece for fighting back. “Soap Box” does a good job of harnessing the opening song’s energy without letting it waver too much or too little. McGeown takes a turn with his next couple of tracks, “Second Chances” and “Just the Same,” by showing off his poppier punk skills. Some pop punk can border on sounding the same, but McGeown’s lyrics are what sold me on these tracks. My favorite track has to be side one closer and Midwest emo-tinged, “Eternal Rest.” it is a bit of an outlier from the others with the exception of the last song on the album, the reverb tinged “Vastness.”
The jump from “Eternal Rest” to “In the Mouth of the Beast” was a bit of a weird transition for me. I feel like it would work better if you were listening on an actual record you had to flip rather than streaming or on a CD, but side two’s opening track is a great ride, nonetheless. Very reminiscent of 90s punk rock bands, “Mirror” and “Time” give great perspective and self-reflection in a couple more mid-tempo melodic punk rock songs. Another highlight of the album is “I Don’t Care,” a song that bounces back and forth between apathy and disinterest. Its lyrics hit home for an older millennial who wavers who sometimes does the same thing. I also think I heard a little nod to Nirvana’s “Breed” in the middle of the song.
While I wouldn’t call this album riff-heavy, it is definitely melodic in several places. It’s been a minute since I heard an album that felt so cohesive in theme while being so diverse in sound. While it does jump around genres, John McGeown does a great job with each one.
Greetings, and welcome to the Dying Scene Record Radar. If it’s your first time here, thank you for joining us! This is the weekly* column where we cover all things punk rock vinyl; new releases, reissues… you name it, we’ve probably got it. Kick off your shoes, pull up a chair, crack open a cold […]
Greetings, and welcome to the Dying Scene Record Radar. If it’s your first time here, thank you for joining us! This is the weekly* column where we cover all things punk rock vinyl; new releases, reissues… you name it, we’ve probably got it. Kick off your shoes, pull up a chair, crack open a cold one, and break out those wallets, because it’s go time. Let’s get into it!
Check out the video edition of this week’s Record Radar, presented by Punk Rock Radar:
Australian melodic punks Fake News have a new record coming out on May 7th. It’s called Dead Set and you can pre-order it now from Thousand Islands Records in North America, as well as Disconnect Disconnect in the UK and Bearded Punk Records in Europe. Limited to 200 copies on purple w/ black splatter colored vinyl!
Montreal melodic hardcore band Bring the Light released their debut EP Building Chaos digitally in 2024, and a year later People of Punk Rock Records is giving it a vinyl release with 100 copies on Black & Canary Yellow colored wax. Get it here!
HUGE NEWS!!! Common Rider’s 2nd album This is Unity Music is back in print for the first time in 23 years and their 2005 split with the almighty Against All Authority is being released on vinyl for the first time ever! These reissues are exclusive to Le Noise and are limited to 500 copies each. Get your copies here!
Aussie melodic hardcore punks Away From Now’s debut album Blackout is being released on vinyl for the first time ever in honor of its 20th anniversary. You can get it on two color variants – clear vinyl (100 copies) and transparent yellow w/ black & grey splatter (150 copies) – riiiiiiiiiiiight here.
Some more massive news coming out of Australia this week! Our friends at SBAM Records have been on a heater lately and they’re staying hot, teasing some big time Frenzal Rhomb reissues. Specifically, they’re gonna be reissuing Not So Tough Now (out of print since 2021) and Meet the Family (out of print since 2019), and releasing their 1994 Dick Sandwich EP on vinyl for the first time ever! These aren’t up for pre-order yet, but they will be soon so keep your eyes peeled!
Another big time release from People of Punk Rock Records: SoCal skate punk veterans Dogwood’s debut Good ol’ Daze is getting its vinyl cherry popped nearly 30 years after its original release. You can get it on 5 color variants – each limited to 100 copies – right here.
Hailing from the greatest city known to modern civilization (otherwise known as Tampa, Florida), The Eradicator’s got a new 8 song 12″ EP called You Can Hate The Eradicator due out September 12th! Check out the lead single below and pre-order the record here.
Those good Ontario boys The Dirty Nil have a new album due out July 25th on Dine Alone Records. The lead single “Gallop of the Hounds” is streaming now, and you can find links to pre-order The Lash on various color variants which are varied right here. There’s a 7″ for the single as well, featuring an exclusive B Side called “I Wanna Be Your Dog”.
The Dwarves have been cranking out records lately and their latest is a new pressing of 2018’s Rex Everything, a career-spanning compilation re-recordings with Queens of the Stone Age’s Nick Oliveri on vocals. There’s an indie variant on orange colored vinyl and the band’s got signed copies up for pre-order on their store for $25 (not sure if this is the same variant).
Interscope Records is reissuing Angels & Airwaves 2007 album I-Empire on a beautiful new blue / black marble color variant with updated cover art to match. This is part of the Interscope Vinyl Collective subscription thingy, so if you want it you’ve gotta be subscribed for the month of May. Go here do to that.
Here we go, here we go, here we go grab the Bouncing Souls’ brand new 7″ single! Available now on maroon/blue (500 copies), clear (300 copies), and black vinyl (200 copies – pro gamer move making black vinyl the most limited). Check out “United” below and catch the Bouncing Souls on tour now with H2O!
After many years of waiting, Ataris fans are on the cusp of getting some new music from Kris Roe and co. The band has signed to Double Helix Records with plans for a brand new LP – their first in 18 years – due out later this year. The lead single “Car Song” is due out May 2nd and you can pre-order the 7″ featuring a full band acoustic recording of the classic “In This Diary” on the B Side. This 7″ is a tribute to Kris’ dad William Charles Roe, who passed in 2014 and… quite interestingly… there’s a variant that has his ashes pressed into the record.
Ska-funk legends Fishbone have a brand new 12-song LP called Stockholm Syndrome due out June 26th and available to pre-order now on “Blood Red” colored vinyl – and CD! (featuring a bonus track). Get the record here and catch the band on tour now in Europe, or on their upcoming US tour with Less Than Jake and the Suicide Machines; peep the dates here.
Los Angeles punks Ways Away (members of Stick to Your Guns, Samiam, BoySetsFire, Joyce Manor, etc.) will be releasing their new album I’m Not You on July 18th. The new single “Fixed From The Jump” is streaming now – check it out below 👇 – and you can pre-order the album on four color variants from the band’s webstore, along with an exclusive splatter variant from Smartpunk Records. The album will feature guest appearances from Hot Water Music’s Chuck Ragan, Donots frontman Ingo Knollman, and Eric Egan of Heart Attack Man.
Colorado punks The Sleights (members of the Nobodys!) just put out a new record on Rad Girlfriend Records and it’s fuckin bad ass! Grab This One’s Gonna Hurt on red, clear, and/or lime green colored vinyl right here. For fans of: The Dopamines, Dear Landlord, Civil War Rust, Rhythm Collision, etc.
Well, that’s all, folks. Another Record Radar in the books. As always, thank you for tuning in. If there’s anything we missed (highly likely), or if you want to let everyone know about a new/upcoming vinyl release you’re excited about, leave us a comment below, or send us a message on Facebook or Instagram, and we’ll look into it. Enjoy your weekend, and don’t blow too much money on spinny discs (or do, I’m not your father). See ya next time!
Wanna catch up on all of our Record Radar posts? Click here and you’ll be taken to a page with all the past entries in the column. Magic!
Punk rock and lizards go well with each other. The Jesus Lizard, and Dead Milkmen’s Big Lizard In My Backyard album are just two examples. For Patrick Kamberos – aka “Pat D Waggon” – reptiles, amphibians, and other exotic creatures are a huge part of his life. Kamberos, along with two of his fellow native […]
Punk rock and lizards go well with each other. The Jesus Lizard, and Dead Milkmen’s Big Lizard In My Backyard album are just two examples.
For Patrick Kamberos – aka “Pat D Waggon” – reptiles, amphibians, and other exotic creatures are a huge part of his life. Kamberos, along with two of his fellow native Chicagoans, Michael and Shay Edelen, run Cold Blooded & Bizarre in Charlotte, NC.
Kamberos regularly returns to Chicago to hang with friends and family in the punk scene there. He’s such a beloved member of the community there that Herb Rosen and Gary Kessler of Liar’s Club even had a birthday message put up on the marquee at the iconic Wiener’s Circle for Kamberos’ 40th earlier this year.
Recently, I had a chance to catch up with Kamberos to discuss work, family and punk rock songs.
Dying Scene (DS): How did you discover your love of reptiles and exotic creatures?
Patrick Kamberos (PK): Starting at a very young age I’ve always had a love and fascination with the natural world. My parents didn’t get me video games as a kid but instead encouraged me to play out in the yard and explore. They were also big fans of road trips; we traveled to 46/50 states. On these trips we’d make frequent stops to visit and explore natural spaces. Although my parents were never personally into cold-blooded creatures, they were always very supportive of my unusual interests. They were always happy to drive me to remote gas stations in the middle of nowhere at night, not for gas, but so that I could hunt for whatever insects or other creatures might be drawn to the bright lights! They also helped me get certified to scuba dive in my youth which helped foster a lifelong passion and my love of the underwater world.
My favorite uncle, Daniel J. Murray (1945-2009), would accompany us on a number of our family trips, both domestic and abroad. He was an avid birder who knew more about winged creatures than most ornithologists. He was like a second dad to me, and also was a major part in fostering my love of the natural world and the creatures within. He was also deathly afraid of snakes!
DS: How did the store and, more importantly, the nonprofit come about, and what does it do?
PK: Our shop, Cold Blooded & Bizarre, was the brainchild of my business partner, Michael Edelen [pictured here with Kamberos]. Mike and I met in college at DePaul University and quickly became best friends. In addition to shooting pool at Delilah’s & hanging out at Liar’s Club, traveling and exploring the natural world was another of the shared interests that made us lifelong friends. After graduating with a business entrepreneurship degree, he soon moved out of Chicago to pursue a job in Charlotte. That job didn’t work out, & his wife suggested doing something involving animals.
I was at a transitional period in my life & when he reached out to me with an idea for an ethical reptile business I was on board 100%! When we first opened the shop we assumed that we would get the occasional owner surrender or rescue animal, but in reality it was SO MUCH MORE. We soon realized that opening a nonprofit would help with all of the rescue/relinquish animals.
DS: What are the best things about these creatures?
PK: The best thing about reptiles, amphibians, & invertebrates, like the punk scene, is that they’re weird and beautifully unique. Most people don’t have a pet snake or a collection of exotic tarantulas. They help people to appreciate the creatures in the natural world beyond their backyard and what they experience in daily life. Learning where our plethora of creepy crawly creatures are native, their habitats, and the perils they face (typically habitat loss, human encroachment, pollution, and invasive animals such as housecats), has broadened my horizons and deepened my interest in protecting places that I hope to visit one day, even if it never happens. All of nature is connected and every living thing plays an important role in sustaining the greater good of the ecosystem as a whole. Another thing to note is that we don’t sell wild caught (aka field collected) animals as that would cause an imbalance in nature around the world. Cold Blooded & Bizarre = CB&B = Captive Bred & Born, meaning that all of the animals that we sell were produced in captivity. In addition to working with a multitude of local breeders & enthusiasts, many of our animals were bred right here in our shop!
The best thing about reptiles, amphibians, & invertebrates, like the punk scene, is that they’re weird and beautifully unique.
DS: Why do they make great pets?
PK: Cold-blooded creatures make great pets for a variety of reasons. Some are low maintenance. Snakes, for instance, only need to eat once a week. Our biggest snakes only need to eat once a month! They’re nondestructive. I’ve never heard of a lizard or frog in an enclosure clawing up the furniture or getting into the trash. Many live in bioactive tanks where everything from the plants to the dirt itself is alive. This type of housing is most akin to the environment where the species’ wild cousins would exist, and the whole enclosure is a living work of art. Exotic pets also help people learn about the natural world in other ways, such as mimicry, aposematic coloration, and camouflage.
**The two-headed corn snake in the picture to the left is named Rock & Roll. It is one of Kamberos’ favorite animals. He added that Rock is the left head in the photo and Roll, the right one.**
DS: What are their most important roles in the ecosystem?
PK: The diversity of life on our planet is integral to the health of the world itself. Most reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates are not apex predators. They fall somewhere in the middle of the food chain. They help keep certain populations of other creatures in check while simultaneously being food for and sustaining other species. Snakes control rodent populations without the need for toxic chemicals or indiscriminate kill-all’s like glue. Every animal has its place and an important role to carry out to keep our planet healthy and thriving.
DS: What are the biggest myths and misconceptions about reptiles and other creatures you rescue?
PK: Some of the biggest misconceptions about reptiles, snakes in particular, are that they’re dangerous and bloodthirsty creatures that want to hurt people. In reality, snakes, even the venomous species, just want to be left alone. Snakes don’t bite unless they’re cornered & feel threatened. They hope that they go unnoticed by larger and more formidable animals, such as humans, and will flee rather than fight 100% of the time. Sometimes, the direction that they choose to flee is right between someone’s legs, which only adds to their bad reputation and vilification.
DS: Now to humans. In April of 2023 you donated a kidney to your father Ted Kamberos [pictured here with his son]. What was that experience like?
PK: Two years ago, my dad’s health was on the serious decline. His kidneys were functioning at maybe 15% of normal, and he needed help. It turned out that I was a viable match & I didn’t hesitate to agree to give him one of mine. The surgery and recovery period were a bit rough. It was honestly a good bit worse for me than it was for him, but that’s thankfully all over with now.
He’s done so much for me over the years that this was the least I could do to repay all of the love, support, and forgiveness he’s shown me over the course of my life. As much as it sucked initially, I’d do it again if I could. I’m happy to report that today, two years later, he’s doing so much better & his life is basically back to normal.
DS: Of course this is a punk music site, so I have to ask about songs. Do you have a favorite punk or punk-adjacent song related to coldblooded animals?
PK: [chooses Snake Bite Love by Motorhead for the former)That’s a good one. Though I love all the animals & all the punk rock so making a true decision might change daily or hourly.
[For the latter] “Rose Tattoo” by Dropkick Murphys is my favorite song. “Rose Tattoo” is more meaningful to my life. It made my parents understand all my tattoos (that they hate.) Now part of my Irish mom’s [Nora Kamberos] playlist.
Finally, if you are considering getting a reptile for the first time, Kameberos has some recommendations:
What a great read! Punk truly lives in the Age of Reptiles!
As a side note, discovered this article through Pat’s parents today at the bar, I played “Rose Tattoo” on the speakers in honor of their discovery of punk and quiet acceptance of tattoos through their son lol
The word “supergroup” gets thrown around a lot. No matter the genre or status of the members, the results of these groups are often dismal, but sometimes it works out well. This is the case with Caged View: formed in 2022 when former members of San Francisco hardcore band Allegiance—Duane Harris (guitar), Ross Trenary (guitar), […]
The word “supergroup” gets thrown around a lot. No matter the genre or status of the members, the results of these groups are often dismal, but sometimes it works out well. This is the case with Caged View: formed in 2022 when former members of San Francisco hardcore band Allegiance—Duane Harris (guitar), Ross Trenary (guitar), and Mike Quirk (bass)—combined their talents with vocalist Pat Piccolo and drummer Joey Raygoza. After previously releasing a demo EP in two parts, Caged View presents their new EP, New Fuel For An Old Fire, perfectly encapsulates this band.
New Fuel For An Old Fire captures many of the touchstones of punk rock and hardcore. Songs like “Compassion Fatigue,” “Highest Standard of Life,” and “Fact Checking in the Age of Conspiracy,” embody the classic DC hardcore sound. “Time Blind” is about as mellow as this album gets—a little melodic in the middle with a warm ending. However, this reprieve is only temporary before the drums of “Survival Pending” ramp the album back up to speed. “Keys to the City (Noir Still-Life)” may be slower than most of the tracks on this EP, but it is no less heavy. Caged View’s bone-breaking guitars and pounding drums may be familiar to the genre, but undeniably, they do some exceptional work with it. We caught up with Duane and Pat to talk about the new EP
I can see that Caged View is composed of different bands. How did you all decide to start a band together?
Duane: Our drummer, Joey (King Woman, Lies, Skin Like Iron) and I tried starting a band years ago that dissolved before playing a show, so I always had him in the back of my head as someone I’d like to play music with again. Eventually, we started jamming some stuff that I had written during the height of the pandemic to test the water. This was during the time when people were super sketched out to be inside together, but once life slowly started to normalize again, we recruited my former Some Still Believe and Allegiance bandmates, Ross Trenary and Mike Quirk to play second guitar and bass. Eventually, Pat joined on vocals, who we all knew from his time as the vocalist of Embrace The End and also Beneath The Ashes.
Pat: We have all played in different bands over the years, but have all known, been friends with, and played shows with each other since about 2001. With that, there is a shared history that made it feel easy and natural for us all to come together and play music that we all enjoy and feel connected to. Though some of our old bands are sonically different from one another, and different from this project specifically, it seemed seamless and organic for us to all jam and create music.
You’ve released a demo before this, did any of the songs on New Fuel For An Old Fire evolve from any of those songs?
Pat: In many ways the demos are a bunch of exploring and trying things out, giving us a foundation to build something somewhat different and a little more intentional together for the new ep. We had originally intended to revisit some demo material, but by that time we hit the studio, we ended up only recording new material.
Duane: Just to clarify, while we have two demos online, they are just two parts of the same demo tape. We just didn’t want to release 7 demo songs at the same time, so we dropped them in two different volumes. The physical release, released by New Knee Records is all the songs on the same tape. To piggyback off what Pat said, the demo tracks are certainly us trying to find a sound that works for us, and as the primary songwriter in the band, there were some ideas that I was excited to experiment with, and some others that I’d probably not try again. Either way, it was certainly a great foundation to build off of as we wrote New Fuel For An Old Fire, and I’m happy to see the direction that the band went in. Oh, and I just remembered that there actually is one song on the record that has existed from the demo-era called “Fact Checking In The Age of Conspiracy” that was written back in 2021, but was never completed. We decided to work on it some more in 2024 and it ended up becoming a pretty cool song that I’m glad made the record.
What was your mindset with these songs? Were you aiming for a different sound within the genre?
Duane: My only mindset was writing fun music that’s not necessarily super “hardcore” but more-so on the hardcore-adjacent tip. Caged View is interesting for me, because sonically and genre-wise, I’m still not sure where we fit in or even how to describe the band at times. We can play with fast hardcore bands like Urban Sprawl or Discourage, but we also fit in well with more post-hardcore/punk stuff like No Lights or Minus Numbers, or even something more chaotic like Ex Everything. I suppose that this is all a good thing, though!
Pat: With this project, we really were looking to explore whatever direction sounded cool to us in the moment. Some of the material that Duane came to the table with could have fit into completely different genres, but as we worked through it, we came to a conclusion that if we liked it, we could play it and see it through.
Tell us a bit about the singles you’ve released (New Fuel for an Old Fire and Time Blind) and the latest one Lighting Out?
Pat: New Fuel For An Old Fire, both musically and lyrically, is urgent and a bit unsettled. Lyrically, it’s an urgent reaction to what’s happening in the world around us, and sonically, it’s energetic, bordering on chaotic at parts, but still cohesive and direct. It’s more a battle cry than a eulogy. “Time Blind” is probably our least categorical in sound. It starts hard and has a lot of melody tucked into the rest. Lyrically, it’s probably the most introspective, but its theme is one that touches us all – life and death. “Lighting Out” is probably our most “hardcore” sounding track. Lyrically it’s basically about blowing up your life in small and big ways and then the struggle and time there after, picking up the pieces.
Duane: Regarding “Time Blind,” this song is one that I’m proud of due to never writing music quite like this before. As Pat mentioned, the song starts very aggressive, and then as the song progresses, the verses and choruses take on some catchiness and melody that eventually lead to an outro that I can only describe as something that was influenced by 90’s emo/screamo bands, although I’m not sure if it comes off that way. I even got our buddies from No Lights, Matt O’Brien & Israel Bransan to help on some vocal melodies and a guitar lead in the outro. It came out so cool and I’m really looking forward to hearing what people think of the song.
Are any of you active in other bands right now or is Caged View the main focus?
Pat: I have a pretty busy life outside of the band so Caged View is my main focus, however, my old band, Embrace The End is going to play some shows in the near future, so some energy is going to that as well.
Duane: I have another band called Malinformants, that’s kind of a hardcore/melodic punk hybrid. If you took fast straight-up hardcore with politically and socially charged lyrics and threw it in a blender with some good ole’ fashion melodic East Bay Punk, you’d have Malinformants. Outside of that, Allegiance is gearing up to play again soon, so that’s keeping Ross and I busy lately and is turned out to be a lot of fun playing with those guys again.
Our drummer, Joey stays pretty busy with King Woman, and they’ve gone on to do some pretty cool things over the years. I’m proud of what he’s done in that band. He also has a fast hardcore band called Firearm who play once in a great while and are super cool.
Are there any tour dates beyond the record release show?
Pat: We plan to do some short stints playing out whenever we can. Right now, we are looking towards some PNW shows in the summer. If people will have us, and we can make it out, we are happy to play wherever we can!
Duane: As Pat mentioned, we are currently working on booking a PNW weekend of shows that will likely take place late-summer or early fall with our friends, No Lights. Outside of local shows, including our record release show on May 10th in Oakland, we are going to play shows that our schedules allow. At this point as a band, we’ve played up and down California and I’m sure we will continue to do so, but I know we’re itching to play some other places and help push this record!
New Fuel For An Old Fire is out on GGT Records and streaming everywhere on 4/25/25.
Have you heard the news? Leftöver Crack’s got a brand new single “White Guilt Atrocity Quilt” (and an accompanying B-Side “Brad Sabbath”) out now and streaming everywhere! And today they’ve got a music video for that brand new single, premiering exclusively right here on DyingScene.com! Check it out below. Look out for a 7″ with […]
Have you heard the news? Leftöver Crack’s got a brand new single “White Guilt Atrocity Quilt” (and an accompanying B-Side “Brad Sabbath”) out now and streaming everywhere! And today they’ve got a music video for that brand new single, premiering exclusively right here on DyingScene.com! Check it out below.
Look out for a 7″ with these two tracks, coming soon from Recidivist Bible Camp and SBÄM Records. And speaking of SBÄM, in case you missed it, they’re also doing colored vinyl reissues for LÖC’s 2004 classic Fuck World Trade and 2015’s Constructs of the State. You can pre-order both records on a slew of color variants right here.
This premiere is brought to you in part by Punk Rock Radar. If you’d like your band’s music video, song, album or whatever to be premiered by Dying Scene and Punk Rock Radar, go here and follow these instructions. You’ll be on your way to previously unimagined levels of fame and fortune in no time.
Here are some words about “White Guilt Atrocity Quilt”, courtesy of the band:
The new song by Leftöver Crack is about the history of white self-proclaimed Americans and the injustice, displacement, genocide, rape, disease, enslavement, human commodification and trafficking, cruelty, brutality, exploitation, broken promises, and vilification of the native Indigenous population, as well as the populations of African countries, for the benefit of the privileged class and rich “elite” whites—who behave no differently than the Europeans that forced them to seek a new world where they could live in peace, practice their religions freely, and avoid paying financial tribute to British royalty, only to demand that the subjugated peoples of this country fatten their own oligarchic coffers and bow down to their own demented dynasties, all while presenting a facade of caring about those destroyed in their scorched wake.
Here are some words about the music video, courtesy of guitarist Jon Yi:
Sturgeon and I both have a love of old music videos so this was shot in a very old fashioned way, with a vintage camera, lenses, and tungsten lighting. Van Halen’s “Panama” was a big reference. I also pulled from Andrew WK’s “She is Beautiful,” NOFX’s “Stickin in My Eye,” and The Strokes’ “Reptilia.”
This is the first time I have ever had to be in a video that I was directing. I started my career holding cameras to avoid being in the picture. But I am very happy with how this came out. I am a film professor at NYU and my students this semester have been turning in such strong work with such small crews by embracing limitations, and I wanted to do the same with this video. I wanted to capture the true essence of Leftöver Crack as we are today.
Leftöver Crack on tour!
April 25 Fort Collins, CO April 26 Denver, CO April 29 Flagstaff, AZ April 30 San Diego, CA May 01 Long Beach, CA (with La Pobreska and Informal Society) May 02 Pomona, CA (with La Pobreska and Informal Society) May 03 Punk in The Park San Francisco 2025 (Daly City, CA) May 04 Reno, NV May 07 Bend, OR May 08 Portland, OR May 09 Seattle, WA May 26 Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival 2025 (Las Vegas, NV) May 31 SBÄM FEST – AUSTRIA EDITION 2025 June 04 Essen, Germany June 20 Hellfest 2025 (Clisson, France) June 29 Mighty Sounds Festival 2025 (Tábor, Czechia)
On April 13th, Montreal punk veterans Ripcordz released their 24th (24th!) record, More Songs You’ll Never Hear On Spotify Because Fuck Those Guys. As illustrated by the Maxell tape ad-inspired cover, this album is a sonic trip through catchy riffs and simple yet effective lyrics, tied together seamlessly by frontman Paul Gott’s throaty vocals. Not […]
On April 13th, Montreal punk veterans Ripcordz released their 24th (24th!) record, More Songs You’ll Never Hear On Spotify Because Fuck Those Guys. As illustrated by the Maxell tape ad-inspired cover, this album is a sonic trip through catchy riffs and simple yet effective lyrics, tied together seamlessly by frontman Paul Gott’s throaty vocals. Not ones to shy away from topics like police brutality, corporate greed and political disingenuity, Ripcordz delivers a message of solidarity, unity, and resistance, while balancing the record with more reflective tracks about love, life, and the scene. Punchy, political, fearless, fun, honest, and contemplative all at once, the Montreal trio’s latest album truly cements the group’s mainstay status as longtime local legends.
Ripcordz pulls no punches when it comes to talking politics, and opening track “All Gods Must Die” is a prime example. Kicking off the record with a rip-roaring blast of energy, the driving, unrelenting main riff underscores the urgency of the message, repeated like a rallying cry in the chorus – “all gods must die!” – and reminding us of the necessity of remaining united in the face of violence. No self-respecting political punk project is complete without a good anti-cop track, and this album has a few – “Bob’s a Cop Now” and “Bang Bang” decry in no uncertain terms the senselessness of police violence against nonviolent individuals and peaceful protesters. Ripcordz tells it like it is – politicians are vicious liars on the simple yet scathing “Three Lies” (and after last Thursday’s Canadian federal leaders’ debate, “just give us a yes or no please” and “falsify, deny, deny” are lyrics that feel more relevant than ever) and catchy “Manifesto” is a fierce, no-holds-barred indictment of billionaire oligarchy and corporate greed, as well as a rallying battle cry for the working class with lyrics like “we have the tools for victory” and “all your work belongs to you”. On “It Begins”, we are painted a bleak portrait of the stagnant drudgery of corporate life and the suppressed rage that such a lifestyle begets, but are reminded not to give up the fight. Across all these songs is a common message: a call to action to find unity, build up strength and resistance, and fight back against oppression.
After four decades in the scene, it’s hardly a surprise that these veteran punks want to share their thoughts on punk subculture and life as well as politics. A standout track in this respect was “The Gatekeeper”, a surprisingly nuanced and poignant reflection on who exactly has access to the scene, from the question of gatekeeping our underground institutions (“Are you not worthy?”/ The gatekeeper is gonna let you know”) to the inevitable changing of the guard (“You don’t owe them anything (…) / “Don’t let the old guard run the show”). Personal favourite “Now Revolving” captures, at least in my mind, the delirious joy of spending the night moshing and spinning around your favourite venue, two-stepping and throwing elbows with all the other punk freaks in the pit, while its darker, slower counterpart “For The Love Of Ivy” with its slow, driving bass and evil layered vocals, suggests that perhaps the punk club you’re in is also Hell, and you just might be dancing with the Devil. Finally, “Not Ready To Say Goodbye” feels like a wistful track about growing up (and maybe growing old) in the scene. These songs, suffused with nostalgia and reverence, remind us that Ripcordz themselves truly are a testament to the longevity of the punk spirit.
The record is rounded out with a few more romantic (or romantic-adjacent) songs for good measure. The Ramones-y “Take You Home Tonight,” with its chanting chorus reminiscent of the Clash, is an instant I-saw-you-from-across-the-bar classic, made for dancing joyfully beside the jukebox with your crush. If “Start Again” is a bitter ditty about regret for a life not fully lived, that regret is forgotten on later track “Two,” a cheerful tune about liking someone and simply not caring what the consequences are.
Every album needs a funky track or two, and Ripcordz delivers some fun ones with the (mostly) instrumental surfy, Nervous Breakdown-esque “Ripcordz Are Go Flying V” and trippy “Eno” (which I realized only after was simply closing track “One” played backwards.)
A reflective album spanning punk, politics, and love, More Songs is the natural next product of a band that has lived, loved, and breathed punk since 1980. The group is taking their sound across Canada in July and August on the Ready…Set…Punk! tour, so be sure to check them out if they make the trip over to your city.
More Songs is available for streaming and download on Bandcamp (not Spotify, for… obvious reasons). What are you waiting for? Go give this album a listen!
After releasing their demo in November of 2024. The Rad Skulls (ex-members of Latterman, Bridge and Tunnel, and Daytrader) are back with a two song EP, Seeing Rad. This 7-inch features the band doing a great cover of Minor Threat’s “Seeing Red” and a new original song, “Slow Skull.” “Slow Skull” plays on the same […]
After releasing their demo in November of 2024. The Rad Skulls (ex-members of Latterman, Bridge and Tunnel, and Daytrader) are back with a two song EP, Seeing Rad. This 7-inch features the band doing a great cover of Minor Threat’s “Seeing Red” and a new original song, “Slow Skull.” “Slow Skull” plays on the same melodic hardcore tropes as their demo, and I mean that in the best way. We caught up with the Rad Skulls to talk about Seeing Rad and what’s coming up for them.
What led you to cover Minor Threat’s “Seeing Red”?
Pat: We had been talking about doing a Minor Threat cover for a while, and then one day in the shower, I thought the Seeing Red/Seeing Rad crossover was funny enough that we had to make it happen.
Andy: We were at practice one day when Pat shared the idea of recording Minor Threat’s “Seeing Red” along with an original for a 7” and calling it Seeing Rad. He had even put together an idea for the album cover. Hard to say no to that!
What other bands would you say are influential for the band?
Pat: We all grew up listening to some crossover bands we liked—bands like Kid Dynamite and Lifetime were big ones. More contemporary bands, ranging from Carry On and Modern Life Is War to Strung Out and other Fat Wreck classics, also played a large role in shaping our sound.
Andy: I think there are a lot of bands we all grew up listening to. Pat mentioned Kid Dynamite and Lifetime. I’d add Strike Anywhere too. I was always drawn to bands that could strike a balance between fast, melodic, and aggressive.
What’s the status on the full-length you’ve been working on?
Andy: Still in the works. We’re sitting on around seven or eight songs in varying degrees of completion. Turns out two-minute punk songs can be hard to write. We’ve got an album name we’re pretty psyched about, so that’s something.
Pat: We’re still looking for the right label to potentially put out the vinyl when the time comes.
How did you get Tony Hawk to make a hype video?
Pat: Andy will say we donated to one of his charities and that he was gracious enough to make the video—but in reality, our singer Joe challenged Tony Hawk to a 360 flip mute to fakie, sealed it with a blood pact, and won. So that’s the real story.
Andy: It’s a real “Devil Went Down to Georgia” situation.
Any shows or tours coming up?
Pat: We have a show June 6th in Milwaukee at X-Ray Arcade with Counterpunch, and June 21st at The Rigby in Madison with Irish Goodbyes. Come hang out!
Tyler
What a great read! Punk truly lives in the Age of Reptiles!
As a side note, discovered this article through Pat’s parents today at the bar, I played “Rose Tattoo” on the speakers in honor of their discovery of punk and quiet acceptance of tattoos through their son lol
Meredith Goldberg
Thanks! Pat is such an amazing human and friend. A true inspiration.