Melodic punk veterans Craig’s Brother have just released their second single from their new EP, Devils in the Details. The tune is called “Harry vs Mount Saint Helens” and has been released on the 39th anniversary of the hugely destructive volcanic eruption in 1980. It pays homage to Harry Truman, a man who refused to leave […]
Melodic punk veterans Craig’s Brother have just released their second single from their new EP, Devils in the Details. The tune is called “Harry vs Mount Saint Helens” and has been released on the 39th anniversary of the hugely destructive volcanic eruption in 1980. It pays homage to Harry Truman, a man who refused to leave his home because of some silly little thing like a volcano erupting nearby.
Devils in the Details is the first release from Craig’s Brother since their 2011 EP The Insidious Lie. Check out “Harry vs Mount Saint Helens” below.
Chicago hardcore act 2Minute Minor have just announced that they will release a new album this summer. Titled Snake That Ate Its Own Tail, it’s the first new collection of music from the five-piece since the 2017 effort, Blood on Our Front Stoop. According to the band’s Bandcamp page, during the process of recording the album, there […]
Chicago hardcore act 2Minute Minor have just announced that they will release a new album this summer. Titled Snake That Ate Its Own Tail, it’s the first new collection of music from the five-piece since the 2017 effort, Blood on Our Front Stoop.
According to the band’s Bandcamp page, during the process of recording the album, there was quite a serious lineup change. Therefore, the first five tracks are with the previous lineup and the end of the record is with the new. The only two consistent members are vocalist Wiley Willis and guitarist Bob Shields.
The band had the following to say about Snake That Ate Its Own Tail:
“We decided to name the Album “Snake That Ate Its Own Tail” because it’s a symbol of the eternal unity of all things, the cycle of birth and death -the infinite circle that continues, a rebirth if you will. We feel that 2Minute Minor has been reborn and find this album title quite ironic; appropriate and suitable for our reincarnation of this circle of 2Minute Minor.”
The full release will be happening on July 1 but you can listen to the record’s title track below.
Italian pop punkers The Enthused have a new record coming out on No Reason, Lost Dog, and SBÄM Records. The effort will be titled Compromise and it will be released on May 24. To get you lot in the mood for Compromise, the band have been good enough to put out a single ahead of its release later […]
To get you lot in the mood for Compromise, the band have been good enough to put out a single ahead of its release later this week. It’s called “F*cking Up” and you’ll find it below.
The Dollyrots release their new album Daydream Explosion on July 12th, which includes recent single “Everything“. They’ve now announced a tour to promote the album, with live dates running from June until August. Most dates are with power-pop trio The Pink Spiders. Check the dates below.
The Dollyrots release their new album Daydream Explosion on July 12th, which includes recent single “Everything“. They’ve now announced a tour to promote the album, with live dates running from June until August. Most dates are with power-pop trio The Pink Spiders.
It’s no secret that Portland’s Abolitionist has decided to call it quits, bringing to an end a lifetime that’s spanned eight years and (if their bandcamp is to be believed) eight releases. This was a band, that for me, seemed omnipresent in Portland’s punk rock scene. A dark sounding amalgam of hardcore and everything else, […]
It’s no secret that Portland’s Abolitionist has decided to call it quits, bringing to an end a lifetime that’s spanned eight years and (if their bandcamp is to be believed) eight releases. This was a band, that for me, seemed omnipresent in Portland’s punk rock scene. A dark sounding amalgam of hardcore and everything else, directed more by its political vision than any concrete sonic leaning. Sometimes this worked for me, sometimes it didn’t—but Abolitionist were always a band that’d pique my interest. Where others were writing party songs to sing along drunk to, Abolitionist were always pushing their ambition. This is the band that seemed to be churning out concept albums at a point—always writing, always working, always with something to say. Ugly Feeling is their swan song and on it they take their sound further than they ever have before, combining a love for Fugazi with their political perspective, going out with a bang.
Ugly Feeling is like and unlike previous releases in equal measures. It features the same declarative vocal delivery, the same focus on heavy riffs, but they’ve corrected some of my biggest problems with their last release (A New Militance) by taking their new influences a step further. Here, the riffs and leads are given more time to breathe, which in turn emphasizes them more. Songs like “Crossroads” sound that much more sonically precise, the intensity feeling like a product of design rather than suffocation.
There’s still a range of sounds on the album though. Title track “Ugly Feeling” is a hardcore banger whose titular refrain could surely raise fists in a tightly-packed room. Whereas “The Selfish Gene” indulges in a dark and heavy riff, complimenting the album’s bitter commentary. And make no mistake, this is a dark album, and as it moves forward, it only gets darker—and the music reflects this as much as the lyrics.
Much of the album, at least to my understanding, seems to take aim at our culture and the privilege it awards to straight white males. This is an angry album. It’s disgusted with our worship of money, our own self-satisfied nature. There’s a grotesque scene in mid-album banger “Willie B. Bacon” that resonated even with a carnist like myself:
“When he was a boy, there was a pig his parents raised… but not as a pet. He used to go to the pen to visit his doomed friend. He remembers the pungent smell. He remembers the friendly noise. He remembers the coarse, fibrous hair. He remembers a feeling of loss.”
Ugly Feeling, like much of Abolitionists’ work is a concept album and as such follows a single character. Perhaps it’s fitting in “Walls,” the band’s final song (at least for awhile) that the protagonist accepts his own ignorance, admitting “he did not have a clue,” and finally, making the call to “change his ways.” It may be a little clunky, and it may be on the nose, but Abolitionist has always been about the message. Here it is, distilled down to its most basic form, a message of hope that doesn’t skimp on responsibility, an end to an ugly feeling.
This is undoubtedly Abolitionists’ best work to date, and while it’s always sad to see such stalwarts fall by the wayside, it’s nice to see them going out at their peak. Ugly Feeling is punk rock through and through, thick with commentary and heavy with riffs. Fans of the band will be pleased to see Abolitionist didn’t waste their goodbye.
Ohio’s The Sidekicks will be touring with The Menzingers this summer, for the following leg of the tour: Jun 22 Lansing, MI – Three Stacks Festival Jul 6 Yellow Springs, OH – Springsfest Jul 23 Syracuse, NY – The Lost Horizon Jul 24 Buffalo, NY – Rec Room Jul 25 London, Canada – Rum Runners […]
Jun 22 Lansing, MI – Three Stacks Festival
Jul 6 Yellow Springs, OH – Springsfest
Jul 23 Syracuse, NY – The Lost Horizon
Jul 24 Buffalo, NY – Rec Room
Jul 25 London, Canada – Rum Runners
Jul 28 Worchester, MA – Palldium
Jul 30 Lakewood, OH – Phantasy Nightclub
Jul 31 Grand Rapids, MI – Pyramid Scheme
Aug 1 Indianapolis, IN – Old National Centre
Aug 2 Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall
Aug 4 Iowa City, IA – Gabe’s
Aug 6 Cincinatti, OH – Southgate House Revival
Aug 8 Charleston, SC – The Music Farm
Aug 9 Virginia Beach – Peabody’s Nightclub
Aug 10 Baltimore, MD – Ottobar
They’ll be supporting their new single, “People’s Court.,” which you can hear below. The song is off their new album, Happiness Hours, which is out May 18th on Epitaph Records.
Australian skate punk band The Decline are about to head out on tour in July to support their new single, “Verge Collection”. They’ll be supported by Flangipanis for most of the dates. Fri 5 July – Under The Influence, Adelaide (Crown & Anchor) Sat 6 July – The Tote, Melbourne Fri 12 July – Factory […]
Australian skate punk band The Decline are about to head out on tour in July to support their new single, “Verge Collection”. They’ll be supported by Flangipanis for most of the dates.
Fri 5 July – Under The Influence, Adelaide (Crown & Anchor)
Sat 6 July – The Tote, Melbourne
Fri 12 July – Factory Floor, Sydney*
Sat 13 July – The Dead of Winter Festival, Brisbane
Sun 14 July – Vinnie’s Dive, Gold Coast
Fri 19 July – Lucy’s Love Shack, Perth*
*Flangipanis not appearing
Watch the official video for “Verge Collection” below.
Brighton’s Harker has announced a string of headlining tour dates, some of them with Mercy Union – and they are as follows: 18/05 – Brighton, Green Door Store 22/05 – London, 229 The Venue* 23/05 – Leeds, Temple Of Boom* 24/05 – Glasgow, Classic Grand* 25/05 – Lincoln, Call Of The Wild Festival 26/05 – […]
Brighton’s Harker has announced a string of headlining tour dates, some of them with Mercy Union – and they are as follows:
18/05 – Brighton, Green Door Store
22/05 – London, 229 The Venue*
23/05 – Leeds, Temple Of Boom*
24/05 – Glasgow, Classic Grand*
25/05 – Lincoln, Call Of The Wild Festival
26/05 – Bristol, Booze Cruise Festival*
Leading up to an appearance at the This is Hardcore festival, California’s The Old Firm Casuals have announced a string of dates across the US this July. The dates are as follows: Saturday July 6 – Berkeley, CA – Cornerstone Sunday July 7 – Los Angeles, CA – 1720 Thursday July 11 – Dallas, Tx […]
Leading up to an appearance at the This is Hardcore festival, California’s The Old Firm Casuals have announced a string of dates across the US this July. The dates are as follows:
Saturday July 6 – Berkeley, CA – Cornerstone
Sunday July 7 – Los Angeles, CA – 1720
Thursday July 11 – Dallas, Tx – Three Links
Friday July 12 – Austin, Tx – Dirty Dog Bar
Saturday July 13 – Houston, Tx – The Secret Group
Saturday July 27 – East Providence, RI – Roadblock Music Festival
July 28-29- Philadelphia, PA – This is Hardcore Festival
Toronto’s We Outspoken have announced their new album, State of the Art will be released June 14th on Cyber Tracks. To whet fans’ appetites, they are streaming the first single, “Last Summer,” which lead vocalist and guitarist Anthony Mascarin said of, “We all have that one summer that we never forget about. We wanted to capture […]
Toronto’s We Outspoken have announced their new album, State of the Art will be released June 14th on Cyber Tracks.
To whet fans’ appetites, they are streaming the first single, “Last Summer,” which lead vocalist and guitarist Anthony Mascarin said of, “We all have that one summer that we never forget about. We wanted to capture those feelings and put them into words and music. The idea is that this song takes you back to a time that was exciting, new, adventurous, and seemingly never ending. When a song can transport you, that’s where the magic begins.”
Melodic punk veterans Craig’s Brother have just released their second single from their new EP, Devils in the Details. The tune is called “Harry vs Mount Saint Helens” and has been released on the 39th anniversary of the hugely destructive volcanic eruption in 1980. It pays homage to Harry Truman, a man who refused to leave his home because of some silly little thing like a volcano erupting nearby.