that's punk http://thatspunk.net/blog scene love & unity forever! Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:00:49 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Like Spinning – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/like-spinning-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/like-spinning-ep/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:00:49 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2646 it’s been well over half a year since Kari sent me Like Spinning’s lovely EP. but as you all know, I’ve been busy. really busy. but better late than never. here is Like Spinning’s EP. and it’s mellow and warm and cosy and melancholic and dark and a lot of things actually. where a lot of cuddly rock gets one dimensional, this EP is refreshingly deep. it sinks further and further in, under your skin, and raises it. Like Spinning make intelligent and heartfelt music.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/like-spinning-ep/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – That’s It…Bye http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-thats-it-bye/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-thats-it-bye/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:00:13 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2641 that’s it… bye! buy it at http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com/ because it rules. if I recall correctly, Mitch Clem of the at times hilarious Web comic Nothing Nice to Say – which I’m pleased to say was actually recently picked up again – designed the cover. check out nn2s as well, http://mitchclem.com/nothingnice/ because it rules.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-thats-it-bye/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – The Ben Kweller EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-the-ben-kweller-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-the-ben-kweller-ep/#comments Sat, 28 Jan 2012 18:00:45 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2640 let’s continue down memory lane with The Ergs! this one isn’t as rare as the previous posts though. it’s actually still for sale on http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com/ – so run pick it up! it’s The Ergs! so it sounds like The Ergs! you know who The Ergs! are by now, right? they are that great punk rock band that are messing up my punctuation. check them out. [insert guitar solo here.]

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-the-ben-kweller-ep/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – f’n http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-fn/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-fn/#comments Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:00:32 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2637 more The Ergs! rarities for you folks. this is their second release. this is a more traditional release in that it’s not an attempt to convince some alien species that we are equipped to rock and thus deserve the chance to live. this release has the punk-rock-meets-whatever-lulz-we’ll-do-what-we-want style that The Ergs! became famous for years later. (some of these songs were later rerecorded as well.) upbeat and über catchy punk rock with lots of treble. in my opinion, this release deserves regular rotation along with the rest of their catalogue. f’n is f’n great. check it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-fn/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – Digital Endpoints http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-digital-endpoints/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-digital-endpoints/#comments Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:00:47 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2635 I’m digging up some rare The Ergs! songs for you. I’m starting with their very first release. a ridiculous concept album in which aliens are threatening to annihilate the earth on account of too lame rock’n'roll, and The Ergs! have to save the planet by making the most outrageous and yes, outrighteous, rock’n'roll the world has ever heard. whether they succeed or not is up to you to find out. by the way, this upload features the entire album in one track as well as the tracks by themselves.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/the-ergs-digital-endpoints/feed/ 0 Limits & Lines – “Winter” EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/limits-and-lines/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/limits-and-lines/#comments Fri, 06 Jan 2012 15:00:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2631 Limits & Lines. wow. just wow. this San Diego band came out of nowhere, with an EP with which they establish themselves as utterly and completely amazing. it sounds a bit like Vulture Culture and It’s Just Vanity, but leaning more on the alternative and pop side of things. just download this right away, because it’s perfect.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2012/01/limits-and-lines/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Funtitled http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-funtitled/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-funtitled/#comments Wed, 19 Oct 2011 19:00:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2627 here’s another full length. wow. Snowing disbanded, but Spraynard are carrying the torch, and it’s burning. it’s definitely burning. because Spraynard set my soul on fire.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-funtitled/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Split With Paramedic! http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-split-with-paramedic/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-split-with-paramedic/#comments Fri, 07 Oct 2011 23:00:42 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2624 there’s just not enough Spraynard in the world. but here’s some more, for whatever it’s worth. play it loud. experience the feeling of crashing without ever hitting the ground. just pure adrenaline. a pure rush – of joy. I’m going to quit before I get even more pretentious here. Spraynard are amazing. be happy. Spraynard. «let’s cross our fingers and hope that we survive every time that we feel empty inside. and if you can’t remember how to survive, we will be your life support».

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-split-with-paramedic/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Cut and Paste http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-cut-and-paste/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-cut-and-paste/#comments Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:00:48 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2620 picking up where I left with Spraynard – this is their first full length album. and it’s extraordinary. full fucking throttle all the way, and heartfelt like few others. «keep holding on to everyone that makes us happy» – Spraynard make me happy.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/10/spraynard-cut-and-paste/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Split with Break the Habit http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-break-the-habit/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-break-the-habit/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:00:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2614 yes. I *am* still alive. barely. but alive. and here’s more Spraynard. they still fucking rule so hard, so I’m still posting them. sing along forever. I love Spraynard.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-break-the-habit/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Split with Captain, We’re Sinking http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-captain-were-sinking/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-captain-were-sinking/#comments Mon, 12 Sep 2011 19:00:32 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2607 that’s punk is very infrequent with its updates these days, but when there actually is an update, you can expect pristine quality. and I’m picking up right where I left you – with Spraynard. they are *that* awesome. these three songs are from a split they did with the band Captain, We’re Sinking. it blasts off with the vocals spitting «it’s a nice day for a walk in the past», which is extremely fitting, given that you will already have the first track if you downloaded the demo. the other two tracks are new though. and just as good! feel the energy, and let the warmth flood your body and take you to a better place.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-split-with-captain-were-sinking/feed/ 0 Spraynard – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-demo/#comments Fri, 02 Sep 2011 17:00:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2604 I’m taking time off my busy schedule to share one of my favourite bands at the moment. I am talking about Spraynard. they play some truly amazing stuff. there’s some Ergs-ish punk rock, some American Steel-ish orgcore, but most of all it’s Snowing-ish emo. in fact, Spraynard are from Pennsylvania as well, so I’m thinking it’s not completely coincidental just how much like Snowing Spraynard actually sound. but similarities aside, Spraynard are Spraynard. and despite that they obviously owe The Lawrence Arms some of their riffs back (who doesn’t), they manage to stand out. there’s a million bands with gruff vocals, catchy power chords and so on. you all know what I’m talking about, right? the whole gritty but pretty sound. and what makes Spraynard stand out is due to their biggest strength – the feeling you get when you listen to them. this is per se not anything unique. this is actually the same exact reason Snowing stand out. but fuck it. Spraynard aren’t inventing nor re-inventing the wheel. they are playing some stellar punk rock, full of angst. buy it here: http://www.spraynard.net/

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/09/spraynard-demo/feed/ 1 [the] slowest runner [in all the world] – we, burning giraffes http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-we-burning-giraffes-2/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-we-burning-giraffes-2/#comments Thu, 28 Jul 2011 01:00:19 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2594 yesterday you got to know [the] slowest runner [in all the world], and their 2009 début. and let me just put it like it is, straight away, if you liked the flophouse sessions, you will *love* we, burning giraffes. if their début was gorgeous, this is ravishing. while the début lingered, as if at the edge of a cliff, and explored its reactions and feelings, this record *jumps*. don’t get me wrong, there’s a ton of atmospheric and absolutely beautiful lingering. but instead of merely creating a mood and exploring it, every now and then giving away to the occasional venting spark, their newest endeavour goes off like fireworks. and it does this frequently and successfully. it does so splendidly. consequently making slowest runner one of the best ambient rock bands. consequently making slowest runner that one band that has a one hour album, with three of the songs well over ten minutes long, where no songs are so daunting that you end up listening to that one good track instead. slowest runner has made a thoroughly interesting album. a consistent effort that is perhaps best compared to Yndi Halda at their finest – or a more vivid and poignant Godspeed You! Black Emperor. while applying monumentally opposing amounts of pressure, there’s always a balance to this record, as well as a sense that everything fits. there’s sort of a sense of predictability in action. but it does not make it boring or bad. because you grow fond of this music, and knowing where it goes makes you feel like you know it. you want it to carry you away. and it does this frequently and successfully. it does so splendidly.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-we-burning-giraffes-2/feed/ 0 [the] slowest runner [in all the world] – the flophouse session http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-the-flophouse-session/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-the-flophouse-session/#comments Wed, 27 Jul 2011 20:00:01 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2590 as you may be aware of, I’m not the biggest fan of the “post rock” tag. it doesn’t make sense to me. interpreting “rock” as a verb, “to excel” or as “to shake your body”, makes “post rock” “to suck” or “to stand still”. or are we talking about shaking a pole? because “post” as in Latin for “taking place afterwards” certainly doesn’t make sense to me, because rock isn’t done yet. so the very phrase by itself makes no sense to me. couple it with the common descriptions, and I’m even more lost. I’m told “post rock” is supposedly “bands with rock instruments that do not play rock”. what is a rock instrument? and why are all the most popular “post rock” bands (Sigur Rós, Explosions in the Sky, etc) rock bands? why are random emo bands like Slint and Moss Icon post-rock? argh! but seeing as this is a music blog, not a rant blog, I’m going to move on from my inability to understand the phrase or trend that is “post rock” now. so here is a band that is commonly referred to as a post rock (ugh) band. they have that long weird name, long progressive and instrumental rock songs that is apparently “typical” for post rock, despite that bands such as Sigur Rós do not have a long name and aren’t instrument… sorry. where was I? oh yes. [the] slowest runner [in all the world] isn’t one of those formulaic crescendo bands. (not that there’s anything wrong with those bands!) they are instead one of those who search for a mood, find it, and linger there, until they’ve explored all it has to offer. the tools of their trade are strings, piano, guitars, drums, extremely sparse and seldom vocal harmonies and occasional electronic noises. this was all recorded live in a living room, which is something I appreciate. “live recordings” is one of my favourite oxymoron, because it gives the whole thing an organic and warm sound, and often leaves room for the occasional spark. the only complaint I have about this album is that the piano at the beginning of “This Is Water” sounds annoyingly much like the first track on Sigur Rós’s (), and, if I’m completely honest, this isn’t () by a mile, so it just irks me that I pick that up. I am looking forward to this band in the future, because this, while no (), is absolutely gorgeous. it’s just a beautifully accomplished record. it catches my attention with its graceful beauty and warm energy. so do yourself a favour and check this band out, because they are truly promising to the n-th degree.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/the-slowest-runner-in-all-the-world-the-flophouse-session/feed/ 0 Quiritatio – Yana http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/quiritatio-yana/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/quiritatio-yana/#comments Mon, 25 Jul 2011 20:35:32 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2585 earlier this month I was lucky enough to be at Quiritatio’s reunion. it was a glorious affair! a simply put fantastic gig. at which I was also able to obtain one of the represses of the Yana 7″. if you don’t know about this, it’s an old release, from 2006, long since sold out, and later repressed. so to coincide with their reunion, here’s an MP3 copy of Yana! if you know Quiritatio, you know this is amazing. if you don’t know Quiritatio, *get* to know them right here and now. the lyrics tell the story of Yana, and the music tells the story of Yana and Quiritatio both.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/quiritatio-yana/feed/ 0 Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) – Home After Three Months Away http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-home-after-three-months-away/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-home-after-three-months-away/#comments Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:00:11 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2577 it was only yesterday you got your last e! e! fix, but you are dying for some more, right? well, here’s today. here’s more. here’s more melancholic twinkling; here’s more depressingly yelped lyrics; here’s more e! e! and it’s a little different from their previous output. it’s still meticulous word choices delivered by closed lips, as pointed out in the first track. it’s still brooding and depressing in every which way. but it’s more poignant. there are fewer instrumental parts. there are no four-six minute sadness exhibitions. but it still has that brooding quality. it still sounds like crying in slow motion; it still sounds like e! e! nostalgic and melancholic music as well as lyrics that read like intricate short stories with dense symbolism. the lyrics seemingly have no real message or plot or motive. instead, they document memorable occasions or feelings. «the end of this trip birthed us with uncertainty of what to do next» perfectly summarizes the effect the lyrics have. each song is a trip, and each song leaves you with uncertainty. but know this for certain – you need to download this as soon as possible.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-home-after-three-months-away/feed/ 0 Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) – SXSW Promo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-sxsw-promo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-sxsw-promo/#comments Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:00:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2578 it’s been a busy summer. and I’m supposed to be refreshing a deep and secret corner of my mind – the one that deals with matrices and trigonometry. but instead I’m updating that’s punk for once. it needs this update. come August, I’ll hopefully have way more time to post here, so I can shorten that damned queue. anyway… this is a new Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) song. new as in new to this blog and maybe to you, but not as in newly released. if you know e! e! you’ve already pressed the download button and don’t give a shit about my opinion about this track. if you haven’t heard e! e! before, you should probably consider hitting that download button straight away, because this is golden. e! e! are at heart an unashamed Mineral worship band. but a body needs more than a heart to function, so there’s plenty of other organs dedicated to make e! e! an interesting band in their own right. albeit an interesting band highly comparable to Mineral. is that such a bad thing? shamelessly ripping off Mineral is a good thing in my book. because that means brooding compositions with lots of feedback, pretty and imaginative guitar twinkling, off-key emotive vocals, creative drumming and bass lines that are increasingly rewarding to devote attention to, and melancholic and cleverly brooding and delivered lyrics. there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be like Mineral if you are a good band, and e! e! are a *really* good band. this song will wash over you again and again.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/07/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-sxsw-promo/feed/ 0 Cold Mailman – Relax; The Mountain Will Come to You http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/cold-mailman-relax-the-mountain-will-come-to-you/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/cold-mailman-relax-the-mountain-will-come-to-you/#comments Tue, 28 Jun 2011 04:00:46 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2573 Cold Mailman have members of The Spectacle and Beyond the Fences, both of which have made appearances on this blog. “great”, you’re thinking, “another hard-hitting punk rock mammoth from Norway!” but you’re wrong. Cold Mailman are more easily compared to Kråkesølv and IHAB, also posted on this blog, and also from Bodø, Norway. unlike those two bands Cold Mailman have English lyrics, and so you may find them more easy to relate to if you’re not Norwegian. another band that you may or may not know, that are actually a fairly good comparison, are Lukestar – another band who Cold Mailman members used to play in. but before this name-dropping extravaganza gets entirely out of hand, let’s return to Cold Mailman themselves. playing guitar-rooted indie pop in 2011 (well, this album is from 2010, but OK) is a dangerous affair. in the ’80s and ’90s you were trying your best not to sound like every one else of your contemporaries, but nowadays you have to be wary of not only your contemporaries, but also the legacy of twee, shoegaze and straight up indie pop has built over the years. so Cold Mailman are a brave band. and, thankfully, they’re not only a brave band, but also a very good band. a brave Norwegian band who have figured out how to not sound exactly like The Smiths or Club 8 or [insert all other English '80s indie pop bands and all Swedish '90s twee bands here]. let me just go ahead and boldly declare right away: this album is FUCKING AMAZING. the opening track sets the standard. a dreamy and droning masterpiece that culminates in the almost pathetically self-loathing “beyond the sea / somebody’s laughing at the dice I rolled”, before spending a minute just soaring out of the ocean and into the sky, away, out of sight, out of mind before the next track, the stark contrast “Pull Yourself Together and Fall in Love With Me”, a track that is so different from the former, that it’s almost scary that these pieces fit so ingeniously together. still dreamy, still somewhat pathetic lyrics, but an upbeat pop song, with a much richer sound. and this is the main formula employed by Cold Mailman throughout this album. melodic and twinkly guitars, soft centred bass, upbeat but subdued drums, mesmerising and relaxed (male) vocals – sometimes vocal harmonies – sometimes female and male vocal harmonies. Cold Mailman are soft and relaxed at all times. even when nervously faltering into a noisy crash, like on “Fatal Conversation”. Relax is generally classifiable as twee (or just call it indie pop if you are one of those who hates the “twee” name with a fiery passion), but sometimes it makes an expanded journey to other soundscapes; e.g. oldies pop (“Salva Me”), droning (“What Now, Muhammed?”) and bluesy rock (“Back in Your Bed”). and though never quite recovering from how perfect the first two tracks really are, Relax is a truly inspiring album nonetheless, packed with high quality songs, performed with a believable dedication and love. soft and relaxed, but often overwhelmingly gorgeous. check this out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/cold-mailman-relax-the-mountain-will-come-to-you/feed/ 0 Kråkesølv – Bomtur Til Jorda http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/krakes%c3%b8lv-bomtur-til-jorda/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/krakes%c3%b8lv-bomtur-til-jorda/#comments Mon, 27 Jun 2011 20:30:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2571 while recognising the greatness of Kråkesølv’s magnificent début Trådnøsting, there were certain drawbacks to it. the flatness of the mixing being the biggest one, and the prettiness being the second. but I understand now that my expectations were probably quite off. and I’m proven further wrong in my expectations for them to deliver as a jangly emo mess. with Bomtur Til Jorda (which translates to “Wasted Journey to Earth”, or something like that), Kråkesølv takes another step away from anything punk, and firmly plants their feet in the realm of radio-friendly and poppy indie rock. while I can’t pretend my musical leanings aren’t towards the messier side of things, I can still appreciate what Kråkesølv are doing here. the lyrical style Kråkesølv have always relied on is still dominant; part poetic, part stumbling over their feet in Norwegian. musically it’s fairly crisp and on point radio pop, with some minor hints at something more noisy, best illustrated on the riveting “Nordavind Mot Kalde Kinn” (“Northern Wind Against Cold Cheeks”), a track released prior to the album itself. apropos, I find it somewhat unfortunate that they released that very track prior to the album, due to it being a lot rawer than either of the other tracks, fuelling my ill-placed expectations, resulting in a somewhat disappointed first listen. thankfully, the songs grew. a lot. when I came to accept this album for what it was – a clear departure from their punk leanings, and a giant step towards radio pop – I found enjoyment in it. but it’s probably not coincidental that the songs that stand out in my opinion are the rawer and the more experimental ones, like the before-mentioned “Nordavind Mot Kalde Kinn”, as well as “Mannekeng” (“Male Model”) and “(Uten Tittel)” (“(Untitled)”). actually, this album is near perfect from the sweeping noisy mess at the end of “Romskipet Revideres” (“Revising the Space Ship”) through the absolutely gorgeous instrumental genius at the end of “(Uten Tittel)” (i.e. from the end of track 4 up to and including track 7). before and after this there are some great songs, no doubt about it, but that part of the album is infinitely superior and would be a brilliant effort on its own. sometimes me and my misled expectations kind of wish it were.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/krakes%c3%b8lv-bomtur-til-jorda/feed/ 0 Dominic – Dominic http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/dominic-dominic/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/dominic-dominic/#comments Sun, 26 Jun 2011 12:00:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2567 Norwegian screamo champions Dominic are back! and they’re marching forth in their easily recognisable style. anthem-y compositions carried by melodic guitars, and frantic cymbals-reliant drumming with a loud snare, with shouted and screamed vocals that somehow manages to come off as both passionate and catchy (as opposed to just contrived and annoying). Dominic have it all figured out. this is a two song 7″, and so there isn’t a whole lot more to write for a Dominic superfan like me. they do what they’re supposed to do – blow me the fuck away with epic instrumental parts that kamikaze into shouting and desperation clothed by a heavy fucking mess. don’t get me wrong though, it’s not *that* heavy or messy. in fact, I’ve seen a lot of reviewers reacting negatively to Dominic being too “soft” to be this or that [fairly average but for some reason insanely popular on the Internet] band. well, I doubt Dominic tries being either of those bands. nor do I think Dominic are trying to be tough guy hardcore and have crush chugga-chugga breakdowns. this is purposefully melodic and pretty music. Dominic play bleak and misanthropic, but gorgeous music. check this out as soon as you can! buy it from http://apocaplexy.blogspot.com/2011/05/preorder-dominic-st-7-lentic-waters-st.html if you can.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/dominic-dominic/feed/ 0 Fight Fair – Broken http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/fight-fair-broken/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/fight-fair-broken/#comments Tue, 31 May 2011 22:00:17 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2530 everyone’s favourite screamo band Fight Fair are BACK. and just like we’ve gotten used to, Fight Fair are doing something completely new, once again pushing the boundaries of screamo – if not the boundaries of music itself. their first effort was a magnificent pop screamo EP. then came a glorious pop hardcore EP. and then the by all means revolutionary pop surf masterpiece California Kicks. on Broken, Fight Fair take the best of all of these releases and fucking destroy everything, in a part Mineral, part Descendents and part Punch record that will definitely stand the test of time. from the good-natured guitar solos of screamo king Evan to the anthem vocals by screamo queen Alex, this is just perfection. one thing that is extremely obvious is the honesty in the lyrics, and the heartbreaking delivery. combine this sense of realness with the awesomeness of the sensational-as-always melodies, and you have something extremely engaging and passionate. add sludge breakdowns and some power pop violence (or blast pop), and you have the most important EP of the year. maybe even since September’s self titled EP from 1995. that’s right, this might be the best EP since 1995. Fight Fair puts the creamo back in screamo! GET THIS!!!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/06/fight-fair-broken/feed/ 0 My Own Pine Box – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/my-own-pine-box-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/my-own-pine-box-discography/#comments Fri, 27 May 2011 15:00:04 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2552 this is a band I should I have posted *ages* ago. (back when I posted Agna Moraine’s Autobiography.) My Own Pine Box are a quite unique band. despite not being popular at all back in the day, they play a sort of mellow and pretty emo that everyone loves nowadays. it’s generally quite upbeat with intricate guitar work and vocal harmonies. essentially this is a very common style of emo that has been played to death, and there are hundreds of bands doing it. however, few of them do it with such poising grace as My Own Pine Box. unlike, let’s say, Cap’n Jazz, they are a poignant, and have a uniform motion. but they still have a floating quality, and are generally very chest-tap-friendly. most songs are around two minutes long. they go very well together, but have definite unique qualities. if I had to compare them to any other bands I might pick Agna Moraine’s Autiobiography. they sound quite like a much more mellow continuation of that stuff. in any event My Own Pine Box has a fairly unique take on the emo genre, one that I find difficult to pinpoint. just check it out for yourself.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/my-own-pine-box-discography/feed/ 0 Beau Navire – Life Moves http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/beau-navire-life-moves/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/beau-navire-life-moves/#comments Tue, 24 May 2011 11:00:47 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2549 Beau Navire’s curse is that they’ll always be compared to their members ex-bands. and that’s quite simply because Beau Navire often sounds like the beautiful dwelling of iwrotehaikusaboutcannibalisminyouryearbook crescendoing into Loma Prieta. if that description is appealing to you, you’ll love Beau Navire. if it sounds like shit, you’ll hate Beau Navire. obviously and thankfully there’s more to Beau Navire than that, but that’s definitely an okay way to describe the fundamental sound here. but like haikus, Beau Navire has a distinct atmosphere that separates them from everyone else. and even though the core sound is so easily described, each individual track has its own unique identity. Beau Navire do something completely different but equally amazing on each and every song. so despite that the core sound is in all fairness simple enough, let me assure you that the song structures are not. each song feels like a magical journey of emotion and passion, each journey different than the previous. I can’t pick out “the best songs”, because this whole album is a journey in itself. everything belongs together. everything needs to be precisely like this. everything is perfect.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/beau-navire-life-moves/feed/ 0 Traluma – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/traluma-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/traluma-discography/#comments Wed, 18 May 2011 13:00:58 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2537 Traluma were a relatively obscure band that existed from 1995 and up until their bassist’s death in 1999. they are sort of hard to describe, which is quite fitting, since it’s fairly difficult to really pick up and justly appreciate just how awesome some of the stuff that’s going on with this band is. they’re not like everyone else. they’re not like *anyone* else. Traluma sort of have two “bottom layers”. one is sort of dexterous math rock with twinkly guitars and an eerie feeling comparable to maybe the more hypnotic tracks by Owls, Fugazi and Lungfish. the other is like Gauge or Still Life’s From Angry Heads With Skyward Eyes. a raw emo sound with distorted punk rock riffs and raspy vocals. these two starting points often mend together as well. and like that Still Life record does, Traluma break habit to give way for some of the most beautiful music you’ve ever heard, completely transcending the eerie math rock hypnosis, or the the forceful punk rock drive, or the whatever, to let their devastatingly honest self shine at its most vulnerable, creating some absolutely magic moments in the process. and they do this like Still Life, Indian Summer, Jeromes Dream et. al. do it. i.e. they do not overuse their vulnerable qualities. a lot of bands do this and end up coming off as formulaic at best, contrived at worst. these truly inspirational moments work best when saved for just the right time. this discography consists of three seven inches (one of which a split with a really cool band called Nobuhjest) and one twelve inch. this is everything Traluma ever released, and it’s perfect. absolutely perfect.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/traluma-discography/feed/ 0 Lumber Lung – Lumber Lung http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/lumber-lung-lumber-lung/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/lumber-lung-lumber-lung/#comments Mon, 02 May 2011 16:00:49 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2525 some of you will remember Lumber Lung completely blowing me away a little while ago. welp, this is their LP! it has all of the songs that appear on the demo, and four completely new tracks. and… I don’t know what to say. this is just perfect. just… buy the LP here: http://lumberlung.wordpress.com/music/ – *now*! lyrics are on that site as well. and just… get this. it’s amazing. if you like emo, you will probably like this, as it is probably one of the best emo LPs *ever*. just… wow.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/05/lumber-lung-lumber-lung/feed/ 1 Low Places – Low Places http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-low-places/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-low-places/#comments Fri, 15 Apr 2011 22:00:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2521 liked Low Places and want more, yeah? luckily, you didn’t have to wait for long. here’s six more songs! yes, double as many songs as on the previous post! albeit three of them are actually re-recordings of the… three songs in the previous post… but uh… fucking hell, three new songs! and three great new recordings! it starts out with “The Storm”, which sounds like a tribute to Boris’s “Huge”. droning fucking awesomeness, with great amounts of my favourite ingredient feedback. and so it goes. fucking amazing. this release is more coherent and album-like than the previous one. each song belongs together. the transitions are thoughtful and well carried out. the whole structure seems well planned. the track ordering is perfect. each song has quite a lot of different ideas that are all sewn together, without any of the parts becoming out of place. the slow motion black metal get a full blown blistering fucking apocalypse “full motion black metal” equivalent on some songs, but the two main ideas are the Boris-like amplifier-worship-sludge, and the straight up pissed and fast hardcore. and Low Places do both of these things better than most other bands. both when considering the styles individually, and definitely when considering the way they effortlessly sew them together. this release destroys. and as mentioned in the previous post, you can buy their stuff from http://www.lowplaces.bigcartel.com/ – so do that if you have the cash.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-low-places/feed/ 0 Low Places – Violent Hunger http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-violent-hunger/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-violent-hunger/#comments Wed, 13 Apr 2011 22:00:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2519 the title, Violent Hunger, sounds like black metal. I like black metal. this isn’t black metal. I like this too. this is fucking sick sludge. it reminds me a bit of Mind Eraser, and then of Nails on the fastest parts. the heaviest parts actually aren’t all that far off from being really slow black metal, but I reckon Melvins is probably more instrumental to the shaping of this band’s sound than Darkthrone. anyway, this is a fucking great band. they go from brain-melting doom-y sludge, to blistering straight up hardcore in a whim. you can buy it here: http://www.lowplaces.bigcartel.com/ – along with some other Low Places stuff.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/low-places-violent-hunger/feed/ 0 Dead Streets – Nice Knowin’ Ya http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/dead-streets-nice-knowin-ya/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/dead-streets-nice-knowin-ya/#comments Mon, 11 Apr 2011 22:00:53 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2517 from just outside of Boston, Massachusetts comes this loud and heavy hardcore band named Dead Streets. I feel like loud and heavy are definitely the key words for this band. the vocals are piercingly loud and in your face, the bass and drums are fucking Hellnation-*heavy*, and the guitar (especially with the solos) give it all a nice punk rock drive. this is a < 15min demo, packed with loud and heavy. check it out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/dead-streets-nice-knowin-ya/feed/ 0 that’s punk optimist sailing team http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/thats-punk-optimist-sailing-team/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/thats-punk-optimist-sailing-team/#comments Thu, 31 Mar 2011 22:00:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2504 there’s a somewhat strict “no compilations policy” on that’s punk, never putting up splits that consists of more than two bands. this policy isn’t really going away any time soon, but exceptions can always occur. one legitimate reason for exception to the rule is when that’s punk itself puts out a compilation. and that moment has finally come! expect loud guitar-based bands. I’ll leave it to you to find out which exact bands are featured. this is that’s punk’s second physical release, and it features a bunch of bands. there are twenty-nine tracks, all of which are nothing short of fantastic. I won’t turn this post into a manifesto, nor a review. so I’ll just end it by saying THANKS to all the bands – my friends – that helped this compilation surface – and THANKS to all of you who download or buy a copy. thank you all. the download contains 320Kbps MP3s, and the covers used at the printing office. if you can’t afford the CD-R, or if you aren’t a collector, just get the download instead.

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click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/04/thats-punk-optimist-sailing-team/feed/ 1 Dahlia Seed – Different Versions, Alternate Mixes http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-different-versions-alternate-mixes/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-different-versions-alternate-mixes/#comments Tue, 29 Mar 2011 22:00:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2498 this is that’s punk’s last card. it’s different versions of five songs. two from Valentine Kid’s Litter, two from Survived By and one from Please Excuse All the Blood. all of which are well worth listening to – so download this! unfortunately “this” concludes the Dahlia Seed marathon. but what a band! what tunes! download it all if you haven’t yet. so good.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-different-versions-alternate-mixes/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Please Excuse All the Blood http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-please-excuse-all-the-blood/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-please-excuse-all-the-blood/#comments Mon, 28 Mar 2011 22:00:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2493 after the tour in autumn of 1996 Dahlia Seed split up. this the last record they ever put out. it didn’t come until 1999 though. so it’s a posthumous release with unreleased material. the release contains songs from throughout most of their career. from tracks from the ten inch which can be downloaded in its unmixed state here, to the last three recordings they did. and with some stuff in between. including a few live tracks. if you’ve downloaded the other releases, you already have some of this. but it’s well worth getting nonetheless. perhaps especially for their three last songs, which serves as extremely rude teasers, just pointing at you and laughing. “hey check it out we made these three amazing songs [well, actually, one of them is a Voivod cover] but we’re not a band any more so you won’t get any new albums, nyya-nyya-nyya-nyya-nyyaaaaaaa-nya.” how præposterous! get this. oh, and even this is Dahlia Seed’s last record, that’s punk still has one more card up its sleeve.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-please-excuse-all-the-blood/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Live Brownies NYC 25th August 06 1996 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-brownies-nyc-25th-august-06-1996/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-brownies-nyc-25th-august-06-1996/#comments Sun, 27 Mar 2011 22:00:13 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2488 having posted both albums, I’m nearing the end of the Dahlia Seed marathon. but there’s still some stuff left! among this stuff is this live record. this time we’re in 1996 on Dahlia Seed’s last tour. they exclusively play songs from Survived By, except for “Statement of Purpose”, which you should know from the CBGBs concert. that song was actually released on a split 7″ with another ’90s emo band named Garden Variety, and you can – SPOILER ALERT – look forward to seeing it on that’s punk, albeit on a different release. spoiler finished. so. this is a soundboard recording, and it sounds… good. good enough to warrant a listen at least. good enough to make me curse myself for not seeing this band live. so get this, and curse yourself. enjoy!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-brownies-nyc-25th-august-06-1996/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Survived By http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/2482/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/2482/#comments Fri, 25 Mar 2011 23:00:59 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2482 in the summer of 1995, Dahlia Seed recorded their second album, which would be released in 1996. all of the band was living in NY – except for the vocalist, who were residing in WA. (take note that by the time Survived By was to be recorded, Dahlia Seed had a new guitarist, as one of them left the summer of ’94. take further note that by the time Saved By was released in spring of ’96, that guitarist had left (in the middle of a US/Canadian tour, consequently ruining said tour for the band) and been replaced by yet another one.) that’s a pretty long way apart. nonetheless, the album got written, albeit without the entire band being in the same room while it was done. and, luckily, they were also recorded that summer, in Philadelphia. this album is by many considered the quintessential Dahlia Seed album. I don’t know why this is more quintessential than Valentine Kid’s Letter, although I’ve noticed that a lot of people don’t consider the latter a “proper” album because it’s made up of a couple of spread out sessions… personally, I view them both equally “quintessential” in terms of Dahlia Seed records. this packs an equal amounts of punch, when compared to Valentine Kid’s Litter. this album is absolutely beautiful and give Valentine Kid’s Litter a run for its money. you have no choice – you have to download this. absolute classic, by all standards. from the beautiful opening track to the heart-breaking though just as beautiful closer – a fantastic album. oh, and by the way, this album has a re-recording of one of the tracks on the practice tape, “Archway Out”.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/2482/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Live CBGBs NYC 20th August 1994 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-cbgbs-nyc-20th-august-1994/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-cbgbs-nyc-20th-august-1994/#comments Wed, 23 Mar 2011 23:00:50 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2480 in 1994 and early 1995, Dahlia Seed toured extensively. I’ll be documenting this as well here on that’s punk. the first concert I’m posting is around thirty-five minutes long. they play a few songs from Valentine Kid’s Litter, and a few songs that will be released in the future. and a few songs plus a few songs equal nine songs , which in turn equals a pretty good documentation of Dahlia Seed as a live band. as everyone knows, listening to a live recording isn’t half as good as actually being there. but hey it’s the recording or nothing. they won’t be performing live again any time soon, unfortunately. so this isn’t even the next-best thing. this is the best thing! which means you need to check it out. it’s a very powerful performance in rather nice recording quality.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-live-cbgbs-nyc-20th-august-1994/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Valentine Kid’s Litter http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-valentine-kids-litter/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-valentine-kids-litter/#comments Mon, 21 Mar 2011 23:00:58 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2478 it’s 1994, and we’re fucking there. from the very first note we’re there and then some. Valentine Kid’s Litter packs a significantly larger punch than either of the previously posted recordings. over the course of 1993-1994, they recorded two-three demo tapes. when they presented them to Theologian Records, the label wanted to put it out as an album. and so they did. that was a smart move if ever I saw one. because quite frankly, this release is amazing. even if it is evident that it’s made up of different recordings with different quality, it’s just so packed with emotive and cathartic moments that I think no one cares. the vocals are pretty, then suddenly they’re shouting bloody murder. and the music follows in a highly organic matter. it’s like Fugazi. the lyrics are often in tact with the music, open and emotionally charged. the vocalist wrote most of them, and when looking back she described quite a few of them as silly or stupid. I guess that’s how you know you’ve written really good emo lyrics. when you can look back and have a hard time understanding what you were thinking. when you look back and say, wow, how I’ve grown since then. emo music at its best, in my humble opinion, is when it documents the now – that special place and time. anyway, you owe it to yourself to give this a listen. it’s just a really heavy ’90s rock album with twelve fucking great songs.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-valentine-kids-litter/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – 10″ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-10/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-10/#comments Sat, 19 Mar 2011 23:00:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2476 it’s 1993 and Dahlia Seed have added a second guitarists, letting their vocalist focus more on vocalist duties. this is an unmixed version of their first proper record. and with that release, we’re getting extremely close to the beforehand mentioned “there”. where is there? the Dahlia Seed everyone knows and loves at their peak. the recording quality makes both the vocals intelligible and the music in general a bit more pleasant to listen to. you can really appreciate the musicianship some more, when you can actually tell what’s going on without anything being compromised by a poor recording quality. not that the previous posts have been *plagued* by awful recording quality… this just sounds nicer. two of the songs from the first demo are re-recorded for this, giving them a more justified recording quality. the melodic yet aggressive music is well cathartic. the vocals are dreamy but not distant. actually, they are ever-present. you’ll want to download this…

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-10/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – Practice Tape http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-practice-tape/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-practice-tape/#comments Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:00:53 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2474 with the second Dahlia Seed post, it’s still 1992. there’s a swap of bassists, and there’s a new addition to the band. and many would argue that it is this addition that will set the band apart from any other bands. to some extent this is true. their new vocalist would go on to become instrumental to this band’s success. but let’s pay tribute where it’s due; the whole band has changed up quite a bit. for better. and even though the recording quality hasn’t peaked yet, resulting in unintelligible vocals, the guitars are getting there and then some. the new vocalist also plays guitar on this recording, giving them a more melodic sound than on the demo. the dreamy guitars as well as vocals drastically alter the band’s sound, without actually changing it much at all. if you liked the demo, you will probably love this. if you weren’t feeling the demo, give this a go. it is much more representing of the legendary band Dahlia Seed would eventually become. while Dahlia Seed are not quite there just yet, this is a monumental step on the way.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-practice-tape/feed/ 0 Dahlia Seed – 1st Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-1st-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-1st-demo/#comments Tue, 15 Mar 2011 23:00:12 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2472 I suspect some – if not most of the trusty readers of that’s punk are familiar with Dahlia Seed. but I suspect that not that many are as familiar as I aim to make you with them! yes, that’s right. Dahlia Seed marathon! and the obvious place to start is with their very first demo. Dahlia Seed started the summer of 1992, in the northern New Jersey suburbs. although probably mostly known as a four-piece or a five-piece, they actually started out as a three-piece. and this is that three-piece’s 4-track demo. it’s rough in both recording and musical style. somewhat comparable to their contemporary Empty Set (which would later go on to be named Chewbacca Kaboom, and later still Sunny Day Real Estate). recording quality-wise, this sounds as good as a 4-track from the early ’90s can sound. musical quality-wise, this is really good, albeit not the quintessential Dahlia Seed recording by any means. if you have no idea what Dahlia Seed sounds like, they play a rather pretty style of emo that in addition is really aggressive and simply charged with emotion. this is a nice place to start with the band, if you can handle the sound quality, which as an emo fan… chances are you do. check this out!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/dahlia-seed-1st-demo/feed/ 0 The Uptights – At the Wörthersee Hotel http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-uptights-at-the-worthersee-hotel/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-uptights-at-the-worthersee-hotel/#comments Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:00:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2468 if shoegaze/noise (rock/emo sounds like a nice hybrid, chances of you liking this are high. if not, hmm… check it out anyway. this is some delicious lo-fi stuff that washes over you with valour. completely different, utterly compelling. this is only three songs and ten minutes, but in that time The Uptights manage giving us a well-rounded experience. there are twinkly guitars, rough noise parts, an ambient track, jangly vocals, non-jangly vocals, and overall a right mess. but it’s a consistent mess. the mess belongs together. OH, THE MESS. check this out if you like lo-fi messes.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-uptights-at-the-worthersee-hotel/feed/ 0 Oriana Raeo – Oriana Raeo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/oriana-raeo-oriana-raeo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/oriana-raeo-oriana-raeo/#comments Fri, 11 Mar 2011 23:00:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2466 this is sensitive and wimpy screamo. and while all screamo is inherently sensitive and wimpy, this is especially sensitive and wimpy. the guitar hooks are sort of like a soft and pathetic Kaospilot. sometimes, when at their softest, the guitars are almost like City of Caterpillar, focused and deliberate. on top of this are hoarse heart- and voice-breaking screams that sound like Age Sixteen meets The Spirit of Versailles. the rhythm section of the band, the drums and bass, are absolutely central to creating the moods swings that really makes Oriana Raeo an extremely interesting listen. at times it’s so bleak and empty that I can’t not pull up a comparison to Quiritatio. especially on the bleakest of songs, “Staring Into Nothing”, the album’s longest track (being over four minutes). the whole album is barely over ten minutes long, but those ten minutes are utterly miserable and tear-y. it’s perhaps best described simply as “Staring Into Nothing”. this is exactly what listening to Oriana Raeo feels like.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/oriana-raeo-oriana-raeo/feed/ 0 Adam Bennett – These Machines http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/adam-bennett-these-machines/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/adam-bennett-these-machines/#comments Wed, 09 Mar 2011 23:00:46 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2463 is it cool to like or dislike folk punk? I forgot again. regardless of this though, Adam Bennett plays Dylan-esque folk punk/rock. it’s back to basics with Adam. a man and his guitar. and what a voice the man has! I must say… this bloke sure has pipes. reminds me of Black 47. as for his handling of the guitar, it is highly efficient. he knows how to strum and pick, and he knows how to write catchy chord progressions… with lyrics about why war sucks. it’s always struck me as awkward to talk about the catchyness of the song when the words are that serious. but this is music after all. ajd if Adam Bennett truly wants to «change the world through song», then his songs need to be really great. and though I do not know whether these songs will change the world by themselves, they certainly enhanced my world when I listened to them.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/adam-bennett-these-machines/feed/ 0 syn*error – verlustgeschäft http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/synerror-verlustgeschaft/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/synerror-verlustgeschaft/#comments Mon, 07 Mar 2011 23:00:40 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2458 you all know syn*error. if you don’t, you really should. there’s a bunch of stuff by them down there somewhere. a split with What Price, Wonderland? among other treats. this is their newest experiment, and the term experiment is key. from the very first track you know this is going to be different than previous instalments of syn*error. their self-titled 7″ was primarily made up of really loud emo/screamo with some intricate less loud parts, thus resulting in a somewhat eclectic but determined sound. five years ago syn*error were a explosive emo/screamo band with quiet-loud dynamics, soaring guitars, distorted octave chords, screaming, etc. but for 2011′s verlustgeschäft, they’ve shook things up. this time they have obvious influences from ’80s harDCore. where syn*error previously dabbled with the ’90s emo sound, they have now seemingly moved a century back. this does however not mean that syn*error have taken a step back or stagnated. on the contrary. they’ve evolved their sound into something completely new. if I were to compare it to modern bands, then it sort of sounds like a mix between End of A Year and Adorno. however this album has just too much bloody uniqueness to it. you can’t just say “if you like blah and blah you’ll like this”. this album has several funk/hip-hop songs that sort of sound like Incubus’ glorious “Magic Medicine” – that’s not normal for an emo album, is it? furthermore, this album has truly epic emo tracks that may or may not have ’70s punk rock/’80s alternative bridges with almost BritPop guitars, before going to what to me sounds like Norwegian emo (the birds are spies – they report to the trees, rest of my life, etc), before suddenly going into trance-inducing blues-y or funk-y guitar solos to bring the tune to sometimes a sudden halt, and sometimes fading away elegantly. this album just takes a pile of influences from all sorts of music from the ’80s and ’90s and shape it into some sort of emo rocker with funky “Magic Medicine” interludes. syn*error have seriously changed their sound up. and it fucking works. it fucking works. download this at once. it can be bought from http://www.kids-in-misery.net/pages/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=301 or here http://bisaufsmesser.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=16229&zenid=4d988b78f10127f2845a0ff70671ac0c – so do that too if you have the cash.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/synerror-verlustgeschaft/feed/ 0 the band in Heaven – Weird Wives split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-band-in-heaven-weird-wives-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-band-in-heaven-weird-wives-split/#comments Mon, 28 Feb 2011 23:00:44 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2450 I hope you liked the band in Heaven, because here’s some more the band in Heaven! this time around it’s a split with Weird Wives, another great set of shoegazers. the bands contribute with two songs each. you should already be familiar with the band in Heaven and their BritPop with many dashes of noise and feedback on top. Weird Wives are quite different, but they still fit in nicely on this split with their more psychedelic and dark sound. for some reason it reminds me of Joy Division and Nick Cave, with some deathrock-leanings. far more bleak than the band in Heaven, but just as good. together these two bands make a highly interesting couple. it’s kind of like Sigur Rós’s (), on which side A was optimistic and side B was pessimistic. I have no idea if the band in Heaven intend to be bright, nor if Weird Wives re attempting to make dark music. but that’s how it comes across to me. check this out and make up your own opinion!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/03/the-band-in-heaven-weird-wives-split/feed/ 0 the band in Heaven – demos http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-band-in-heaven-demos/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-band-in-heaven-demos/#comments Sun, 27 Feb 2011 23:00:13 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2448 what would the minimalism of Can and The Velvet Underground sound like it had 100dB gain and lots and lots of feedback and distortion? you’re about to find out, thanks to Orlando, Florida’s the band in Heaven. this is by all means shoegaze. however, it is noticeably minimalist – or even simplistic. there’s essentially cosy pop rock chord progressions, pretty vocals, etc. something tells me that if you remove the feedback and noise, you’d get a BritPop band, influenced by the mentioned bands. so that makes this… The La’s playing The Velvet Underground, with a bunch of noise and feedback on top? maybe. something like that. in any event, it makes this awesome. cosy and pretty pop songs with a fuckload of noise and feedback. just how I like my pretty pop songs. get this! and by the way, you can buy FLAC or whatever at http://thebandinheaven.bandcamp.com/

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-band-in-heaven-demos/feed/ 0 Lumber Lung – Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lumber-lung-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lumber-lung-demo-2010/#comments Sat, 26 Feb 2011 23:00:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2453 this band blew me away. instantly. this demo is five songs that together are sixteen minutes long. in those sixteen minutes, Lumber Lung manages to establish themselves as one of the most interesting emo bands since… well, since the ’90s really. and “the ’90s” is exactly how this sounds. it sounds a bit like Lumber, Don Quichote, Symptom of Isaac, and Dahlia Seed – but mostly it just sounds like Lumber Lung. it’s heavily influenced by the directness of ’90s emo. and by that, I mean that Lumber Lung waste no time. they are to the point and acute. but like the bands I mentioned, they are also inherently melodic. this is aggressive music; jangly and noisy. however, it’s also beautiful. and one of the most successful and authentic takes on ’90s emo I’ve ever heard by a modern band. they’re putting out an LP later this year, and you need to save up for that – because this band is just… wow. just download this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lumber-lung-demo-2010/feed/ 1 Panthalassa – 2011 Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/panthalassa-2011-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/panthalassa-2011-demo/#comments Fri, 25 Feb 2011 23:00:05 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2445 Panthalassa started out in 2010 in Seattle, Washington. in December they recorded this demo here. and guess what – it’s great! I always like getting to hear new bands. double so when the band is so good. Panthalassa are noisy and chaotic like Phasma Phasmatis, poetic and creative like Lizards Have Personalities and FUNKY like Daniel Striped Tiger. now there’s a mix I’d happily listen to again! I hope to hear more from Panthalassa than this seven minute demo. check this out!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/panthalassa-2011-demo/feed/ 0 Flags Raised – Now Or Never http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/flags-raised-now-or-never/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/flags-raised-now-or-never/#comments Wed, 23 Feb 2011 23:00:04 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2443 long time no see, that’s punk. it’s great to be back. and it’s even greater to be back bearing such good news as this album. because Flags Raised are special from the very first second. no, scratch that. they are special from the very moment you lay eyes on your cover. with the gloomy EA80-esque cover, you just know, already then, that this is something special. Flags Raised are an extremely refreshing hardcore band from Glasgow, Scotland. this is ultra-melodic mid-tempo (i.e. for hardcore) hardcore with not only decipherable, but engaging and uplifting vocals. this little thing is only twelve minutes, which is regrettable though perhaps fitting. they make quite the impression, and in so little time. the powerful vocals and guitar tone really reminds me of Some Mistakes, though far less screamo and much more upbeat. I guess you could identify the obligatory Modern Life is War and American Nightmare influences, but to make the comparisons a little more that’s punk esoteric – if you like Miles Apart, In Regret and Some Mistakes, chances are you’ll love this too. it’s just really, really good. check it out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/flags-raised-now-or-never/feed/ 0 new miseries – I Am Without Me http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/new-miseries-i-am-without-me/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/new-miseries-i-am-without-me/#comments Wed, 09 Feb 2011 23:00:51 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2423 new miseries are hard, fast and pissed off. if you like Cut Short or Short Ride from that’s punk, or Shai Hulud, or just hardcore in general – you will probably more than like this. with this four nine and a half minutes long demo, new miseries play relatively uncompromising hardcore. they aren’t inventing nor re-inventing the wheel. but who says you need to? I’ve said it before, and I will always stress this: great > original, and original (by itself) != great. facts are that this has a lot of energy and passion. in addition new miseries do – despite not (re-)inventing any damn wheel – have their own sound. “Deathbeds” in particular is a *really* cool song, and I hope to hear more like it in the future. so give this new and promising band a try if you are even remotely into hardcore.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/new-miseries-i-am-without-me/feed/ 0 lover – wolfies http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lover-wolfies/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lover-wolfies/#comments Mon, 07 Feb 2011 23:00:42 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2421 do you remember lover? I sure do. weird minimalist ambient noise shoegaze stuff that has you at all times contemplating whether to bob your head in appreciation or scratch it in confusion. (you can do both, but that would be weird.) this album carries the tradition on, with even a little techno thing going for it. (though calling this a “techno” album would be an extremely far stretch.) a great portion of this is instrumental, but there’s also some tracks with vocals. those are the more shoegaze-y ones with guitars dominating melody, whilst being almost being repressed by the banging bass beat, and on top of that you have blip blops and then of course the vocals are in there somewhere. this record is bass-heavy and noisy. but pleasant nonetheless. some of the riffs are even just melodic and catchy! add to this the fantastic atmospheric value, and you’ve got yourself a highly interested listen. I would go as far as saying that this is even better than death stay awake. the absolutely beautiful “FACEKEEPER” perhaps steals the main portion of the glory, with a guitar that simply carves into your heart and spine at the same time, which is quite the impressive accomplishment given this album being in mono. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/lover-wolfies/feed/ 2 The Whoopass Girls – The Whoopass Girls http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-whoopass-girls-the-whoopass-girls/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-whoopass-girls-the-whoopass-girls/#comments Sun, 06 Feb 2011 23:00:41 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2418 The Whoopass Girls have grown up a bit, leaving most of their carefree insanity behind, adopting a much more nuanced and sensitive sound. and while their first release was enjoyable in its own right, this is another story completely. melancholic and minor-driven ’90s emo like Christie Front Drive, September and Cap’n Jazz. while less experimental and unpredictably insane, this release is just as interesting in its own way. this release has seven songs, and is a little more than twenty-five minutes of emo greatness. passionate and hypnotic and *highly* recommended.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/the-whoopass-girls-the-whoopass-girls/feed/ 1 Snowing – I Could Do Whatever I Wanted If I Wanted http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/snowing-i-could-do-whatever-i-wanted-if-i-wanted/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/snowing-i-could-do-whatever-i-wanted-if-i-wanted/#comments Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:00:29 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2411 I know I’m a little late, so if you’ve already gotten this album, you have probably made up your mind about it, so just ignore this, I guess. the rest of you may however proceed promptly. Snowing are a band you should be at least vaguely familiar with though, due to me posting their other stuff here. if you aren’t – go check those posts out. if you are – go on yet some more. I’m going to be completely honest about this album. initially I was disappointed. I found the songs too same-y, and generally deemed it underwhelming. because of these things, I am sure glad I haven’t put it up until now. because now I get it. now I see what this shit is all about. I’ve had a ginormous “oic what u did thurr” moment, and now I can fully appreciate and get behind «SOMETIMES I GET DRUNK AT NIGHT». at first I didn’t think Snowing really “worked” in a longer medium. welp… that was completely wrong. Snowing are *better* in album format. John Galm goes all the fucking way. this album is the equivalent of drunken rambling and hungover remorse all at once. furthermore, this is one of the more personal records you’ll ever hear. there is nothing pretentious about this. it’s a guy spilling his guts to some real happening rock music. where American Football are nostalgic in its depression, Snowing are just fucking depressing. yet there’s something oddly comforting about a man willing to blurt out his personal life and all of his perceived shortcomings on a rock album. there’s something beautiful about the realisation that even though your dad died, and his dad died, and you’re eventually gonna die – you’re alive. that is the essence of this album – to me. no one wants to be alone, no one wants to die, no one wants to suffer. Snowing, I think, reflect that perfectly. I get it John. thanks. you can order this here: http://countyourluckystars.bigcartel.com/product/pre-order-snowing or here: http://squareofopposition.bigcartel.com/product/snowing-i-could-do-whatever-lp-preorder – if you have the necessary funds ($10).

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/snowing-i-could-do-whatever-i-wanted-if-i-wanted/feed/ 0 Saetia – A Retrospective http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/saetia-a-retrospective/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/saetia-a-retrospective/#comments Thu, 03 Feb 2011 23:00:29 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2410 chances are that if you have any interest in screamo, you already know Saetia. if you are less than twenty-five, chances are in fact that you even discovered screamo via Saetia. although they weren’t my entry band, they were definitely one of the early birds. by the way, if you’ve ever heard someone say that Saetia are “new jack shit” or otherwise a band for “new jacks” and otherwise not remarkable – just point and laugh. there’s a reason Saetia have become the band that gets people into screamo. there’s a reason everyone knows who Saetia are. said reason being how fucking great Saetia are. Saetia existed during the late ’90s and were never extraordinary or even mention-worthy popular compared to the post-mortem hype they have received (aka the screamo curse). this album has their entire recorded output (plus five live tracks), and is the definite album to get. (also the original vinyl are ridiculously overpriced on auction sites and trade boards, so it’s really the only choice you have unless you are really, really into collection expensive vinyl.) there are seventeen (again, plus five live tracks) tracks on this album, and it’s over fifty-five minutes long. Saetia actually have some rather lengthy tracks for the genre – which benefits their style. they sort of mix two things into an almost oxymoron. there’s a very melodic and pretty side to Saetia, but there is also a spastic and noisy rapid-bursts hardcore side to them. these sides are frequently joined as one, with vocals that generally vary between a whimper and almost full out shrieking. call it screamo, call it emo, call it chaotic hardcore, hardcore or just simply punk rock. Saetia are a great band no matter what hype term you throw at them. so check this out right now. the members went on to form Hot Cross, Off Minor, and various other bands that were great but not *as* great as Saetia. at least not in my humble opinion. but the bands I mentioned (which are the more high-profiled ones) are well worth checking out as well.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/saetia-a-retrospective/feed/ 0 rest of my life – what we lack in size, we make up for in devotion http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/rest-of-my-life-what-we-lack-in-size-we-make-up-for-in-devotion/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/rest-of-my-life-what-we-lack-in-size-we-make-up-for-in-devotion/#comments Wed, 02 Feb 2011 10:21:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2409 after a shake-up in staff and a change in label (to RhinoProd), rest of my life is back. imagine The Appleseed Cast mixed with Explosions in the Sky, with a hint of The Shyness Clinic. now eliminate any dead space in the tracks, make the highlights endlessly more gigantic – and you might have the faintest idea what this record sounds like. this is the closest I have ever gotten to A Bunny’s Caravan’s Draining Puddles, Retrieving Treasures. rest of my life have created a genuinely compelling album that is intriguing from start to finish. it floods you with emotion and overwhelms you with its intellectuality. rest of my life truly prove to be equal amounts heart and brain, with songs that are so precise and delicate one would think they were carefully plotted by maths geniuses – except that they are at all times just about ready to burst with emotion, often lead by the cascading climaxes of washing guitars. all instruments are in perfect harmony, and the mix does extraordinary at making this devastatingly clear to the listener. the washing guitars wrap in a drummer’s dexterous and forceful command, and everything is emphasized by the imaginative and pleasantly soft yet appropriately present bass lines. this delightful mix go on to crescendo into the most heart-warming heartbreaks as often as they fall to their knees, hinting modesty and humbleness in between all their ambition and taste for glory. as a consequence of the exploring and unafraid nature of rest of my life, they have forged an album that becomes properly well-rounded and thus an exciting listen from start to finish. overall, this is something as rare as a perfect record. it’s marvellously intelligent – and let me tell you, it is well refreshing for an album to be genuinely intelligent, as opposed to just quirky – and emotionally charged to the brims. lyrically the album parallels itself musically. the lyrics are questioning, seeking and critical, «gaining brains [while] maintaining heart», further enhancing the well-roundedness of the album. it would seem like rest of my life have been heading in this direction; carefully working their way towards this album. if this is their climax, I can’t do anything but applaud them. if there is more to come, I hope my heart can take it. you can buy this from http://www.cdon.eu if you like it, and I would strongly suggest getting the CD. it has a lovely cover that goes well with the feel of the album itself. p.s. this album features a new version of the glorious Manual Circuit song “Bohemen”!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/02/rest-of-my-life-what-we-lack-in-size-we-make-up-for-in-devotion/feed/ 5 Black Kites – Songs Written While Things Were Charging http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-songs-written-while-things-were-charging/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-songs-written-while-things-were-charging/#comments Wed, 26 Jan 2011 23:00:57 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2405 on this album, Black Kites have a significantly different sound. the song structure and approximation mostly stays the same, but the *sound* is different. it’s still – as mentioned – much of the same though. but the formula works. the vocals are spat in your face, the guitars are gritty and heavy, the drums are all over the place, etc. it’s noisy, metallic and heavy. on “And Like It”, there are even gang vocals [thus rendering the record awesomage]. Black Kites go from this riff to that riff, this pace to that pace, fairly effortlessly. They can break it down to a droning ambient guitar section, then pick up and destroy your face. it flows extremely well. all in all this record is really good, and if you liked the previous one – you *will* like this one too. so get it. and buy it here: http://protagonistmusic.bigcartel.com/artist/black-kites – if you want. I’m sure the label and the band will appreciate you doing so.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-songs-written-while-things-were-charging/feed/ 0 Black Kites – Advancement to Ruins http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-advancement-to-ruins/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-advancement-to-ruins/#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 23:00:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2403 out of New Jersey comes Black Kites, with ex-members of The Assistant, In First Person, This Ship Will Sink, and You and I… heh. Black Kites pretty much plays ’90s hardcore/metalcore with a little bit of modern screamo. that might be a shallow way of describing them, but that’s the gist of it. Unbroken, 108, and Disembodied. they are not as crushing as Unbroken, nor as “intellectual” as 108, nor as sludgy as Disembodied. they are however something in between these bands, and other ’90s hardcore bands. this album consists of eleven songs, running at about twenty-one minutes. it’s fast and heavy. right off the bat. right up to the very end.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/black-kites-advancement-to-ruins/feed/ 0 This Ship Will Sink – You Are Precisely My Cup of Tea http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-you-are-precisely-my-cup-of-tea/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-you-are-precisely-my-cup-of-tea/#comments Wed, 19 Jan 2011 23:00:39 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2400 This Ship Will Sink’s second EP showcases an even more eccentric form of hardcore, with way more screamo influences. the metal is still there though. the core sound has not been all too much tampered with, and it’s still very much recognisable. but(!!!), different enough to *be different*. these songs are something new and fresh, unlike their previous EP. so check this out, and learn how This Ship Will Sink managed to advance their sound without abandoning it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-you-are-precisely-my-cup-of-tea/feed/ 0 This Ship Will Sink – This Ship Will Sink http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-this-ship-will-sink/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-this-ship-will-sink/#comments Mon, 17 Jan 2011 23:00:41 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2399 as I mentioned earlier, I would be getting into This Ship Will Sink here on that’s punk. so I’m pleased to announce that the day has finally come. this band featured members of In First Person and The Assistant, and consequently they also share certain stylistic traits with those bands. it’s metal-tinged, hard, fast and heavy music. metal-tinged, by the way, not metal. this is extremely technical and spastic hardcore with lots of metal and screamo. they are kind of like Phoenix Bodies and Textbook Traitors, but much more metal, and much more technical. if you liked The Assistant’s second album, this should have you feeling quite at home. it’s faster and different-sounding in more ways than one, but not entirely unfamiliar still.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/this-ship-will-sink-this-ship-will-sink/feed/ 0 The Assistant – We’ll Make the Roads By Walking http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-well-make-the-roads-by-walking/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-well-make-the-roads-by-walking/#comments Sun, 09 Jan 2011 23:00:16 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2386 in 2003 came The Assistant’s second lengthy affair [album]. it’s significantly more metal than the previous album. a bit like After School Knife Fight. there were parts on the previous posted album that sounded like this album, but as a whole this one is far heavier. there are fast grindcore parts and devastating hardcore breakdowns, all of which totally destroy, but there are also some intricate melodic content in here. it’s just hidden far more than the in the songs featured on the previous post. most of this is extremely heavy technical screamo/metal. the song lengths have also changed noticeably. the previous post had twelve songs, and those songs were in total around four minutes shorter than the eight songs on this album are in total. the longest song is as much as 8:35 long. and you’ll find no ambient parts in the middle, or lengthy intros or outros. just devastation and madness. this album destroys all. get it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-well-make-the-roads-by-walking/feed/ 0 The Assistant – The Assistant http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-the-assistant/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-the-assistant/#comments Fri, 07 Jan 2011 23:00:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2385 as mentioned, I’ll be talking a little bit about The Assistant. they were a late ’90s/early ’00s screamo band, based in New Jersey. this band started up shortly after the disbanding of You and I, and features members of said band. the members of The Assistant in turn went on to form other bands, such as This Ship Will Sink, who I’ll – you’ve guessed it – talk about later. much like In First Person (who started out around five years after), they employ several vocalists. often at least two people are screaming at the same time. sometimes three. and with all these people screaming their guts out about walls and greed, it gets messy as all hell. the guitars are intricate and melodic like with You and I, though less heavy, and mostly faster. too say that The Assistant is a faster You and I is not a fair way to sum them up, but it’s an okay way to introduce them to you. their sound is far more complex than that though. The Assistant is a truly violent mix of gritty synth, blistering riffs, despairing screams, loud feedback, hard drumming… and the occasional blink-182-like fantastically catchy, beautiful power chord masterpiece that “Five Year Old Mentality” is. then comes the progressive instrumental track “Route 18″, in which there are no words (apart from the few you can make out, behind all the ambiance), but so much else, that it speaks for itself. this track sounds desolate, lonely and longing. in much ways it sounds like the opposite of the previous track. these shifts happen all the time, and still, this album flows together amazingly. oh, how wonderfully well this album flows together. each track is sewn together perfectly. just like each part of each track is sewn together perfectly. everything is perfect. get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/the-assistant-the-assistant/feed/ 0 In First Person – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/in-first-person-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/in-first-person-discography/#comments Wed, 05 Jan 2011 23:00:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2370 featuring members of You and I, A Petal Fallen and The Assistant (who I’ll be getting back to, actually…), In First Person were a fairly technical screamo band, notable for having three vocalists that often sung/shouted/screamed at the same time. with vocals and guitars all over the place, In First Person have a by its very nature chaotic and explosive sound. but there’s also something extremely controlled and well-planned about these songs. In First Person have a precisely layered sound, much comparable to the You and I album, though with a heavier backbone making their sound comparable to Pg.99. this is their discography, consisting of a full length album named Lost Between Hands Held Tight, which was out on Paramnesia Records, though sold out probably years ago. in addition to this album are two splits. one with Storm the Bastille and one with the Canadian band Titan. there are a total of twelve tracks, and it clocks in at 42:22. that’s forty-two minutes of dark and heavy modern screamo/hardcore. where early/mid ’90s screamo often was extremely chaotic, even comparable to noise music at times, this modern approach to the genre is more often metallic and dark. everything from Orchid to Quiritatio reflects this. the first mentioned with grindcore sympathies, the second with their epic crescendos and sludge-tinge. In First Person are also by all means a modern “screamo” band. combining metal, hardcore and screamo into a grand sound that’s at times chaotic, but mostly it feels like it’s very thoughtfully and carefully composed. there’s just so much stuff going on in these songs, that it can hardly be chance that makes it all come together so consistently and thoroughly. In First Person plays calculated and perfected music. they are though by no means robots. in fact, they sound like they are throwing every piece of themselves into each and every song, with misanthropic lyrics. so if you like modern “screamo”, get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/in-first-person-discography/feed/ 0 You And I – The Curtain Falls http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-the-curtain-falls/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-the-curtain-falls/#comments Mon, 03 Jan 2011 23:00:43 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2277 The Curtain Falls was You And I’s last release. it’s 22:02, a fairly perfect amount of time to blow everyone away. this is perhaps their least popular release. even band members reject it as shoddy, unrehearsed and badly produced.. all of which are fuel for my love for it. I am really fond of their “old stuff”, i.e. the previous post, as well, but The Curtain Falls is definitely my favourite by this band. although the old tracks had a consistent sound, and many interesting hooks, it lacked the great amount of direction and ambition presented on The Curtain Falls. it also – and this might be a bit contradicting – feels more improvised. it feels like it’s capturing a magic moment in place and time. like it doesn’t care. The Curtain Falls is a mess, so you don’t really hear layers. instead, you get what is in my opinion a perfect fusion of elements. each and every instrument are interacting with each other very closely, and very skilfully. the songs are more progressive, with focus on explosions and climaxes as opposed to the overwhelming and brutal approach found on the self titled compilation. on this album, You And I are still comparable to Indian Summer (the jazz samples no doubt help fuse this comparison), but they are in many ways very dissimilar in both sound and approach. You And I have a much more blatant screamo sound on this album. then comes the occasional stunningly infectious guitar line, that will just blow your mind. if you found anything remotely enjoyable about the previous post, this album is definitely for you. if you didn’t get it, this is probably just as well a place to get introduced to You And I, because this is You And I at their very finest. this is amazing.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-the-curtain-falls/feed/ 0 You And I – You And I http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-you-and-i/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-you-and-i/#comments Sun, 02 Jan 2011 23:00:01 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2271 if you have not heard You And I before, you are indeed in for a treat. they were an emo band, active in the late nineties. they employed rather unusual song structures, and surprisingly melodic and tuneful hooks. they basically put layers of pretty twinkly guitars and clean vocals alongside or on top of an almost metallic rhythm section, churning out heavy as fuck hardcore riffs and crushing drum patterns. on this album (which came out in 2003, and collects all of their releases sans the last one), the boldness of the riffs makes it almost difficult to distinguish the tracks, because they all have these heavy hardcore riffs. this is where the layers of melodic intricacies become helpful. they are what essentially distinguish the tracks, whilst the insanely heavy drive that surrounds it is what provides consistency. the mix of these two extremes are what constitutes You And I’s unique blend of the different elements of emo/hardcore, and their intense energy. sometimes it sounds like a screamo version of Indian Summer. other times it sounds like Sons of Abraham. with a reasonable amount of feedback, You And I’s guitarists plough their way through droning doom riffs, gentle and catchy punk rock riffs, clever noise parts, blistering – almost grindcore – thrashing, and more “typical” screamo riffs. over this you have screaming bloody murder, and the occasional clean singing. the drums somehow actually manage to keep up with all the crazy stuff the riffs manage to do, and also dictates the tempo beautifully, almost single-handedly (well, I guess double-handedly and double-footedly?) making the breakdowns. what separates You And I’s quiet parts from Indian Summer’s are that they usually have sort of upbeat drums during them. they are subdued and calmer, but not downbeat or lacking altogether, like they so often are in Indian Summer’s quietest riffs. this maybe makes You And I slightly less in touch with the polar extremes, but they still manage to create fantastic dynamics. their sound is altogether very unique, and if you add the unorthodox sound structures to the consideration, You And I are an immensely impressive as well as interesting band. so check this out! this compilation album also contains five live tracks at the end, and clocks in at ~78 minutes, so it might me a little overwhelming at first – even if it is instantly enjoyable. you should give it a few spins to digest it properly. it’s really worth it, because this band rules.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/you-and-i-you-and-i/feed/ 0 Diving – Places and Objects http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/diving-places-and-objects/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/diving-places-and-objects/#comments Sat, 01 Jan 2011 23:00:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2383 2010 ended on a high note for that’s punk, so it’s only fitting that it picks up where it left – on a sky high note. and let me just start by saying that this is really good. I might as well get it out there at once. this is *really* good. if you enjoy modern “twinkly” emo like Snowing, Footbal etc. and Joie de Vivre, you will more than likely love this. Diving take the best of both worlds and play their hearts out. instrumentally – this is probably one of the best albums I have listened to. their playful and joyful as well as technical math rock is at all times very much vivid and imaginative. if you like any of the beforehand mentioned bands or think that a more upbeat It’s Just Vanity would be kinda cool, this is definitely an album you don’t want to miss out on. another band that frequently comes to mind whilst listening to Diving are Perfect Future, and their arguably best song, “Incomplete”, in particular. anyway, you should definitely check out Diving. I for one can’t wait to hear new material from them. I’m already sold.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2011/01/diving-places-and-objects/feed/ 0 Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson – lost songs http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/youth-pictures-of-florence-henderson-lost-songs/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/youth-pictures-of-florence-henderson-lost-songs/#comments Thu, 30 Dec 2010 23:00:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2365 the guys in Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson found an old pc with some old songs on. what better way to end the year, than with a post with this. Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson came into my life several years ago and blew my mind. and though they never disappeared from my life, new recordings didn’t surface. this made me a little sad. then earlier this year came their gloriously triumphant second album. I never imagined they could follow up their début with an album that was equally as amazing. my mind was blown all over again. and though equally amazing as the début, it was wonderfully refreshing and new. the two albums have the same qualities, but different sounds. so while I was overjoyed to hear the new album, at the same time I was a bit saddened that they had buried their old sound. but that’s only natural. they couldn’t make another album like the first. it would be really boring. and you can’t put a leash on creative minds anyway. so what I got was what I got. a wonderful *new* album. it pleases me, then, to no end to present to you these lost songs. they are in that wonderful “How Is Annie” sound I fell in love with. bands like Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson themselves, A Bunny’s Caravan, that second rest of my life record, Manual Circuit, Twist About Fireplace, Monzano, and Build Nest, Sleep. they all had something magical in common. something “How Is Annie”. since then, both How Is Annie and Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson have grown. I do not in any way resent this. I applaud it. diversity makes it that much more interesting. and I would still say that How Is Annie has a special sound to it, albeit not as obvious as it were. but this is the sound I initially fell in love with. this is what grabbed me and refused to let go. this is sentimentally valuable to me. it takes me back to when I was first exploring all of these bands. these lost songs are the sound of nostalgia to me. to you, they might be the sound of something else entirely. nonetheless, this is how I choose to conclude the year. and it’s most satisfying.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/youth-pictures-of-florence-henderson-lost-songs/feed/ 0 Cheeky – Generation of Liberty http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-generation-of-liberty/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-generation-of-liberty/#comments Tue, 28 Dec 2010 23:00:58 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2360 remember Cheeky? of course you do. I posted them yesterday. while active during the ’90s, they are back now! well, they are sort of back. at least in the studio. and it’s still tight! there are some alterations to their sound though. it doesn’t sound as fast, but just as energetic. the recording quality has improved vastly, which enhances the crispness of their sound. the vocals are more melodic and pleasant (there’s an other vocalist on these re-recordings) – less hasty, just like the music in general. but changes aside, it’s still Cheeky at its core. thus, if you approved of the previous post, you will definitely approve of this one. if you didn’t, you probably won’t. you know what to do. by the way – this includes a rerecording of the title track! enjoy.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-generation-of-liberty/feed/ 0 Cheeky – Black Album http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-black-album/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-black-album/#comments Tue, 28 Dec 2010 16:42:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2361 Cheeky were a cheeky bunch out of Trondheim, Norway. they played infectious skate punk during the ’90s. their members went on to form bands such as rest of my life and Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson (both of which can be downloaded from this blog), but Cheeky has little in common with those bands. perhaps apart from a tendency towards the obviously melodic. Cheeky are however far less sensitive. they are a more direct punk rock band. I have reason to believe Cheeky being influenced by a lot of ’90s melodic emo, alternative and punk rock, ranging from NOFX, to Pulley, to Propagandhi, to Cooter, to Weston, to blah blah blah. there are a million bands that sound similar to Cheeky, who obviously draw a lot of influence from their peers and predecessors. however, that does not make them obsolete. there’s great fun to be found in Black Album. fast and ultra-melodic punk rock with everlasting appeal. check this out!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/cheeky-black-album/feed/ 0 Beau Navire – Demo Cassette http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/beau-navire-demo-cassette/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/beau-navire-demo-cassette/#comments Sun, 26 Dec 2010 23:00:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2351 Beau Navire play what they call “My Bloody Valentine hardcore” on this – a demo cassette from 2009. it’s their first release, and it consists of seven songs divided into two tracks (side a and b). this is “soul punk” in the vein of iwrotehaikusaboutcannibalisminyouryearbook. Beau Navire are incidentally also from the Bay Area, and have one ex-member of haikus. so if you are into haikus, you *will* be into this. this just hits right home with me from the very first second. this absolutely beautiful style of soulful and tender screamo is impossible to not be moved, or somehow else affected by. this picks up “soul punk” where haikus left off, and takes it to new heights; in new directions. Beau Navire are the best band right now. you need to know “what the fuss is about”. because, honestly, you’ll probably either really love or really hate what they are doing. personally I absolutely love it. hopefully you will as well. let Beau Navire teach you how to love. put away your white belts and learn how to cry again with Beau Navire.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/beau-navire-demo-cassette/feed/ 0 Indian Summer – Hidden Arithmetic http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/2194/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/2194/#comments Fri, 24 Dec 2010 23:00:38 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2194 even though I open my presents on Christmas Eve, that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about those of you who open them on the morning of Christmas Day. this post is for you. and hey, I eat my father’s accomplished turkey on Christmas Day – so it’s a special day for me too. today’s present is Indian Summer’s Hidden Arithmetic. it’s a live album that exists in multiple editions. some have two concerts, and some have just one. this is the latter edition, which has Indian Summer Live in the Blue Universe. (the one with two concerts also has Live at Pitzer College.) it’s released on both LP and CD. said LP is the definite emo record. the defining emo record. digital copies are the second best thing, so I highly recommend you purchase an LP via the download link, if you can afford it. this is the centrepiece of any emo collection ever. this is emo incarnate. GET THIS.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/2194/feed/ 0 Indian Summer – Science http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/indian-summer-science/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/indian-summer-science/#comments Thu, 23 Dec 2010 23:00:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2193 in Norway we open presents on Christmas Eve. this is your present from that’s punk. if you have heard Indian Summer before, chances are they are at the very least *among* your favourite bands of all time. if you have just barely heard a song or two, and didn’t *really* listen – or, if you haven’t heard them at all – consider this your initiation. Indian Summer existed between 1993 and 1994 in Oakland, California. they mastered the dark and brooding atmospheric elements Slint employed, and built up their songs into a massive and intense explosion, sort of reminiscent of Rites of Spring, but less acute and more explosive. they sound like an overwhelming mix of the beforehand mentioned bands, Codeine, Native Nod, Still Life, Moss Icon and Seam. Science is their discography. it collects all of their studio recorded songs. nine of them in total. it passes the half hour mark, with songs lasting from anything from one and a half minute to well over seven minutes. one of the things that will make you want to listen to this album over and over is that Indian Summer were true masters of dynamics. the most tranquil parts have calmly picked guitars and soft whispering. as a total contrast, the louder parts are come crashing down on the world, with out of control screaming, guitars being trashed, drums being battered to death and so forth. all of the parts were connected though. each and every up and down was connected. and all of it was intense, nervous and emotional. this band didn’t just contribute to emo, or breathe life into it. Indian Summer are the band that shaped and perfected emo with the pure skill that went into these compositions. a skill that thankfully only gets rivalled and beaten by the sheer intensity and rawness. Indian Summer are emo in its truest form. download this. and have a great Christmas Eve! the compilation has been pressed on numerous occasions, and one of the pressings can be bought via links inside the download site.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/indian-summer-science/feed/ 0 Per Bergersen – PB http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/per-bergersen-pb/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/per-bergersen-pb/#comments Tue, 21 Dec 2010 23:00:51 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2220 after Per Bergersen’s death in 1990, an LP that collected a great deal of his recorded material was put together. only a thousand copies were made, and they are highly sought after today. it consists of different recordings, gathered from different sources. a great portion of Redrum Psychosis is also on here, and the total runtime is 45:58. this is the most complete Per Bergersen collection available. this is a national treasure, if ever there was one. witty and clever, ironic and furious – this is essential Norwegian punk rock. (for all you non-Norwegians who don’t like stuff that’s not in a language you speak: sorry! but this is one of the last Norwegian posts for a while. but what a post!) get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/per-bergersen-pb/feed/ 0 Røde Hunder – Redrum Psychosis http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/r%c3%b8de-hunder-redrum-psychosis/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/r%c3%b8de-hunder-redrum-psychosis/#comments Sun, 19 Dec 2010 23:00:10 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2218 let me start off by being completely honest. this album is of minimal interest to most people. it’s another Norwegian language post (except for one song), and it’s not at all as interesting to non-Norwegians as Kjøtt (potentially) are. this is a album from 1985 by the cult band Røde Hunder, known almost entirely due to the ingenious song writer Per Bergersen (who I will be talking more about in the next post). Per Bergersen is a little comparable to Daniel Johnston, in that it’s as completely overlooked as it is brilliant. it is also centred around mostly dark and depressing lyrics. bleeding hearts, booze and feeling useless are common themes. but so is – unlike Daniel Johnston – sharp critique of the society we live in. musically this album varies between acoustic guitars playing something somewhat comparable to Norwegian folk rock, and Norwegian ’80s punk rock. while it is understandable and actually very natural that the lyrics overshadow the music, the music is indeed well worth listening to by itself. but to strangers to the Norwegian language this might – sadly – pass them by as uninteresting and a little weird. but hey, if you are interested you should definitely not let the language barrier stop you. the lyrics can be sort of translated with Google translate, right? and the music is obviously beyond spoken and written language barriers. if you understand Norwegian however, there are no excuses to not download this. Per Bergersen’s life was cut short when he at age 29 was shot by a shotgun by a friend, allegedly as per requested by himself. here are thirteen of few the recordings he left us.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/r%c3%b8de-hunder-redrum-psychosis/feed/ 1 Montasje – Bootleg http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-ekstra/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-ekstra/#comments Fri, 17 Dec 2010 23:00:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2208 experience Montasje live! if you liked the Montasje album, you’ll like this. if you didn’t, you won’t like this. plain and simple. there’s not much more else to say, other than that this live set rules! so download it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-ekstra/feed/ 0 Montasje – Presence! http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-prescence/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-prescence/#comments Wed, 15 Dec 2010 23:00:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2207 ok, I wasn’t completely honest when I said the last post was the last Kjøtt post. or… actually I was. but this is highly Kjøtt-related, at least. Kjøtt’s drummer eventually withdrew from the band and formed the influential Norwegian rock’n'roll band Raga Rockers. this post is not about them (although they are well worth checking out), but the rest of the members that pressed on in his absence as Montasje (Montage). this is their sole album, recorded with two different session drummers. Montasje isn’t as well known in Norway as Kjøtt are. probably due to Montasje pressing further on with the experimental and avant-garde sound on Op. it wouldn’t be very untrue to say that not all that many people have heard Presence!, but those few that have will list it as one of the most impressive albums they’ve heard. because Presence! leaves a definitely noticeable impression on the listener. it’s eccentric and banging like Public Image Ltd, but more diverse. it has a sort of occasional arena rock feel to it, like e.g. the last two tracks on Op. an overwhelming and larger-than-life sound with a wall of guitars and layered vocal. Presence! is ambitious and grand. get it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/montasje-prescence/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Live in Harstad http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-live-in-harstad/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-live-in-harstad/#comments Mon, 13 Dec 2010 23:00:57 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2328 now we have a Kjøtt concert from 1981, with both songs from Op as well as older songs. all I can think while I’m listening to this is «WOW! I wish I was there…». unfortunately I wasn’t, and chances are you weren’t either. so the next best thing – I guess – is to listen to this bootleg. it’s nigh forty minutes long, and in a by all means ok recording quality. though I definitely listen more to the studio recordings, this is a pleasant curiosity that deserves to be heard nonetheless. and this ends the great Kjøtt marathon on that’s punk. I hope you’ve enjoyed it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-live-in-harstad/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Bootlegs http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-bootlegs/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-bootlegs/#comments Sat, 11 Dec 2010 23:00:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2192 this is a small collection of live songs by Kjøtt in 1979, plus one track from 1980. it’s only 11:39 long, but still worth getting. the recording quality is decent enough, and they play four songs you haven’t heard on any of the other posts here. this is Kjøtt at their perhaps most primitive and straightforward. most of the songs sound a lot like “Elektrisk” (“Electric”) and “Primitiv” (“Primitive”). blistering punk rock, filled with intensity and energy. the influence of first generation English punk rock like the Sex Pistols is clear. the energy and intensity dominates the flow of the songs. check this out!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-bootlegs/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Forskjellige Andre Innspillinger http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-forskjellige-andre-innspillinger/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-forskjellige-andre-innspillinger/#comments Thu, 09 Dec 2010 23:00:36 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2190 if you just can’t get enough of Kjøtt, here is a little over a half hour worth of stuff that wasn’t released. it contains five alternative versions of released songs, and four never-before released songs. this is the ultimate unreleased tracks collection. the alternate takes of the previously released songs are different enough to be worth listening to. the unreleased songs make this a must-have. the two first tracks were released on a cassette, but never made it onto any album or EP. the last three albums were out-takes from Op. three of the alternate takes are of songs from Op as well. the unreleased tracks are amazing by the way, and I would definitely not mind them being on Op. there’s even a version of “Nei Nei Nei” (“No No No”) on here that sounds like it could have been on Op! downloading this! and head over to http://users.notam02.no/~joranru/kjott/ for some info on the band, if you haven’t yet. the site is in Norwegian.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-forskjellige-andre-innspillinger/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Op http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-op/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-op/#comments Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:19:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2188 with 1981′s Op Kjøtt marked a drastic change of style. with Hue Uten Sanser they tested their capabilities. they must have understood that their potential was endless, because Op is extremely ambitious. they wanted away with what they called “punk rock clichés”, and away they went. the majority of the song writing on the early albums were handled by the drummer. but with Op, the main composer became the now deceased genius singer Helge Gaarder. actually, the only track which main composer was the drummer is the album closer, “(Jeg Gleder Meg Til) År 2000″ (“(I’m Looking Forward to) The Year 2000″). the rest of the album presents an exciting dive into Gaarder’s mind. and this is some pretty avant-garde punk rock right here. comparing them to þeyr isn’t completely out of the question. ambitious, extravagant and avant-garde. catchy, creative and chaotic. this is a highly unique blend of styles. brass instruments, pianos, synths, this has everything. Kjøtt’s Op is a larger than life rock record. a definite classic. “Under Jorda” (“Undercover”) is one of the best punk songs of *all time*. this album is an extraordinary accomplishment. it’s something that must be experienced. on http://users.notam02.no/~joranru/kjott/ you’ll find some information, and all the lyrics. they are in Norwegian though, so keep Google Translate ready. this was Kjøtt’s last release. they ended the career in the same manner they started it – with perfection.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-op/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Hue Uten Sanser http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-hue-uten-sanser/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-hue-uten-sanser/#comments Sun, 05 Dec 2010 23:00:36 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2191 in 1981 Kjøtt released a new 7″ (recorded in December 1980) called Hue Uten Sanser ((A) Head Without Senses). it features three tracks. the middle one is the one that’s closest to the old tracks. it’s a little more than two minutes long, and has a hammering rhythm section. the guitars and overall feel to it are more experimental and chaotic than before though. this holds true especially for the opening track – the title track. things aren’t as simple as they were on the two previous releases. the sound is more searching and ambitious. the last track has a funky rhythm guitar and brings new instruments to the table. this 7″ is Kjøtt really exploring their capabilities and testing them. and it’s a great listen! get it! and check http://users.notam02.no/~joranru/kjott/ for more info if you speak Norwegian, or if you like Google translate.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-hue-uten-sanser/feed/ 1 Kjøtt – Kjøtt http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-kj%c3%b8tt/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-kj%c3%b8tt/#comments Sat, 04 Dec 2010 14:19:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2187 following the perfect début, the only thing Kjøtt could afford to do was release the perfect follow-up. this is such a follow-up. seven spastic and intense punk rock tracks with clever and playful lyrics. they have a stab at what they deem “urban problems”; «pappa får ikke reisning/mamma får ikke sove/begge spiser piller/urbane problemer» («daddy can’t get an erection/mommy can’t sleep/both are doing pills/urban problems»). they also cover being self-centred, the primitive human, forming your own true self – and other topics. musically, Kjøtt aren’t experimenting too much with the upbeat and simplistic punk rock formula. “Jeg Vil Bli Som Jesus” (I Want to Be Like Jesus) being the notable exception, with its far more experimental nature. it’s also the longest track by far, clocking in at 4:15, compared to the other tracks that are safely above one minute and below three minutes long. so this is mostly raw and to the point quickly punk rock, but also shows ambition to expand that sound. if you liked the 7″, you will definitely like this. check http://users.notam02.no/~joranru/kjott/ for some more information on the band [in Norwegian].

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-kj%c3%b8tt/feed/ 0 Kjøtt – Et Nytt og Bedre Liv http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-et-nytt-og-bedre-liv/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-et-nytt-og-bedre-liv/#comments Wed, 01 Dec 2010 23:00:35 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2189 one month ago the Norwegian punk rock legends Kjøtt put all their music up for free download. I will over the next few days cover their discography. all the wonderful lyrics are in Norwegian, but this is probably an interesting listen to those of you who don’t speak Norwegian as well. the band was originally named Dårlig Karma (Bad Karma), but quickly changed it to Kjøtt (meat). a fitting name according to the band, because they viewed themselves as primarily music for the body, not the mind. so even if there are some truly awesome lyrics in here, don’t worry if you’re not Norwegian. the music is just as awesome, and to be honest – the vocals could be blabbing random shit, and Kjøtt would still be awesome to listen to. this is their first record. a 7″ from February 1980. it contains four blistering punk rock tracks unlike anything ever heard before in Norway, and quickly establish Kjøtt as the best band in the whole country. they also managed to get banned from essentially everywhere, no doubt largely thanks to the line «finnes det noe styggere enn kongebarna?» («is there anything uglier than the King’s children?»). Kjøtt were offensive, and even more so Kjøtt were absolutely brilliant. it might be simplistic punk rock, but it meant something. and more importantly – the music kicks arse. «finnes det noe band som er bedre enn Kjøtt?» («are there any bands that are as great as Kjøtt?»), they ask with their tongue well inside their cheek on “Nei Nei Nei” (“No No No”). well, the answer is probably NO! this is well worth getting no matter how much Norwegian you understand. notice the twenty second guitar solo on the title track that consists of the exact same chord. simply brilliant. for the Norwegian-speaking among you, check out the official homepage of Kjøtt: http://users.notam02.no/~joranru/kjott/ if you want. that’s where all of their discography was put up for free download

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/kj%c3%b8tt-et-nytt-og-bedre-liv/feed/ 0 Brendan Stephens – The “For Kim” EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/brendan-stephens-the-for-kim-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/brendan-stephens-the-for-kim-ep/#comments Tue, 30 Nov 2010 23:00:57 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2292 for those not familiar with Brendan, I can mention that Brendan started Perfect Future (and had even written the songs for the album before starting the band), which faithful that’s punk users will remember as awesome. they are downloadable a little bit further down. this is however an entirely different story. this is Brendan’s EP for his sister Kimberley, who got in a near fatal car crash while Brendan was on tour. there is more to the story than that, which can be read in the download link. this is essentially Brendan’s apology for being on tour when this incident occurred, and deciding to keep pressing on with the tour instead of going home. he has never forgiven himself for this. as you’d probably reckoned by now, this is a very close and personal record. Brendan spends a little over twenty minutes on ripping his heart out. it’s no secret that a lot of great art comes from pain, and the pain and honesty alone makes this record well worth listening to. however, the music itself is also well worth listening to. it’s confrontational and emotional dark miserablemo comparable to The Gloria Record’s first EP and Mineral, but with a lot of folk rock influence. especially the grandiosity and howling guitars of “Phone Call” brings The Gloria Records/Mineral comparisons. on “Morphine Overdose” one could say the same about the guitars, but the marching band drums makes it more comparable to instrumental progressive rock bands such as 1099. Brendan has made five truly beautiful songs, and this EP is a gem in every which way. get it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/12/brendan-stephens-the-for-kim-ep/feed/ 0 Guidelines – Rules of the Sife http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-rules-of-the-sife/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-rules-of-the-sife/#comments Mon, 29 Nov 2010 23:00:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2303 if you enjoyed Guidelines’ demo, then rejoice. for there’s more. this is their EP, Rules of the Sife. it has four of the five songs on the demo in a re-recorded format, with a much higher recording quality. there are also four brand new songs on here, all of which fit nicely into the repertoire. this sounds sort of similar to Age Sixteen and The Kidcrash(‘s newer material), and when they shout «NOTHING/HOLDS US/FOREVER/NEVER/NOTHING/NO/THING», you can’t help not getting into it. this is actually mad good and then some. this is fucking cool. this band makes one and two minute songs sound like epic mammoth songs. I’m not too fond of the kick drum. it has some sort of muffled quality that makes it sounds like someone is having a party next door. there. that’s the only negative thing I can think of. and I didn’t even notice it properly until the last track. the rest is skram perfection. listen to it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-rules-of-the-sife/feed/ 0 Guidelines – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-demo/#comments Sun, 28 Nov 2010 23:00:41 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2302 out of Montclair, New Jersey come Guidelines. they started out as a side project for the members who were all active in other bands. but after a while, Guidelines ended up being their main priority. the band is on a hiatus as of right now due to one member moving away from New Jersey, but as far as I know they will be back together next summer to play shows. this is in any event their first demo. and it’s rocking. the soaring guitars, punchy drumming and heartfelt screams sort of remind me of Age Sixteen, even. the only downside of this demo is that the vocals are quite inaudible due to the not all too good recording quality. but it’s thankfully not super bass-y, or just howling sounds like they put a toy microphone outside during winter. you *can* hear what’s going on. which is nice, ‘course. the lyrics are kind of hard to get, seeing as you only hear the occasional word clearly. so head over to http://www.myspace.com/guidelinesongs to read them. and download this, because it’s a refreshing new screamo band for sure. they are by all means just that, a modern screamo band. but they are not tediously bland or instantly forgettable. instead they manage to impress me. so definitely keep an eye out for Guidelines.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/guidelines-demo/feed/ 0 Cage Match – Cave Math http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/cage-match-cave-math/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/cage-match-cave-math/#comments Fri, 26 Nov 2010 23:00:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2294 Cage Match are hard to not get excited about. they are however ironically enough also quite hard to describe. there’s some sort of folk rock tinged math rock thing going on, I guess? it’s a really pleasant listen no matter what ’tis. everything has a really appealing sound to it. something about Cage Match just makes it extremely cool. I have no idea what though. there are soft and noodle-y guitars, comfy mid-paced drums and vocal harmonies. oh and the occasional (very welcome) ukelele. kind of comparable to Perfect Future. on the last track, comparisons to Joie de Vivre’s The North End aren’t entirely out of order either. I really can’t think of anything more worthwhile to say about Cage Match. and trust me, it’s not ’cause this is a bland or bad band. I just honestly do not know what makes this so fucking amazing. download it, please. buy the CD that’s in the link as well.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/cage-match-cave-math/feed/ 0 TUMBLEWEAVE – DEMON SQUEEZE http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/tumbleweave-demon-squeeze/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/tumbleweave-demon-squeeze/#comments Thu, 25 Nov 2010 23:00:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2285 curious TUMBLEWEAVE are back with another curious effort. this time an album, which you can buy on a really nice looking CD-R (more details in the link). this is supersonic noise electronica. really weird, but really interesting. TUMBLEWEAVE are sometimes reminiscent of uplifting and positive energy chiptunes, but sometimes just too surrealistic to compare to anything else. from the jazz-y opening track to the dark “Pure Moat”, to the droning “Rumbleweave” (which is along with “Mystery Lunch” re-recorded from the demo), to the psychedelic monster of a last track – TUMBLEWEAVE are definitely back, with songs that are more densely layered than ever. they also have a sort of darker and thicker sound to them, compared to the already more than dark and thick demo. this album is *packed* with sounds. there are just so many of them, that they can’t be processed all at once. and that’s without even taking into account that it sort of sounds like there are fifty genres or so being “tumbleweaved” together, to come off as a whole new sound. this is a mammoth. get it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/tumbleweave-demon-squeeze/feed/ 1 As We Draw – Lines Breaking Circles http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/as-we-draw-lines-breaking-circles/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/as-we-draw-lines-breaking-circles/#comments Wed, 24 Nov 2010 23:00:12 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2309 people are absolutely in love with “post rock” and “post metal” these days. the first term means “rock instrumentation used for non-rock”, and gets thrown at absolutely every band ever that has crescendos or layers and prefers twinkles over riffs. (ironically enough these are all *rock* bands…) whilst the latter gets thrown at every band that sounds even remotely like Isis or Cult of Luna. As We Draw sound probably more than “even remotely like” those two bands, so I guess they are a “post metal” band. what that actually means, I’m uncertain of. what I do know is that As we Draw are a French band that make great music. their sound is above genre limitations, but they are perhaps best placed in the sludge category, with some accompanying screamo influence. sort of like Kollwitz, but brighter and more positive-sounding. that’s one of the differences that set As We Draw apart from other bands. their sound ultimately yields a positive energy. if this was not their intention, then I’m sorry, lads. but this album makes me happy. the uplifting and levitating flow of the album is really well executed. there are some dark moments in there – some Cult of Luna – where the guitar tone changes, the tempo slows down and the sound gets thicker. but the main portion of this is fairly bright and mid-tempo, a bit comparable to newer Envy. at times I’m even compelled to make At the Drive-In comparisons, given the good amount of dexterous and inventive things As We Draw manage to pull off. anyway, this is mostly mid-tempo and bright. but it’s not immediate for that reason. this is still patient and progressive metal. even the shorter two-minute songs are quite demanding. Lines Breaking Circles will need your full attention, in order for you to harvest a full appreciation of what goes on in here. so when you have a forty minute time period, spend it on As We Draw’s epic first album. the link also has links to purchase the album on LP and CD. that way you can enjoy it on your turntable instead, if that is desirable. no matter what format you decide to get – just get it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/as-we-draw-lines-breaking-circles/feed/ 0 Charcoal Suicide – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/charcoal-suicide-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/charcoal-suicide-ep/#comments Tue, 23 Nov 2010 23:00:54 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2178 yet another name and member change – Auguries of Innocence is now Charcoal Suicide. and if you enjoy tight as fuck riffs, groovy rhythms and awesome vocals, then this is for you. it is deathcore so it has its fair share of palm muting and double bass pedals. while I have always been an open advocate of open chords and regular bass pedals, it’s easy to forgive Charcoal Suicide. I can even appreciate it. the energy and tightness is incredible refreshing. the only thing I can understand anyone would view as some sort of downside to this EP would be that some of the riffs are no doubt predictable. but hell, I even like *that*. I love sensing that the next riff is going to be so fucking killer that I’m going to want to put the track on repeat forever. so the only thing I personally view as a drawback to this EP is that it’s just not enough material! it’s just short of twelve minutes, which makes me a sad panda. but I’ll forgive Charcoal Suicide of that too. because these just short of twelve minutes are nothing short of awesome. this is *tight*. and the vocals are just extraordinary. the highs are perfect. download this at once.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/charcoal-suicide-ep/feed/ 0 Nightmares – 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/nightmares-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/nightmares-2010/#comments Sun, 21 Nov 2010 23:00:10 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2171 this is Nightmares first “real” release. previously they have put out a CD-R demo, and a digital two song demo. this proper CD release has both re-recordings of the songs from the digital two song demo as well as of two songs from the CD-R. there is also one previously never heard Nightmares song. in other words: you have much to be giddy about. if you don’t know Nightmares from before, then you have discovered them at the perfect time. Nightmares are an explosive as fuck metalcore band with great amounts of both grindcore and plain hardcore. thrash as fuck. the lyrics have a wonderful complete lack of pretentiousness. they are 100% direct. there are no “poetic” metaphors. they lay down the law, and waste no time with any obstructions in between. with Nightmares you get hard as fuck music and honest as fuck lyrics. Nightmares are awesomely refreshing, and completely necessary. download this. and you can buy this CD from http://nightmaresnz.bigcartel.com/product/2010-ep for $5 plus shipping. do that too!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/nightmares-2010/feed/ 0 Phasma Phasmatis – Phasma Phasmatis http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/phasma-phasmatis-phasma-phasmatis/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/phasma-phasmatis-phasma-phasmatis/#comments Fri, 19 Nov 2010 23:00:19 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2135 here is a particularly dark and depressing screamo band from Miami. Miami, Oklahoma actually. they toured with She Notes the Chariots, a band that also can be downloaded from that’s punk if you “look around”. with track titles such as “an infinite static universe”, one could not accuse Phasma Phasmatis of not aiming high. there’s a brilliance here, as well as a sense of doom being on your doorstep. two bands that I don’t find entirely weird comparing Phasma Phasmatis to are The Spirit of Versailles and Jeromes Dream. there’s an acute sense of apocalypse in the guitars – like with Jeromes Dream, and there’s a sense of high pitched madness in the vocals – like with The Spirit of Versailles. they play at a slower tempo than Jeromes Dream, but the start-stop rhythms are there, and the distorted guitars sound remarkably like Jeromes Dream’s. in any event, this is a really cool album, that’s well worth checking out. so get it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/phasma-phasmatis-phasma-phasmatis/feed/ 0 Polina – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/polina-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/polina-ep/#comments Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:52:06 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2121 Polina are a math screamo band from Canada. they remind me of Tera Melos, though with screaming and less tempo shifts, and probably a little less dexterity as well. this is definitely cunningly technical though. these guys are very much apt at playing their respective instruments. they use this very much to their advantage, cramming a lot of clever stuff into very few minutes. it is also well worth mentioning that they manage this without the EP sounding rushed or like a cut and paste project. it all fits together nicely. so if you are feeling in the mood for well crafted and clever screamo, get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/polina-ep/feed/ 0 A Shadow of Doubt – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/a-shadow-of-doubt-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/a-shadow-of-doubt-demo/#comments Tue, 16 Nov 2010 23:00:38 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2261 if you are into thrashy 31G screamo with awesome sounding snare drums, then A Shadow of Doubt are for you. some keywords include screaming, distortion, feedback and hammering. this demo contains five songs that finish in 8:45. and though there are some calmer parts – the apocalyptic devastation on the last track being the part most worthy of mention, the bigger portion of this is extremely rapid. somewhere in between Swing Kids and (a more fast and less heavy) Rue Morgue, we have this great band. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/a-shadow-of-doubt-demo/feed/ 0 Ache:Emelie – Ache:Emelie EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/acheemelie-acheemelie-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/acheemelie-acheemelie-ep/#comments Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:09:43 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2119 in between the ferocious Portrait and the longing I Would Set Myself on Fire for You are Ache:Emelie, conveying both things at the same time, albeit with a violin, and not a viola. heartfelt screams, intense riffs and hard drumming. Ache:Emelie are in many ways an archetypical 2000s screamo band. yet they stand out in any crowd, with their unique way of blending the violin into the beautiful though destructive dissonant screamo sound they excel at. check out this band!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/acheemelie-acheemelie-ep/feed/ 0 Snowing – Summer Tour Tape http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-summer-tour-tape/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-summer-tour-tape/#comments Sun, 14 Nov 2010 12:03:28 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2117 if you weren’t saturated by the demo, here is a tour tape by Snowing. the recording quality is unfortunately more than noticeably worse. luckily, the quality of the songs make up for the lack of recording quality. Snowing disappoint no one with two new memorable jams. the second one is almost six minutes long, and has a nothing short of epic instrumental part with really intense riffs. hearing these two songs gets me so pumped for a full length, you have no idea. Snowing is fucking great. get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-summer-tour-tape/feed/ 0 Snowing – Fuck Your Emotional Bullshit http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-fuck-your-emotional-bullshit/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-fuck-your-emotional-bullshit/#comments Fri, 12 Nov 2010 23:00:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2107 fans of Street Smart Cyclist and Audio Recording Club among others are probably overjoyed with the arrival of Snowing, which is another band in this family. they have every right to be so. because this is more of what I previously dubbed sugarrushcore. however this is “next-level” and then some. the upbeat parts sound like a mix of Audio Recording Club and The Promise Ring. and when the guitars are at their most dexterous, it sounds a bit like Monument and Algernon Cadwallader. but – what really sets them a million miles apart from “Kinsella-worship bands” is the diversity. Snowing do the whole “go mad” thing that Street Smart Cyclist did. but they also do amazing blistering Four Minute Mile parts. and they also have grand and epic tendencies that push to the surface sporadically throughout this demo, in which the guitars become a flood of distortion. (think Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate)’s “An Idea Is a Greater Monument Than a Cathedral”, The Pine’s “Running on Empty”, or any Cerulean song ever.) this is most obvious on “Important Things (Specter Magic)” and “Pump Fake”, the two best tracks, in my humble opinion. they mix a lot of extremely different styles with such ease and elegance, it’s almost unbelievable. add Audio Recording Club-esque lyrics with a spotless delivery – by vocals that are absolutely fucking perfect, and quite reminiscent of I Hate Myself at times – to the already more than promising mix, and you’ve got yourself a band that will stand the test of time. Snowing is completely unique, and must be heard.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/snowing-fuck-your-emotional-bullshit/feed/ 0 Adoor – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/adoor-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/adoor-discography/#comments Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:00:44 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2246 this post has sort of been planned for years. I’m extremely pleased to have it ready now, even if it did take quite a while. Adoor were a Norwegian screamo band, active between 2004 and 2006 in Oslo. they did “a handful” of shows, and put out a CD-R called I Travel Alone. this discography consists of that, plus some unreleased tracks and some tracks recorded live at a rehearsal. this is fifty-five minutes of gut wrenching screamo, kind of similar to Funeral Diner and Welcome to the Plague Year. their sound is definitely unique though. so much that these soaring guitars and vivid screams are in fact mamma, jeg blör’s main influence. and I’m sure other Norwegian bands will state Adoor as a clear influence on their work. their grasping atmospheres and catchy riffs justify it by miles. “Toetag Time in Teenville” sounds like a screamo Beyond the Fences. Adoor are fucking awesome. get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/adoor-discography/feed/ 1 Paul Baribeau – 08/03/2008 The DAAC, Grand Rapids, MI http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-08032008-the-daac-grand-rapids-mi/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-08032008-the-daac-grand-rapids-mi/#comments Wed, 10 Nov 2010 23:00:21 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2104 this is the last Paul Baribeau post for the time being (I am sure there will be more). and it’s – behold – a live album. it’s from the eighth of March, 2008. recorded in Grand Rapids, Michigan at the Division Avenue Arts Collective. it’s almost depressing to listen to this, knowing that I will most likely never experience Paul Baribeau live in person. but I guess it’s the second best thing, right? the second best thing is bitter sweet… oh, well. he plays twelve songs, and it lasts for thirty-eight minutes. the recording quality is definitely adequate. it’s a little too low, and the crowd is maybe a little too loud. but the songs are audible and then some – thankfully. he covers a nice portion of his excellent song catalogue, and also plays a John Prine cover. (you may or may not know this, but he refers to “Angel from Montgomery” in his song “Never Get to Know”. that’s punk: educating the masses.) it sounds like a very nice gathering, and a close and personal setting, in which Paul Baribeau surely must thrive. and when Paul Baribeau thrives, the listeners thrives.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-08032008-the-daac-grand-rapids-mi/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – Eight Letters http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-eight-letters/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-eight-letters/#comments Tue, 09 Nov 2010 23:00:16 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2099 in 2008 Plan-It-X Comp #2 came out, and it included Paul Baribeau’s absolutely gorgeous song “Eight Letters”, which is about how he wrote all these letters to an ex, but in his depression never managed to send them out. he tells it better than I do. just download it. the song was later rerecorded and put out on Unbearable (if you still haven’t downloaded that – DO IT NOW). this version is slightly longer, and a little more contained and “cool”. head over to http://www.plan-it-x.com/ and pick the comp up! it’s only $3.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-eight-letters/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – Darkness on the Edge of Your Town http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-darkness-on-the-edge-of-your-town/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-darkness-on-the-edge-of-your-town/#comments Mon, 08 Nov 2010 23:00:21 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2097 I promised more covers, and I present to you: more covers. Bruce Springsteen covers, to be quite precise. that’s right, this is an entire album dedicated to “The Boss”. it’s named after his fourth album, but only contains one song from said album – the title track “Darkness on the Edge of Town”. Paul Baribeau and I guess some friends (there’s a female voice in here, at least) end up doing songs from very different albums. but they tie them in very well. it sounds consistent and well thought out. there’s a leaning towards upbeat and energetic performances, but on “Hungry Heart” and “In the Fire”, they turn the knob to “ballad” mode, making it cosy rather than boring. this album is from start to finish an exhibition of cosy-ness, really. and though the songs are probably too well known for anyone to fully accept this as anything but a “Paul Baribeau covers Bruce Springsteen” album, this isn’t necessary a bad thing. so download this and sing a long if you are Springsteen fan. if you aren’t really familiar with Springsteen, then let this serve as a highly unorthodox introduction to the big man himself.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-darkness-on-the-edge-of-your-town/feed/ 1 Paul Baribeau – Songs from Ghost Mice split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-songs-from-ghost-mice-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-songs-from-ghost-mice-split/#comments Sun, 07 Nov 2010 23:00:07 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2092 in 2005 Ghost Mice and Paul Baribeau did a split. the premise is: Ghost Mice covers Paul Baribeau and Paul Baribeau covers Ghost Mice. this post contains Baribeau’s songs. if you want Ghost Mice’s tracks… well then you’re out of luck. it’s a very much out of print cassette. sorry about that. oh well. to get back to the point – Paul Baribeau does four really great covers, with his great voice and marvellous handling of that acoustic guitar. on “The Good Life”, there’s a bunch of heavy reverb (or perhaps there even are overdubs), mimicking the sound Ghost Mice gets with two vocalists. and on “Dead Flowers and Dirt” Paul plays a sparse piano, making him sound as humble as possible. at the end of the day when it comes to artists with such personal lyrics and such an intense nerve, believability is key. Paul Baribeau is believable. even when he isn’t playing his own songs. he does this in such a convincing way, and the end result is nothing but satisfying. listen to this! and next time I’ll post some new Paul Baribeau covers, so look forward to that.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-songs-from-ghost-mice-split/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – Demo Tape http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-demo-tape/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-demo-tape/#comments Sat, 06 Nov 2010 23:00:50 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2090 that’s punk take some pride in having all of Paul Baribeau’s releases on here. but I feel like it’s time to take things the extra mile. so let’s just post all the unreleased Paul Baribeau stuff I have as well, yes? ok then! let’s start with this demo tape, which was released on on a cassette in 2009, and sold on tour. it consists of two songs. the first one is called “Sand Dollar” and sounds like it should be on Unbearable, which can be downloaded if you scroll down a bit, or use the search field to the right. the second one is called “Through the Wall” and actually was later rerecorded for Unbearable. the songs sound like Paul Baribeau. the man who narrates his songs in such a believable way that we all feel like we know him personally. add catchy chord progressions, a scruffy voice and a big beard to the mix, and you have a good idea what this is about.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/paul-baribeau-demo-tape/feed/ 0 Audio Recording Club – In the End, We Are All Light http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-in-the-end-we-are-all-light/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-in-the-end-we-are-all-light/#comments Fri, 05 Nov 2010 23:00:19 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2166 who’s ready for some more fun? yessss. the amazing lead guitar is still catchy as all hell. the vocal harmonies are as sing-a-long-inviting as always; maybe even a little more than on the EP? this is Audio Recording Club’s full length album. it is in many ways a one up on the EP. it does much of the same, but it does it even better. painfully direct lyrics are almost spat out by equally painfully direct vocals over astonishingly catchy and well-carried out lively compositions that know exactly when to break it down, when to pick it up a notch, and when to blast out super cool guitar solos. it’s sort of comparable to Taking Back Sunday at times as well. this 48:48 minutes and 11 track long album has been referred to as “glorious” on multiple occasions. even by people not in the band. that’s got to count for something? GET THIS! two of the songs from the EP were rerecorded for this album. this is – unlike the EP – actually possible to buy. from http://hylapark.bigcartel.com/product/audio-recording-club-in-the-end-we-are-all-light for just $1 plus shipping!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-in-the-end-we-are-all-light/feed/ 0 Audio Recording Club – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-ep/#comments Thu, 04 Nov 2010 23:00:40 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2164 I’m probably supposed to compare this to something equally unknown and underground, but to hell with that. I would like to compare it to My Chemical Romance’s first album – sans the obsession with death and other goth-y themes. the riffs are catchy, creative and exciting. the vocals harmonies are just perfect. the compositions themselves are clever and memorable, and carried perfectly by the sharp drums and discrete bass guitar. the vocal harmonies as well as the voice are somewhat reminiscent of Aiden without the screaming. I think it’s not really “in” to like Aiden or My Chemical Romance, but whatever. they are two really popular bands that are comparable to this in some ways. I could go on searching for which random early 2000s alternative band with a cult status amongst its twenty listeners that sounds like this… but eh… no. my point is, if you hate My Chemical Romance and/or Aiden (for whatever reason), you should still give this a go. because while it is comparable to said bands, it doesn’t sound exactly like them. not at all. but the awesome, ultra-catchy and gutsy guitar solos, and overall perfection of the lead guitar can be compared to My Chemical Romance – and the easily memorable vocal harmonies are comparable to the pop-greatness that Aiden are. Audio Recording Club are in no way a mascara-wearing, death-obsessed MTV goth-y pop band though. this is far more no frills independent alternative rock with some teeny weeny emo leanings. this is a 100% fun rock album. the second half of “Vampire Song” is probably the *definition* of fun. to conclude: you need to hear this. super catchy and forever memorable. by the way, this is straight out of PA, and features members of Street Smart Cyclist, which can be downloaded a bit further down. and – you can’t buy it. it was an extremely small run of CD-Rs that was never put out “properly”.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/audio-recording-club-ep/feed/ 0 Perfect Future – Perfect Future http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-perfect-future/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-perfect-future/#comments Tue, 02 Nov 2010 23:00:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2213 out of Frostburg, Maryland comes the sncl/cyls band Perfect Future, which you were briefly introduced to them in the last post – their split with Reaching Away. they sound like they are combining a nigh plethora of influences into a careful thought out melting pot. the vocalist is a heavily into Dungeons ‘n’ Dragons, so this is definitely a thinking (wo)man’s band. ;-) the split was from 2010, and this album is from 2009 – so it actually pre-dates the split. that’s right, that’s punk are time criminals. anyway… Perfect Future prefer slightly lengthy (three to five minutes) long compositions in which they take you on an eventful journey. the three piece definitely puts all they have into their performance, in which eclectic emo unfolds like never before. while you can put this album on and immediately go “hey..!”, and start bobbing your head to the occasional noodle-y goodiness, but to fully enjoy this, offering a little more concentration is worth it. because it is the tiny nuances and the humble yet astonishingly skilful transitions that sets this little apart. it’s the blues riff and guitar solo on “Father Time”, the fragile promise on “Make Fun”, the longing guitar on “Palate” and “Roses & Roses & Roses”; it’s all the little things and the way they interact together that really make this album so darn interesting. in terms of overall “sound”, I’ve seen Perfect Future compared to a lot of things. but never has anyone I’ve seen (except for myself) made comparisons to Hot Cross, Saetia and What Price, Wonderland?. but I still stand by those comparisons. while far more humble-sounding and diverse, it’s extravagant and in your face like Saetia. it’s also technical and harmonically pleasing yet very raw – like Hot Cross. finally, the What Price, Wonderland? comparison is based both on lyrics and vocals, and also the way they are clearly dissonant and abrasive, but have a rather thrifty employment of distortion and noise. their music is actually fairly accessible. so this is easily accessible and enjoyable, but very deep. there is lots of satisfaction to go and get, if you are willing to lend more than one ear to this album. once you have your revelation, you will realise that this is fucking awesome, and well worth the time. so download it. and buy it from http://www.cylsrecords.com/ if you’re in the US, or http://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk/ if you’re in Europe. if you’re elsewhere, I do not know what the cheapest place to order from is. you probably do though, so pick it up! oh, by the way, the end is amazing.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-perfect-future/feed/ 0 Perfect Future & Reaching Away split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-reaching-away-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-reaching-away-split/#comments Sun, 31 Oct 2010 23:00:31 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2184 The Pine/Reaching Away month is over. but that’s punk is not. so now let’s kick start November! and to smooth out the transition from 100% The Pine/Reaching Away to 0% The Pine/Reaching Away – here is a split between Perfect Future and Reaching Away. let’s begin with talking about Perfect Future, since their song is on side a. they are a hard band to describe. they have some sort of Saetia thing going on when they’re at their noisiest, but are more appropriately compared to the likes of American Football on the more mellow parts. there’s an overall Hot Cross-feel to it as well. sort of technical, but very raw at the same time. their song is well over five minutes long, and really diverse. and they do all sorts of stuff in this little amount of time. and they do it all really well. their song alone is worth buying the split. but not to worry, Reaching Away follows through and then some, with their absolutely beautiful “bOken bRones”, making both sides of the split worth equal play time. Reaching Away still sound wise and insecure all at once. they sound like they’ve experienced the worst and gotten through it, and are now trying to heal their wounds. like with Perfect Future, it’s sort of hard to explain. Reaching Away has – like The Pine – a totally unique sound that is way more interesting and fascinating to listen to than read about, so I suggest you just download this, to be perfectly honest. http://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk/ still has copies of the 7″ left as well, so you should really go get it. It comes with a CD with music videos for both songs.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/11/perfect-future-reaching-away-split/feed/ 0 The Pine – The Pine http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine-2/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine-2/#comments Sat, 30 Oct 2010 22:00:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2157 October is still going, and so is that’s punk. so here is another The Pine post. unfortunately this post marks the end of The Pine month. but what a way to go out! the recordings on this album date as far back as 1999 – one tiny year after their inception. it contains five songs that would eventually be remixed/remastered for the self titled LP, and three completely unreleased songs. three completely amazing songs that makes this just as much a “must have” as the rest of their discography, in my opinion. I’ve done fifty CD-Rs with a special white surface in hand-folded origami covers – that come with four different design colours – that are printed in a modern printing office onto high quality 120g paper, that I give away for £4 for new ears to get a chance to witness this magnificent album. your eyes should be pleased as well, because it’s fairly nice packaging. so get that if you are into it. if not, you should still definitely download this. and if you can’t afford to spend £4 on the nice packaging, the download link includes the cover art so you can print and fold it yourself.

click here to buy
click here to download it

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine-2/feed/ 0 Reaching Away – Push Away the Moon http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-push-away-the-moon-2/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-push-away-the-moon-2/#comments Thu, 28 Oct 2010 22:00:53 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2031 we have finally come to the bitter sweet end of The Pine month. and we’re ending on a high note, with Reaching Away’s beautiful full length album Push Away the Moon. Reaching Away sounds like the insecurity of a teenager combined with the wisdom of an old man. the whole album is ominous and dark to the very core. on the surface it is a collection of memorable songs that excellently captivates the listener with its haunting atmosphere and stunning intensity. but the album works on an entirely different level as well. it digs into the listener and overwhelms it with sadness and darkness. Push Away the Moon is simply an extraordinary accomplishment. if you enjoyed the demos, you will definitely enjoy hearing Reaching Away in a consistent album setting, where they work so incredibly well. get this! by the way, this includes two of the songs that were on the demo in a rerecorded form – namely the beautiful “No Hope for Healing”, and the dark “The Worst In Me” (simply named “2″ on the demo). so download this! and buy from http://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk/ or http://reachingaway.bigcartel.com or wherever else you can find it.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-push-away-the-moon-2/feed/ 0 Reaching Away – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-demo/#comments Mon, 25 Oct 2010 22:00:53 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1924 while I have posted every album by The Pine, The Pine month is far from over. we still have a few days to go. so I present to you: Reaching Away. The Pine went on a hiatus in 2005, and up until just recently everyone feared we had heard the last of them. in many ways I guess you could say we have. but in some ways, The Pine still lives on through Reaching Away. albeit with a different drummer and a different expression. they started up in the summer of 2009, and by 2010 a demo had surfaced. this is said demo. it’s 10:50 long and consists of three tracks. the perhaps biggest change from The Pine is that Reaching Away is acoustic guitar driven, producing a much more soft sound. the middle track is without drums as well, and serves as one of those almost droning stand out songs that The Pine occasionally played to mix things up. the other two songs are more upbeat. it’s sad and melancholic like The Pine, with a mellow twist. it’s almost country-tinged, with its soft strumming and upbeat drumming. and even though the lads have grown up and all that jazz, the vocals are to some degree their easily recognisable selves. the vocals are – like the whole band – noticeably different from The Pine, but in the same spirit, and with the same heart. this is a continuation and evolution of The Pine’s magical sound. this is a worthy heir to the throne. and it’s a perhaps even darker and sadder heir, that sings «life’s weight blinds you» with the saddest voice on top of the saddest orchestra. it’s Reaching Away. get this.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/reaching-away-demo/feed/ 0 The Pine – Acoustic http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-acoustic/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-acoustic/#comments Thu, 21 Oct 2010 22:00:07 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1906 if you thought we were done with The Pine… you were wrong! [pause to make a sigh of relief now] there’s thankfully more. this is an acoustic set released on a CD-R in 2005. they play songs from their first 7″, their first 12″, Homeless Life and Lead Blocks for Feet, as well as a Three Shades of Dirty cover. ten songs in total. it’s well over forty minutes long, and lets us experience The Pine in a completely different setting than we are used to. they essentially prove that their music would probably work in any setting ever (paging The String Quartet?). the intimacy suits the songs great. even clap-alongs work! so enjoy this curiosity.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-acoustic/feed/ 0 The Pine – Don’t Need Regret http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-dont-need-regret/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-dont-need-regret/#comments Mon, 18 Oct 2010 22:00:13 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1903 Don’t Need Regret is The Pine’s last album, and I don’t think you should expect to see any more. it continues the jangly and noisy Dinosaur Jr.-esque sound of Days Slipping By. on their most noisy and feedback-heavy they even sort of sound like Build Nest, Sleep, which is always a great thing. while the Dinosaur Jr. comparison is done the most justice on the heavy hitting “No You”. the songs are extremely tight, and Don’t Need Regret as an album works extremely well. one feels that the songs are in the perfect order, and that The Pine have carefully chosen when to pick up the pace, when to break it down… it feels like every bit of feedback, every hit on the snare… it feels like absolutely each and every little detail is carefully planned out and perfectly executed. this is probably The Pine at their very best, to be completely honest. their last album in many ways sound like what they have been working towards all their career. this is just one of those albums that are perfect in every way. “Dead Boat” has got to be the most perfect way to go out as well, with all its longing, desperation and sadness it’s the epitome of depression; the very idea of depression manifested in a song. the whole album is utterly emotionally devastating. the album has a wholeness – a sense of being complete, incomparable to any other album I have ever heard. “Dead Boat” ends exactly like the first track “Don’t Need Regret” begins, ensuring that not only does the album come off as incredible consistent – you can actually put this on repeat indefinitely and it will always feel consistent. the album never ends. the feeling never ends. this album is perfect.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-dont-need-regret/feed/ 0 The Pine – Splits and Compilation tracks http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-splits-and-compilation-tracks/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-splits-and-compilation-tracks/#comments Thu, 14 Oct 2010 22:00:11 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1895 I’m assuming you’ve listened so much to Days Slipping By that you know it by heart by now. so I will grace you with the next The Pine download. this is a collection of all their tracks from splits and compilations. it starts out with their contribution to Wayfarers All, and follows with the two songs from their split with The Saddest Landscape. those three tracks are from 2004. then there is their song from the This Is Your Life compilation, and then finally their track from their split with La Quiete. those are from 2005. so that’s five songs in just over fifteen minutes, collecting all of their splits and compilation tracks. we’re back to the treble-heavy sound, with recording quality that is pretty equal on all tracks, though perhaps slightly lower on the last track. the sound levels were all over the place, so I’ve edited the files a little bit. “Desperate and Lonely” is a little louder (it’s also the track in the highest bitrate) than the rest, and there are some minor differences. but believe me, it’s a lot more pleasant to listen to now than before I made the changes. between “Desperate and Lonely” and tracks from the split with The Saddest Landscape, it would drop like seven dB. so enjoy this collection! it’s five classic The Pine tracks. by letting the guitars really ring out, they form a wall of sound that tucks in the jangly drums and the ever-present bass. and it’s simply brilliant. in the middle of everything is of course the absolutely perfect vocals. and when you’re listening to the 5:20 long piece of perfection that is the last track, it’s obvious that if the world were falling apart, The Pine would be playing in the background. get this

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-splits-and-compilation-tracks/feed/ 0 The Pine – Days Slipping By http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-days-slipping-by/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-days-slipping-by/#comments Mon, 11 Oct 2010 22:00:32 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1893 let’s move on to Days Slipping By and 2004 (note: sometime in 2003, they had a change of drummer). it’s more of the distorted open chords, battering drums, light bass and wavering vocals we all know and love. it’s still The Pine. so this means a unique emo sound, that’s unconventionally dark and sad for being this melodic and upbeat. this is also their most diverse album thus far, I’d argue. a more experimental and curious side of the band is presented. and they’ve managed to succeed in developing the sound without neither ruining it, nor stagnating. from the very first track, “No Tomorrow”, this album is a demonstration of power by The Pine. they have developed their sound to be more broad and diverse. it’s as driving and compelling to listen to, but they experiment far more with different noises, and I think I’m not completely off if I say that I think the tempo is a bit lower. but either way, Days Slipping By absolutely fucking destroys. emotive hardcore done so incredibly right. put it on repeat until I put up the next album.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-days-slipping-by/feed/ 0 The Pine – Lead Blocks for Feet http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-lead-blocks-for-feet/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-lead-blocks-for-feet/#comments Thu, 07 Oct 2010 22:00:09 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1877 we’re now in 2003, and The Pine travelled home after their tour and recorded ten songs for a new album which got put out some months post recording. that recording was called Lead Blocks for Feet and is now up for download here on that’s punk. this endeavour is a healthy mix between the styles of Homeless Life and the self-titled release. it has intertwined forceful guitars washing over clashing cymbals like the first two tracks on “Homeless Life”, but also that thick mix of the distorted electric guitars and the comfortable-sounding bass guitar racing the drums as if both parties’ life were at stake. and on top of all that are of course are the significantly unique vocals, almost crying every word out, whether it be miserable or beautifully optimistic. this album also holds the most stripped down The Pine track as of yet, with “Letters”. on the other end of the scale, Lead Blocks For Feet ends with The Pine at their perhaps rawest and most chaotic. furious and melodic, like Hüsker Dü. there is no contemplating this. you *need* to download this album.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-lead-blocks-for-feet/feed/ 0 The Pine – Homeless Life http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-homeless-life/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-homeless-life/#comments Mon, 04 Oct 2010 22:00:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1869 and so our story continues… in 2002, The Pine recorded the Homeless Life 7″, and put it out within a month after its recording session. it consists of four songs. some of which follow in more or less the same path of the 7″ and 12″, some of which are quite different. it’s only ten minutes long, but then again these near ten minutes are of the very highest quality, and will no doubt be stuck on repeat until the next post. it starts out with a comforting bass, and then it crashes into an emotional turmoil. all the distortion and feedback are only rivalled in intensity by the tragic lyrics, and their flawless delivery. “Homeless Life is a song about «when times are running low and all you can do is cry, but the tears don’t care and the words aren’t there». the next track follows the same idea with sparse but heavily charged lyrics, and crashing drums and noisy guitars, signalling the end of the world or something worse. track three is more reminiscent of the 7″/12″ tracks, but still has that really loud and powerful sound of the previous two, before ending on a softer note, quite reminiscent of The Man I Fell in Love With and Christie Front Drive. the fourth and last track is back to basics. upbeat and melodic head rush emo about a girl (or at least we all like to think it always is about the girl). the track is drastically different from the other three tracks, but isn’t out of place at all, and actually acts like a perfect complement and closer track. get this, and hold your breath, because there might be more.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-homeless-life/feed/ 0 The Pine – The Pine http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine/#comments Thu, 30 Sep 2010 22:00:06 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1867 welcome to October 2010 here on that’s punk. October is a special month for me, and I think it might just be for you too. in 1998 the world graced us with The Pine, one of the most magnificent emo bands of all time. they are comparable to The Hated, Evergreen, Lumber, Tribute, Cerulean and Don Quichote – all of which are comparisons they live up to and then some. their easily recognisable sound consists of a murky mix of emotional and touching eerie greatness. it’s quick paced and highly melodic riffs that are dictated by upbeat and jangly drumming, and with a brilliant safety net in the evenly paced though gentle and soothing bass. it’s mostly upbeat and thrashing, but every now and then The Pine take it down. they have some beautiful downbeat tracks that stand out very easily on this album – and yet they still fit in. many bands fall in one of two traps when it comes to lengthy albums. either they make all songs too alike, or they make them so different that there is no clear direction on the album. The Pine manage to tread that difficult middle-ground, not being afraid of mixing it up, and not fucking up the mixing up. in the middle of all this musical godliness are the highly distinctive vocals. high-pitched and probably what most would call “whiny”. but the whiny vocals are in no way nagging or pompous. instead, they serve as a perfect fit to the emotive nature of the band’s music. The Pine initially surfaced as a three piece. their drummer was their vocalist at first, but he couldn’t really hear himself over the banging drums. so they added a fourth member – a drummer – and the drumming vocalist became a guitar playing vocalist. they recorded their first seven inch, changed their bassist, and recorded their first twelve inch. the label that was supposed to put out the LP never came through though. so what happened instead was a change of drummer, some new recordings, and a new LP tracklist. this label actually came through, so the 12″ was actually released, the band and the label splitting the expenses 50/50. this is their self titled CD from 2003, which collects their self-titled 7″ from 2000 and their self titled 12″ from 2001. confused? don’t be. just download it. this is The Pine month, baby. (this is all sold out stuff, so go to eBay and pray you might find something.)

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/10/the-pine-the-pine/feed/ 1 Kråkesølv – Trådnøsting http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/krakes%c3%b8lv-tradn%c3%b8sting/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/krakes%c3%b8lv-tradn%c3%b8sting/#comments Thu, 30 Sep 2010 17:34:04 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2043 pretty much from its inception, Kråkesølv has been a wonder band in the Norwegian music scene. when I first saw them live they were a modest but truly great emo band with an affection for feedback and jangly guitars on one hand, and an affection for poppy vocal harmonies and instantly recognisable chord progressions on the other hand. we all expected these guys to go have some sort of mainstream appeal due to that latter hand. and we all know they were good. but I don’t think anyone – let alone the band – expected the kind of success they have achieved. we’re talking about a small diy band based in the North of Norway (in Norway, most bands with any overly serious intention of living of their music move to the south and the capital, where most of Norway lives), that got a Norwegian Grammy award nomination. and how? by touring a lot, and by putting out their album by themselves (with some help from a distribution company called Diger). in other words: by hard work. this is the album that put them in everyone’s ears and on everyone’s lips. this is Trådnøsting. and though I fear this album will appeal 99% to Norwegians, and maybe Danish and Swedish people who understand some Norwegian, I will strongly encourage you right now to check it out even if you are English, Russian, German, what the fuck ever. music knows no language barrier. sadly, lyrics do. so a lot of you will never truly get how extremely well written these songs are. however, you can experience how well crafted the chord progressions are, how hypnotising the instrumental parts (the end of “Hjørnebrikke” is perfect) can be, and how wonderful it is when they on a seldom occasion give up their tight control of everything, and it just explodes. my only problem with this album is that sometimes it might be a little too skilful. they run a tight shift, resulting in tight riffs. this works out. but it’s maybe a little flat and contained. at times I catch myself thinking, what if they just thrashed this part? what if they just went nuts here? what if there was a wall of feedback and screaming here? but I guess that’s just not what Kråkesølv are about. and it might be just as well, because this is something quite special. also, there *are* some feedback here. there are some “moments of weakness”, where the temptation of jangling a bit gets too big, and they just give way for that little piece of feedback on “Skredder”, or that little bit of perfection that sounds like French screamo – wtf – on “Blanke Føtter”. this is a mix between BritPop like Muse, Norwegian folk rock like Halvdan Sivertsen, and American emo like American Football (listen to the fantastic album closer “Kastes” for a great example on how to do American Football-esque emo without being a Kinsella rip off/tribute/worship band). this is fucking great. get it if you haven’t already been blessed with this little music wonder. if you are in Norway you no doubt know where to buy this album. if you’re not from Norway, check http://www.krakesolv.no/ – and the lads will probably give you a helping hand.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/krakes%c3%b8lv-tradn%c3%b8sting/feed/ 0 Benjamin Finger – For You, Sleepsleeper http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/benjamin-finger-for-you-sleepsleeper/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/benjamin-finger-for-you-sleepsleeper/#comments Wed, 29 Sep 2010 17:31:59 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=2041 already present on this blog is Benjamin Finger’s great Woods of Broccoli and Beneva vs. Clark Nova’s Dramadadatic (Benjamin Finger is one half of Beneva vs. Clark Nova, if you did not know that already). the first mentioned is introverted, often minimalist and very moody. the Beneva vs. Clark Nova album was a far more upbeat and joyous affair. these two polar opposites sort of come together on this album. it does just as good a job at being downhearted, as it does at being upbeat. and Benjamin Finger proves to be a master of many widely different styles. there’s soothing synths, glimmering strings, and ethereal vocals that form a dreamy atmosphere. then all of a sudden that atmosphere gives way for catchy blip blops and kicking drum beats. everything changes rapidly and ever so often. I’d like to mention that the cover (which was designed by Bryan Voel, by the way) is gorgeously executed. its mix of mostly colourful and vivid images make up a collage. this is noteworthy because the music is in many ways the same. a collage of mostly colourful and vivid images. it’s near forty minutes long, but time really does fly when it comes to this album. very much helped by the endless mix of infinite sounds and genres. it’s not exactly unpredictable or random, but it’s really clever and very pleasant to listen to. it’s a blip and a blop and a glitch and a pop. get this. you should definitely buy it from http://www.howisannierecords.com as well. it’s well worth the money.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/benjamin-finger-for-you-sleepsleeper/feed/ 0 The Whoopass Girls – The Inspiration Room Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/the-whoopass-girls-the-inspiration-room-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/the-whoopass-girls-the-inspiration-room-demo/#comments Fri, 24 Sep 2010 13:58:17 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1890 Ethan has a new band, and gravity is restored here at that’s punk. The Whoopass Girls are a healthy mix between messy punk rock, pretty emo and very experimental rock. it features straightforward pummelling drums, jangly guitar riffs, screams, off-key vocals and the like. the American Football tinged “I Think We’re in the Sunset Room at the Hilton” alone is great enough a reason to download this album.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/the-whoopass-girls-the-inspiration-room-demo/feed/ 0 Vicious Mixtapes – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/vicious-mixtapes-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/vicious-mixtapes-ep/#comments Thu, 23 Sep 2010 11:23:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1882 all fans of upbeat and happy pop music will no doubt remember back when I posted Hit Factory (if you don’t – you might want to go download their EP a little further down). Vicious Mixtapes aren’t as grand-sounding. they take a little more floating and dreamy approach. it’s a tranquil and broad sound, sort of reminiscent of Incubus’ “Aqueous Transmission”. for fans of rock music with much pop appeal! get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/vicious-mixtapes-ep/feed/ 0 Discovery Of A Life Long Error – Creature E.P. http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-life-long-error-creature-e-p/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-life-long-error-creature-e-p/#comments Sat, 18 Sep 2010 22:00:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1858 we weren’t quite done with Discovery Of A Lifelong Error with the last post on that’s punk… because in 2008 Creature E.P. was released. it featured a second guitarist called Marc. this version of the EP has some tracks extra though, not all of which include Marc. anyway, on this EP Discovery Of A Lifelong Error shows more composure. not saying that shit is *calm*. not at all. but the songs are longer, and not as acute. it’s still badarse fucking screamo though, so GET IT. this EP includes two songs you already have, just so you know it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-life-long-error-creature-e-p/feed/ 0 Discovery Of A Lifelong Error – You Can Learn A Lot From A Pair Of Black Lungs… http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-lifelong-error/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-lifelong-error/#comments Fri, 17 Sep 2010 22:00:49 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1857 in 2006 Discovery Of A Lifelong Error were formed outside of Sacramento, California. they played their first shows in early 2007, and released their first CD in April. this is that CD. and it’s filled with spastic fucking thrashers. hard and fast and noisy like Bravo Fucking Bravo, unpredictable like The Locust, and overall exotic like The Blood Brothers. sudden changes in vocal style, smooth shifts of focus, and abrupt changes in meter are frequent. the main style of vocals are this hostile high pitched scream that pierce your eardrums greatly. the lyrics share the apocalyptic nature of The Blood Brothers, as well as the eccentricity. lines like «this stallion is a living breathing hearse» are not uncommon. the guitarists play all sorts of wacky chords and scales, but make sure that it all fits together at the end of the day. which is really nice. because you never get the feeling that this band are just showing off. they are focused and precise in their relentless thrashing. this band rules. check them out. the last track is quite amazing.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/discovery-of-a-lifelong-error/feed/ 0 Anne – Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/anne-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/anne-demo-2010/#comments Thu, 16 Sep 2010 22:00:58 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1853 from Portland, Oregon we get the four man shoegaze band Anne. the guitars and synth clash into a massive sound, and vocals that blend into the soundscape beautifully, you get a sort of Joy Division meets Whirl sound. at times it is downbeat and melancholic – but not to the extent of Joy Division, and at times it is upbeat and optimistic-sounding. give this a go if you’re into well-crafted and catchy shoegaze. each and every song has its great pop hook.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/anne-demo-2010/feed/ 0 El Spectre – Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/el-spectre-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/el-spectre-demo-2010/#comments Wed, 15 Sep 2010 22:00:28 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1847 El Spectre are a Western Mass screamo band, and this is their demo from August. it’s sort of between Noisy Sins of the Insect, Lizards Have Personalities and Oh, Apollo! they vary between beautiful instrumentals parts with perfect twinkling guitars, and jangly upbeat parts with screams, soaring guitars and crashing cymbals. El Spectre are also noteworthy in that they have pretty short songs, but manage to be really epic in those time spans.this is fucking great, and you should definitely download it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/el-spectre-demo-2010/feed/ 0 Trampoline Dreamers – Hate Patterns http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/trampoline-dreamers-hate-patterns/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/trampoline-dreamers-hate-patterns/#comments Tue, 14 Sep 2010 22:00:38 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1845 New Zealand isn’t the most prominent source of mid-west emo (go figure). but here you have some. the loud and treble-y guitars play chord progressions that are so precise and catchy that Trampoline Dreamers could probably have been a Britpop band if they really wanted to. but instead, the upbeat drumming, screaming guitars and reverb-heavy vocals sound like a mix between west-coast bands like Evergreen and The Pine, east-coast bands like Ethel Meserve and Texas is the Reason, and mid-west bands like Braid and Boys Life. The Promise Ring is also a name that will no doubt ring a bell for Trampoline Dreamers. anyway, enough of the name dropping. Trampoline Dreamers fuzz their way through nine colourful and cheery jangly emo tunes. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/trampoline-dreamers-hate-patterns/feed/ 0 Agna Moraine’s Autobiography & RentAmerica split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-rentamerica-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-rentamerica-split/#comments Mon, 13 Sep 2010 22:00:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1840 this post concludes the Agna Moraine’s Autobiography discography, and showcase them at their probably most melodic and detail-attentive. the guitar sound is quite mellow, allowing the twinkling to blossom. but they still manage to go into chaotic energy crashes every now and then. this is the essential last piece of your Agna Moraine’s Autobiography. but it’s also an introduction to another glorious ’90s emo band. RentAmerica are just as known for their emotional (and quite confusing) live performances, that included a lot of blast beats, crying, guitars flying around and very loud shouting (they did not use a microphone, supposedly deeming it elitist), as they are or their music. which is probably just as emotional (and confusing), if not even more. this is pure fucking emo violence. blast beats, feedback, shouting, screaming. it’s five minutes of complete and utter chaos. this band destroys in a similar vein of Honeywell, and you need to check them out. so even if you weren’t a fan of Agna Moraine’s Autobiography (impossible!), you need to download this to check out RentAmerica.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-rentamerica-split/feed/ 1 Agna Moraine’s Autobiography – Agna Moraine’s Autobiography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-agna-moraines-autobiography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-agna-moraines-autobiography/#comments Mon, 13 Sep 2010 16:53:18 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1838 here is – as promised – more Agna Moraine’s Autobiography. this is their self titled seven inch. it’s only four songs, so it’s less than ten minutes long. which is unfortunate, seeing as this is by all means close to the epitome of ’90s emo. beautiful and intricate guitars with gentle vocals and contained drumming eventually crash into a wall of sound and emotion. Agna Moraine’s Autobiography have cut their wrists, and from the slice they’ve given you a piece of life. download it and listen to it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-agna-moraines-autobiography/feed/ 0 Agna Moraine’s Autobiography – Demo Tape http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-demo-tape/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-demo-tape/#comments Mon, 06 Sep 2010 22:00:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1829 I want to share with you one of your favourite quintessential ’90s emo bands. this seven song demo tape is only just over fifteen minutes long, but Agna Moraine’s Autobiography manages to say a lot. their members have been in bands such as Constatine Sankathi, bev.clone and h.t.m.l., so these guys are seasoned emo veterans. with loud distorted guitars, shouting, screaming and a furious rhythm section, these guys hide most of their melody and beauty underneath a thick layer of chaotic and dissonant emo. you’ll find something worth paying attention to throughout this demo tape whether you are more a fan of dissonance or of melody, because Agna Moraine’s Autobiography fuses the two into what should be a rather conflicting sound, but ends up being just right. and carefully sprinkled around in the various tracks is some pure chaos, and some beautiful bits with heartfelt vocals and carefully played guitars that create the absolutely perfect nerve for emo. some of these songs appear in re-recorded versions on other releases… which will be up on that’s punk shortly! so start up with this download, and eagerly anticipate the next.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/agna-moraines-autobiography-demo-tape/feed/ 1 Sealings – Tape http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/sealings-tape/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/sealings-tape/#comments Sun, 05 Sep 2010 14:17:57 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1547 Sealings are an extremely loud and noisy punk rock band, much like Retainers. this English duo has wailing guitar solos, punchy drums and subdued vocals. and in this 8:47 thrasher of a tape, shoegaze meets raw punk rock like never before. this is distorted beyond recognition, yet melodic and pretty at the same time. Sealings have an original and enticing sound that needs to be heard. get in touch with the band at from http://www.myspace.com/sealings – where there’s also links to purchase their stuff. the password of the .rar file is “sealingull”. enjoy.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/sealings-tape/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – 25 Songs http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-25-songs/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-25-songs/#comments Thu, 02 Sep 2010 22:00:50 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1540 25 Songs is the last of our mini-marathon of Paul. it consists of (you guessed it) 25 songs, is the by far longest release at 42:37, contains a few songs you’ve heard before, and is awesome. 25 Songs was released between the self titled album and Grand Ledge in 2006. it’s not as easily digested due to the sheer amount of songs, so it might take a few listens to really get all the songs. the quality is just as high as on all of Paul’s glorious album, but when you get so many songs at one time, you obviously don’t get all of them at once. this album has both punk-y songs as well as folk-y songs. some songs include drums and electric guitars, whilst some are just the good old acoustic guitar. this release is clearly more a “collection of songs” than an actual album, so don’t expect total consistency or any real flow to it. these laid-back recording sessions sound very experimental at times, as they jump between a lot of different sounds. some of the tracks are merely jam sessions, and some are even obvious jokes. so, my point is: don’t download this and expect a new Paul Baribeau album to your collection. take it for what it is, and you’ll be able to appreciate the songs by themselves.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-25-songs/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – Yikes Baribeau http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-yikes-baribeau/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-yikes-baribeau/#comments Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:00:20 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1539 yesterday I posted the first self-released Paul Baribeau album on that’s punk. but(!!!), that was not his first released self-released album. yes! there are more! and this is one of those two other self-released album. (stay tuned for the second one.) this was his very first release. a number of these tracks appears re-recorded on the self-titled record. those recordings are however extremely different from these ones. to be honest, these recordings are probably completely different from anything you’ve heard by Paul before. get this: it’s not folk rock as much as it is punk rock. there are electric guitars, drums, the whole package. it’s a full band. and it’s fucking awesome. this is Paul Baribeau like you’ve never ever heard him before, in a setting just as fitting as the one you’re already familiar with.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-yikes-baribeau/feed/ 0 Paul Baribeau – Unbearable http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-unbearable/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-unbearable/#comments Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:28:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1534 whenever I ask any given person who their favourite that’s punk artist is, there’s at least an eighty percent chance that the answer I’ll get is Paul Baribeau. the that’s punk blog attract many different audiences, and all of them generally agree that Paul is one of the best artists of this often talked about “our time”. and now he’s back. this time with an insane recording budget that allows him to afford occasional vocal overdubs, and even an electric guitar on one track! but fans of the raw and emotional Paul we all got to know and love on his self titled, and Grand Ledge – he’s still here. the vocal overdubs results in a far more harmonic sound than I’ve grown accustomed to with Paul, but thankfully, it’s still very raw and very emotional. the album’s centrepiece “Rolling Clouds” is a perfect example of this, with its regretting lyrics and sad vocals. if you’re a fan of Paul’s, you’ll love this. if you for some obscure reason haven’t heard him yet – you’ll need this. because this has it all. catchy and creative chord progressions, a fragile and sincere vocal delivery and beautiful lyrics. I cannot stress the importance of paying attention to his lyrics enough, because he is a master of the arts. Paul Baribeau is definitely “the greatest living folk artist”. NOTE: this is self-released, not a Plan-It-X release. you can buy it from No Idea Records.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/09/paul-baribeau-unbearable/feed/ 0 Et Tu Brute – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/et-tu-brute-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/et-tu-brute-demo/#comments Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:08:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1527 continuing our grave robbery series, here’s a band that existed c.a. 2004-2006. in 2004 they put out this demo, showcasing a by all means highly promising screamo band. the recording quality is supreme (especially for a demo). this Massachusetts mammoth band frequently border on the ridiculously epic; the ridiculously well pulled off epic. the only slightly dissonant and very melodic and pretty ethereal guitars are directed by the focused and firm drums that carry the songs, not just a little inspired by the heavy layered progressive rock sound portrayed by bands such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Mono, both of which are admitted influences on the band. they do no shame to the progressive screamo sound, most famously carried out by City of Caterpillar. and Et Tu Brute are not the kind of band that plays long arse boring build-ups, only to display thirty seconds of glimmering brilliance, and call it “crescendos”. their build-ups are longing and beautiful, and they aren’t completely crescendo-reliant, more than once favouring sudden explosions, taking the listener by surprise. I only wish this demo exceeded its four tracks by several more, equally well-crafted tracks. unfortunately this is all that’s left from one of the definite highlights of this sound. you really don’t want to miss this. download it at once!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/et-tu-brute-demo/feed/ 0 The Lady Is Not For Burning – Slave Girls From Beyond Infinity http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-slave-girls-from-beyond-infinity/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-slave-girls-from-beyond-infinity/#comments Thu, 26 Aug 2010 11:43:47 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1524 if you got the previous post by The Lady Is Not For Burning, you probably either love them or hate them by now. if you love them, here’s 23:55 more of their epic well-composed screamo. if you hated them – well… there’ll be a new post shortly. ;-) this release has somewhat better recording quality, which I guess helps the message along. the beautiful guitars thrive on the clean production, and the stomping drums and soft bass are undoubtedly benefiting from it as well. this is a largely overlooked and mostly forgotten band that deserves a little revival, so check this out. you might find a new favourite band here. for fans of iwrotehaikusaboutcannibalisminyouryearbook, Rue Morgue, Elements of Need, Jeromes Dream and everything between said bands. this is fucking great. get it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-slave-girls-from-beyond-infinity/feed/ 0 The Lady Is Not For Burning – 9 Songs http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-9-songs/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-9-songs/#comments Fri, 20 Aug 2010 15:49:17 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1501 today we at that’s punk are digging up screamo graves. The Lady Is Not For Burning were a New Jersey band that perished a couple of years ago. they left some songs though! and here’s nine of them. the brutality and intensity of Usurp Synapse, Rue Morgue and The Spirit of Versailles meets the ambitiousness and atmosphere of Welcome to the Plague Year, Indian Summer and Funeral Diner. The Lady Is Not For Burning play unpolished and raw screamo, with periodic melodic guitar interludes, and loud screamdowns.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/the-lady-is-not-for-burning-9-songs/feed/ 0 Retainers – P Trash 7 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-p-trash-7/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-p-trash-7/#comments Wed, 18 Aug 2010 22:00:48 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1496 I have no idea what the title of this album is all about. that’s just what it was named when I got it. I’m assuming it’s an untitled/self-titled 7″, released on P Trash. feel free to correct me though! anyway, this is more of the same. have you ever tried blowing your speakers using treble instead of bass? if not, you need to try it with this. loud as hell psychotic punk rock from Retainers. pure awesomeness.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-p-trash-7/feed/ 0 Retainers – Teenage Regrets http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-teenage-regrets/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-teenage-regrets/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 22:00:55 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1494 Retainers are the filthiest and noisiest fucking mess of a punk rock band you’ll ever encounter. Iggy and The Stooges and Reatards are some of the best comparisons I can conjure right off the bat. however, Retainers prove to be louder, faster and more abrasive than either of them. this is a pure energy explosion. punk rock at its rawest. GET THIS.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/retainers-teenage-regrets/feed/ 0 Miles Apart – Valueless http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/miles-apart-valueless/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/miles-apart-valueless/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 22:00:52 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1491 out of South Carolina we have Miles Apart, a band that has been active for quite some time, but who hasn’t put out anything until this EP right here came out in April. they play a heavy though melodic flavour of Shai Hulud-esque hardcore, with the occasional screamo flirt. it’s mostly fast-paced hardcore action with heavy and abrasive breakdowns. when the guitars are extra melodic and going mid-tempo over creeping drums, and the shouted/screamed vocals expresses the emotionally distressed lyrics, it even almost sounds a bit like Some Mistakes (particularly on “Misaligned”). you should definitely check this out if you are into any form of hardcore or emo. pay particular notice to the outstanding end track, “Valueless”. a fantastic example of some epic fucking hardcore. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/miles-apart-valueless/feed/ 0 lover – death stays awake http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/lover-death-stays-awake/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/lover-death-stays-awake/#comments Sun, 15 Aug 2010 22:00:03 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1488 lover is made up of a guy who used to be in When I Came Back from Death. this sounds absolutely nothing like When I Came Back from Death at all. it is completely different in every way possible. this release consists of three very different tracks. the first one has a stripped down minimalist space ambient sound. the second one has a far more accessible upbeat acoustic guitar with screamed vocals type of thing going on. the third one sort of blends the two close to polar opposites, and introduces us to a heavily textured shoegaze sound, with synth, guitars, vocals and even drums. it is the most “happening” song on the death stays awake, and in my opinion also the best one. so what you essentially get if you download this is three largely different tracks of experimental ambient/shoegaze music. it’s not for everyone… but it might be for you! download this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/lover-death-stays-awake/feed/ 0 Deadlights – The Noisy Shore http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/deadlights-the-noisy-shore/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/deadlights-the-noisy-shore/#comments Sun, 15 Aug 2010 16:28:40 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1485 out of New Haven, Connecticut stems Deadlights. they are a highly melodic punk rock band with lots of gang vocals and ultra catchy hooks. I feel comfortable comparing them to Four Minute Mile, Dream to Make Believe, I Brought You My Bullets – You Brought Me Your Love, In the End – We Are All Light, Through Being Cool, and most obviously, the absolutely fantastic Tell All Your Friends. so Deadlights find themselves in very good company right there. The Noisy Shore is far more punk rock sounding than most of those albums, but it has many of the same qualities. in fact, The Noisy Shore can easily relate to the sing-a-long friendliness of the lyrics, and the unforgettable and perfect delivery of them that appears on Tell All Your Friends. it also have some of the awesome guitar solos of I’ve Brought You My Bullets… – and so on. this record is simply marvellous. a fucking thrasher from start to finish, full of energy. this is something memorable. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/deadlights-the-noisy-shore/feed/ 0 Everyone Everywhere – A Lot of Weird People Standing Around http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/everyone-everywhere-a-lot-of-weird-people-standing-around/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/everyone-everywhere-a-lot-of-weird-people-standing-around/#comments Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:00:49 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1476 the first time I put this on, my reaction was merely “wow”. the melodic and melancholic twinkling guitar American Football perfected is sped up two times and contrasted by a distorted guitar that mostly play sweet and enticing riffs, though sometimes engaging in some twinkly action of its own. in addition to this, there are upbeat drums and carefree bass lines. that’s right. the bass guitar manages to convey “carefree” with its comfortably soft lines. the mix is extremely pleasant on the ears, a bit like Football, etc., Snowing and the cheery parts of Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson’s newest album (mainly thinking about “Scientists Now Think This City Is Overdue” now). on top of the mix are completely no frills vocals, that in no way attempts the extravagant, but actually blossoms in all its modesty. the whole record is in fact just that: modest. there are no grand openings or violent endings. pomposity is the antonym to Everyone Everywhere. the humbleness of this record is also its strongest trait. it is what it is. and it’s fucking spot on. everything is perfect. you simply need to download this. and you can buy this 7″ from http://evilweevil.bigcartel.com/product/everyone-everywhere-a-lot-of-weird-people-standing-around if you want, and get more info on the band on http://www.myspace.com/everyoneeverywhere – where you can buy more stuff as well.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/everyone-everywhere-a-lot-of-weird-people-standing-around/feed/ 1 When I Came Back From Death – Churchburner http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/when-i-came-back-from-death-churchburner/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/when-i-came-back-from-death-churchburner/#comments Sun, 08 Aug 2010 22:00:12 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1472 if there were at any point any doubt as to which genre When I Came Back From Death takes the majority of their influence from, this album title should eradicate it firmly. When I Came Back From Death are periodically the blackest of black metal. what makes them even more interesting, however, is that they are also periodically the extremest of grindcore and the hardest of hardcore. on the previous album posted here (Dead Language), they were similar, but with no real grindcore influence – at least in comparison to this album. they were merely a very blackened style of metalcore. here, however, they have torn the boundaries asunder, and do a full on black metal/grindcore/hardcore mix. a heavy as fuck black metal/grind/hardcore mix that no one can say no to. download this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/when-i-came-back-from-death-churchburner/feed/ 0 Belle Epoque – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/belle-epoque-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/belle-epoque-demo/#comments Sun, 08 Aug 2010 12:38:49 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1469 those of you who have heard A La Dèrive remembers Belle Epoque and their unique sound fondly. the guitars are twinklling softly, like the ’90s mid-west emo bands, but only for so long. because Belle Epoque constantly catches you off-guard with bursts of loud, aggressive and passionate bursts. relying more on the element of surprise than pleasing crescendos, Belle Epoque are a band that is full of twists and turns, all of which are equally pleasing. going from a Symptom of Isaac resembling drive with upbeat tom-driven drums, clean guitars and spoken/rambling vocals – to semi-distorted Mineral-guitars at double speed and screaming – to this – to that, they constantly change the rules as they see fit. this is a fortunate thing, because Belle Epoque’s music is highly dynamic and extremely animate thanks to this. I highly recommend the living and breathing force Belle Epoque to absolutely everybody even remotely into emo. get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/belle-epoque-demo/feed/ 0 Sailing Means More – the RIDE BIKES virus http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/sailing-means-more-the-ride-bikes-virus/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/sailing-means-more-the-ride-bikes-virus/#comments Sat, 31 Jul 2010 22:00:40 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1428 a lot of people are confused as to what happened between the seminal screamo band Seeing Means More, and the pop skram/mosh pop/surfcore revolutionaries Fight Fair. this compilation might offer some explanation… or just further add to the confusion. either way is fine with me. Sailing Means More are the various Seeing Means More side-projects. this is the holy grail of OOP SMM. they cover Britpop, ’90s obscuremo and straight edge hardcore among other things, all with an aura of authenticity and passion. they take a stand against those mother fucking sellouts who’ve fled the scene, declare ride bikes forever and remind you that straight edge is for LIFE. now these guys are the biggest promoters of scene love & unity, skram life and ride bikes that skram has ever seen – but some people need to be reminded, straight edge is no joke. that shit is for fucking life. and only useless weasels would ever turn their back on the scene. they need to be called out, so I’m really glad Sailing Means More takes that stand. but don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a negative record. not at all. but this is the ride bikes manifesto, and you need to set some ground rules. and you need those ground rules to be accompanied by epic tunes. thankfully, Sailing Means More excels at that point. diversity and quality go hand in hand on the ride bikes manifesto, and I urge you all to check it out as soon as possible. this shit speaks the truth. it’s 2k10 and the RIDE BIKES virus is back, for life, until the day I die – for fucking ever! sailing means more fun for sailors, so grab this download young sailor.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/08/sailing-means-more-the-ride-bikes-virus/feed/ 0 The Tie That Binds – Slowly Sinking Heroes http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-tie-that-binds-slowly-sinking-heroes/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-tie-that-binds-slowly-sinking-heroes/#comments Fri, 30 Jul 2010 22:00:41 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1463 previously this blog has had the pleasure of sharing both of The Tie That Binds’ magnificent albums. now I present the killer tracks you’re missing, the Adding Machine 7″ and a few compilation tracks. it’s seven tracks, and twenty-eight minutes long. this is the The Tie That Binds we all know and love. upbeat and melodic ’90s emo influenced by Jawbreaker and Samiam. there are no frills to The Tie That Binds’ music. just intricate melancholic and melodic guitars building up suspense, getting joined by precise upbeat drumming and wailing vocals. despite being very simplistic and direct in their approach, The Tie That Binds convey a surprising amount emotional distress. this is emo that tears your heart apart. get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-tie-that-binds-slowly-sinking-heroes/feed/ 0 Seasons’s First Rain – Season’s First Rain http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasonss-first-rain-seasons-first-rain/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasonss-first-rain-seasons-first-rain/#comments Thu, 29 Jul 2010 22:00:46 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1435 initially noticeable obvious changes from the Spray Paint the Sun split to this self titled album include the higher bitrate, but the arrangements are still minimalistic, relying just as much on atmosphere as melody. the stabbing jagged edge of the guitar carries the melody, but doesn’t mind dropping it every now and then – hard to the floor. the curious drums keeps the momentum thriving forward, and put together with the guitar it makes this sound sort of like deathrock without the prominent bass guitar – at least at times. while I personally preferred the sound induced by the lower bitrate on the split, this has its advantages as well, perhaps best illustrated by the playful guitar interlude on “Потоп”, and how it wraps the drums in for the rest of the song. Season’s First Rain also show a new side of themselves, with a little happy, upbeat rhythm on “Во имя прогресса”, where the mix works great. “Малое завещание” is the track that’s most akin to what they put on the Spray Paint the Sun split. a driving force, carried forward by the harsh screams. in any event, check this psychedelic screamo band out! because they are really original and interesting. at least to my ears.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasonss-first-rain-seasons-first-rain/feed/ 0 Season’s First Rain & Spray Paint the Sun split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasons-first-rain-spray-paint-the-sun-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasons-first-rain-spray-paint-the-sun-split/#comments Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:00:48 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1430 I’m sure you all remember Spray Paint the Sun very fondly. so I’m sure you won’t mind getting studio recordings of four of the tracks from the live album posted earlier on that’s punk – including my favourite track “Больше чем шум”? of course you don’t mind. it’s so good! for those of you who don’t remember them, Spray Paint the Sun are a Russian emo band that cites influences such as Policy of 3 and Indian Summer, but also newer bands such as Sailboats and June Paik. Spray Paint the Sun are noisy as all hell breaking loose at the same time, but periodically they calm down, and the guitars masterfully interact with each other, almost sounding as if they are trying to find a way to outsmart one another. in the background, the spastic drums make sure the music is perceived as vivid and flowing. the bass gives a softer sound, and adds another dimension to the songs. the Indian Summer influences are clear when listening to the rhythm guitar and the bass guitar, carefully making their way forward. the lead guitar on the other hand is far more aggressive and impatient, rushing from note to note at all times. but I guess I’m going sort of in the opposite direction of what I’m supposed to, because Season’s First Rain are in fact the band that appears first on the split, with five great tracks. their recordings are significantly more lo-fi (Spray Paint the Sun tracks being >1500kbps, compared to Season’s First Rain’s ~900kbps half), but undeniably glorious – with its Evergreen-like qualities. the bitrate suits the songs very well, adding more reverb and ensuring seamless transitions – as well as a complete blending of the instruments, making it sound like one holy entity. with a distinctly sad and depressing sound, Season’s First Rain remind me somewhat of Saetia, but they are much more sparse in their arrangements. sparse though noisy, with the clashing cymbals, rambling guitar and loud high-pitched screams. a band with their own sound, well worth checking out. they create their own unique atmosphere with their original approach to screamo, and their side goes very well with the quite different Spray Paint the Sun side of the split. while similarities no doubt exist, these two bands are completely different – but equally awesome. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/seasons-first-rain-spray-paint-the-sun-split/feed/ 0 I.Witness – Secret Handshakes http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-secret-handshakes/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-secret-handshakes/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 22:00:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1422 this is the 2010 summer demo collection of I.Witness. it’s six songs and nigh twenty minutes. like the other I.Witness demo on that’s punk, the quality is surprisingly adequate. with songs ranging from 0:43 to 6:01 in length, I.Witness display both the traditional hardcore style adopted on All Roads Lead Southeast as well as the more brooding screamo style. thus this taster should satisfy fans of both the older material in addition to fans of the All Roads Lead Southeast. on Secret Handshakes, I.Witness bridges the gap between the two sounds, and further develop them into something new entirely. this is their most diverse collection of songs yet, as well as the perhaps best. “Непринятые Звонки”, “Маяки”, and “В Круге Первом” being my personal favourites of this band thus far, with lead riffs akin to Optimus Prime’s, a marvellous energy and emotionality comparable to Rites of Spring and One Last Wish, and sensational song structures à la Slint and Moss Icon. with this release, I.Witness feel like natural successors to the revolution summer bands. the guitars are heavy as shit in massive quantities. get this. now.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-secret-handshakes/feed/ 0 I.Witness – All Roads Lead Southeast http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-all-roads-lead-southeast/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-all-roads-lead-southeast/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 16:21:59 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1419 on previous efforts I.Witness have constantly moved between crust, metalcore, screamo, and traditional hardcore. on this new record, they have adopted a much more straightforward hardcore approach. while still not afraid to introduce octaves and intricate harmonies to their heavy music, the majority of this album is noticeably more traditional hardcore-sounding. with a less muddy production, each instrument’s contribution becomes clearer. furthermore, the technical ability of the members really shines through. the sick riffs, odd breakdowns and wacky time signatures are a great match for the elegant rawness and despair inherent in hardcore punk. this is an immediate, accomplished and crisp record. both in terms of musicianship, as well as in production – both of which perfectly capturing the insane amounts of energy put into these recordings. these immense vocals and blistering rhythms will blow you away. download this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-witness-all-roads-lead-southeast/feed/ 0 damezumari – 2004-2007 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/damezumari-2004-2007/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/damezumari-2004-2007/#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 17:03:46 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1408 damezumari is a phrase from the board game “Go”. it essentially means “you are fucked”, i.e. you’re in a situation that’s extremely difficult to get out of. damezumari are naturally a screamo band. I don’t know the exact date I found this band, but someone put up a “bands that sound like I Hate Myself” compilation. obviously, I checked it out. I wasn’t disappointed. you won’t be either, if you download this 2:22 collection of songs. like I Hate Myself, damezumari has a sound that is impossible to pigeon hole. reminiscent of ’90s emo like Still Life, 1.6 Band and Indian Summer, but modernised and comparable to their contemporary bands, e.g. the birds are spies, they report to the trees and Sinaloa. the hoarse yells over frantic melodies comes off as a very sincere and searching. the latter feeling further enhanced by the questioning lyrics, delivered by the quirky vocals. the main theme in damezumari’s songs is doubt. the songs are fragile and shivering with angst and helplessness, struggling not to cave in to depression; struggling to survive. at no point does damezumari’s music become annoyingly whiny or self-indulgent. it always maintains an aura of believability and honesty. the music is warm like rest of my life, spastic like the birds are spies, they report to the trees and wondering like Indian Summer. though the guitars are at times heavily distorted, and the lyrics are at times highly vague – there is nothing unclear about the beauty inherent in damezumari’s songs. there is obvious a lot of effort put into the song writing. and if we assume that «without effort there is no meaning» from “gravity is a choice” to ring true, rules of logic would indicate that with effort comes meaning. you need to hear this band. this is vulnerability in the form of music. check it out. and buy merchandise from http://damezumari.com/ – which also includes links to some of the people carrying their records.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/damezumari-2004-2007/feed/ 0 June Paik – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/june-paik-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/june-paik-discography/#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2010 19:34:25 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1406 the German four piece June Paik play music firmly rooted in the intense and aggressive screamo sound, but stray from “the basic formula”. when at their very loudest, June Paik are comparable to their countrymen Louise Cyphre, as well as the legendary American band Jeromes Dream. the band themselves put Canadian screamo forward as their main influences, and the brooding heavy Union of Uranus do indeed come to mind when listening to June Paik. the thick guitar tone and the dark qualities are ever present in June Paik’s often lengthy songs. but what really separates June Paik from other bands in the genre, are that they are far more dynamic as well as richly layered than most of the other bands. – and this despite only consisting of four members. beautiful Indian Summer octaves hinting at something glorious and sentimental in the background of an ugly droning monotonous passage, that eventually exits into what can only be described as musical Armageddon. June Paik’s crushing climaxes sound like the destruction of all that is beautiful – and nothing is as beautiful this. it doesn’t take many minutes of this discography to figure out why June Paik are frequently referred to as “apocalyptic screamo”. June Paik are emotional apocalypse. sounding more desperate, lost, anxious and dejected with every tone. June Paik are the sound of heartstrings being pulled (bear with me, for sake of symbolism). for a good portion of their discography they masterfully build up suspension, release it all in an intense crash, and then pick up all of the shattered fragments that are left, and rebuild the suspension – aiming for the skies, once again. most bands that attempt this go in the exact same trap. they are predictable, repetitive, boring and unoriginal. June Paik are the opposite of all of this. their compositions never cease to amaze, nor surprise. the inherent predictability of crescendo-based progressive music is completely eliminated by the subtle changes of mood, the seamless transitions between emotions, and the indescribably clever atmosphere. there are also a fair share of these totally unexpected abrupt and angst-ridden explosions, as well as equally unexpected murky sudden halts, that leave only a depressing and endless feeling of loneliness and darkness. June Paik are an amazing band that deserves all of your attention. download this. and buy most of it from http://www.reactwithprotest.org – their label’s site.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/june-paik-discography/feed/ 1 I Hate Myself – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-hate-myself-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-hate-myself-discography/#comments Fri, 09 Jul 2010 22:00:20 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1374 I don’t know how I am even supposed to begin writing this block of text. is it even necessary? does I Hate Myself need an introduction? definitely not. they do deserve one though, although I hardly think anything I could ever write would do them one tenth of justice. DILEMMA! gah. I Hate Myself were an emo band from Gainesville in Florida. they were active in 1996 to 1998, but one of their LPs were recorded and released several years post this. they recorded a bunch of stuff in their active period, all of which is included in this discography. most of their stuff can be bought from http://www.noidearecords.com/bands/ihatemyself.php – so do that as well. I Hate Myself are known, remembered and loved for a number of things. for being the wimpy boys that were playing shows tough guy bands, and their tough guy crowds, in which they’d speak their mind out against their macho bullshit community… for their ironic band name and satirical song titles… but most of all, I Hate Myself will forever be known, remembered and loved for one single reason: their sincere music. their recordings – particularly the early ones – are considered highly original and innovative in the screamo genre. but I Hate Myself did not play typical screamo. they are nothing like Honeywell, and nothing like Orchid. thus the “screamo” tag might be unfitting at best, or at worst: completely wrong. because I Hate Myself actually play creeping, quiet and soft music, most of the time. the guitars twinkle in a sparse manner, sounding like sad stars falling in slow motion. the drums follow discretely. the soft bass further enhances the mood. and the vocals weep along. the intricate nature of the music, and attention to detail makes them sound far more like Moss Icon, Still Life and Fugazi, than “screamo”. but then all of a sudden, they cut through with loud and angry bursts. dissonant riffs, crashing drums and piercing screams. and suddenly the screamo tag is fitting after all – if only for a short while. the clever lyrics and dark music both encompass frustration, hopelessness, helplessness, sadness, etc. overall, I Hate Myself are probably one of the most miserable bands to ever record music along with Codeine. but – like Codeine – they are also one of the most talented. the lyrics are brilliant. the constructions, allegories and twists… this band is proficient well past most others. not only do they have some of the most emotive, intense and sad music, but their lyrics reflect it and enhances it ten thousand notches. some times it paints depressing pictures of broken lives, filled with allegories and metaphors – sometimes it’s just so simplistic and straightforward that it gets fragile and sad beyond compare. (“The Lightning Says” being the ultimate example.) the end result is the culmination of every downhearted feeling that ever existed. this culmination naturally affects the listener in some way. the music reaches out and touches people. and it never leaves the system. once you’ve been exposed to I Hate Myself, you will never forget the experience. the feeling of being rendered void on the inside. they are just so skilled and talented, that it’s almost unbelievable. fantastic composers through and through. if you don’t believe me, then listen to this thirty song/two hour discography, which includes two short but sweet live sets. clever satire and raw honesty join hands, and we get one of the most interesting as well as talented bands of all time. imagine the powerlessness of Codeine coupled with a cathartic release of hate and despair. download this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/i-hate-myself-discography/feed/ 0 Crywank – Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/crywank-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/crywank-demo-2010/#comments Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:00:10 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1394 Crywank was started after a horrible breakup. one would think that’s a good foundation for a good folk record, right? it is. and with influences such as that’s punk favourites Andrew Jackson Jihad and Paul Baribeau, we are certain this is a winner. English-based James Clayton is influenced by a wide variety of anti-folk, outsider and punk music. the end result is fragile, highly self-critical and honest folk rock that one would think serves as a great outlet for all the pains of breaking up. James says they put him in a good mood, and hope that it serves the same purpose for someone else. now I’m not going through a breakup – thankfully… hell, I’m not even in a bad mood at all. I feel pretty good, actually. but James little record here no doubt put me in an even better mood. whether you are going through a bitter breakup or not, you should be able to find this enjoyable, if you like folk. check it out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/crywank-demo-2010/feed/ 0 TUMBLEWEAVE – ♪♫♪♫♫♫♪♪♫♪ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/tumbleweave-%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/tumbleweave-%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa/#comments Wed, 07 Jul 2010 22:00:36 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1392 TUMBLEWEAVE describes themselves as “cartoon noise rock”. not bad, eh? it’s essentially mysterious and densely layered noises. the songs consist of extremely many details, and a seemingly endless number of elements. this is reflected in the 1700+ bitrate of the FLACs, actually the highest of any albums in my current music library. their music would serve well as the background score for a curious and dark 16-bit game, if not for the fact that I’d probably be pausing the entire time, listening to the music instead of playing the game. this record is only just three minutes long, and is pretty much impossible to process on just one listen. TUMBLEWEAVE have created a mammoth, capable as serving both as ambient noise music as well as upbeat and catchy blip blop pop – at the very same time. this is an extraordinary intriguing piece of work that deserves a listen and then some more listens. GET THIS!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/tumbleweave-%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa%e2%99%aa%e2%99%ab%e2%99%aa/feed/ 0 Evolve – Evolve http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-evolve/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-evolve/#comments Mon, 05 Jul 2010 10:00:20 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1387 if seven minutes of Evolve wasn’t enough for you, then here’s a seven inch! with six songs, it’s eleven and a half minutes long, and includes most of the songs from the demo, and some new ones. it’s all furious (and cool!) hardcore played at a blistering tempo. Evolve are old school and legit. buy here http://www.evolve.bigcartel.com/ – limited to 200 copies, and it’s only €5.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-evolve/feed/ 0 Evolve – Digital Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-digital-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-digital-demo-2010/#comments Sun, 04 Jul 2010 22:00:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1385 Norwegian hardcore has been absent from this blog for quite some time now. so guess what? Evolve are a Norwegian straight edge hardcore band influenced by the classics of the genre, like Youth of Today and Chain of Strength. this seven-minute demo introduces Evolve as a blast from the past, clearly heavily influenced by both the American (both East and West coast) sXe hardcore of the ’80s. there are occasionally guitar licks or melodic hooks, but Evolve largely favours it heavy and fast. like a punch to the throat, Evolve says hello. hello! if you like hardcore, you’ll want to check this out. if you don’t… then this band won’t convert you.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/evolve-digital-demo-2010/feed/ 0 Caitlyn Bailey – 2009 Luzon Tour EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/caitlyn-bailey-2009-luzon-tour-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/caitlyn-bailey-2009-luzon-tour-ep/#comments Sat, 03 Jul 2010 22:00:58 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1382 it’s been well over a year since I first posted Caitlyn Bailey. if you don’t remember them – or never got to know them – they are a Filipino train wreck of a screamo band, and they are very determined in their calling, namely destroying everything that comes their way. this EP is chaotic, dissonant and ugly. just like punk rock should be. they don’t fuck around, so I won’t either. download this if you like: rapid fire drumming, heavy thrash riffs, screaming, and a filthy, bloody fucking mess. if you can appreciate a melodic mess, that’s a plus as well.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/caitlyn-bailey-2009-luzon-tour-ep/feed/ 0 Lizards Have Personalities – Snows of Kilimanjaro http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/lizards-have-personalities-snows-of-kilimanjaro/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/lizards-have-personalities-snows-of-kilimanjaro/#comments Fri, 02 Jul 2010 22:00:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1378 the skram worshippers Lizards Have Personalities are already back with another effort, and now they are a trio instead of a duo. though the follow-up came sooner than at least I expected, it’s more than welcome. formed initially as a potential joke screamo outlet, they soon got serious. seriously skram. these guys won’t get disappointed or sad if you compare them to random late ’90s/early ’00s screamo band, considering their obvious skram worship. they might be a serious band, but they are definitely a humble band, that wants to pay their respects to the legends of the skram past. however, they still want to sprinkle their own flavour over their sound. and they are extremely successful with that on this record. on their début, they were far more generic skram. they sounded almost like a tribute band. but no one cared, because they were so fucking great. they were residing between Saetia and I Hate Myself, and pulling off the sound excellently. on Snows of Kilimanjaro, something has changed. they have matured a great deal, and in such a minor time span! it’s almost unbelievable. other influences becomes audible. the guitars Funeral Diner and Neil Perry, their Suis La Lune flirt “C’était hier l’été…voici l’automne”, and the chaotic approach of Orchid and Ampere are some of those influences. lyrically though, the same qualities are present. they are still bordering both the cliché and the ridiculous. screaming «my memories hung themselves/staring up at the moon for too long/remembering how you said we’d take the world by storm» with a straight face might seem impossible, but Lizards Have Personalities not only scream it, they mean it. their lyrics – however absurd and over the top they might be – come off as believable and honest. musically this album is as stated previously different to the previous album. one of the biggest of those differences is the more chaotic and fast approach taken here, as opposed to the slower In All Honesty. this album is far more to the point, with most of the songs making it to around 2:30. the one notable exception though is the title track which stretches to 9:46. this track is reminiscent of the songs from the first album, being a mid-tempo heavy screamo song with great licks and a long build-up, that eventually ends up climaxing into a satisfying end of the album. Snows of Kilimanjaro displays a wide variety of influences, and it might sound like Lizards Have Personalities have found their very own sound, instead of merely mirroring their influences as best they can. a fantastic album that you really should take the time to check out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/lizards-have-personalities-snows-of-kilimanjaro/feed/ 0 It’s Just Vanity – Here’s What You Remember from A Coma http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/its-just-vanity-heres-what-you-remember-from-a-coma/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/its-just-vanity-heres-what-you-remember-from-a-coma/#comments Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:00:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1371 earlier on I posted It’s Just Vanity’s first record, The Strangers EP. if you would recall, I bragged about that record so much, one would think It’s Just Vanity had hired me as their PR person. they hadn’t. and I am infinitely pleased to inform you that starting today, It’s Just Vanity are giving away their new record for free. but only for a week though, so act fast. time is of the essence in this dire matter. and believe you me, it is dire. It’s Just Vanity plays the dreamy, angst-y and melancholic sort of emo perhaps best compared to The Shyness Clinic. and like Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson and Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate), It’s Just Vanity are master conveyors of emotion. their new record is completely stunning and utterly amazing. mixing the emotionally charged ’90s Midwest emo sound with nothing short of explosive progressive rock crescendos into full blown brilliance, this band is simply outstandingly good at what they do. Here’s What You Remember from A Coma is glorious and gracious beyond compare. one of the tracks are appropriately titled “Forgive Me, I’m Blowing Your Mind”, and It’s Just Vanity: let me – on behalf of every emo fan ever – forgive you for blowing all of our minds with this mind blast of a record. whilst many albums have certain phases and/or elements that are highly enjoyable, this album is just fifty minutes (and some more) of highlights. a thoroughly accomplished record from start to finish. it grabs your attention from the first tone, and then refuses to ever let it go, even holding it for hours, days if not weeks after you’ve first listened to it. it’s impossible to shake the feeling It’s Just Vanity’s second release gives. this delivers one of the most emotional experiences any music has ever done. download this album, then buy it. please. P.S. this album is up for free forever, apparently. good on them! round of applause for the boys, please.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/its-just-vanity-heres-what-you-remember-from-a-coma/feed/ 1 The Kidcrash – Snacks http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-kidcrash-snacks/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-kidcrash-snacks/#comments Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:22:44 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1365 it’s 2010 and people still whine about The Kidcrash being called Kidcrash. but more importantly, it’s 2010 and (The) Kidcrash are still an active band that puts out first class emo. (Snacks was first out in 2009 though.) if you don’t know who The Kidcrash are, then you must be very little interested in the skram, or extremely unlucky. the main things to know about this band are that they started out «in 2000, used to sound different, have toured the U.S. three times, [E]urope once, and love to make friends”. oh and another thing, their music is marvellous. from the very first noodle to the last, The Kidcrash play a fairly unorthodox style of scream, at least for an American band. The Kidcrash could just as well have been from Norway, France or Italy. they largely favour concord over discord, with fairly clean guitars and soft drums. they are not as explosive or aggressive as typical Antioch Arrow influenced American screamo bands like Jeromes Dream, nor like the most popular ’00s skram bands (Saetia, pg.99, Hot Cross, etc). they are far more melodic, with noodle guitars that are far more easily compared to American Football than Ampere. on Snacks, they aren’t even screaming any more. the vocals are sort of like Daniel Striped Tiger’s, shouting more than screaming. this is an overall softer effort than their previous one, Jokes. softer but not less intense. so check out this great record if you like harmonic and well crafted modern screamo (without screaming), and not just explosive bursts. download this! it’s as if Daniel Striped Tiger started a French screamo band. also – you can buy Snacks and everything else by this band from http://www.denovali.com – in several different editions.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/07/the-kidcrash-snacks/feed/ 0 Seeing Means More – Discography http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/seeing-means-more-discography/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/seeing-means-more-discography/#comments Tue, 29 Jun 2010 22:00:35 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1363 if you recall, I mentioned that Fight Fair features some members of Seeing Means More. this is Seeing Means More. they started out in 2002 as a traditional screamo band influenced by Indian Summer and Funeral Diner. they broke up shortly thereafter, and then reformed in 2003 with a new sound, far more aggressive. due to a growing interest in other forms of hardcore music, Seeing Means More ended up incorporating a heavier sound, screamo fused with hardcore and metalcore – a sound that later became to some extent synonymous with popular ’00s screamo. along with Takaru, Seeing Means More represented something more immediate than City of Caterpillar’s exploring crescendos, and something heavier and more metallic than Orchid. but at the same time the epic build ups of “Bernadetti Protti”, that eventually come crashing down into a devastating metalcore finisher suggests that evidences of both City of Caterpillar’s and Orchid’s influence can be found throughout this discography. their love for intricate melodic hooks and spoken vocals can be attributed to the Indian Summer influence. the end result is somewhere between the spastic, melodic and wonderfully artistic sound of bands such as The Spirit of Versailles and In Loving Memory – and the more direct and intense sound of bands like Loma Prieta and Comadre. all with sprinkles of Indian Summer, pioneers of the perhaps definite emo sound. check out this solid thirty minute discography. you won’t regret it! particularly not after listening to the depressing sagas that are the two last tracks, ending this discography as not only proof of what Seeing Means More were, but also hints for what Seeing Means More could have been.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/seeing-means-more-discography/feed/ 0 Fight Fair – California Kicks http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-california-kicks/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-california-kicks/#comments Mon, 28 Jun 2010 22:00:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1270 today is a day to remember forever. today is the release date of Fight Fair’s full full-length album, California Kicks. and what a kick it is! with Settle the Score, Fight Fair almost completely ditched their pop skram sound in favour of a pop hardcore sound, but left room for other experiments. one of those experiments was the surf-pop monster hit “Pop Rocks”. the band decided that this was the song that was the most fun to play, and decided that this was what they wanted to do on their full-length. Ramones mixed with The Beach Boys is the way the band describes their surfcore sound, and that description isn’t all that far off. but like with Settle the Score, the band allows themselves to experiment a lot on the record. they try the lot. punk rock-tinged power pop like Undertones and The Jam, dancefloor hip-pop that’s somewhere between The Ting Tings and Black Eyed Peas, and pure ’90s melodic punk rock and alternative between Lifetime and The All-American Rejects’ early stuff. but the very core of their sound is the insanely catchy mind blowing surfcore sound, with lyrics about romance, being young, OOP vinyl, surfing and hanging at the beach. let me assure you, Fight Fair are very much successful in reintroducing what they call “the best of the beach”. namely, “the playfulness, the parties, the people and, most of all, the pop-laced singalongs”. Fight Fair are to surf rock what The Young Hasselhoffs are to doo-wop. California Kicks brings back a near forgotten era, and illuminates it like never before. Fight Fair are surfcore’s beacon, lighthouse and flagship. serving as an ode to Californian summers, and the careless playfulness of ’50s and ’60s surf rock. if you like newer Weezer albums, you’ll love Fight Fair. if you like surf rock, you’ll love Fight Fair. if you like fun, you’ll LOVE Fight Fair! get this! now! and get ready to P-P-P-PARTY!!! buy it from http://www.myspace.com/fightfair – along with some frisbees, beach balls and other must-have Fight Fair memorabilia. whether they are making fun or having fun isn’t remotely interesting. what is interesting is the 100% quality of this amazing album. GET IT! Fight Fair’s first EP was the epitome of pop skram. their second was the epitome of pop hardcore. this is the epitome of LIFE. Fight Fair for LIFE.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-california-kicks/feed/ 2 Fight Fair – Settle the Score http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-settle-the-score/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-settle-the-score/#comments Sun, 27 Jun 2010 23:00:18 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1260 in the name of fun, here is some more Fight Fair! they are back to settle the score with their follow up, in which only two of the members featured on xFashionx appears. that may be one part of the explanation as to why they sounds like a completely different band on Settle the Score. the fact that they’ve changed so much might obviously lead to the loss of some fans, as well as the gaining of some fans. what this essentially means is that if you disliked the first record, you might still love this – giving you *no* excuse to not download this. even if you absolutely hated their first record, you still need to download this. no excuses. anyway, despite all the differences (which I’ll get back to), there are a few similarities that I might as well get out of the way at once. they are still catchy, poppy and totally awesome. the track “San Diego” appears in a re-recorded format. there are still ’90s punk rock influences galore. and that’s about it. now for the differences – this release marks an obvious change of sound. one could say that they go from the epitome of pop skram to the epitome of pop hardcore. bands like Set Your Goals and Four Year Strong might be mentioned, but Fight Fair are far superior. with lyrics «we just wanna have some fun/we’re still young and on the run/we just gotta have some fun/everyone», they are definitely not clouding their message with pseudo-poetic mumbo jumbo, but instead favouring the direct approach. with vocals that have been through many a vocoder/pitch altering software, punk rock guitars that play the most perfect melodies, and heavy as shit drums – Fight Fair are a loud, intense and fun affair. varying between the fast breakdown-heavy pop hardcore sound, a more “ordinary” ’90s punk rock sound, a skramzy sound, and the ultra-catchy and refined surf pop sound. «don’t bother with the other boys/I’m better than them», pleads vocalist Alex Bigman in the heartfelt emotional distress masterpiece “Pop Rocks”. now I’m pleading you, don’t bother with the other bands, this one’s better than them. get this at once! Fight Fair for the win!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-settle-the-score/feed/ 0 Fight Fair – xFashionx http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-xfashionx/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-xfashionx/#comments Sun, 27 Jun 2010 16:16:04 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1257 Fight Fair are a band featuring ex-members of Seeing Means More, and no block of text could possibly describe the treat you are in for if you choose to download this album. xFashionx is frequently described as awesome by some, whilst other are not so modest, deeming it the epitome of pop skram. this is no unfair description. Fight Fair takes on a sound much like that of My Chemical Romance’s first album, Aiden’s first album and every other good upbeat downheart alternative rock album of the early 2000s. they are however significantly less slick, and display a more obvious screamo/hardcore influence, in addition to their love for catchy pop hooks in between the melodic distorted ’90s punk rock guitars and interchanging Yellowcard-esque vocal harmonies, screams and gang vocals. filled to the brims with breakdowns and poppy metalcore explosions. this band has something for everyone. exploring previously unknown territory with a sound that’s less slick than My Chemical Romance début, but more polished than Oh, Apollo!’s début, Fight Fair tries to take the best of all worlds, and put it all on their own little pop skram planet. balancing the brutally honest and the ridiculously dishonest, Fight Fair makes washes out the line between the previously antonyms honesty and dishonesty, and creates their very own approach to music – FUN. this is one of the maybe most important bands in skram history, along with Emo Summer. certainly one of the most fun ones, no doubt. get this!!!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/fight-fair-xfashionx/feed/ 0 Matt Evans – Demo 2010 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/matt-evans-demo-2010/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/matt-evans-demo-2010/#comments Mon, 14 Jun 2010 10:02:32 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1246 this is the solo effort by Matt Evans, who plays in the very recently posted Just Die!. this does however sound very little like Just Die!’s raging style of hardcore. it takes a far mellower road, with an acoustic guitar and a comfortable voice. Matt Evan’s take us on a gentle ride, through three songs that nearly reach the seventh minute mark. this is emotional folky and poppy acoustic rock that carves its way into your brain. perhaps especially with the last track, and all of its catchy The Get Up Kids (Four Minute Mile era) riffs. Matt Evans displays an affinity for melodic chord progressions and pleasant vocal harmonies. it’s good. download it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/matt-evans-demo-2010/feed/ 0 Just Die! – Garages and Basements http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-garages-and-basements/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-garages-and-basements/#comments Sun, 13 Jun 2010 21:43:25 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1240 can’t get enough of Just Die!, eh? understandable, as their first record was a) really awesome and b) really short. this next one is no deviant from that formula. and if there’s a parallel between awesomeness and shortness, that would mean this one is even more awesome! (that’s my goofy way of informing you that this one is shorter.) it’s an almost nine minutes long seven inch record entitled Garages and Basements, and you can buy it from http://deadendrecs.bigcartel.com/product/just-die-garages-and-basements – it’s only $5, so you probably should. if you are wondering what to expect – expect much of the same. Lifetime, Kid Dynamite and Strike Anywhere are bands I can somewhat compare this to. it’s a bit ’90s skate/punk rock, a bit ’00s hardcore, a bit of this, a bit of that – and a lot of awesome. the skate/punk influence results in a slightly more mid-tempo sound, consequently preventing the songs from blazing by too fast for you to actually digest them. with this record, Just Die! further evolves their catchy flavour of anthem hardcore. it even has gang vox!!! I fucking love gang vocals. download this. buy this. get on board.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-garages-and-basements/feed/ 0 Just Die! – No Time for Poetry http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-no-time-for-poetry/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-no-time-for-poetry/#comments Sun, 13 Jun 2010 21:32:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1238 Just Die! are a NC hardcore band that’s been going on for quite some time now. this is their first full length, entitled No Time for Poetry. released in 2007, this is a eighteen minute crash course in intensity. with their tracks rarely reaching the 1:30 mark, this band doesn’t fuck around. they get straight to the point, then proceed to hammer it into your skull. still, they do no neglect to melody nor atmosphere. interchanging between fast-as-hell hardcore (at almost grindcore speeds) and anthem punk, this band leaves a mark with all their passionate shouting, energetic drumming and awesome riffs. this band is hyped as fuck all over the Internet, and with good reason. aggressive enough for the hardcore purist and catchy enough for the hardcore newbie, they satisfy everyone on all accounts. but remember to put it on repeat, because this shit flies by fast. it might need a couple of listens to stick. in any event, check this band out! you will not regret it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/just-die-no-time-for-poetry/feed/ 0 Mega Games – Let in These Hands to Hold http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/mega-games-let-in-these-hands-to-hold/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/mega-games-let-in-these-hands-to-hold/#comments Thu, 10 Jun 2010 10:05:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1235 if you remember The Mega Games Two, you remember them fondly. I put up their début here ages ago. now – they are back! but the two have become the three, so gone is the name. instead of going “The Mega Games Three” or “The Mega Games Two Plus One”, they’ve settled on Mega Games. possibly to prevent future name crises? either way, they are back. now with drums! the reborn Mega Games’ début is ten minutes long, and consists of four truly great folk punk tracks. not as furious as some of the other folk punk up on this blog, but just as passionate. carefully composed messes of crashing cymbals, uplifting melodica, galloping guitar and soaring vocals. check out this awesome Southampton three-piece! you won’t be disappointed.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/mega-games-let-in-these-hands-to-hold/feed/ 0 Eagulls – Songs of Prey http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/eagulls-songs-of-prey/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/eagulls-songs-of-prey/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 14:22:28 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1223 one of the key ingredients for good music is in my opinion feedback from guitars. and plenty of it. based on the simple scientifically proven parallel between awesomeness and guitar feedback, we can safely state that Eagulls are a really awesome band. sounding like a mix between The Cortlandt Homes, Dinosaur Jr. and American Steel, Eagulls and their fifteen minute début is a very pleasant distinctly English affair. fuzzy and catchy guitars, soft and melodic bass, clever and tight drumming and quite great punk rock vocals. what’s not to like? you need to hear this band. you can visit their MySpace http://www.myspace.com/eagulls to get cassettes and more info etc.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/eagulls-songs-of-prey/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – songs from The Measure [sa] splits http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-songs-from-the-measure-sa-splits/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-songs-from-the-measure-sa-splits/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 11:23:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1218 The Ergs! did two splits with The Measure [sa], that they put out on the wonderful No Idea records. they are new-ish recordings, and so they sound like newer The Ergs!, rather than the Dorkrockcorkrod years. while The Ergs! might not be the darkest, angriest or saddest punk rock band, they write clever and sincere tunes that deserve to be heard. while their lyrics often are described as wilfully geeky and a bit silly, they are definitely moving and touching. you can download them here, and you can buy them both from http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com/ – which you should. if you can! and you should also check out The Measure, a melodic and catchy punk rock band that features Mikey from The Ergs! on drums, and sort of sounds like the ’90s emo band Samuel in a more traditional punk rock setting. one of The Ergs! tracks are a cover of The Measure [sa] (“Workage”).

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-songs-from-the-measure-sa-splits/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – Blockhead (from Teenage Bottlerocket split) http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-blockhead-from-teenage-bottlerocket-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-blockhead-from-teenage-bottlerocket-split/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:50:52 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1220 in 2008 The Ergs! did a split with the sort of heavy punk rock band Teenage Bottlerockets, reminiscent of The Lillingtons, The Steinways and The Copyrights. on this split they did a cover of the almighty Devo, and their track Blockhead. this is that track. while The Ergs! maybe aren’t directly obviously musically influenced by Devo in their sound, they owe their entire modus operandi to the nerdy Devo. like Devo, The Ergs! have an unquenchable thirst for the combination of the raw punk rock sound and pop sensibilities. download this and hear it for yourself! and buy it from http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com if you can afford it etc. that way you’ll get to hear Teenage Bottlerocket cover Green Day as well, if you’re into that stuff.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-blockhead-from-teenage-bottlerocket-split/feed/ 0 The Ergs! – Thrash Compactor http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-thrash-compactor/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-thrash-compactor/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:09:25 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1215 I was originally not planning on uploading this to the blog, because all of you faithful that’s punk users already have all of these songs. but, I got the 7″ some time ago and listened to it, and discovered that the “Throttle Boy” recording is actually a new one! so The Ergs! fans, grab this! if you’re not familiar with The Ergs!, you should be ashamed. they are truly one of the most fun punk rock bands of all time. their melodies range from The Queers-like punk rock, to Hüsker Dü-like emo, and to the raging hardcore punk that appears on this record. it’s a one-sided, five song, three minute 7″ record. and it’s amazing. download it! buy it from http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com/ if you like it. it’s really cheap, and really worth it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/06/the-ergs-thrash-compactor/feed/ 0 Grown Ups – Songs http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/grown-ups-songs/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/grown-ups-songs/#comments Mon, 31 May 2010 16:04:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1212 from reflecting screamo to light-hearted emo. Grown Ups are somewhere between Small Brown Bike, Latterman, The Get Up Kids, Street Smart Cyclist, Algernon Cadwallader and Castevet. this is upbeat and pleasant emo, probably best enjoyed on fairly high volume, a hot summer night. with clean and nice guitar riffs, raspy vocals and quick drumming, Grown Ups sound far from grown up with their approach to catchy tunes and their youthful tales of reaching for happiness. you’ll want this. I think this was a pure digital release, so I don’t know of anywhere to buy it in physical format. you can however get their new album, More Songs. buy links on their MySpace – http://www.myspace.com/ihategrownups – so check that out as well.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/grown-ups-songs/feed/ 0 calculator – these roots grow deep… http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/calculator-these-roots-grow-deep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/calculator-these-roots-grow-deep/#comments Mon, 31 May 2010 07:32:14 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1210 the 200th artist (I think) to be introduced here on that’s punk is calculator, an American diy band formed in 2007, who just recently released this collection LP. it collects every release up until now, and adds a few songs extra. they play modern American screamo in the vein of Age Sixteen and Merchant Ships. that means very emotionally charged and intense vocals over (usually) clean guitars that build up, explode and come crashing down along with insanely precise drumming, followed by a soft and melodic bass guitar. the philosophical and melancholic atmosphere is helped greatly by lyrics that are always seeking and thinking. this is a mature and reflected screamo band that are well worth checking out. download this! and buy from their bigcartel at http://calc.bigcartel.com/ – if you can. they definitely need the cash to support touring etc.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/calculator-these-roots-grow-deep/feed/ 0 Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) & Football, etc. split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-football-etc-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-football-etc-split/#comments Sun, 30 May 2010 18:43:24 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1208 four songs by Football, etc. not enough for you? I feel the same way. so here’s another one! and with it, have a new Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) track as well! could life possibly be any better than this? that’s punk users should be familiar with both of these bands, but if you aren’t – I guess this is a great place to start, because you’ll get a taste of both. the sadly soothing melodies and heartbroken vocals that makes Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) one of the most miserable bands to ever record and put out music, and the depressing musical apprehension that is Football, etc. both bands are ’90s emo revivalists, and a sure bet if you’re into bands like Mineral, Jejune, Evergreen, Crash and Britany, and anything in between those. if you aren’t (you should!), you might still want to check this out, because both bands bring their own new and completely original flavour to the table. I can safely recommend this as a first stop to someone who has never heard emo before, and I can safely recommend this to someone who is into emo as well. get it! and buy it from http://www.cylsrecords.com (US) – or from http://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk (EU) – , it’s worth it.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/empire-empire-i-was-a-lonely-estate-football-etc-split/feed/ 0 Football, etc. – First Down http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/football-etc-first-down/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/football-etc-first-down/#comments Sun, 30 May 2010 18:29:18 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1206 often compared to Rainer Maria, Jejune, Evergreen and Lumber, this is one of the finest of the new proud-to-be-emo bands. now signed to the equally eager emo revivalists over at Count Your Lucky Stars, Football, etc. is a damn fine band. despite their name, they do not sound much like American Football or other Kinsella-bands. and despite their numerous football referencing titles – they are definitely about football. this is something significantly less complicated. it’s sad, frustrated and angst-ridden emo music with nonchalant vocals. this melancholic trio is a must hear! download this! then it can be purchased at shows, or via PayPaling $5 to lindsaym.minton@gmail.com. for international prices and questions, check their MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/footballetc – and they’ll probably help you out.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/football-etc-first-down/feed/ 0 The Third Memory – The Third Memory http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-third-memory-the-third-memory/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-third-memory-the-third-memory/#comments Sun, 30 May 2010 14:48:26 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1201 a fairly long time ago I posted a split between the Norwegian screamo band, Dominic, and the French screamo band, The Third Memory. this is the latter’s self titled album (which includes one of the tracks from the split). active for four-five years before breaking up, The Third Memory are nothing short of screamo legends. “everyone” knows these guys, their DIY ethics and their heartfelt music. this record surfaced last year, and probably should have been uploaded to that’s punk ages ago. why? because it’s really good. *really* good. their last.fm biography says it all. this is nothing short of a «french screamo band that will tear your face off». while they weren’t all that heavy on the Dominic split, things are a little more heavy on their full length album. but The Third Memory is still not a *heavy* band. they are aggressive, intense and direct – but not heavy. while they have a fairly stereotypical mix and general sound, for a French screamo band, it’s noteworthy that the comforting soft spots often do not crescendo into a progressive rock climax, like so many newer emo/screamo bands try to achieve. The Third Memory do not crescendo; they explode. download this French screamo explosion. then you can buy it from this: http://www.desormaisrec.blogspot.com/ French distro, if you like it (you will!).

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-third-memory-the-third-memory/feed/ 0 Teleport me, Johny – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/teleport-me-johny-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/teleport-me-johny-ep/#comments Sat, 29 May 2010 16:46:22 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1198 Eastern European hardcore has establish itself here on that’s punk, but Estonian screamo is a first. and a welcome one at that! this four song/fifteen minute EP introduces these diverse and eager débutants, that sometimes thrash their riffs at blistering speeds, and sometimes let their guitars weep with bleeding intensity… and sometimes both at once. this is yummy dynamic crescendo screamo perfection with plenty of wimpy emo guitars yielding tons of glorious feedback and sugar sweet octaves, while the drums circle and the vocal chords get torn. get this!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/teleport-me-johny-ep/feed/ 0 In Regret – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/in-regret-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/in-regret-demo/#comments Sat, 29 May 2010 17:19:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1196 if you took a liking to In Regret, posted in the previous post, you’re in luck. because here’s a little collection of their songs. if I understand correctly, the first four tracks are from a demo, and the next two are from a split. either way it’s six songs. very variable bitrate (some of the tracks are in a m4a container), but all of the songs are more than euphonious. the music is the same melodic somewhat screamo-tinged hardcore punk introduced in the previous post. something like a sped up Some Mistakes. they are – as mentioned – a very “correct” modern hardcore band. on last.fm they have Defeater and Touche Amore in their similar artists, which are two other bands that are a part of a new trend where melodic hooks and heavy riffs come together (and music journalists label it post-hardcore). I’m not a music journalist, so I’m just going to call it hardcore, if that’s alright. and while I’m not very up to date on trends, I can guarantee you that In Regret are a band that’s worthy of your listen, regardless of any trends. they play dazzling music at high speeds, while allowing themselves to experiment outside of their usual formula – best illustrated on the fantastic closer, “Provenance” – a true masterpiece that you need to hear. get this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/in-regret-demo/feed/ 0 Blacklines & In Regret split http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/blacklines-in-regret-split/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/blacklines-in-regret-split/#comments Fri, 28 May 2010 13:15:17 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1191 Blacklines are a five piece hardcore band from South Carolina. In Regret are a five piece hardcore band from South Carolina. they play hardcore, and are definitely more alike than they are different. but at the same time there definitely are unique qualities to both of them. the first half of the split consists of three tracks by Blacklines, that have a Verse/Ruiner thing going on. they are a little bit melodic, but not soft. at all. Blacklines are definitely a very heavy band, with screamed vocals, noisy crashing cymbals and loud and hard as fuck riffs. on the other half is In Regret, with their more screamo-like sound. something like a highly upbeat Some Mistakes. their vocals vary between screamed, and the whole all-at-once-now-boys shout thing (I fucking love that). extremely melodic and very fast, but not poppy. In Regret are simply a really cool modern hardcore band that does everything right. the download link also has buy links, and I recommend you buy it if you like it!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/blacklines-in-regret-split/feed/ 0 Pump the Brakes – EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/pump-the-brakes-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/pump-the-brakes-ep/#comments Fri, 28 May 2010 12:48:31 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1189 all you longtimers no doubt remember Nothing’s Forgotten’s lovely demo, Vestfold HC. (all you newcomers might want to check that out. it rules.) they later changed their name to Pump the Brakes. while they are sadly broken up by now, these are the previously unreleased recordings that were made for an EP that was supposed to surface in 2009. five highly melodic hardcore tracks that are reminiscent of both ’80s punk rock (Descendents, Screeching Weasel), as well as ’90s punk rock (Propagandhi, Pulley), and the delicious poppy riffs of alternative bands such as blink-182 and T.O.E. with pleasant-on-the-ears guitar solos, catchy riffs, upbeat drumming, raspy vocals and melodic bass lines – this is the anthem rock of punk rock. get it!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/pump-the-brakes-ep/feed/ 0 Stavros – Contemporary Dictionary http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/stavros-contemporary-dictionary/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/stavros-contemporary-dictionary/#comments Wed, 26 May 2010 16:15:45 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1186 in the winter of 2002, the secretive affair known as Stavros recorded their album Contemporary Dictionary. with a sound perhaps best described as acoustic emo. this is the emo cousin of Mom & Johnson Loneliness missed the 12th loveboat. it has a more immediate and desperate sound, occasionally similar to that of The Loneliest Cowgirls’ self titled début, but with better recording quality and a less abrasive approach. the instrumentation vary between a sole acoustic guitar, and a more vivid sound with multiple guitars and percussion – even a violin makes its appearance.. some times it’s dreamy and pretty, with Sigur Rós moments. other times it’s anxious and painful – almost comparable to Catena Collapse, but with a more laid back atmosphere. summa summarum it’s something between Mom & Johnson Loneliness missed the 12th Loveboat, The Loneliest Cowgirls, Catena Collapse and maybe Daniel Johnston. this is not for everyone, but it’s definitely for someone. maybe you?

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/stavros-contemporary-dictionary/feed/ 0 The Loneliest Cowgirls – Animal http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-loneliest-cowgirls-animal/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-loneliest-cowgirls-animal/#comments Tue, 25 May 2010 08:56:38 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1181 Ethan is back, and the staff and users of that’s punk all collectively cheer. everything is as it should be. if you remember correctly, the last The Loneliest Cowgirls post was a shift of style, sounding more like The Sky Looks Pissed. this is a continuation of that style change. it’s not as extremely lo-fi or abrasive as the début, but just as painful and just as frail. what… might… surprise you though is that… this is in fact a Ke$ha cover. i.e. a cover of the American pop artist Ke$ha’s début album. that’s right. the album responsible for million dollar hits such as “Tik Tok”. now personally I much prefer Lady GaGa to Ke$ha. but then again I haven’t really dived into Ke$ha’s album yet.. anyway, this cover album definitely makes me want to check out Ke$ha some more. the only problem is that I’m confident that she isn’t one tenth as interesting as The Loneliest Cowgirls (or Lady GaGa, for that matter). and interesting is the first word I’d use in describing this cover album. I never imagined getting to hear Ke$ha in a folk rock setting. I certainly didn’t expect Ke$ha in a folk rock setting to *work*. with the stumbling lyrics and the faltering vocals – The Loneliest Cowgirls trembles along. if you’re into folk rock or Ke$ha, get this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-loneliest-cowgirls-animal/feed/ 0 Nightmares – Hipster Trash+Maps http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/nightmares-hipster-trashmaps/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/nightmares-hipster-trashmaps/#comments Tue, 25 May 2010 08:34:30 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1178 anyone remember these guys? I sure do. I put up their four song demo some time ago, and it ripped holes into brick walls. and now, here’s a new demo. this is supposedly a little testing of the waters before releasing a full length album… so I’m assuming that means a full length is on the way? if so – YESSSSS. to get back to this demo, it’s two songs. “Hipster Trash” and “Maps”. the first one is about hardcore fashionistas who make the scene look like a fucking joke. the second one is (I think) about rejecting social conventions and religion. both causes are valid, and it’s great that a band like Nightmares speak up. what’s even better is that they *shout* them. on top of a brutal as fuck hardcore sound with grindcore tendencies. despite being less than three minutes long, I hope this demo is an indication as to what the full length will sound like, because it sounds like the full length will be a crushing affair like none other. this band slays all. download.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/nightmares-hipster-trashmaps/feed/ 0 Oh, Apollo! – End EP http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/oh-apollo-end-ep/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/oh-apollo-end-ep/#comments Tue, 25 May 2010 08:09:12 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1176 for all of you nostalgic and sentimental Oh, Apollo! fans out there – here are their last three recordings. musically, this is a continuation of what was started on Kingdoms, then continued on Twin Peaks. Oh, Apollo! has perfected their sound by now, and is ending their career at the top. they are going down in style, with an honest document of who they are. spending three years contributing to the DIY scene and making a community in the Bay Area, their eventful journey has now come to an end, and this is End EP – the perfect document of that end. jangly, messy but pretty. this is their maybe finest material, and I highly recommend you get it. all of these songs appear on a cassette split with Lost In Bazaar, which you can get here: http://dyinghorse.com/distro/ – for only $2.25!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/oh-apollo-end-ep/feed/ 0 The Bridgeheads – Foreigners http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-bridgeheads-foreigners/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-bridgeheads-foreigners/#comments Sat, 22 May 2010 17:15:06 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1167 c.a. six years ago I saw fifteen seconds of a music video on the Bulgarian (I think it’s Bulgarian) music video channel Musicbox, and ordered this band’s début album. at the time they were known as The Bridge, and they weren’t all that big. at least not in Norway. and frankly, they still aren’t that big. why? I can’t for the life of me figure that out. their début was insanely good, and fairly ambitious – coming in a beautifully designed digipack, with cover art by their vocalist and main songwriter, Tomas. a two disc mammoth, that album was glorious. it would go three more years before I got new material by these guys. with a change in their line-up as well as name change, they released a three song EP in 2007. it was just as good as their début album… but it was just an EP, and after listening to it a thousand times, all I could say was GIEF MOAR. and now, three more years have past, and I’m finally getting MOAR. it’s 2010, and their new album is finally here. it’s called Foreigners and it’s released for free today. to put things into perspective, Tomas describes it as his Guernica, or his Tournesols, and they’ve been working with this for approximately three years, the last half of which period being spent in isolation, to avoid any loss of focus. this is extremely ambitious, and definitely a high risking project. Tomas has also written, directed, produced etc music videos for each and every of the eleven songs. and now it’s here. on their previous records they primarily played this slightly emo-induced form of alternative (a bit comparable to Placebo), but when your début consists of 34 tracks, you obviously cross experiment with other sounds as well. so they dipped their toes into both pop rock, experimental rock and garage punk, avant-garde piano-driven compositions, claustrophobic acoustic lullabies… among other things. that alternative sound with an affection for the experimental is still at the core of their sound. but now they are far more experimental. their sound is vastly different. there are no longer tendencies towards the experimental, but a sound that is completely sui generis. they are different from every other band out there, doing something entirely unique of their own. they call it expressionism. though they probably don’t mean the contemporary classical genre, that would actually not be all that off. because like that, this is acute, avant-garde and emotionally distressed. just in a more rock setting. the mix is completely unorthodox with no bass, a ton of mystical reverb, Joseph’s soft drums that sounds like it’s behind a wall, guitars that usually vary between the clean and semi-distorted, and just a very different sound altogether. to compensate for the lack of bass guitar, Tomas plays an octave guitar with no A-string, adding some deep and soft touches. while the record captures quite a few moments of emo/alternative magic, it more often dwells in a sparse Joy Division manner, a comparison significantly enhanced by the baritone vocals – even though they often seek for the otherworldly by utilising Tomas’s signature falsetto. the Slovakian band The Bridgeheads relocated to London some years ago, and I don’t know if it’s coincidental that this record sounds like it borrows quite a bit from English ’80s music, particularly (art) punk and goth rock. other bands that come to mind are both Radiohead and The Cure (Disintegration and post Disintegration). take this into the experimental alternative sound, and you’d probably still be way off if you were to take a guess as to what this record might sound like. it’s an experience that needs to be… experienced. The Gloria Record pushed the limits of what you can and can’t do in the emo genre with their synth-heavy shoegaze-esque album, Start Here. Antioch Arrow pushed it with their chaos. Honeywell pushed it with their aggressiveness and screams. a lot of bands have pushed this genre, and changed the boundaries. and what about The Bridgeheads? I don’t know. but I do know that they do not adhere to a single genre I know of. this album is a fresh breath of air for music as a whole. it’s one of a kind. it needs to be heard to stand any chance of being even remotely fathomed. you need to hear this.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/the-bridgeheads-foreigners/feed/ 0 Tim, Face Berlin – Youth http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/tim-face-berlin-youth/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/tim-face-berlin-youth/#comments Fri, 21 May 2010 09:12:12 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1163 I’m assuming you all remember Tim, Face Berlin? if you don’t, I posted their début some posts down from this one. you should definitely get it, because it’s really good. this is their sequel, Youth. because in my opinion, this album is even better. it’s everything the first one was, only better. the climaxes are louder, and the calm parts are calmer. Youth is an accomplishment in terms of dynamics and a titillation of the soul. it hits nerves I didn’t even know I had. this band has grown and matured. while their sound certainly isn’t being redefined on Youth, it definitely is being refined. Tim, Face Berlin’s greatest weakness is still the predictability and their failure to create something unheard of. however, this might just be their *only* weakness. so they are doing pretty much everything right, they’re just in danger of drowning in a sea of all too similar bands. honestly, the only thing preventing this is the sheer quality present in Tim, Face Berlin’s songs. because while they are still not the most original band in the world, they are undeniably highly gifted performers. their compositions do not surprise me in the slightest – but they do touch me and move me in a way few others do. I for one value their soaring emotional intensity and beautiful flowing sensibility much more than I would or could value their creativity and originality if they lacked these qualities. this is an album that everyone should definitely check out and give a chance, if you are into extremely appealing, albeit generic instrumental layered progressive rock.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/tim-face-berlin-youth/feed/ 0 Captain Credible – Planet of the Eternal Electro Breakdance Orgy http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/captain-credible-planet-of-the-eternal-electro-breakdance-orgy/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/captain-credible-planet-of-the-eternal-electro-breakdance-orgy/#comments Fri, 21 May 2010 08:30:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1160 I bid you welcome to the Planet of the Eternal Electro Breakdance Orgy. I promise nothing but an *eternal* electro breakdance orgy. at least that’s what you’ll get if you put this album on repeat. stating «coffee, and other music» as his influences, English-born Daniel (who now resides in Norway) is Captain Credible. and what exactly is Captain Credible? a one-man band? sure. an electronica art explosion? sure. but he’s all that, and so much more. from the home-made instruments, to the radiator he uses at his gigs to ensure a warm sound – this is an experience like none other, and this record is an eventful journey into the absurd imagination of Captain Credible. we partake on a nice little trip with Captain Credible, as he invites us to come join him on his spaceship. introducing us to what I can only assume are charming people (I mean, Dr. Testicles sounds like a fine man indeed), and describing exciting adventures such as “Pillaging With Astrodog”, the Captain sounds like he has a fairly hectic schedule on his hands. but thankfully he found the time to record these songs, despite being somewhat busy “Shooting Elephants on the Plains of the Serengeti”. the fact that he found the time to record this has to be one of the greatest things to have happened to this world, because these joyful and playful epileptic seizures are nothing short of spectacular. this record is all over the place. Captain Credible is incredible. download this asap! then buy it from http://howisannierecords.com – from which you can get it extremely cheaply. well worth the money and then some.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/captain-credible-planet-of-the-eternal-electro-breakdance-orgy/feed/ 0 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – …Is Dead http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-is-dead/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-is-dead/#comments Fri, 21 May 2010 07:23:09 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1155 eighteen songs that take forty-two minutes to listen through – this is probably the most valuable of all Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains collection, and it’s also the last post I’ll do on them. for those missing Chaos Infiltration Squad and Love Songs for the Apocalypse – this record is those records combined. with deliciously supreme recording quality (especially compared to the earlier posts), this is probably the ultimate record by this band. if you’re a casual fan or an emerging folk punk fan, this is the record to get. if you’re a omg zuper fan – you’ll obviously want to get all the records by them that I’ve blogged… but prepare to be paying this one the most attention though. partially due to the recording quality, partially due to it containing eighteen tracks and consequently being the biggest song collection. as for the style of music – it’s basically the same formula as on the other records. it’s energetic and catchy folk punk that somehow manages to be both nonchalant yet passionate; snarky and nihilist; ugly though brilliant. you’ll want this. get get get it! (I’ve been playing a fair deal of Skate 3 lately… – it’s a disappointment, if you were wondering.)

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-is-dead/feed/ 0 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – Live at Bandit H.Q. http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-live-at-bandit-h-q/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-live-at-bandit-h-q/#comments Tue, 11 May 2010 07:07:57 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1151 as the album title evidence, this is a live take of Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains. it’s a split with Captain Chaos (Chris of Plan-It-X), but the songs appearing in this post are merely Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains’ side of the matter. that side consists of five songs that are c.a. sixteen and a half minutes long in total. all of the songs apart from one appears on one or more of the older posts, so this post is for you guys who can’t get enough of Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains. again, apologies for those of you who do not really care for this style of music. anyway, this live take has really good recording quality and is well worth checking out. the great thing about anything Pat the Bunny is involved with is how energetic the live shows are, with Pat and the audience screaming their lungs out as if a competition was going on. this is just really, really great, so check it out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-live-at-bandit-h-q/feed/ 2 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – Sunday Easter Hangover http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-sunday-easter-hangover/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-sunday-easter-hangover/#comments Mon, 10 May 2010 08:21:50 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1149 another shortie. three songs, fifteen minutes. one of which appeared on the previous post (“New Mexico”). you know the drill by now. it’s Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains. it’s folk punk. acoustic guitar, trumpet, harmonica and shouting about the revolution etc. I don’t want to belittle this shit, because it truly is awe-inspiring – but there’s only so much detail I can put into the description of the music itself. it’s folk punk. catchy and memorable protest songs. this release even has fairly good recording quality, so there will be no annoying compromising of these beautiful songs! which is pretty great, because you cannot possibly listen to these songs without getting inspired and agog. so put these nihilist punk songs on, and dream of the future with Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains. «you wish the world was clean but I’m in love with the way it’s dirty.»

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-sunday-easter-hangover/feed/ 1 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – Caught in the Act of Not Being Awesome http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-caught-in-the-act-of-not-being-awesome/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-caught-in-the-act-of-not-being-awesome/#comments Fri, 07 May 2010 07:44:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1146 ok this is where the Johnny Hobo and The Freight Trains discography gets mildly confusing to me. I have no release year on this record, and there are highly conflicting rumours going around on forums. I must admit I’m a bit lost at the order and release dates by now (already), and even the legitimacy of the release. for all I know this is a fan-made collection of unreleased songs. but it sounds like it’s merely a live concert, but at the end of the songs there’s a studio take of parts of the song? it’s a bit weird. three of the songs are on Anarchy Means I Hate You, but this concert has no drum machine, no nothing. it’s just a man and his guitar… and what sounds like a stand up bass, but it’s sort of hard to tell, because it’s rather awkward-sounding in the mix. sometimes it sounds like it’s a drum? wtf? yeah. but thankfully the guitar and vocals both get across perfectly. so if you are interested in hearing Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains cursing the world live, then you should definitely get this release. the nihilist folk invasion continues, and will continue to continue over quite a few more posts. if you’re one of them who don’t like folk punk: sorry! if you like folk punk: you’re welcome!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-caught-in-the-act-of-not-being-awesome/feed/ 1 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – All Power to the Wingnuts! http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-all-power-to-the-wingnuts/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-all-power-to-the-wingnuts/#comments Wed, 05 May 2010 15:00:45 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1143 moving on with the Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains discography, here’s All Power to the Wingnuts! and with it comes fast and catchy chord progressions on an acoustic guitar, with passionate screamed vocals – all culminating in an anthem sound, perfected by the bittersweet sense of beauty found in the trumpet. containing three songs that are just over seven minutes, it’s a short affair. but(!) the quality of those three songs that are just over seven minutes, will undoubtedly leave you craving more. so stay tuned for the next update!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-all-power-to-the-wingnuts/feed/ 1 Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains – Anarchy Means I Hate You http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-anarchy-means-i-hate-you/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-anarchy-means-i-hate-you/#comments Mon, 03 May 2010 11:55:13 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1141 ever since I uploaded Wingnut Dishwashers Union, I’ve been getting a lot of requests to upload Johnny Hobo and the Freight Train’s discography. and while this has always been my intention, I just never got started. so here you go folks. here I am… getting started. I hope I have everything in the correct order, but I’m not 100% sure, and I can’t ask Pat because he’s in rehab (we’re rooting for you, bud), so don’t get mad if I fuck up the order. at least my heart is in the right place. at least I’m uploading *everything* by Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains for you! and I’m starting with this record, entitled Anarchy Means I Hate You. for those of you who haven’t ever heard of Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains, they are one of the ultimate newer American folk bands. negative, nihilist and anarchist train hopping acoustic folk punk. keep in mind that this is a demo (I think), so the production value is somewhat lacking in places (the drums), but the ideas and the manner in which they are performed more than saves this record. these songs are genuinely worth listening to, for their spiteful and clever lyrics, the energetic performances and the simply catchy guitar hooks! get this, and start looking forward to the next post.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/05/johnny-hobo-and-the-freight-trains-anarchy-means-i-hate-you/feed/ 1 Tim, Face Berlin – We Could Wait Forever http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/tim-face-berlin-we-could-wait-forever/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/tim-face-berlin-we-could-wait-forever/#comments Wed, 28 Apr 2010 15:32:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1136 I visited Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson’s Facebook page today, like I do almost every day. their latest post was a recommendation of the Swedish band Tim, Face Berlin. “and the rest is history”. this is the band’s first release, from May 2009. they proudly present themselves as fans of Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky on their MySpace, but they didn’t really have to write that. yes, it’s that obvious. like most bands in the progressive rock genre that omit vocals from their sound, they simply can’t avoid being compared to the two mammoths that are Mogwai and EitS. they borrow quite a bit of their backbone from them. they probably owe their entire existence to them, to be quite honest. but it’s okay. it doesn’t matter. it’s not a negative thing at all. it’s in fact completely irrelevant! because what matters is how Tim, Face Berlin pulls off their sound, not where they got it from. sure, their sound is essentially created by someone else, and they do come off as slightly generic on this, their début release – but that’s not the core of the matter. the core of the matter is how this music reaches out and touches the listener, and how they successfully create a sentimental and simply gorgeous atmosphere. We Could Wait Forever’s biggest flaw is undoubtedly the lack of innovation presented in the compositions, when put in a jar with all of the compositions of Tim, Face Berlin’s peers. there are a lot of bands with this sound that fail to stand out appropriately in the composition department. but Tim, Face Berlin stands out in a totally different, but incredibly more important department. and this is after all their first release – so maybe the innovation and originality will follow on their newer attempts? who knows. I really don’t care as much about it as I know others will. as long as they still manage to convey the huge amount of emotion with their music, as the achievement that is We Could Wait Forever does – I’m okay.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/tim-face-berlin-we-could-wait-forever/feed/ 1 Final Thought – Taste Test http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/final-thought-taste-test/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/final-thought-taste-test/#comments Mon, 26 Apr 2010 08:50:46 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1128 you guys remember that incredible emo band Vulture Culture, right? well, apparently they recorded their record in the basement of Dustin Dopsa. and apparently, he’s in the Toronto-based pop band Final Thought… and apparently they are strong believers in free music! what do you know, heh. so anyway, this is Final Thought. a Canadian pop band that’s somewhere between Angels & Airwaves, Fall Out Boy, 3OH!3 and Taking Back Sunday. now I only really like two of those bands (guess which ones!), but this mix works pretty great. it ends up being catchy vocal hooks over gentle guitar riffs, pleasant synth blip blops, soft bass lines, and upbeat drumming; a fairly generic and stereotypical pop rock sound. but Final Thought have some magic up their sleeves, and aren’t afraid to occasionally flash it, in order to stand out in a crowd – something they actually accomplish quite well. in such an otherwise stagnant and boring genre, it’s important to contribute with something fresh and genuine, and I feel like Final Thought do just that. with a little tongue in cheek lyrics and that good old trick of making really good tunes, this is a pop band that’s worth listening to. pay attention to these guys, because they might just be “the next big thing”. (and remember where you heard them first! ;) they will do everything they can to wrap you around their finger, so give them a chance! and tell all your friends to give them a chance as well. (did u c whut i did thur??? you’ll see once you get the track titles. it’s really “clever” and whatsitcalled “funny”.) download this!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/final-thought-taste-test/feed/ 0 Dire Wolf – Gloom http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-gloom/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-gloom/#comments Mon, 26 Apr 2010 08:26:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1119 … you know what? Dire Wolf actually released another record in December 2009! so if you liked the first one, be sure to get this one as well. you can expect more of the same, but with some modifications. the vocals are rawer and the guitars are more melodic – to name the two biggest changes for my ears. but the music is actually even heavier this time around. they’ve found a glorious style of metalcore that sounds like it shares quite a bit with the original metalcore (S.o.D., C.o.C., D.R.I. and other three-letter-acronym-bands). for all I know, the members of Dire Wolf don’t like or listen to either of these bands, but the impression I’m getting is that their influence has somehow made its way into Dire Wolf’s sound. Dire Wolf are however far more versatile, and incorporate – like mentioned in the last post – a lot of different sounds. on Gloom, they melt these sounds together even more than on s/t, where there were more obvious whenever they changed the style around. it’s more subtle on Gloom, consequently perhaps resulting in a more consistently thick and heavy record. in any event, it’s really good and well worth checking out. especially if you are into the latest hardcore trends of incorporating a lot of influence from the crossover genres (metalcore, crust, and so forth).

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-gloom/feed/ 0 Dire Wolf – Dire Wolf http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-dire-wolf/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-dire-wolf/#comments Mon, 26 Apr 2010 08:10:16 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1117 it’s time to get acquainted with yet another new band here on that’s punk. this time, hailing from Ann Arbour, Michigan – is Dire Wolf. and they present themselves with much grace. the first few crushing tones sort of reminding me of Kollwitz, actually! they quickly enough pick up pace, and place themselves comfortably within the modern hardcore formula, with a little dab of metal. but all along, I can’t shake this Kollwitz comparison. it’s clear to me that they do not actually sound like Kollwitz – but they do share some of the same qualities. there’s something adhesive and glutinous about it, like with drone or doom music. it’s very dark and brooding. and when they pick up the pace, they almost cross into power violence territory. this is a hardcore band that blends what I can only possibly think are widely different influences, into a unique and original sound of their own, that sometimes sounds like doom, sometimes like power violence, and sometimes even like black metal (the last minute and a half might be the highlight of the entire record). but at its core, this is just really good and experimental hardcore punk. in addition to this unique sound, they write lyrics that deal with both highly personal issues as well as political issues, or rather society’s and civilisation’s potential downfall as a whole. this record was released in February 2009, and I’m proud to present it here on that’s punk – albeit a bit late. this record is fascinating and well worth playing through. give it a go! also check this band’s MySpace on http://www.myspace.com/direwolfmi for tour dates, if you’re from the US. they’re ploughing through a chunk of it, starting the first of May. so check that out, and check this download out.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/dire-wolf-dire-wolf/feed/ 0 Beyond the Fences – Unreleased http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/beyond-the-fences-unreleased/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/beyond-the-fences-unreleased/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:48:54 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1114 this is a band who knows how to make a first impression. the first two tracks of this unreleased compilation were rerecorded for the Salute Utopia 10″ (download available further down the blog), their only release. but what a release! that 10″ is one of the most ferocious records I have ever heard. and this compilation of unreleased tracks is no less furious. this album is just a confirmation that Beyond the Fences is without a doubt one of the very finest punk rock bands in all of history. this band is just insanely good, and I want to strongly encourage everyone to check them out. this is some of the most ardent music ever made. Beyond the Fences blazes through these five tracks in the most intense way at all possible. this band is criminally overlooked, and worth its weight in gold – nay, in antimatter. you need to hear this band. download this!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/beyond-the-fences-unreleased/feed/ 0 Vulture Culture – Cassette http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/vulture-culture-cassette/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/vulture-culture-cassette/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 11:41:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1112 Vulture Culture are a band that I know absolutely nothing about. there exist pretty much no information on them anywhere. but their album is a) for free download and b) good. no scratch b – this is *perfect*. the composition style favours haunting atmospheres that build up to beautiful and completely breath-taking climaxes. with some rather lengthy songs (particularly the opening track), this band aims for something grand. and they achieve something very much grand by exploring different musical territories in a progressive and searching manner. these tracks display high composing skill, in the dynamic way they crawl up on you. with highly distinct vocals, soft and pretty melodies and well crafted highs and lows, Vulture Culture are a band that manages to sound vastly different from any other band out there, with their pleasant softness and prominent mood. this is highly ambitious and even more successful. if I were to describe this record with one word, it would be “slumber”. Cassette feels like an eerie slumber; a state of constant euphoria. this album cannot be overrated. download this.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/vulture-culture-cassette/feed/ 0 Killing Years – Killing Years http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/killing-years-killing-years/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/killing-years-killing-years/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 10:45:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1109 so you guys remember I talked about Killing Years, right? well here they are. and they used to be called Nations, but after many line-up changes, they decided to change their name as well. but one thing that hasn’t changed, are their ethics. strongly rooted in the DIY movement, these guys do everything themselves. and they’ve uploaded this album themselves, stating that while they did in fact «spen[d] money to have it recorded/mixed/mastered, and will spend the money to press and get it out there with physical copies», «this has never been about profit». but hopefully, their admirable ethics won’t be the only thing that leaves an impression on you. this is a ten minute record that is somewhat reminiscent of the Nations demo, but still really different. I’d say that Nations is significantly heavier, and more influenced by bands like Unbroken. this band doesn’t focus as much on breakdowns, but they are a lot more dynamic. ranging from the slow and controlled (but far from calm) to the raging fast, this band masters both end of the pace spectrum, and everything in between – including the transitions. another thing that separates them from Nations for me is that this band appears much more melodic, despite finding the time to experiment with pace transitions. Killing Years definitely have a very accomplished sound, solid compositions and highly skilled performers. but what makes them really worth listening to – and I say this about nearly every band ever, sorry – is their passion. the burning passion that fills each and every song on this record is what makes it so good. so download this, and support this band.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/killing-years-killing-years/feed/ 0 Celeste – Morte(s) Nee(s) http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/celeste-mortes-nees/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/celeste-mortes-nees/#comments Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:21:38 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1105 “WOW” is the first thing that comes to mind when I press play on the new Celeste album. the line between screamo and black metal isn’t there any more. this is furious modern black metal of the absolute highest quality. but then enter the vocals, the sound alters slightly, and we’re back in that ever so lucent screamo/black metal border territory. while Celeste certainly are comparable to their countrymen Daïtro and Amanda Woodward, there’s something entirely different about them. if you take screamo and black metal – two already ugly as fuck genres – and fuse them together, you get the raw, dissonant and filthy mess of insanity that is Celeste. away with the typical dynamics of modern screamo, welcome loud and suffocating monotony, and an end result that is thicker than doom metal and more atonal than sludge. a depressing 41 minutes of nihilistic and misanthropic melancholy that will blow you away if you haven’t heard this band before (in which case I’d recommend you download the rest of their discography as well, available further down). on the other hand, if you have heard them before – you probably know what to expect. this album isn’t a giant leap in terms of musical style, by any means. it’s rather yet another step towards perfection. and let me assure you – Celeste are getting so close, it’s scary. scary, like the enraged wrath that unfolds onto the listener through this hateful album. it shows no mercy, whatsoever. you need to get this. and like the like the rest of their stuff, you can order it at their record label Denovali.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/celeste-mortes-nees/feed/ 0 Nations – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/nations-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/nations-demo/#comments Wed, 21 Apr 2010 15:52:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1101 another band that Will – the vocalist from Some Mistakes used to be in is Nations. Nations have undergone a bunch of changes, and are now known as the Christian hardcore band Killing Years. but before Killing Years (we’ll get back to them some posts later, hopefully), there was Nations. this demo shows a promising young band in love with ’90s hardcore and with an affection for melody. they are a little comparable to Word Travels Fast, but there aren’t any clean vocals, and the production is a bit more gritty. this is a heavy hardcore band with tough break downs, but very intricate and at times highly melodic guitar licks underneath the raspy vocals, that serves as a counterpoint to the usually implicit melodic music. in a very skilled manner, the breakdowns are the perfect heavy and brooding contrasts to the fast and melodic, though just as powerful upbeat parts. this is somewhat in between Unbroken and Word Travels Fast, and a good band for you hardcore fans to give a try. check them out.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/nations-demo/feed/ 0 1.6 Band – The Checkered Pasts of All Kings Present http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/1-6-band-the-checkered-pasts-of-all-kings-present/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/1-6-band-the-checkered-pasts-of-all-kings-present/#comments Tue, 20 Apr 2010 12:24:56 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1099 in 1989 what would later become one of the quintessential emo bands of the ’90s formed in Long Island, NY. by 1991 they had “settled down” (i.e. began touring regularly and sporting a stable line-up) with the band name 1.6 Band. this is a band name that means a lot to a lot of people. if the name doesn’t ring any bells for you, you need to download this as soon as possible. existing from 1991 to 1993, they put out three 7″s and an LP. the songs appearing on said records are available on a discography CD, Broke Up, released in 1995. but here we are – in 2010, and 1.6 Band are probably more popular than ever. a lot of the emo giants of the ’90s have enjoyed a resurrection via the Internet, and 1.6 Band are not an exception. it certainly didn’t hurt that they reunited last year. yes – this is actually an entirely new 7″! well, not “new” new… but 21st century new, at least. The Checkered Pasts of All Kings Present is a 12:12 long 7″ with much of the same tongue in cheek not-really-crooning over jazzy and spastic ’90s emo. playful experimenting with scales and rapid changes in tempo and style altogether, somewhat comparable to Daniel Striped Tiger. these guys are highly skilled – but what makes this worth listening to is the first and foremost the intensity! so whether you’ve slept on this band, never heard of it, love it but didn’t know about the reunion, – you need to download this. N.B. word of advise: stay away from the FLACs! they crash both my tag editor and my media player. I don’t know what’s up with them. but the 320kbps MP3s sound very good, so get those. then order the 7″, if you like the songs. it’s really cheap ($5 ppd in USA). buy link is in the download link.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/1-6-band-the-checkered-pasts-of-all-kings-present/feed/ 0 Word Travels Fast – Ellen http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/word-travels-fast-ellen/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/word-travels-fast-ellen/#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 17:24:40 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1094 I would like to say that «if you liked Some Mistakes, you’ll like this!» – but I can’t. at all. this band is related to Some Mistakes, in that the vocalist of Some Mistakes used to play bass for them, and one of the guitarist of Some Mistakes happen to play guitar for them. but there ends the comparison. this band plays a glimmering style of alternative meets hardcore. where Saves the Day focuses more on the alternative part, this band is probably much more hardcore punk. real fast and ferocious, but still very catchy and harmonic. if you like early blink-182, Descendents and other alternative bands that play really, really fast – you’ll like this as well. this is hardcore punk with pop sensibilities. or some other controversial contrast… a catchy energy bomb! starting out with longing emo-like twinkling, it soon enough picks up the pace. but *not* in favour of the melody. it hugs melody and harmony all the way from start to finish, in the same way that Saves the Day did on their first two albums (I haven’t really listened to the others). this is some high quality hardcore/alternative/punk/pop/whatever. pace, melody and quality all go hand in hand through this blistering record. hardcore needs bands like Word Travels Fast. download this! (curious side note: in the song “November’s Resolution” (which is my favourite song, actually), they sample the same scene from It’s A Wonderful Life as the ’90s emo band You And I do in their song “Smile”.)

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/word-travels-fast-ellen/feed/ 0 Candy Hearts – Ripped Up Jeans & Silly Dreams http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/candy-hearts-ripped-up-jeans-silly-dreams/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/candy-hearts-ripped-up-jeans-silly-dreams/#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:30:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1092 if sometimes all you want is a little fuzz on the guitar, an upbeat rhythm section and laid back vocals… if sometimes all you want is to put on The Presidents of the United States of America, The Ergs! or Lemuria… if sometimes all you want is just want some cool rock’n'roll – then Candy Hearts are definitely for you. there is nothing pretentious or pompous about this record. it’s got cheap and simple poppy hooks, dabdadabdaaa vocal harmonies, fuzzy power chords, upbeat drumming and a soft voice singing melodic lines about youthful thinking. the songs are naïve and very head over heels, which leads to Candy Hearts being quite charming and sweet – in a way less snotty way than blink-182, Sum 41 and other alternative bands formed in the ’90s. they also utilize noisy guitars and heavy compositions in the vein of The Pixies, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr. and other alternative bands founded in the ’80s. so the end result is a nice timeless style of rock. a consistent and thorough effort, clocking in at over thirty minutes – this is a record you are very likely to enjoy regardless of your preferences, due to its simplicity and charm. you can’t *not* like “Anything” – a modern rock classic from the first listen. download this album!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/candy-hearts-ripped-up-jeans-silly-dreams/feed/ 1 Some Mistakes – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/some-mistakes-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/some-mistakes-demo/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 10:13:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1079 with a crisp guitar tone that has a way of getting inside your head, a rhythm section that almost sounds like it gets heavier each and every second, and an emotive and sincere vocal performance, Some Mistakes largely favour a heavy sound over quick half minute burst songs. Some Mistakes are a band that shows that you needn’t move at a great pace to move with great purpose. they ultimately reside somewhere between ’90s screamo bands like Elements of Need, and more recent screamo bands, like Mesa Verde (which can be downloaded further down if you are interested), that incorporate more intricate progressive rock elements in their composing. hints of heavy ’90s hardcore/screamo bands like Unbroken and You and I are also detected, along with subtle touches of Modern Life is War and American Nightmare/Give up the Ghost. the end result reminds me of a more hardcore than metal version of Quiritatio, and a less lengthy Fall of Efrafa. anyway, the demo is just over ten minutes long, but makes one hell of an impression in those ten minutes. their anger and passion can be felt throughout the entire thing, as it almost makes its way out of the speakers. the sheer volume, power and passion this band has managed to put into the recordings are overwhelming to the point of it almost crushing you, into the broken souls they sing about in their songs. I am *not* the product of dysfunction and unhappiness, but these songs almost make me feel like I am. the great never ending sadness that these tales tell are breathtakingly painful, but it’s nothing compared to the manner in which the band tells them. that’s what makes this band so special; what makes these songs completely unique, and utterly amazing. you need to hear this band. these three songs are beyond spectacular, and so well crafted as well as performed that this demo is simply bursting with blistering emotional confession and breakdown. note that like quite the few other bands I’ve downloaded from bandcamp (1099′s latest album which can be downloaded further down is one of them), the FLAC copies are nothing but white noise in my standard media player, Amarok. it does work in some other players, like VideoLan Client. so if you use Amarok or any other media player that utilizes the Xine engine, you might consider downloading this in Ogg Vorbis instead. it still sounds extremely good. the recording quality of this demo does not take anything away from the songs or compromise them in any way, thankfully. because these songs are nothing short of fantastic, and they deserve to be heard. hear them!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/some-mistakes-demo/feed/ 0 Det Magiske Blå Orkesteret – Fra Sjal Til Server… http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/det-magiske-bla-orkesteret-fra-sjal-til-server/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/det-magiske-bla-orkesteret-fra-sjal-til-server/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 09:12:08 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1077 Det Magiske Blå Orkesteret means the magical blue orchestra in English, and it’s definitely a magic orchestra. it’s about time we make another visit to Bodø, Norway – and its fantastic music scene. sounding something like a European Frank Zappa born in the ’80s – the 4080s – who’s travelled back in time with the mother ship to inflict pain and suffering… it’s a quite quirky listen. probably best enjoyed on drugs. hard drugs. avant-garde with the marimba and flutes utilized to create an overall cosy atmosphere in which anyone could feel comfortable. this is an instant classic! or… it will be by 4080, I’m sure!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/det-magiske-bla-orkesteret-fra-sjal-til-server/feed/ 0 I See Horses – Has My Stealth Been in Vain http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/i-see-horses-has-my-stealth-been-in-vain/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/i-see-horses-has-my-stealth-been-in-vain/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 08:44:43 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1068 I know rather little about this band, save for the fact that they’ve supposedly been harvesting some really positive attention in the scene over the last year, resulting in them being played on the radio. I also know that they are indie and that this album is for free download. and it’s really good. with vocals that at times are strikingly similar to Wesley in Boris Smile or Brandon Flowers of The Killers, and music that isn’t too far off The Killers either – I See Horses make you feel good with musical references to the ’80s, and bands such as U2 (their good songs) and Simple Minds, but with a very modern and relevant twist, like The Killers and Keane. but both the vocals and the music isn’t in any way stuck in a one way traffic lane, as it in all its versatility constantly change things up. while perhaps not particularly innovating or outstandingly original, this band is pure quality nevertheless. a breath of pop magic has been drawn. did you catch it?

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/i-see-horses-has-my-stealth-been-in-vain/feed/ 0 The Sky Looks Pissed – This Ending Promise http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/the-sky-looks-pissed-this-ending-promise/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/the-sky-looks-pissed-this-ending-promise/#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:36:53 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1066 it’s been all too long since the last post consisting of one of Ethan’s many beloved project. for those of you who aren’t up to date – he’s in The Loneliest Cowgirls, Henry Bemis Is A Superhero and Screaming and Dreaming. oh, and The Sky Looks Pissed. which brings me to this post. This Ending Promise is the first “Ethan post” in a while, so I hope you’ve missed him as much as I have. for those of you who aren’t Ethan nerds, this band is a fairly stereotypical down to earth folk rock band. at least most of the time. occasionally though (especially on this new album), it strays away from the “formula”, in favour of e.g. ambience, noise or punk. the lyrics are personal and confrontational, and not (obviously) political. it’s mostly songs about girls, to be quite honest. filled with humour and self-irony akin to Loudon Wainwright III. in between the songs about girls, are ambient – almost shoegaze passages. anyway, to sum it up – it’s a fairly experimental folk rock album. if you like folk rock, you might like this. if you don’t like folk rock, you probably won’t like this. you know what to do people.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/the-sky-looks-pissed-this-ending-promise/feed/ 0 forte – forte ’09 http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/forte-forte-09/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/forte-forte-09/#comments Tue, 13 Apr 2010 07:11:48 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1064 this oddball sludgy screamo psychedelia insanity is forte, an Ukrainian… screamo band? at least *tendencies* towards screamo are to be found. but honestly the band I would compare them to first of all is MEHE, posted below, despite the fact that they sound nothing like them. but forte – like MEHE – are for the most of the time highly hyperactive and very eccentric – in a manner (not sound) that resembles The Locust. but this is a screamo band. sometimes they go into these Envy-like riffs and climaxes, and sometimes they do these Lungfish/Fugazi-ish calm but focused passages. they build it and tear it down… loudly. this Ukrainian band has me puzzled, to be honest. this over twenty minutes long record covers so much ground in those over twenty minutes. simply astonishingly diverse, with a detailed and interesting layered sound. complex and translucent, this is a band that I urge you to check out as fast as possible. pay especial notice to the beautiful album closer. it’s perfect.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/04/forte-forte-09/feed/ 0 Auguries of Innocence – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/auguries-of-innocence-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/auguries-of-innocence-demo/#comments Fri, 26 Mar 2010 09:37:01 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1057 well I don’t know about you, but I’ve been looking forward to this for a very long time. for those of you who hang on the forums (you lurker, you!), you’re probably aware of the sad disbanding of mamma, jeg blör… – so it is with great pleasure I introduce you to Auguries of Innocence. Mats played guitar and sang/screamed in mamma, jeg blör… – and now he sings/screams/growls/shrieks/whatever in Auguries of Innocence, a five piece deathcore act. and he does so with great skill and diversity, not unlike how every other member perform his key role to perfection. because let me assure you, everything is handled with the utmost care on this demo. Auguries of Innocence settles for nothing but perfection. the energetic drumming takes command and pummels the band through each of the compositions firmly with all of the corresponding breakdowns and tempo shifts. on top of this, the band has put ultra-melodic guitar riffs at high speeds – that sometimes takes the time to go into epic metal guitar solos, and sometimes to heavy palm muted riffs. in the middle of things are the vocals, sometimes intense shrieking, sometimes brooding low gutturals. at all times the execution is flawless, yielding a crisp and direct sound, helped by the rich mix. this is one of the very most accomplished and consistent demos I have ever heard, and you owe it to yourself – and everyone else – to give this a shot. it’s wonderful.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/auguries-of-innocence-demo/feed/ 0 Charles Manson – Demo http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/charles-manson-demo/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/charles-manson-demo/#comments Fri, 26 Mar 2010 08:08:27 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1055 Edwin and Steven from TEETH have a band called Charles Manson. and like TEETH, Charles Manson have fade outs to their songs. this band has a demo, consisting of four tracks with Charles Manson samples, blast beats or heavy beats, a heavy bass and shouting this is extremely raw power violence. this demo doesn’t *focus* on recording quality, to put it like that. if you aren’t into stuff that kind of sounds like it was recorded in mono into a boombox that was inside a metal trash can – you might just want to avoid this altogether. but if you aren’t too picky in terms of production value, you might enjoy this and all of its dissonance. this is power violence stripped down to its core. get it!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/charles-manson-demo/feed/ 0 Mutiny – Mutiny http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/mutiny-mutiny/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/mutiny-mutiny/#comments Thu, 25 Mar 2010 10:58:33 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1050 from Norwegian screamo to the Canadian crust band Mutiny. including members of that’s punk favourites Iskra, they are a more than welcome addition to this blog. this is their self titled 7″, my last blog update for today. Mutiny are a really heavy crust band. grindcore and power violence influences are more than apparent. these guys slay. they go from heavy, gloomy and trance-inflicting metal, to fast-as-shit thrashing grindcore, with almost shrieking vocals, rapid-fire riffs and blast beats. it’s amazing. thirteen songs in fourteen minutes, this is mind-melting hard and politically outspoken music. it destroys. get it.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/mutiny-mutiny/feed/ 1 Dominic – Running With Scissors http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/dominic-running-with-scissors/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/dominic-running-with-scissors/#comments Thu, 25 Mar 2010 11:36:59 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1052 this is an album that should’ve been up ages ago. the reason it hasn’t been? simple. up until recently, I only had the 10″. now I got the CD from my friend Rune at http://www.notanotherrecordlabel.com/ – which you should definitely check out. the distro is beyond solid, and he’s always looking to hook you up with cool shit. this record is released on Dead Letter Records, but I don’t know how alive they are these days. their site is down, but I guess maybe you could message them on MySpace? I think Rune is a surer bet. anyway, this is – as the title implies – another Dominic record. it’s called Running With Scissors, and was released in 2004. so it pre-dates the s/t by two years, making it the earliest Dominic release on this blog. it’s five songs and about fifteen minutes. it showcases Dominic at their very most impatient. full of eagerness and hopefulness, they set out to create some of the most emotionally charged moments you’ll ever be lucky enough to experience. if you’ve heard this band before, you know what you are getting into. they have a highly distinct sound. instantly recognisable, instantly worthy of appreciation. get this. (then get the rest of their stuff, if you haven’t already.)

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/dominic-running-with-scissors/feed/ 1 Bomb the Music Industry! – Adults!!! Smart!!! Shithammered!!! And Excited By Nothing!!! http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-adults-smart-shithammered-and-excited-by-nothing/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-adults-smart-shithammered-and-excited-by-nothing/#comments Thu, 25 Mar 2010 10:14:50 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1045 I’m getting sort of annoyed by these gimmicky exclamation marks… oh well. the music is thankfully really good. there’s something thoroughly cosy with this release. most of the tracks are upbeat ska with horns and the whole boat, but there’s this one downbeat track, and an electronica interlude thing. «Recorded, mixed and released in the span of FIVE DAYS, Adults!!! has the whole big family playing a million horns, bells, organs at full speed! Yes yes yes!!!», is how they like to describe it themselves – and they do so better than I can. but I’d like to add my own observation: what makes this release so incredibly successful is how easily it comes across that the band are having fun! the tunes are really good, but above all else they excel by being joyful. so if you are in the mood for fun and joy (how can you not be?), download this! I’d also suggest you do a donation via PayPal to info@quoteunquoterecords.com, including the band or album name in the title or body of the payment. this way these guys can have fun without being broke!

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-adults-smart-shithammered-and-excited-by-nothing/feed/ 0 Bomb the Music Industry! – Scrambles http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-scrambles/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-scrambles/#comments Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:43:18 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1042 continuing where they left of, the punk collective Bomb the Music Industry! strikes back with more infectious punk rock. Scrambles starts out with a demo-quality track, and then moves on to a “real quality” ska-tinged melodic punk rock track. sounds familiar? yes. the whole album is really “nothing but” a continuation of the previous album, or to be more precise – a perfection. it even includes quite some elements of ye olde Bomb the Music Industry! like synths and bells and bold jumps and quakes. so it’s still quirky and introspective lyrics on top of quirky and melodic music. it’s the same formula. but it’s has never been better employed throughout their career than now. they have simply grown a lot, and learned many new things. there is nothing that screams rock anthems more than a piano. while not *all* Ben Folds’s songs are good, the foundation is really cool, so ripping him off *is* a good thing… and so on. all these experiences make this a thoroughly enjoying album, full of pure quality, and lots of diversity. on “$2,400,000″, it even goes into Wingnut Dishwashers Union land! the lyrics are always honest, modest and somewhat sad, though at the end I always find optimism in there somewhere. there’s always hope in the end! this is inherently a joyful album, in my humble opinion. and it’s a *damn* fine album, that deserves your listen. download it! and buy it on CD/LP from http://www.asianmanrecords.com, or donate via PayPal to info@quoteunquoterecords.com, including the name of the band or the album in the title or body of the payment. the CD/LP is really worth it though, because you get this awesome fanzine with it (both the CD and the LP), that features many cool tips. not to mention you get this glorious album! the definite culmination of everything that is good with this band – including one of the finest punk anthems ever – “(Shut) Up the Punx”. this is one of those albums where almost every song is an anthem! get it!!!

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-scrambles/feed/ 0 Bomb the Music Industry! – Get Warmer http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-get-warmer/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-get-warmer/#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:11:37 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1038 this record marks a real turning point for Bomb the Music Industry! live drums appear throughout the whole album, and there are no programmed synths. it’s all analogue, baby. they even recorded demos and then re-recorded them. professionalism! this is even the first record that you can actually buy! so buy it from http://www.asianmanrecords.com/ while you’re at it. or, if you think that those “records” and “CDs” are for dinosaurs, keep donating via PayPal to info@quoteunquoterecords.com while including the name of the album or band in the title or body of the payment. anyway, to get back to the album; nothing says higher production value like having a demo-like quality to the intro, that eventually gets wrapped up in a “real quality” song. I love that idea. my band will definitely do that on our début. no doubt. so yeah, you guys remember how the previous album I posted, Goodbye Cool World, marked Bomb the Music Industry!’s turning point? well if that was a sort of transition, then this is the new (and improved?) Bomb the Music Industry!. so there are fewer maniac bursts of almost The Locust-esque synth-heavy hardcore, or ’80s east coast harDCore punk. Bomb the Music Industry! is simply more consistent than ever. less funny genre jumps, more melodic and engaging punk rock riffs. the thing about this more focused album is that it does automatically come off as more immediately believable. I’m sorry, but when you do what Bomb the Music Industry! had a habit of doing on especially the first two albums, you feel forced to take the time to evaluate – «am I being taken the piss out of?» but here, it all comes off very believable. what’s even better is that the band hasn’t compromised its creativity, nor lost its interestingness. it has matured though preserved what made it great in the first place.

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]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-get-warmer/feed/ 0 Bomb the Music Industry! – Goodbye Cool World http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-goodbye-cool-world/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-goodbye-cool-world/#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 09:05:23 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1035 more quirky lyrics and quirky music? more Bomb the Music Industry!? yessssssss. here is “Goodbye Cool World”. how is it compared to the other two albums (which you obviously have already downloaded)? well, it’s more what old people would call “mature”, in my opinion. attempts at ripping off The Hold Steady and mid-tempo arena rock anthems are some of the ingredients of this album. but don’t despair, there are still some high paced ska/punk songs. there are just fewer of those rowdy punk rock songs, compared to the number of synth-heavy feelgood tracks. despite some really unorthodox genre blending and jumping, I think it’s worth noticing that Bomb the Music Industry!’s lyrics are sincere and how they usually make really valid points. they speak their opinions loudly, and I gather they’d expect to be taken seriously. no matter if they play a synth-reggae song, or an ’80s alternative rock song. the fact is just that this band is just immensely creative, and seem to feel a dire need to experiment with genres – thus making the end result all over the place, which is a great deal of what makes this band so fun to listen to. and then on this one track there’s a ‘ukulele… which pretty much constitutes awesomeness! get this! and keep donating by sending some money (maybe $5 or so?) via PayPal to info@quoteunquoterecords.com. put the band name or album title or whatever in the title or body of the payment, so they know what you are donating to/for.

click here to download

]]> http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-goodbye-cool-world/feed/ 0 Bomb the Music Industry! – To Leave Or Die in Long Island http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-to-leave-or-die-in-long-island/ http://thatspunk.net/blog/2010/03/bomb-the-music-industry-to-leave-or-die-in-long-island/#comments Fri, 19 Mar 2010 09:36:31 +0000 indietrash http://thatspunk.net/blog/?p=1025 I wrote a lengthy thing here, but it wasn’t saved so I’m now writing it for the second time. that pisses me off. but anyway, we’re wasting as little time as possible here at the that’s punk community. so let’s continue our dive into Bomb the Music Industry!’s discography. this is a band that has as quirky lyrics as music. sounding somewhat like a Christmas album made under the heavy influence of crystal meth and various other substances, To Leave Or Die in Long Island stands on well balanced hardcore and ska legs, but everything from the legs and up consists of what they themselves elegantly describe as «[s]ing-alongs, drum machines, synthesizers [and] saxophones played faster than fuck». a fitting description, indeed. though there are actually some calmer points to this album, just as the début. there’s even some sort of uhm… ballad..? yeah. the lyrics still revolve somewhat around the hardcore scene and punk rock – but the main themes are still the band itself, and the lyricist. from being broke and stuck in a minimum wage job to their bassist applying for Every Time I Die, it’s diverse enough to not constitute nagging. Bomb the Music Industry! continues their avant-garde punk rock thing with style – and energy. if you liked the first album, you’ll like this. if you didn’t like the first album, you won’t like this. if you haven’t h