June 2014 – Upstarter

Bum City Saints – Ride The Storm

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Arriving more or less hot off the heels of their prior full-length, Spirit of the City, San Francisco’s own hard as fuck punk rockers, Bum City Saints are back with a new EP. (See, I told you new stuff was on the way, didn’t I?)

The “Ride The Storm” EP batters its way through five original tracks and one glorious cover. The songs are almost entirely done at a breakneck pace and clocking in at, for the most part, well under the two minute mark. If the track times alone are an indication, let me reinforce that by saying this EP rocks it out hard core from start to finish.

If you’re not all that familiar with the band, they’ve been rocking the Bay area since around 2007. Their music is a tight blend of punk and hardcore. The band, at least by sound, wears the street punk mantle with the Oi style sing-along whoa whoa whoas and the blue collar ethos. I’ve also noticed a progression towards some trash-esque melody in their later releases.

With multiple releases this year, the band is continuing strong. Three cheers for Bum City Saints! If you’d like to find out more about the band or check out their summer tour dates, hit up their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BumCitySaints

–Jerry Actually

Tracks:
1. Crush All
2. Bury Me
3. Into The Fire
4. From Ashes Rise
5. Calling Us Away
6. Eye Of The Tiger

Less Than Jake Tour Dates

LTJ have a new release out called “Do The Math”.

The a-side is from last year’s exceptional See the Light album while the b-side is a previously unreleased original titled “Connect the Dots” from their See The Light recording sessions. Read what drummer Vinnie Fiorello had to say about this single below:

“The song is an important one to everyone in the band, it encapsulates being through ups and downs in life- not only remembering who was there for you but also who is still around. The notion that you have to carry this heavy weight around on your shoulders becomes null and void when you realize the people, places, and things that matter the most in your life.”

You can catch them this summer on VANS WARPED TOUR, dates below!

06/13/14 Houston, TX at Reliant Park-Main Street Lot
06/14/14 San Antonio, TX at AT&T Center
06/15/14 Dallas, TX at Gexa Energy Pavilion
06/17/14 Albuquerque, NM at Isleta Amphitheater
06/18/14 Mesa, AZ at Quail Run Park
06/19/14 Las Vegas, NV at Luxor Lot
06/20/14 Pomona, CA at Pomona Fairplex
06/21/14 Mountain View, CA at Shoreline Amphitheatre
06/22/14 Ventura, CA at Seaside Park
06/25/14 Chula Vista, CA at Sleep Train Amphitheatre
06/26/14 Sacramento, CA at Sleep Train Amphitheatre
06/28/14 Southeast Auburn, WA at White River Amphitheater
06/29/14 Portland, OR at Portland Expo Center
07/02/14 St Louis, MO at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
07/03/14 Indianapolis, IN at Klipsch Music Center
07/04/14 Toronto, ON Canada at Molson Cadadian Amphitheatre
07/05/14 Montreal, QC Canada at Parc Jean Drapeau
07/06/14 Holmdel, NJ at PNC Bank Arts Concert Center
07/08/14 Buffalo, NY at Darien Center
07/09/14 Scranton, PA at Toyota Pavilion
07/10/14 Boston, MA at Xfinity Center
07/11/14 Camden, NJ at Susquehanna Bank Center
07/12/14 Wantagh, NY at Nikon at Jones Beach Amphitheater
07/13/14 Hartford, CT at The Comcast Theatre
07/15/14 Pittsburgh, PA at First Niagara Pavilion
07/16/14 Cinncinnati, OH at Riverbend Music Center
07/17/14 Cleveland, OH at Blossom Music Center
07/18/14 Auburn Hills, MI at The Palace of Auburn Hills
07/19/14 Chicago, IL at First Midwest Bank
07/20/14 Minneapolis, MN at Canterbury Park
07/22/14 Columbia, MD at Merriweather Post Pavilion
07/23/14 Virginia Beach, VA at Farm Bureau Live
07/24/14 Atlanta, GA at Aaron’s Amphitheatre
07/25/14 St Petersburg, FL at Vinoy Park
07/26/14 Miami, FL at Cruzan Amphitheatre
07/27/14 Orlando, FL at Central Florida Fairgrounds
07/28/14 Charlotte, NC at PNC Music Pavilion
07/29/14 Nashville, TN at Tennessee State Fairgrounds
07/30/14 Milwaukee, WI at Marcus Amphitheatre
07/31/14 Kansas City, MO at Sandstone Amphitheatre
08/02/14 Salt Lake City, UT at Utah State Fairpark
08/03/14 Denver, CO at Sports Authority Field at Mile High

Backyard Superheroes

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I wonder if Mustard Plug ever thought in a million years that they would be “influential”? Well, I guess if you have a long enough career and enough exposure, you’re bound to influence somebody, right? Well, welcome to that somebody They go by the name Backyard Superheroes.

To be fair, there’s a number of influences that can be heard on the new self-titled album from Brunswick, NJ ska band, Backyard Superheroes. On casual listening there’s elements of Less Than Jake, Streetlight Manifesto, a reminiscence to an old Oregon band, The Varicoasters (who probably didn’t influence this band at all, so it’s some other common influence), and of course a heavy dose of Mustard Plug.

Don’t let me mislead you though. The band isn’t a clone. They are a current interpretation and perhaps amalgam of 3rd wave ska punk. I for one applaud it. I loved this music in my youth. I love it today.

The album of concern here, Backyard Superheroes, the first full length (second album) by the band of the same name, drops 14 tracks of fun loving 90s throwback ska punk. The songs are all quick paced, quirky and largely delivered with a tongue-in-cheek speak/sing-a-long style. The horn section meshes nicely with the distorted guitar and walking bass lines, just like it is supposed to. Beyond that, I’d suggest that this is a solid fun release. I would seriously confuse this with 90s era Ska if I didn’t know better.

Aside being from Jersey, I don’t know a whole lot about the band specifics. However, based on their bio that they are professed to be loud, and, well, that’s good enough for me. You can catch a sampling of their sounds here: http://www.reverbnation.com/backyardsuperheroes I suggest that you do.

–Jerry Actually