Soul Asylum 10/8/2024, and also a brief synopsis of the last forty years.

Live at Revolution Hall. Portland, Oregon 

A rock band on stage. Several people in front in shadows.

Soul Asylum are one of those bands that require a long conversation. Unfortunately, that conversation usually begins with “Runaway Train”. It’s great song, don’t get me wrong, not to mention being just one of many from one of the most successful alternative records of the early 90s. Helped in part by its video with information about real life missing children, the song even got the band a gig on the White House lawn, going double platinum in the process. They got famous. Very famous. Dave Pirner married Winona Ryder and their songs were in Kevin Smith and I Know What You Did Last Summer movies. They also got lumped in with commercial grunge bands, and likewise had diminishing returns on subsequent albums. That pretty much wraps up the depth of most people’s knowledge of them. Meteoric rise, and predictable downfall. A product of the era. 

Soul Asylum aren’t just a popular 90s alternative band who played at the White House though. They’re an 80s punk band who played at 7th Street Entry (and certainly the only band to have ever played both). The aforementioned Grave Dancers Union album was not some magical debut like Pearl Jam’s Ten. It was in fact the band’s fifth studio record, and their actual contemporaries were not the Seattle bands at all. Soul Asylum made up one third of the elite 1980s Twin Cities punk trifecta of Husker Du and The Replacements. Their original name was Loud Fast Rules. Their progression through that decade was incredible, and each one of those five early albums contain all-time favorite songs of mine. “Stranger” off 1984’s Say What You Will… is a Tom Waits meets Replacements drunken ballad with saxophones, and the rest of that record sounds like a wasted Gang of Four. You could put “Ship of Fools” off 1986’s Made to Be Broken on any East Bay punk comp a few years later and it would not only fit in, but be one of the best tracks on there. “Crashing Down” from also 1986’s (remember, this is 1986 when punk bands put out multiple records in the same calendar year) While You Were Out with its Kurt Bloch-style leads could’ve been written by the Fastbacks. “Cartoon” from 1988’s major label debut Hang Time is maybe my favorite song, period. It’s right up there with “Springtime” and “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg”, an actual perfect song I’ve listened to at least a thousand times. 

I didn’t know all the backstory either when I was 13 and bought Grave Dancers Union on cassette. I loved it for about a year, along with my Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, and other mainstream alternative juggernauts of the time. I then started get into punk proper, and like any other super rational genius 15-year-old with tons of life experience, decided to shun all music that didn’t fit my new identity. Soul Asylum were gone from my collection, and for a long time. 

I’d had people tell me from time to time about those classic Soul Asylum records, but I just couldn’t get over the hurdle of where my 15-year-old brain had categorized them all those years ago. I then heard “Cartoon” and “Sometime to Return” off Hang Time, and slowly started to add songs to my iTunes library. The real tipping point was taking a chance with their boxset The Twin/Tone Years I found on sale in 2018. I’ve probably listened to them more than any other band since then, and the five records in there are always toward the front of my stack. 

Getting to the point of this article no one asked me to write, I finally went and saw Soul Asylum last week. I had skipped doing so in the past because of two different reasons. 1) I used to be 13 years old and didn’t have a car. 2) My strong preference for their older material, which I figured they wouldn’t play live. Especially after long time guitarist Danny Murphy left the band, it seemed like it’d be SA in name only. I’ve come to appreciate songs from their entire catalog since then, and in particular feel as though 2006’s The Silver Lining is just as stacked with double platinum hits as Grave Dancers Union. Also, like all truly great bands, it turns out even their “bad” records have good songs. I decided to finally go for it and bought a ticket.

With the conversation I had with my wife the night before still fresh in my mind, where she misidentified Soul Asylum as Collective Soul (which was met with a swift, pressured and irrepressible response explaining that I was in fact going to see a legendary Minneapolis punk band), I stepped  into the venue to find that the person in front of me in line was a youth with a mohawk. “I knew it,” I thought to myself. Then that person moved and the guy in front of them was wearing a Collective Soul shirt. Dammit. She’s always right. She’s also pretty tired of hearing about legendary Minneapolis punk bands.

In any case, I’m encouraged by the sight of some young folks in attendance. As I wait for my friend to arrive, drinking my $8 venue wine and leaning against the wall with one leg kicked up like a badass, I’m noticing this crowd is difficult to categorize. Most shows I go to are primarily middle-aged men with hats, beards, and black band t shirts. This place looks like a rural campground. Sure, there are other people here who clearly like Replacements, but also lots of families with teenage kids, gray haired couples, aged 90s mainstream rock fans, and even a fair amount of what we used to call “hippies”.  The chalkboard next to me has two messages scrawled on it that are clearly written by two people of separate and non-neighboring generations. 

Chalkboard reading, "I 'heart' Soul Asylum"
A chalkboard reading, "Who Made This Show Standing Room Only?! Most of the Crowd is Over 45"
~Old Person

My friend I haven’t seen in a long time arrives, and we go into the show space in high spirits (glad to see each other and $8 show wine topped off) just as The Juliana Hatfield Three take the stage. They’re playing their 1993 record Become What You Are in its entirety. I can’t say I’m terribly familiar them, but this was a personal favorite of my sister’s in high school, and I find myself recognizing most of the songs. They sound great, and it appears a significant portion of the crowd is also here for them. Solid opener.

A band on stage with spotlights on the band members.
My older sister’s favorite band in high school, The Juliana Hatfield Three

We duck out into the hallway for the last few songs for a refill and to catch up. Some guy in old jeans with the knees blown out and scruffy long hair walks by and we make eye contact. He’s dressed in classic Pirner attire with the same kind of precision you’d expect from a Dave Pirner Halloween costume. I thought I was a big Soul Asylum fan, jeez. Then he walked backstage. Oh, that was Dave Pirner. I sort of wished I’d noticed earlier so I could say hello, but am also relieved in hindsight that I didn’t have the opportunity to ask him what touring with Das Damen was like in 1987.

As we make our way back into the venue space, it appears as though the protests of the older attendees has been successful. The seated balcony area is open and full of gray hair. This has left the floor half empty and somewhat sparse, so we have no difficulty walking right up to the stage. The band come out to the tune of the Love Boat, and then waste no time belting out the lead-off track from Grave Dancers Union, “Somebody to Shove”. I have to admit, it’s blowing my hair back.

A rock band on stage with several people standing in front.

The concern with concerts like these is that they’ll feel sad. Sometimes it’s subtle, sometimes it’s obvious, but you can usually tell if a band doesn’t really want to be doing it anymore (especially if you get up close). This iteration of Soul Asylum is enjoying themselves, and it’s easily reflected in their performance. They’re a proper unit, and the entire show is a good time. Even the funkier songs like “April Fools” and “Sucker Maker” that I don’t like very much are a lot of fun live. They did in fact play a few oldies too. “Never Really Been” off Made to Be Broken and “Little Too Clean” off Hang Time were a blast to hear in person (even if the latter wasn’t followed up by the next two songs on that album, “Sometime to Return” and “Cartoon”). Other personal highlights were my favorite songs from Silver Lining and Let Your Dim Light Shine respectively, “Bus Named Desire” and the encore “String of Pearls”. 

The only time Dave Pirner showed any signs of going through the motions was the brief sigh he appeared to take on his way up to the microphone at the beginning of “Runaway Train”. Who could blame him? How many thousands of times has this man played that song, for many years to large rooms full of people who didn’t know the rest of the catalog? It made me wonder where Soul Asylum would be today in the lexicon of punk history if they had broken up in 1990, before they broke through. Funnily enough, I think they’d be more successful now. They’d probably be playing an evening slot at Riot Fest on a reunion tour, Josh Freese would be playing drums, and everyone else would hold them in the same high esteem they have for The Replacements and Husker Du. History is unkind to people and bands who achieve the highest level of fame and then lose it. 

I’m glad I didn’t have to sit through an entire day of an over-hyped music festival to see Soul Asylum play live though. Sometimes it’s nice to not be surrounded by middle aged white guys in hats, beards, and black band t shirts. I like people watching at rural campgrounds, and I like that Soul Asylum are unfashionable. Their legacy should ultimately be that they’re one of the best rock and roll bands our country has ever produced. It’s only their unique, meandering career trajectory that clouds the waters of what’s transpired. 

In 1986 Dave Pirner asked the question on the song Never Really Been, “Where will you be in 1993?”. The answer wound up being performing on the South Lawn of the Clinton-era White House in celebration of the signing of the National and Community Service Trust Act. Probably not the answer he would have forecasted. When Soul Asylum played that same song at the show, Dave changed the lyrics to, “Where will you be in 2033?”. Still touring and kicking ass, I hope. I’ll be there for it if you are. 

–Zach Akenson

A rock band on stage with several people standing in front.

Fastbacks – for WHAT reason!

The Fastbacks have survived virtually every era of punk, somehow managing to sound fresh, interesting, and unfashionable every step of the way. Forming in 1979 in Seattle, they played early gigs with bands like DOA and The Lewd, and also opened for bigger touring bands like the Ramones. Pre-Guns ‘N Roses Duff McKagen was even their drummer for a little while in the 80s, a decade in which they released a handful of classic EPs and a couple records on PopLlama. They signed to Sub Pop at the height of the label’s power in the early 90s, releasing three more seminal full lengths and slough of more 7″s. The band finally called it quits in the early 2000s after one more LP on spinART. After they split, guitar player/principal songwriter/sometimes drummer Kurt Bloch continued working with the Young Fresh Fellows, as well as his many other side projects. Bassist/singer Kim Warnick joined Visqueen, and then moved to Maine, quitting music altogether. 2011 and 2018 saw one-off reunion shows in Seattle, and the band’s label No Threes has been trickling out vinyl comps of their old EPs and B sides (most of which are still available from their Bandcamp page, and all of which are essential). Songs spanning their career like “In America”, “Gone to the Moon”, “On the Wall”, “Just Say”, “Goodbye Bird”, “Impatience”, “In the Winter”, and countless others are timeless bangers I’ve listened to hundreds of times. 

I’d been more familiar with their earlier records, but I recently listened to an interview with Tony Molina where he said not only were the Fastbacks his favorite band, but that his favorite album was 1999’s The Day That Didn’t Exist. I went back and listened to it again, and damned if he didn’t have a strong case. I also went and picked up a copy of 1996’s New Mansions in Sound and was equally blown away. Working my way backward through their catalog, I came to the conclusion that the Fastbacks just kept getting better with each release. This pattern arguably continues with their first new full length in 25 years, For What Reason!.

Reunion albums don’t have a great reputation, but the past 10-15 years have seen some truly remarkable success stories in bands putting out some of their best material post-reuniting. Dinosaur Jr, Superchunk, Quicksand, Hot Snakes, and Lifetime to name a few. The Fastbacks are definitely at the top of the list now as well. The original three of Kurt, Lulu, and Kim are all here, as well as who I consider to be the quintessential FB drummer (there have been many) Mike Musberger. Original line up reunions are the best. Kurt Bloch is possibly the best punk rock guitarist of all time. Nobody can rip a solo that doesn’t ruin a song like he can. It’s great to hear him plying his trade with his old bandmates again. 

for WHAT reason! opens with a classic Kurt Bloch lead on “The End of the Day”, and before long Kim and Lulu have you hooked in what is an instant Greatest Hits Fastbacks song. This is followed up by the Kim penned “Come On”, which has a bit of power pop feel to it, but equally catchy and also makes it onto the Greatest Hits. A cover of The Seekers 1966 “I’ll Never Find Another You” comes next. To know the Fastbacks is to know the true art of faithfully covering an obscure 60s classic, while also making it unmistakenly their own. Nobody does it better. Reading the comments on the Bandcamp page, this is mentioned as a lot of people’s favorite track on the album. 

This perfect run to start the record continues with my personal favorite “Nothing To Do”, which has everything that makes a proper Fastbacks banger so special. Hooks, harmonies, instantly memorable, but also a GREAT bridge. No one writes a better bridge than our man Kurt Bloch. He has such a musically prolific embarrassment of riches that he can afford to use up a perfect little riff or lead one time in the middle of a song, rather than taking that immense quality and framing an entirely new song out it. There are truly no bad tracks on here. Another notable favorite is the album closer, “The World Inside”, showcasing that the Fastbacks are capable of writing not only perfect two minute bangers, but also seven minute ballads of equal quality.  The initial run of these have sold out, but keep an eye on their Bandcamp page as they plan on repressing more. While you’re there, grab a copy of literally anything else that’s still available. There is no bad starting point if you’re just looking to begin your Fastbacks journey, including for WHAT reason!

–Zach Akenson

Three Fingers – Jam Packed

I’m currently rocking Jam Packed, the new release by Three Fingers, a self-described “power pop punk” band from Seattle. 

I think the description is apt. The 14 track album immediately hits with a decidedly 90s era 120 Minutes vibe. There’s a bit more Riot grrrl aggression as opposed to a lilting wallflower aesthetic, coupled with taut punk riffs, it makes for a solid mix. The songs are “pretty” but there is an underlying anxiety to them. Hard to not relate to anxiety these days.

The songs are compact and uptempo, relatively. Mostly running around the 2 minute mark. This is definitely in my wheelhouse. (I’m not sure how I listened to so many epic sweeping metal tracks back in the day without losing interest, but I digress.) Production is great. Not overdone, not underdone. Well balanced to fit the vocal forward tunes. 

Anyhow, put a little more power pop punk into your jukebox and checkout Jam Packed by Three Fingers

Cheers!
Jerry Actually

Tracks:
1. Feels Weird
2. Love This Part
3. Moving On
4. Bummer
5. I’m Still Here
6. Glass Houses
7. S.O.S.
8. FAFO
9. Alone Time
10. This is Fine
11. Might Be
12. Blew It
13. Looking 4 Luv
14. Never Again

Bad Idea – Breakout

Got Breakout, an awesome looking EP by Bad Idea in the mail the other day, and by awesome looking, I mean that. The album art, by Brian Walsby is super rad.

Musically, the tracks are four on the floor, straight ahead, hard rocking punk. The band hails from Minneapolis, MN, but their driving riffs remind me of Zeke. Clearly also influenced by Black Sabbath as evidenced by the Electric Funeral intro to Track 2, Breakout, and a smidge of Misfits-style riffery on Track 6. Night of the Hunter.

It’s good, loud, relatively fast-paced punk. 6 tracks in about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Tracks:

  1. Bad Attitude 01:20
  2. Breakout 02:28
  3. My Last Nerve 01:10
  4. Too Good To Die 02:06
  5. Massacre 01:57
  6. Night of the Hunter 01:27

    -Jerry Actually

Mantarochen – In The Badgers Cave

I’ve been listening to “In The Badger’s Cave”, the new EP from Leipzig’s Mantarochen for a few days now, and honestly, I can’t get enough. I don’t know if it’s my particular frame of mind at the moment or my tastes shifting, but this is really hitting a sweet spot.

The sound is Post Punk / Cold Wave, blending genres handily. It’s as easy to draw Siouxsie comparisons, as it is Bauhaus and Berlin. There’s a decidedly 80s vibe to the entire thing and as much as I’m a sucker for nostalgia, this EP stands on its own in a new era. 

Industrial noise and low-fi synth oscillations and arpeggios punctuate underwater guitar and pulsing bass. Lilting dreamy vocals flit in and out between the ever-so-slightly dissonant melody. 

The new EP is out on May 31, 2024 on It’s Eleven Records. Please check it out.

While you wait for the EP, checkout this video for Grey:

Cheers!

Jerry Actually

Tracks:
1. Reflection
2. I’m Sand
3. Jaguar
4. Grey
5. Blue Heads
6. Still Black

Mantarochen:
Diana – Synth, Vocals
Sebi – Guitar
Tom – Bass

RAT BOY RETURN WITH THE NEW SINGLE “SUBURBIA CALLING”

RAT BOY by Gavin Watson

RAT BOY’s ever-adventurous voyages across genres have taken the band, fronted by Jordan Cardy, on similarly sprawling journeys across the globe. But wherever they go, they inevitably find themselves boomeranging back to their Essex homelands. And that’s the topic that RAT BOY explore as they share their new single “SUBURBIA CALLING”, their first new music in over two years.

“SUBURBIA CALLING”

WATCH | LISTEN

Bringing together spiky indie-pop thrills with Jordan’s drawling semi-rapped vocals, “SUBURBIA CALLING” could be a big beat Blur, or The Streets had they emerged mid-Britpop. As we’ve come to expect, RAT BOY’s musical anarchy is the backdrop to Jordan’s distinctly British lyricism, his postcard pictures of small town culture providing equal measures of insight and humor. “SUBURBIA CALLING” is RAT BOY’s response if Essex ever needed its own national anthem. Priced out of London, you’re back in a world of commuters, curtain-twitching neighbors and Union Jacks – and you know what? It’s good to be back home. While it’s specifically about Essex, “SUBURBIA CALLING” will be relatable to anyone in the satellite towns or outer travel zones near any big city.

Jordan says, “This is a love letter to the suburbs. It made us and shaped us. It’s good to be back.”

“SUBURBIA CALLING” was produced by the renowned Stephen Street (Blur, The Smiths, Kaiser Chiefs). It was written by Jordan alongside the track’s co-producer Sam Preston (jxdn, MOD SUN).

When RAT BOY first emerged with his debut collection ‘THE MIXTAPE’ (which recently debuted on Spotify) he immediately earned a one to watch reputation, his genre agnostic style and biting lyricism encapsulating his generation’s experiences. But RAT BOY was only going to play by his own rules. Initially a solo project, RAT BOY evolved into a full band identity (with guitarist Harry Todd, bassist Liam Haygarth and drummer Noah Booth) with the more visceral spirit and darker themes of their debut album ‘SCUM’ nonetheless firing them into the UK Top 15.

RAT BOY’S next stop was a leftfield turn into the American punk scene, working with its pivotal figures such as Tim Armstrong (Rancid, Operation Ivy) and Brett Gurewitz (Bad Religion, Epitaph Records) as well as touring with The Interrupters and earning the admiration of Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park). It was an experience that resulted in the album-length mixtape ‘INTERNATIONALLY UNKNOWN’ and the follow-up ‘GOVERNMENT VACATION’ EP. Since then, RAT BOY have focused on their other related projects (LOWLIFE’s ‘PAY DAY’ album and a mixtape from MILA) and brand new music, with only sporadic live shows in 2023 with a gig as special guests to YUNGBLUD and a hometown warm-up in Chelmsford.

Expect more news from RAT BOY soon.

Single Art

Follow RAT BOY:

Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | X

SPI Fest 2024 – Dates and Full Lineup

SKA PUNK INTERNATIONAL FEST REVEALS LOCATION AND FULL OF LINEUP FOR SPI FEST 2024


Windsor, CT-
The highlight of 2023 for many concert goers was Ska Punk International Records’ inaugural SPI Fest at the Flamingo Cantina, in Austin, TX, headlined by the Toasters, Tsunami Bomb, the Littlest Man Band, and Hans Gruber and the Die Hards. The event sold out and was full of so much love and chaotic good. Ska lovers traveled from all over the USA and Canada last March to meet their many internet friends and musicians from the Ska Punk International community. Ever since, there’s been folks asking when the next festival would be? And where? 


With the intention of making each SPI Fest a travel destination, Ska Punk international will be moving the location from year to year.  Ska Punk International Records, in partnership with CT Ska Productions, is proud to announce that the 2nd annual SPI Fest will be held on May 17 and 18th at 25 Central St in Windsor, CT.

Gary Woodruff of CT Ska Productions jumped at the chance to partner with SPI, stating, “When Chris asked me to work with him on the festival, I knew it was fit. Part of our mission is to bring acts to CT that might otherwise skip the state.”

SPI Fest will be held at a new all ages venue known as 25 Central Street. 

About the venue, Woodruff says,  “Partnering with 25 Central Street as a venue was a logical choice. The new space is a former vaudeville theater with a main floor and a mezzanine that’s perfect for the event, accommodating vendors, and most importantly allowing all ages attendance.“

25 Central Street is in the Windsor Historic District within walking distance of Windsor Railroad Station. Windsor, CT is just outside of Hartford, CT and one of the first English settlements in North America. Windsor is on the land of the Pequot and Mohegan Native Americans.

SPI Fest will take place across two days, May 17 and May 18, 2024. The lineup consists of bands from Ska Punk International Records as well as friends of the Dallas based record label. Many of the groups perform ska music and its various subgenres. 

The full lineup:
Catbite (Philadelphia, PA)
Mutiny (Fullerton CA, Denver CO, & Pittsburgh, PA)
Stop the Presses (New York, NY)
Matamoska (Los Angeles, CA)
Hans Gruber and the Die Hards (Austin, TX)
Call Me Malcolm (UK)
Kmoy (New York, NY)
The Best of the Worst (New Jersey)
PWRUP (Agawam, MA)
Mega Infinity (Seaford, NY)
Runaway Ricochet (Minneapolis, MN)
Sgt. Scag (New Haven, CT)
Common Sense Kid (UK)
Bondbreakr (Austin, TX)
Eevie Echoes & the Locations (Brooklyn, NY)
Plastic Presidents (Omaha, NE)
Checkered Past the Ska Cast (Canada)
Joker’s Republic (New Jersey)
Take Today (Philadelphia, PA)
Flip and the Combined Effort (Dallas, TX)
Ghost Tones (Connecticut)
Solgyres (Connecticut)


The label and festival team and all of the bands hope to bring the same chaotic good energy as the 2023 festival. In addition to the community values being reflected in the event itself, the label’s initiative to give back will include Punk Rock Saves Lives, who will be present to raise funds and awareness for their projects and swab guests for the bone marrow registry. Ska Punk International has been raising funds for life saving initiatives to prevent cancer from the first compilation the label released in 2021, Songs for Moms. 

Tickets are now available at SPIFest.org

About Ska Punk International Records
Ska Punk International is a record label run out of founder Chris Reeves’ home in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. When Chris founded SPI Records in 2021, he founded the record label on 3 principles, community, accessibility and giving back. 

About CT Ska Productions 

CT Ska Productions is an all volunteer organization that provides safe spaces for awesome bands to play dope shows while raising money for charities that support diversity equity and inclusion.

Gentlemen Rogues – Surface Noise

I received a copy of the new Gentlemen Rogues album, Surface Noise, in the mail the other day. I’ve got it on for a second spin right now. Well, ok, I’ve got it dialed up on their Bandcamp page. Nevertheless, damn! This album has some serious pop hooks. 

The new release from the Austin, TX quartet brings ten new tracks of uptempo rock and roll, filled with, as I mentioned, a whole lot of hooks. Vocal hooks, drum hooks, guitar hooks, bass hooks, yup. All hooks, all the time. 

I hear hints of Replacements, and Screaming Trees. Some of the guitar work has a Weezer vibe. Perhaps it’s just me, but the vocals sound a bit like Billy Jo Armstrong mixed with Rhett Miller. I don’t mean to be all “name drop”, but I think that gives you a sense of the sounds going on here. It’s basically a veritable amalgam of poppy punk-adjacent sounds across multiple decades. 

According to the one-sheet, “Surface Noise is a record full of well-turned guitar pop, complete with roaring chords and propulsive rhythms behind Dunlap’s clever and cultured lyrics” I can’t disagree with that statement..

Surface Noise is a co-release on both Double Helix Records and Shifting Sounds

If you like your rock kind of punk and a whole lot poppy, by all means check out Surface Noise by Gentlemen Rogues.

-Jerry Actually

Mutiny Self-Titled EP

Wanna listen to the new Mutiny EP? Sure you do. Get some here: https://li.sten.to/thebandmutiny

Mutiny is a skacore supergroup formed during the COVID Pandemic by Eric Fazzini, Jordan Pepper and Chris Ruckus.
But in case you forgot, the members of Mutiny are:

Efrem Schulz (who is in Death by Stereo, Voodoo Glow Skulls, and Manic Hispanic)
Mike Cambra (Death by Stereo and the Adolescents)
Chris Ruckus (Dissidente)
Eric Fazzini (Voodoo Glow Skulls and PWRUP)
Jordan Pepper
Jose Pazlodan (Voodoo Glow Skulls)
Adam Shah

The honorary members of Mutiny are:
Ryo (Frail)
Shinji (Frail)

I’m Having a Really Nice Time and Jim Wilbur is The King of Punk: A Superchunk Concert Review.

I went and saw Superchunk last week for what I think was the seventh or eighth time. I try and make an effort to go to a lot of Superchunk shows because they’re the greatest American rock band of all time. I’ll kind of tell you why through a series of meandering personal anecdotes and fun facts, but let’s first start by turning the clock back thirty years. 

The year is 1994. All of my shirts are XL for some reason. There’s a stick of Nag Champa burning next to a skateboard. A newly acquired CD boombox is blasting In On The Kill Taker. A pair of shredded Etnies lay on the floor. They stink. I’m a little stoned. (This is the abridged version of me setting the scene for something that’s happening in 1994, it was a lot longer in the original draft). My older sister has just brought home a copy of Foolish by Superchunk. 

I’ve been a fan ever since then, and their live shows over the years have more than lived up to the band’s vast and storied catalog. They don’t put out bad records. They’re always there for you. Sure, they had the hiatus after Here’s To Shutting Up for a few years, but they more than made up for it in 2010 with an album to rival any of their older material, Majesty Shredding, followed by three more great full lengths and a 50 song B-sides comp. They also just released another new single a few weeks ago, and it’s an absolute banger. 

When Laura Ballance quit touring with them about ten years ago, indie rock Swiss army knife Jason Narducy seamlessly filled in on the bass. No momentum lost. Their last record, 2022’s Wild Lonliness did feel a bit like a swan song, however. I enjoyed it, and would pit “If You’re Not Dark” against any of their classic songs, but it had a feeling of finality to it. This concern was further intensified when I saw them on that tour in April of 2022. For the first time in my entire adult life, Superchunk didn’t look like they were having much fun. The remainder of that tour was cancelled because they got Covid, so maybe they were just drained. Even Superchunk are entitled to an off night, no judgment. I’m often not great at least 3 times a week for no reason. 

I was excited to see they were coming through Portland again this February, wanting to dispel the possibility that they were perhaps on the wane. Jon Wurster has recently left the band, having been the drummer since 1991, and so too was touring bassist Jason Narducy absent. Laura (a different one) King and Betsy Wright from Bat Fangs have replaced them in the lineup, further adding to the mystery of what I’d be in for.  Fucked Up being on the bill was a bonus.

Four of my friends committed to coming with me. That’s an extraordinary number for a middle-aged group of men on a Tuesday. One of them bailed, so I gave away the ticket to someone on Reddit. Given the likelihood this person wanting a last minute single ticket to a Tuesday night Superchunk show is someone I’d probably have a lot in common with, coupled with how bad men my age are at making and maintaining friendships, I’m going to go ahead and count effinwhatever with an alien avatar from Reddit as one of the four friends I went with. 

Fucked Up were the solitary opener, hitting the stage promptly at 8pm by belting out “Baiting The Public”. I have a hard time gauging the popularity of this band. I feel like there was a time they were courted by the Coachella and Pitchfork types, and received a lot hype for Damian’s stage antics. In my mind, they were maybe bigger than Superchunk, but not many people appeared to be here for them. Folks were still filtering in during the set, which sounded great. “Queen of Hearts” is about as good as songs get. The highlight was them closing with a ripping version of “Dose Your Dreams”. They did one of those extended outros where members stop playing and leave the stage one at a time, but staggering it until it’s just drums and feedback. Worth the price of admission already. I tried really hard to get some decent pictures of both bands, but it cannot be overstated how much I suck at taking pictures at shows. I wouldn’t feel so bad about it, but I’m looking around at other people’s phones in the air, and their footage looks incredible.

None of my pictures turned out, so here’s a picture of another guy. (perhaps effinwhatever from RedditI don’t know) who was good at taking show pictures. 

Here is a picture of me taking shitty pictures.

Here is a shitty picture I took.

This is honestly the best one, and I took it from the hallway outside the entry. 

Between sets we head back to the bar and get another drink. We’re all being responsible because of the normal reasons people are, but also because we’ve become increasingly terrified of hangovers as we get older. I’m drinking wine. This is the first time I’ve ever done this at a show. It’s what I do at home for fun when I’m hanging out with my wife, so it should be a transferable skill. It was. 

Superchunk come out on stage and Jim Wilbur says something funny. I’m excited, but aware of the delicate balance of the waterline in my small $8 cup of pinot noir. Show wine is not like show beers. One must be careful. There’s not as much of it, and it’s red. As I take sip, they open with “Swallow That”, not only one of my favorite underrated songs off On The Mouth, but also an affirmation of my drink choice. This is followed by two more from the same album, “Package Thief” and “New Low”. If you’re familiar with their catalog, you recognize this is an almost unfathomably excellent run to start the show. They continue with “Crossed Wires”, the precursor single to the aforementioned 2010 comeback record, followed by a 1991’s “Seed Toss”. 

I forgot to mention, the band sounds fucking great. Betsy and Laura K have great chemistry with Jim and Mac, and they’re a proper unit. Any worries I had of them slipping have been completely forgotten. They then break into a couple songs from 1995’s Here’s Where The Strings Come In, starting with “Detroit Has A Skyline”. Mac starts jumping around, and everyone in the building has a huge smile on their face, including the four people in Superchunk. “Silvery Leaf and Snowy Tears” follows, an unexpected treat and real hidden gem of their catalog. 

I think every time I’ve seen them they play “Water Wings”, and this time was no different. It sounded fantastic and was the first selection of the evening from Foolish, the album my sister brought home 30 years prior. “Low F” and it’s ripping solo is next, and then they really shine with their new one “Everybody Dies”. That a band who has been around for so long can still write a song like that is unreal. My number one jam from Foolish, “Driveway to Driveway” happens next. This song holds a special place in my heart, as it was the first song by the band to really hook me. Jon Wurster’s portrayal of the aloof millionaire at the wedding in the music video is worth looking up on YouTube. The regular set closes out with songs from all eras of their catalog, “Break The Glass”, “Cast Iron”, “Me & You & Jackie Mittoo”, and the anthemic “Slack Motherfucker”. 

Hold on though, the people want more! “If You’re Not Dark”, the brooding closing track off 2022’s Wild Loneliness kicks off the encore. Damiam from Fucked Up comes out and does a duet on “Our Work Is Done”, and it’s cool because, being the ultimate punk nerd he is, he’s really enjoying himself out there. The classic hit, “Precision Auto” is next, and although Damian has exited the stage, you can still see him rocking out by himself behind the curtains and amps like he’s in the crowd. That weirdo is one of us. The show ends the way On The Mouth does, with “The Only Piece You Get”. Such an awesome closer, and bringing it full circle. It fit so well to have the show open with the slow final song on side A of On The Mouth, and then have it end with the final slow song from side B. We’re left standing there exchanging thoughtful analysis to each other like, “that was sick!” and “dude!”, grinning like complete idiots.

The excitement isn’t over though. We head over to the merch table and Mac himself is manning it. I pick up a CD copy of the new B-sides collection, and my friend talks himself into buying an On The Mouth t shirt that’s only available in small. We chit chat with Mac for a minute, and as we leave he thanks us for coming and wishes my friend luck with fitting into his tiny shirt. 

I had a hard time falling asleep that night because I was still buzzing from the show. I laid there thinking about where I was in my life when different Superchunk records came out, and how really more than any other band they are the soundtrack to me being an adult. They’re incredibly special, and remarkably consistent. I have no doubt that the hundreds of songs they’ve written, along with hopefully the hundreds they have yet to get to, will always be a part of my life. 

The next morning I woke up to look at the notes I had tried to write during the show. Aside from a cryptic and nearly illegible setlist, I had only two things written down. 

1.) I’m having a really nice time.
2.) Jim Wilbur is the king of punk.

–Zach Akenson