(c)2008 Label Group (aka EMI)
[rating: 1/5]
The Dram Club offers, yes, you guessed it, DRAMA! … They are the soundtrack to whatever crappy new MTV reality show du jour. This disc is pretty damn milk toast. If you have sold your soul to the devil, listening to this is the price that you must pay! Maybe when you do what you can to get played, that feeling projects out from you where ever you go … if ya know what I mean.
–Jerry Actually
(c) 2008 Trustkill Records
[rating: 2.5/5]
What do we have here? Lots o’ metal for damn sure. Not the worst I’ve heard, but not necessarily something I’m down with. It has some decent riffage but it also has a lot of wankin emo mello crap interludes. I guess you get what you pay for huh? At any rate if you like modern metal then you’ll love the livin’ daylights out of Adversary.
–Jerry Actually
(c) 2008 INR
[rating: 3/5]
Fire the guns and Roll the Tanks! Here’s the new disc from (now) L.A. based band Roll the Tanks. Suffer City is the sophomore effort from the band. Originally from the Boston area, the band now contends with sunshine and smog. I’m not familiar with the bands prior work, but what I’m hearing on the new disc is enjoyable so far. What you get is 11 tracks of somewhat unique sounding punkish rock somewhere between The Clash and Modest Mouse. In all honesty, I’m rushing through this, but for real I do like what I’m hearing. It (the disc) has a distinct early 80’s vibe to it. I’d even go so far as to say I’ll listen to it again.
–Jerry Actually
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Interview with Mike Ivey of Basehead
Conducted via email 11/08
Jerry Actually – When “Play With Toys” came out it was greeted with a decent amount of attention, but by the time “Not In Kansas Anymore” was released, Basehead seemed to have faded back into obscurity. Was I just not paying attention to the right channels, or did your audience pick up the ball and then drop it?
Mike Ivey – Actually, the fade back to obscurity was after “Not In Kansas Anymore,” and after we recorded the follow-up “faith” which didn’t get a major label release after parent label Imago’s BMG distribution deal ended. Prior to that Kansas sold about as much as Toys, we did got some press, and we toured opening for Stone Temple Pilots, Butthole Surfers & fIREHOSE, as well as on our own and in Europe. Therefore the fade to obscurity was a bit more gradual than described above.
Jerry Actually – In regard to the question above question, basehead came about a few years before the massive proliferation of the internet and the whole peer to peer file share phenomenon. Do you think if basehead would have been more in line with this that things would have unfolded differently?
Mike Ivey – Actually, things unfolded the way they needed to. “Play With Toys” came out right just as Soundscan was in the process of rolling out, and that multi-year run ended right before the internet really got going, so I feel fortunate to have experienced the record business prior to the traditional industry model falling apart. I’ve always been skeptical of the panacea of promises of the internet age, particularly in regards to how artists are supposed to be paid for work when everything is available for free. But in general, it’s a cost-effective means for marketing and communications in the 360 degree-DIY business model that the future seems to be calling for.
(c) 2008 Fat Wreck Chords
[rating: 3.5/5]
So I’ve been listening to the new Dillinger Four disc quite a bit lately. Up until recently I can’t say that I was really all that familiar with them. I had heard their name and probably have them on some comps, but hadn’t really listened to them. Based on that I have no real idea of what they’re all about. But just ’cause I’m not familiar with them doesn’t in any way mean that they aren’t from Minneapolis. It should also in no way detracts from the fact they are a pretty kick ass band. My lack of knowledge aside, this new release has apparently been a long time coming. Something on the order of six years since their last full length. All I can say is, “About Time! I suppose.” Seriously though, CIVIL WAR is a solid release featuring 13 tracks that while rockin’ also seem to be trying to re-capture times past. But with the “halcyon days” long gone by, there is still ample opportunity for scathing commentary on modern times. Any ways, if you’re like me, you’ll like this disc. It reminds me a bit of Larry Arms, though a bit more up beat. It’s Sunday. It’s early. Just go listen to it already.
–Jerry Actually
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(c) 2008 Sorry About Your Couch
[rating: 3.75/5]
In a world where you bust your ass somewhere around 20/7 (a fella’s got to sleep sometime) you occasionally get the reviews out a little late. I have a serious stack of material in my inbox, so without further adieu, here is Sorry About You Couch. Hailing from the darkest depths of Central Wisconsin and the home of Point Special Beer comes some rude young lads and their new album Greeen! (Though the mailing address on the back is listed as Wisconsin Dells they claim to be from Stevens Point) No matter which place they are from, I spent plenty of my youth in both of those towns and though it was many years ago, I never expected much out of either area musically. Fortunately for me, time or fate has intervened and saw fit to send this disc to my door. SAYC is a raw blend of punk and roots. Frankly they remind me of Rudiments. The sound is a bit on the lofi side, but the raw nature of the tracks only serves to amplify the angst of youth. But what you get is 14 tracks and a bonus one. Running from raw rock to ska punk while trading verses like throwing around the ol’ pigskin, Greeen! makes for a good listen. Incidentally, with an album name like this, I really expected more overt stoner-rasta content. Not that is absent mind you, I just expected more. On another note, there is a cuddly green monster on the cover that appears to be destroying Toronto. I’d like to provide a slightly more in depth analysis, however I am beat. Sufficed to say that if you like the 3rd wave a bit more to the punk side then odds are fair you’ll like Sorry About Your Couch.
–Jerry Actually
