Author: Jerry Actually

A Day To Remember

A Day To Remember – For Those Who Have Heart (c) 2007 Victory Records

Damn, I had hope. The cover looked intriguing. The band is costumed in a menacing prep school nature. I thought maybe, just maybe, that A Day To Remember might be hardcore. Turns out, yet again, that I was wrong.

“For Those Who Have Heart” offers up the same screamo sound as the majority of their label mates. Droning melodic vocals over metal riffs that break into uninspired growling vocals on, as far as I can tell, each and every song. Where is the originality? Doesn’t anyone know how to rock anymore? But hey, kudos, you have an album out.

Isn’t it great what you can do with a formula! Yep formulas sure are cool, but how about an equation for you: A Day To Remember = A Band To Forget.

–Jerry Actually

The Queers [Beat Off]

The Queers – Beat Off (re-release) (c) 2007 Asian Man Records A classic punk rock favorite from quintessential pop punkers The Queers is brand new again courtesy of Asian Man Records.  Originally released on Lookout back in 1994, Beat Off is once again available for all off you punks young and old that are still totally retarded for The Queers.  It features all your favorites including: Teenage Gluesniffer, Ben Weasel and Live This Life.  The CD also contains updated 2006 liner notes from Ben Weasel himself.  The Queers – Beat Off is a refreshing blast from the past.  Go get a new copy, I'm sure yours is all tore up by now.–Jerry Actually 

Taste of Chaos [Tour Sampler]

The Best of Taste of Chaos Two (c) 2007 Warcon Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! This CD is a freaking screamo nightmare. Almost all of the bands on here have received poor marks from !upstarter in the past. The Taste of Chaos tour is obviously not meant for me. With a band list containing: Thursday, Taking Back Sunday, Senses Fail, Emery, Evaline and more, you can totally count me out of this pity parade. There is a very marginal amount of saving grace on the two disc set. The Anit-Flag track on the first disc and on disc two a track by Gwar. The second disc is definitley the better of the two. It is both faster and more melodic, however, it is still plagued by the sore throat that appears to have taken the music world by storm. Bottom line: I think I am going to hurl.–Jerry Actually

Senior Discount

Senior Discount – There Were Four Who Tried (c) 2006 Senior Discount So just the other day I was thinking why aren't there any bands ever coming out of Rhode Island?  As it turns out I must have just been off of their radar, cause not too long after pondering this, I received "There Were Four Who Tried" from Senior Discount.  Lo and behold, they are straight out of Providence.  The disc offers up 16 tracks of eclectic punk, pop punk, ska(ish) punk and more punk.  The more I listen to this CD, the more I thoroughly enjoy it.  It has pop punk sensibility without all the emo sensitivity.  It also carries enough horns to please most fans of the thrid wave. Lyrically it is largely the antithesis of the traditional pop punk with lot sof rants and comical tongue in cheek coarseness. "There Were Four Who Tried" is a bang up job by Providence punks Senior Discount.  The bottom line is one kick ass record with more hooks than a pirate convention. Buy This CD Here – -Jerry Actually

Beijing to Boston

Brain Failure/Big D & The Kids Table – Beijing to Boston (c) 2007 Bad News Records Hell fucking yeah!  Beijing to Boston is a split CD featuring Brain Failure—the first honest to goodness punk band outta China—and  Boston's Big D and The Kid's Table.  I have to say that I'm awfully impressed with Brain Failure.  Their opening six tracks on the split evoke memories of Rancid, Dropkick, Social D and The Clash.  Dickie Barrett (of Bosstones fame) lends a hand on the intro track “Come on Down to Beijing”.  Despite the Clash reference, don't expect anything too political though, given how things seem to work in China regarding dissent, Brain Failure keeps the subject matter pretty light: songs about inviting you down to Beijing and living in a city and being brainless etc… No matter what though, it is freaking awesome to hear brothers in arms from another country breaking it out like the rest of us.  Go world unity!  Let us not forget our brothers from a different East.  Boston's Big D & The Kid's Table shore up the final six tracks on the split.  The tracks from Big D are all new and as always are nothing short of stellar.  They start us out with the trippy and spacial "Faded" and then bring us back in to the more familiar and infectious ska punk that we've come to love these last 10 years.  Here's the big breakdown, this disc is the mad note on a whole lot of levels.  Two great bands, 12 great songs and a monumental cultural bridge.  In a word, brilliant!–Team !upstarter 

The Queers [Munki Brain]

The Queers – Munki Brain (c) 2007 Asian Man Records Hello Munki Brain! – Brand new bubble gum surf (Beach Boys style) pop punk, festive fun from perennial fav's The Queers.  It is good to see a band stay true to its roots as opposed to the atrocities that could have befallen them.  Let it be know that The Queers serve as a much better gateway band than say, New Found Glory.  The lyrics are catchy the songs are peppy and god damn it, they're fun. As an added bonus, if you couldn't find that brand new Beach Boys or Ramone's CD that you knew that was out there somewhere, look no further, Munki Brain is it.  It is the epitome of pop punk without the baggage that comes en tow with the usual tripe.  Bottom line:  Totally sweet! you get 13 tracks of classic Queers, only its brand sparkin' new.  What a deal!  (They also get an extra thumb's up from Jimmy 'cause they said, “Fuck”) –Team !upstarter

Warsaw Poland Bros

Warsaw Poland Bros – Best of Ska & Rocksteady 1995-2005 (c)2006 Invisible Mass Records Best of Ska and Rocksteady is a great introduction into what really is some of the best ska and rocksteady ala the Warsaw Poland Bros.  Don't expect to be dazzled by something brand fangled and new, but do expect a grip of quality examples of up beats horn bursts and full on dancing good times.  Skankable and fun and a decade worth of material, how can you go wrong with that, huh?  Bare in mind that it is often hard to review 'best of' CD's – not quite as bad as comps – but still a challenge.  After all, what does one say when confronted by a selection of the best.  I guess, here it is.  This is the best example of what Warsaw does and well, its good.  It is, in fact, skankalicious!–Team !upstarter 

Freya [Lift The Curse]

Freya – Lift The Curse (c) 2007 Victory Records Forged from the fire of Earth Crisis and blessed by the Norse Goddess of TGIF, I submit to you, Freya. Lift The Curse is the newest effort from the Syracuse band that is equal parts metal and hardcore. The structure is certainly hardcore. Some of the guitar fills and breakdowns and the vocals are definitely METAL though. I have never been a fan of really harsh vocal growlings. Freya is on the edge there. The music helps reel it back in a bit, but overall Lift the Curse is a bit too vocal crunchy for me. Freya does go and keep it short attention span friendly though, with tracks lingering around the two and a half minute mark, with the exception of the prerequisite cover of War Pigs. All in all a good release, but again I’d like to hear less growl. –Jerry Actually

The Agency [Turn]

The Agency – Turn (c) 2007 Perch Records I'm scared.  I really am.  The massive resurgence of the sounds of the 70's and early 80's is naturally (or perhaps supernaturally) progressing in what I consider to be a negative direction.  Let's take, for instance, The Agency.  They kick off a vibe somewhere between Supertramp and Night Ranger or Lover Boy.  Well, I say turn me loose, 'cause when you try to bridge that kind of gap you bound to end up in the anachronistic and perilous path of the mellow gold.  Some of you out there may know what I'm talking about.  The horrid drivel of mid-late 70's adult contemporary.  When it comes to the point where bands are starting to sound like Andy Gibb or Johnny "Slow Dancin'" Rivers–holy crap–man, I want out!  In all fairness The Agency has a decent pedigree, featuring members of Dashboard Confessional and Seville, and I'm not saying that they are all bad.  I'm just saying that if your into it, maybe you should look into getting some new shag carpet and a disco ball for the ceiling of your bitchin' conversion van.–Jerry Actually 

The Cast Outs [S/T EP]

The Cast Outs – S/T EP (c) 2006Cleveland's Cast Outs come correct.  Their self-titled EP is a 7 track, dark and gritty punk dirge.  The Cast Outs bring elements of early crossover (for those of you out there that think that crossover refers to crap like NuMetal … you couldn't be more wrong) along with the unusual addition of dense heavy keyboards to the sound.  The disc is raw, but it has grit and substance.  What could easily have been just another garage band transcends to a new level with quality riffs and well layered arrangements.  Their sound becomes even more intricate if you consider that they operate as a three piece.  Though claiming influence from the likes of Napalm Death and NOFX, I think they may have forgotten to include TSOL and Econochrist in that list.  The bottom line is raw punk that holds plenty of promise.–Jerry Actually