MEAN JEANS ANNOUNCE NEW FULL-LENGTH, BLASTED

IN STORES AND ONLINE VIA FAT WRECK CHORDS ON FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9th, WITH PRE-ORDER AVAILABLE NOW 

“I DON’T GIVE A SHIT ANYMORE” NOW STREAMING ON ALL PLATFORMS
 
AUSTRALIAN DATES ANNOUNCED WITH THE CHATS
 


                                                                                                                                                 Photo credit: Jacob McCann

(November 29, 2023 – San Francisco) Today, we get to share some truly radical news! There’s a brand new Mean Jeans jam, and it’s oozing with all the pop punk slime you can handle. “I Don’t Give a Shit Anymore,” is streaming wherever you hang out digitally. This track serves as a sneak peek of their upcoming album, BLASTED, which hits the streets on February 9th! Plus, you can pre-order it now, and grab a color variant or this sweet MJ headband. 2024 is shaping up to be an epic year with a new album, an Aussie tour on the books, and more dates in the pipeline. The Mean Jeans party bus is going full throttle! Check out what Billy Jeans had to say below:
 
Getting back on tour post-pandemic and doing 9 weeks with The Chats in the US and Australia reignited our appetite for shredding. We got home, wrote a new album, and recorded it by ourselves in Portland over 5 days. Blasted’s got more fast + wild loser anthems, a couple tearjerkers, more Houndy singing, and I finally figured out how to do a guitar solo. We’re kicking the year off with another Australian tour, this time a punk cavalcade of 6 bands.

From the moment they started 15 years ago, Mean Jeans have been creating their own slime punk fantasy world. Study their six previous album covers and you’ll find junkyards full of bongs and yo-yos, macaroni galaxies, Jägermeister spaceships, alien saxophonists and pink slugs in bondage dripping ooze. On their newest full-length album Blasted, the goofball trio have clearly been through wild years and seen some shit—on the cover, the three members peer out of toxic waste bins, no longer cartoons of themselves but instead incredulous country-fried maniacs who are still following a slime punk dream, and dealing with where it’s led them. 
 
Which isn’t to say the Jeans are jaded. In fact, the band—Billy Jeans, Houndy and Junior Jeans—seem to be having as much fun as ever on this record, ripping through these 15 rapid fire ear worms without coming up for air. They seem equally focused on tight catchy songwriting and packing in Easter eggs and absurd lyrical references, including (but certainly not limited to) Tim Armstrong’s X-Filescameo, Mike Schank’s PCP overdose story in American Movie, multiple songs with lyrics about their space-obsessed kindred pop-punker Tom DeLonge, a chorus borrowed from Seal, and a not-very-legal piano collage of well-known pop-punk melodies. 
 
Anyway, this record is a frantic and frenetic joyride, though probably one made in Rick from Rick And Morty’s Space Cruiser and through time and space, rather than any form of road-based vehicle here on Earth. But that energy was probably enhanced by the fact the band recorded Blasted all by themselves here on this planet. Well, at The Trash Treasury in Portland, OR, at any rate—the city where the band first got together and which is one of the least Earth-like cities on, well, Earth. At their own behest, the trio were left entirely to their own devices, putting themselves through their own physical paces by trying to be in two places—the control room and the recording room—at once. One of Rick’s portal guns might have helped make it easier, but who needs a producer or engineer? It’s just another cook waiting to spoil that delicious, fluorescent green, slime punk broth. 

“Studio time is just more fun when no one’s in charge,” says Billy Jeans. “To some extent, I know what I’m doing, and to some extent the other dudes know what they’re doing, but none of us are pro at all. Like, Junior would have to run over to the control room, hit the record button and then run back, all while holding the bass, and then we’d play. It’s idiotic, but when it’s just the three of us fucking around, the vibe is there.”
 
You can hear that all throughout Blasted. It’s a weird, wonderful and wacky album, but also not without its occasional serious moments. Mean Jeans are—still, after all these years—a band that love to party, and that’s what they continue to do on these songs. Every once in a while, though, you might catch a little regret about doing so, if not a full-on hangover. Opener “I Don’t Give A Shit Anymore” might sound like a statement of nihilistic intent, but it’s more what Billy calls an “underthinkers anthem”, a direct response to him overthinking everything all the time, while “Look What Punk’s Done To You”, “Took Too Much” and “I Don’t Know What I Did Last Summer” all address the comedown of life lived in the fast lane. But then there’s also “Something’s Going On”, which is the best (and possibly only) song that’s ever been written about  the cult 1986 comedy horror b-movie Class Of Nuke ’Em High.

At the same time, the album also serves as a kind of meditation on pop-punk, about what it means to be a punk band as opposed to a band playing music in the style of punk. Can you be both? Does it even matter? Maybe. Maybe not. What matters is that, with Blasted, Mean Jeans have made a record that defines what they are and what they’re not at the same time. Most importantly, it was fun for them to make, and it’s an absolute joy to listen to. For Billy, that’s always the aim.
 
“We’re a band in it for the good times,” he says. I’ve always thought if we’re not having fun, then it isn’t Mean Jeans. Which isn’t a recipe for success in the music biz, but I could bitch about that all day if you want. What’s the difference between being a bitch and being punk?” He doesn’t answer his own question, but it might be found somewhere in these songs.


Mean Jeans Tour Dates – Tickets Available Here.

  • 9 Feb 2024 in Maroochydore, QLD, Australia @ The Solbar
  • 10 Feb 2024 in Brisbane, QLD, Australia @ The Tivoli
  • 13 Feb 2024 in Byron Bay, NSW, Australia @ The Northern
  • 14 Feb 2024 in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia @ The Hoey Moey
  • 15 Feb 2024 in Newcastle, NSW, Australia @ King Street Band Room
  • 16 Feb 2024 in Gosford, NSW, Australia @ Drifters Wharf
  • 17 Feb 2024 in Sydney, AU @ Metro Theatre
  • 20 Feb 2024 in Castlemaine, VIC, Australia @ Theatre Royal
  • 22 Feb 2024 in Frankston, VIC, Australia @ Pelly Bar – Pier Hotel
  • 23 Feb 2024 in Melbourne, AU @ Northcote Theatre

BLASTED  track-listing

1. I Don’t Give a Shit Anymore
2. Let’s Go
3. Diagnosis
4. Lost My Mind
5. Blasted to the Moon
6. Something’s Going On
7. Reggie
8. Taco Bell Parking Lot
9. Look What Punk’s Done to You
10. Slugs
11. Break up With You
12. Took Too Much
13. I Don’t Know What I Did Last Summer
14. Living Large on a Credit Card
15. Pop Punk Casualty

Sgt. Scag – Everest (Official Video)

On Friday, September 8, Sgt Scag released the single “Everest” off of At Least More than Half-Way Dead. The music video was directed by Mike DeMatteo of Sgt. Scag. About the “Everest” music video, vocalist Steve Lonergan says, “‘Everest’ is a song for all the people who ever had to attend a company kick off meeting or industry conference. Tony Robbins, Gary Vee, Snake oil salesmen, organized religions that pass a hat. All bad. All predatory. All nonsense. Plus, ain’t New Haven pretty from up there?”

Simple Minded Symphony – Feather (Official Video)

The song “Feather” is about experiencing burn out as a creator against the routine of working to pay the bills. In the music video, an artist going about his routine is followed around by members of the band who take the scraps of his crumpled thrown up artwork to have a fight with the balled up artwork like snowballs.The video is warm and fun, much like the progressive groove matched with the earnest lyrics. 

The video was directed by vocalist/bassist, Kevin Silveira. “Feather” features the artwork of Melon Bobby instagram.com/melonbobby Simple Minded Symphony will be available on all streaming platforms Tuesday, August 22. Vinyl pre-orders begin today at Ska Punk International: skapunkinternational.com

Mustard Plug – Fall Apart

Mustard Plug have shared the video for their new track “Fall Apart” off their upcoming album, Where Did All My Friends Go? Out in September on Bad Time Records.

Grand Rapids ska-punk legends Mustard Plug are back with their 8th studio album titled Where Did All My Friends Go? that will be released on Friday, September 8th. The band will be joining the ever growing and exciting roster of Bad Time Records who have carefully cultivated a community around all things ska over the last five years. Once again, Mustard Plug have teamed up with Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore at the infamous Blasting Room to produce an album that captures everything that has made Mustard Plug a fan favorite over the last 30 years. Mustard Plug will be touring in support of Where Did All My Friends Go? throughout the rest of 2023 and will be linking up with Toasters, Half Past Two, Matomska!, Big D and the Kids Table, The Slackers, and Stop the Presses on select dates. 

Tour Dates:
September 7th @ Reggie’s – Chicago, IL
September 8th @ Magic Bag – Detroit, MI
September 9th @ Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids, MI
September 10th @ Grog Shop – Cleveland, OH
October 6th @ El Corazon – Seattle, WA
October 7th @ Dante’s – Portland, OR
October 8th @ John Henry’s – Eugene, OR
October 9th @ Cornerstone – Berkeley, CA
October 10th @ Catalyst Atrium – Santa Cruz, CA
October 11th @ Goldfield Trading Post – Sacramento, CA
October 12th @ Knitting Factory – Hollywood, CA
October 13th @ Garden Amp – Garden Grove, CA
October 14th @ Nile Theater – Mesa, AZ
October 14th @ The Holding Company – San Diego, CA
October 28th @ Heartwood (FEST) – Gainesville, FL
October 29th @ High Dive (FEST) – Gainesville, FL
November 9th @ X-Ray Arcade – Milwaukee, WI
November 10th @ Uptown VFW – Minneapolis, MN
November 11th @ High Noon Saloon – Madison, WI
November 12th @ Blueberry Hill (Duck Room) – St. Louis, MO
December 13th @ Rumba Cafe – Columbus, OH
December 14th @ Black Cat – Washington D.C.
December 15th @ Broken Goblet Brewing – Bensalem, PA
December 16th @ Brooklyn Bowl – Brooklyn, NY
December 17th @ The Sinclair – Cambridge, MA

THE DIRTY NIL READY NEW ALBUM 

Album Artwork by Carlo Schievano

The Dirty Nil, Ontario’s rock ‘n’ roll torchbearers, are emerging with their fourth album, Free Rein to Passions, and it’s a return to a more reckless approach for the JUNO Award-winning trio. In order to incinerate their apparatus, they had to destroy it completely. After experimenting with some smoother, more radio-friendly sounds on 2021’s Fuck Art, The Nil promptly returned to the studio and got back to the basics of what their band is about at its core—thrashy riffs, bashed out drums, and levels-to-the-max volume.

Set for release on May 26th, 2023 via Dine Alone Records, click here to pre-order Free Rein to Passions now.

Fuck Art had a lot of singing on it. There were not a lot of parts where you could just jam out on riffs,” says frontman Luke Bentham. “Free Rein to Passions is a bit of a nastier record where we didn’t sweat the small insignificant details. If it sounded cool, we went with it.” The band pays homage to some of their loudest, gnarliest influences on Free Rein to Passions, with subtle nods to everything from Power Trip to the Jesus Lizard.

On the album’s catchy first single, “Nicer Guy,” The Nil reminds listeners that they also still wield the power to stitch a perfect, infectious pop hook into their rock fabric. “I’d been sitting on some of the guitar parts for a long time, husbanding them for a suitably righteous song,” Bentham explains. “In the depths of lockdown, I dusted them off and came up with the words. It was a happy day in an otherwise lonely time. Special shoutout to Kyle‘s extremely tight playing and Sam‘s stampeding elephant bass. Sincerity can feel uncomfortable, but this one feels right.”

Watch the accompanying “Nicer Guy” music video now.

Toronto’s Debt Cemetary Unveil New Single ‘Let’s Murderlize ‘Em!’

Debt Cemetary strikes again with the aggressive new single “Let’s Murderlize ‘Em!”. This hard-hitting release explodes with huge vocal harmonies and ripping guitar riffs that soar throughout the track.
Inspired by the height of the civil rights movements that spanned across the globe in 2020, the song reflects the thoughts and feelings of guitarist/vocalist Eddie Knowlton. Mixed and mastered by Matt Gauthier, this latest release from Debt Cemetary shows a new side to the band while keeping true to their original and unique brand of fast punk.

This latest single is further proof that Debt Cemetary is on the rise to bigger and better things.

Alberta Canada’s Trashed Ambulance Release New Standalone Single “Cyntax Error”

Alberta Canada’s Trashed Ambulance has unveiled the new standalone single “Cyntax Error,” which follows on the heels of the band’s third LP, 2022’s critically celebrated ‘Future Considerations.’

The single is a loving tribute to Thousand Islands Records label co-owner and label manager Cynthia Charpentier, in honor of her recent birthday. The band says, “When a great friend/mom-ager turns 40, you have to make sure she feels the love. This song is an ode to Cynthia for always kicking ass and taking names while being the best gal East of the Saskatchewan River!”

Stream “Cyntax Error” here: https://bfan.link/cyntax-error.

Cyntax Error Written by Josh Hauta, Jason Ezeard, and Riley Bourne Guitar/Vocals – Josh Hauta Bass/Vocals – Jason Ezeard Drum/Vocals – Riley Bourne Additional Vocals – Casey Lewis Recorded at Echo Base Studio in Calgary, Alberta Recorded, engineered, and produced by Casey Lewis. Mixed and mastered by Casey Lewis.

Inspired by the likes of Pulley, Face to Face, and The Flatliners, Trashed Ambulance continues to churn out gloriously angry yet hopeful punk anthems! Formed in 2014, Trashed Ambulance has survived a plethora of member changes and hangovers to continue forging ahead as a reputable option in the Central Alberta punk scene.

With a handful of EPs, LPs, CDs, and cassettes already under their belt, the boys hit Echo Base Studio in Calgary to work with Casey Lewis (Belvedere) on their most recent LP ‘Future Considerations.’ To date, the band has shared the stage with such punk juggernauts as Face to Face, Belvedere, Voodoo Glowskulls, The Real McKenzies, The Murderburgers, and Ten Foot Pole and have even made an appearance at Pouzza Fest – Montreal’s annual premiere punk fest.

The guys already have some Western Canadian tour dates lined up and plan on terrorizing as many pubs, curling rinks, and bowling alleys as they can play this year.
Trashed Ambulanced Cyntax Error

Sludgeworth Release Losers of the Year on Vinyl

SLUDGEWORTH, CHICAGO PUNK PIONEERS, TO RELEASE ’95 COMPILATION, LOSERS OF THE YEAR, ON VINYL FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME

For the uninitiated, Sludgeworth are Chicago punk pioneers from the 1980’s that released a posthumous collection/discography album on Lookout Records back in the day — and it sold tens of thousands of copies, which was impressive for a defunct band. With members of Screeching Weasel, they had obvious leanings towards melodic punk, but they also had a quintessential Midwest sound mixed in with some post-punk. Think Naked Raygun and Fugazi.

And now, for the first time ever, Red Scare Industries is releasing Sludgeworth’s first and only LP, Losers of the Year, on vinyl and streaming services. The CD/digital version is getting two previously unreleased tracks: “To Be The Same” and “Here For A While.”

The reissue also comes with live photos from back in the day and liner notes featuring contributions from Naked Raygun’s Jeff Pezzati, Rise Against’s Joe Principe, Mikey Erg, Dillinger Four’s Patrick Costello, and more. It comes out on Friday, December 9 (pre-order).
“This has been in the works for well over 5 years. I know Dan (Sludgeworth singer) from The Methadones records we did. He gave me the green light, but it took ages to track down the audio for this. When I finally had the good sense to contact Chrisser (Appelgren, President/Owner of Lookout Records) he immediately wrote back that he had one last shoe box of tapes, but it was unlikely. Minutes later I got an email that was basically, ‘Ope, I’ll be damned, it’s in here!’ He overnighted me the DAT tape and that was the first promising sign! He’s one of the real heroes of this salvage project. Something else I found out: not easy to transfer a DAT tape these days! I know all sortsa fancy studios, but no one can keep a machine in working order because they’re impossible to maintain. And since THE VERY LAST copy of the master audio were in my hands, I wasn’t about to put it in the mail. Next stroke of luck was that I learned Arik from Creep Records still had a working machine and he hooked me up. He’s hero #2 in this tale! When we were transferring files he was like, ‘Damn, this is good!’ Yet another promising sign! Obviously the art was lost to the winds and there’s literally no band pic or promo shot, so Eric from Wall of Youth had his work cut out for him, but he pulled it off. The final package came out great: we got a buncha live shots and some blurbs from Sludgeworth’s contemporaries. Folks like Jeff from Naked Raygun, Joe from Rise Against, Mikey Erg, Patrick from Dillinger Four, etc. It took some time to cobble together, but I think people will be stoked to finally have a vinyl copy of this.” – Toby, Red Scare
1. Waste It Away
2. Someday
3. Anytime
4. Only One
5. Another Day
6. I Analyze
7. Never Say Never
8. Follow
9. Over And Over
10. She’s Not Disposable
11. Cry Baby
12. Nearest One To Stand Behind
13. Angry Man
14. Two Feet On The Ground
15. You And I
16. To Be The Same*
17. Here For A While*
*CD Only Bonus Tracks

Beach Rats – Debut Album ‘Rat Beat’ Out Today

Beach Rats (ft. Members of Bouncing Souls, Bad Religion, Minor Threat and Lifetime)

Share Riotous Debut Album ‘Rat Beat’ Out Today

LISTEN

WATCH The Music Video For “Bike’s Out”

Press Kit

“fast, snotty old-school melodic hardcore… even if these are middle-aged guys with decades in the game, they still bring that fired-up teenage rage” – Stereogum

a melodic hardcore ripper that sounds like the exact middle ground between Lifetime and Minor Threat” – Brooklyn Vegan

Today, Beach Rats drop their debut album Rat Beat via Epitaph Records. An impressive lineup of punk rock lifers, the band is comprised of vocalist Ari Katz (Lifetime,) guitarist Pete Steinkopf (Bouncing Souls,) bassist Bryan Keinlen (Bouncing Souls,) guitarist Brian Baker (Bad Religion, Minor Threat) & Danny Windas on drums. Not wanting to take themselves too seriously, the band formed merely over a love of the genre. These are veterans of hardcore punk having fun and trying replicate the feeling and sound of what it was like to make punk music in the 80’s.

You’re gonna get authentic punk and hardcore from BEACH RATS because we are all from the 80’s,” Bryan Kienlen comments. “It’s literally taking it back to some of our biggest influences like Negative Approach and Poison Idea, and of course, Minor Threat.”

LISTEN TO “RAT BEAT” HERE

Beach Rats came to be as each member found themselves settled in the beach community of Asbury Park, New Jersey. The crew started up when Pete, Bryan and Ari performed punk covers together for the first time at the funeral for Vision front man, Dave Franklin. After releasing an EP in 2018 and performing a slew of high-energy shows, the global pandemic gave the band a reason to get back to recording. The majority of the songs on Rat Beat were conceptualized and rehearsed in the basement of Brian Baker’s home and then tracked by Eric Bennett at Lakehouse Studios in only one day.

Baker recalls, “We’d go down in the basement, put on masks, open the windows and we could play – within CDC guidelines! We couldn’t go to dinner at each other’s houses but we could practice.” 

From the kick-off of “Bikes Out” and “Dress for Sick Sesh” to the roughshod melodicism of “Clorox Boys” or “Heavy Conversation” Rat Beat is an in-the moment snapshot of the five members’ distinct styles with no self-editing or second guessing. “The song ‘Summer’s End’ sums up a lot of what was going on for us when we were recording,” admits Ari Katz. “It was the end of the season which coincided with a lot of things that were ending in my life. It was fun to weave in that kind of imagery. Closing the beach, the town, switching over from the summer people to the faces you see in the winter and how that mirrors what was going on personally. In that sort of in-the-moment-ness of BEACH RATS, there’s an undeniable honesty.”

Beach Rats by Matthew Gere

“Rat Beat” Tracklist

  1. Bikes Out! 
  2. Dress for Sick Sesh 
  3. Heavy Conversation 
  4. Rat Beat 
  5. Summers End 
  6. Saturday 
  7. Clorox Boys 
  8. Wordz 
  9. Blown to Bits
  10. She Was a Goner 
  11. Beach Talk 
  12. Fuck You Dad