DESCENDENTS COLLABORATE WITH MIKKELLER BREWING SAN DIEGO BREWERY ON SIGNATURE BEER

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DESCENDENTS COLLABORATE WITH MIKKELLER BREWING SAN DIEGO BREWERY ON SIGNATURE BEER

‘FEEL THIS COFFEE IPA’ DEBUTING AT SAN DIEGO BEER WEEK NOVEMBER 4th
Feel This Coffee IPA 3

Descendents have announced that they have partnered with San Diego’s Mikkeller Brewery to create a new beer called Feel This – a 7.3 % coffee IPA brewed with Dark Matter Hypercaffium Spazzinate coffee beans.

“Having grown up in the punk rock and skate punk scene, it was an honor to be given the opportunity to create a beer for the Descendents to celebrate their recently released album,” said Bill Batten, Mikkeller SD Brew Master). “While doing this collaboration we got an opportunity to meet the Dark Matter boys and learn about their coffee process. Using their roasting profiles, in combination with our passion for hop-forward IPA’s, we were able to create a special beer as unique as the band.”

The beer ships from the brewery to distribution outlets in 25 states across the United States. It will be available to retailer and consumers while supplies last. A portion will be sold through Mikkeller’s webshop in Europe.

The beer is named after the legendary punk band’s song “Feel This” from the Descendents most-recent album Hypercaffium Spazzinate, which is out now on Epitaph.

Fans in the San Diego, California area will get a chance to taste the Feel This Coffee IPA for the first time at the San Diego Beer Week on November 4th.

About Mikkeller:

Mikkeller Brewing San Diego is a new brand deeply rooted in the friendship of two world renowned breweries, (gypsy trailblazers) Mikkeller and (legendary) AleSmith. The vision is to merge the best craft beer traditions of Europe and Southern California, while employing a curiosity in exploring the boundaries for modern beer brewing. Expect super fresh, hoppy beers as well as classic European styles.

For more information on Descendents, visit http://descendents.tumblr.com/.

The Barstool Preachers – One Fool Down

The Barstool Preachers – One Fool Down
Pirates Press Records

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Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆

PPR139“Never look down on anyone, unless you’re giving ‘em a hand up.” ~The Barstool Preachers. This lyric sets the tone for the debut EP from UK ska punk band The Barstool Preachers. I’ve been listening to the three track EP for a couple weekends now and the more I listen, the more I get drawn into the upbeat hook heavy sound.

If I may make an attempt to describe the sound, (you know I’m going to) I’d say we’ve got about a 60/40 blend with the high side leaning towards the ska end of the ska-punk spectrum. I hear influences of Madness, Specials, NOFX, Dropkick Murphys, Goldfinger, and “Stay Tuned” era Let’s Go Bowling. Of course these other bands may or not be influential in the least for this band, but artifacts or their sounds can be gleaned if you listen in.

All of my perceived references aside, despite lyrics that are tinged with a bit of drunken regret, I get a solid sense of positivity out of this band’s sound. They don’t come across as pissed or whiney, but friendly and real. Sure, I like ska punk and this is 100% up my alley, but the songs tell a story and the sound puts me in a happy mood. The only drawback is that you only get four-ish minutes of this gem.

What you get at the end is a one fine EP from what seems to be a promising beginning to an new ska punk band. Three cheers for The Barstool Preachers.

And just in case you don’t want to take my word for it, please enjoy this video:

-Jerry Actually

Heineken Commercials

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It’s the season to celebrate, so dust off your tuxedo and get ready to make your entrance in style. Heineken’s new film serves up some inspiration.

The Entrance, a 90-second cinematic masterpiece, kicks off Heineken’s latest global brand campaign. The film’s hero demonstrates the ultimate party entrance by charming his way past a gun-wielding oilman, a Russian canary, and a kung fu assassin, before getting his flute out on stage with the smoking-hot lead singer of the Asteroids Galaxy Tour; the Danish band’s latest single, The Golden Age, provides the sizzling backing track to the film.

The film was rehearsed and shot over a week in a palace near Barcelona, with more than 100 actors playing a part in the blockbuster. The Entrance execution includes 12 additional online teasers that reveal the secret back-stories of key characters in the film. They include Kung Fu Comeback, Heineken Duet and the classic, Big in Wonderland , featuring a couple of basketball players who take their training to the next level.

Heineken’s new campaign will see the release of similarly intriguing films over the next few months. In the meantime, if you’re after some tips on how to nail your next entrance, watch the film and explore the hidden stories of its characters at Facebook.com/Heineken.

*No canaries were harmed during the making of the film.

Them Damned Young Livers – Psalms of Ill-Repute

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Rating: ★★★½☆
© 2010 Them Damned Young Livers

Kansas City’s finest cow punks are back with a new one boys. Time to circle the pickup trucks, tap the kegs and have one hell of a throw down. I assure that it is exactly what Jesus would do. Psalms of Ill-repute picks up off where 2008’s Let The Sin Begin Leaves off, more or less hung over praying to the lord while drinking booze hoping to avoid that next DUI.

Where the current release takes a departure from previous material is in the raw DIY 60’s garage sound. This new, more rough hewn, sound is readily picked up on the first track. The swirling Hammond sounds on “White Bride Escort Service Inc.” primes the listener for a different TDYL experience. This is further augmented by the 70s rebel outlaw rocking of track 8 “Armed and Crazy”. But don’t fear, the same rowdy, drunken, preaching and rocking is still very much present in Psalms of Ill-repute.

The new disc delivers on 13 solid tracks of pasture-inspired booze-fueled rock and roll, the nefarious evil of which can only be tempered by desperate prayers and even more liquor. As a testament to the power of either the former or the latter, the songs of “Ill-repute”, while definitely more raw, are also better crafted. The combination of tighter composition and gritter production lends to on fine drinkin’ CD.

-Jerry Actually

For fans of: Hank III, Georgia Satellites, Reverend Horton Heat, Beer

Track Listing:
1. White Bride Escort Service Inc
2. Love Fight
3. Devil Out The Back
4. All Hell
5. Baby I’m Gone
6. Drinkin (Again)
7. Please Help Me Jesus (I Don’t Wanna Get Pulled Over Tonight)
8. Armed And Crazy
9. Please Stay
10. Georgia On A Fast Train
11. Bus Broke Down
12. Theme From Them Damned Young Livers (Another Song)
13. That Hip Hop You Speak Of