punk – Upstarter

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!

–Zack 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:

Bad Attitude 01:20
Breakout 02:28
My Last Nerve 01:10
Too Good To Die 02:06
Massacre 01:57
Night of the Hunter 01:27

-Jerry Actually

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

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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.

Mean Jeans – Blasted

MEAN JEANS RELEASE NEW ALBUM, BLASTED, TODAY VIA FAT WRECK CHORDS

BLASTED NOW STREAMING ON ALL PLATFORMS

AUSTRALIAN TOUR WITH THE CHATS

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “LOST MY MIND” (YOUTUBE)

Get ready to shred, Mean Jeans fans! The Portland punks have unleashed their killer new album, “Blasted,” today. Crank it up on YouTube or your favorite streaming service – it’s a guaranteed party. Missed the epic “Lost My Mind” video? Don’t worry; Mean Jeans brings the Judge Judy-inspired courtroom justice straight to your screen.

For our Aussie fans, gear up to catch Mean Jeans live alongside The Chats on their tour, which kicks off today! Additional tour dates worldwide will be announced soon, so stay tuned. Here’s a snippet from what Billy Jeans shared: 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
11 Feb 2024 in Gold Coast, Australia @ Vinnie’s Dive
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
18 Feb 2024 in Sydney, AU @ Crowbar (FREE SHOW)
20 Feb 2024 in Castlemaine, VIC, Australia @ Theatre Royal
21 Feb 2024 in Melbourne, AU @ Haba Rye
22 Feb 2024 in Frankston, VIC, Australia @ Pelly Bar – Pier Hotel
23 Feb 2024 in Melbourne, AU @ Northcote Theatre
24 Feb 2024 in Melbourne, AU @ The Tote
19 Apr 2024 in Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive

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

States of Nature – Brighter Than Before

Let me tell you something about States of Nature. They are a really good band. This is some professional shit, and it’s precisely stuff like this that makes volunteering here at the Upstarter Foundation worthwhile.

“Brighter Than Before” is the upcoming debut full length from the band, coming out on Sell The Heart Records (who are really building an impressive roster) later this month. If you send them money, they will mail one to your house. This information will be important later, because after you read this review and listen to it, you’re going to want a copy.

Hailing from Oakland, California, their Bandcamp page describes them as “A danceable hybrid of Post-Hardcore and Rock N’Roll.,” which is accurate. It’s danceable, but not in an annoying kitchy way, and the riffs have some serious Reis/Froberg muscle to them. States of Nature are danceable in a DC sort of way, not in a band with exclamation marks in their name sort of way. I think it’s actually a very difficult thing to properly execute in punk and punk adjacent music. Being danceable without the appropriate amount of anger, or the absence of actually being able to write great songs, does not equate to enjoyable music. Good news is that State of Nature write great songs. Great songs you can dance to. You’ll want to mosh creatively to these ten tracks, or in my case, bob your head up and down on the Peloton while saying, “Oh hell yeah!” (the highest possible compliment, really).

The opening track “Brighter Than Before” comes out blazing like something off the first Hot Snakes record, and immediately got my attention. Huge chorus, and also kind of has the vibe and energy of something off “In/Casino/Out” by ATDI. This power and bounce continue with track 2, “Wicked World”, this time perhaps leaning a bit into (International) Noise Conspiracy as well. This is followed by “Papered News” and “Tides”, where we get a chance to catch our breath for second, but still full of hooks. There’s a video for the former, so check it out below. “Undone” is the most Fugazi sounding jam on here, which always seems like a lazy comparison for anything considered post-punk, but States of Nature are worthy company for such a tag. “New Foundations”, “God With A Gun”, and “American Drone” follow, comprising my favorite 3 song run on the album. These songs have everything. The dark rage of Mission of Burma, the attitude and delivery of Ian Svenonius, a bit of spacey Mind Spiders weirdness, and the aforementioned massive riffs of Hot Snakes. The record tapers off with the rather upbeat “The Return” and the perfect slow closer “Oh The Light”, which is also one of my personal favorites.

So there it is, a bunch of “sounds-like” comparisons that hopefully convince you to invest in joy and purchase this record. I’m a music fan, not a journalist. At least I didn’t say “angular”. This is my favorite new album I’ve heard so far this year, and it will definitely see repeated listens from me for the foreseeable future. Rumor has it they will be swinging up the West Coast this Spring, and I’m going to make a serious middle-aged effort to go see them.

–Zack Akenson

Strung Out Announce New Album – Dead Rebellion

CALIFORNIA ROCK BAND STRUNG OUT ANNOUNCE BRAND
NEW STUDIO ALBUM, DEAD REBELLION

FIRST SINGLE, “CAGES,” NOW STREAMING ON ALL DIGITAL PLATFORMS

SONGS OF DEAD REBELLION PRODUCED BY SHAWN MCGEE
IN STORES AND ONLINE
VIA FAT WRECK CHORDS ON FRIDAY, APRIL 5

WATCH: “CAGES” (ON YOUTUBE)
STREAM: “CAGES” (ON SPOTIFY)

(January 17, 2024 – San Francisco) California rock band Strung Out is set to release their 10th album, Dead Rebellion (pre-order), on Fat Wreck Chords on April 5th. Crafted amidst the challenges of the global pandemic, “Dead Rebellion” signifies a pivotal juncture for the band as they celebrate 35 years of musical prowess. The album embraces a distinctive mid-tempo and heavy vibe, prioritizing melody over speed. Dead Rebellion’s thematic core delves into the complexities of societal issues, personal struggles, and the divisive impact of our technology-driven world. Vocalist, Jason Cruz shares:

Dead Rebellion is a love letter to our fans, and the product of a 34-year negotiation with ourselves and the world. It was written, performed, and produced with a deep conviction that none of this is in vain, and if you love something enough, it will always take care of you in the end. For example, the song “Cages” explores the self-imposed limitations that hold us back, like blame and self-victimization. Only by eliminating these from the equation can true growth occur.

Catch the video on YouTube or tune in to the song across various digital platforms.

Photo Credit: Rick Kosick

It was always going to be different. Regardless of what ended up happening between Strung Out’s previous record—2019’s Songs of Armor and Devotion—and this new collection of songs, it was always the band’s intention to step away from themselves a little bit with it. Although Dead Rebellion-the band’s 10th album of their remarkable 35-year career—was written during the height of the pandemic and is, as all Strung Out albums have been, a reaction to the world at large and their own personal experiences within it, the band had already decided to end that chapter before Covid. A new beginning had long been in the works.

“We got to that point where I felt like if we kept going, we’d be repeating ourselves,” explains vocalist Jason Cruz. “And you know, we’re a metal band—a punk metal band—and there’s only so much you can do before people start writing you off as losing your roots or whatever. We all have side projects, so we use those to go into leftfield, but I think that this is the most we can do and keep our fan base and take them in just a little bit of a slightly different direction. It’s more mid-tempo and heavier, less worrying about speed. We were trying to be more melodic.”

That’s not to say these 12 songs don’t pack a punch, but, at the same time, the way the five-piece—these days completed by guitarists (and founding members) Jake Kiley and Rob Ramos, bassist Chris Aiken and drummer Daniel Blume—focus on melody over riffs is definitely noticeable. Take, for instance, the way opener “Future Ghosts” begins in a frenzy of riffs and drumbeats before settling into a kind of hypnotic aggression, or how the frenetic undercurrent of “White Owls” quietens down, its power condensed into a hushed whisper before once again soaring off in an impassioned burst of emotion. Similarly, “Life You Bleed”—one of many requiems here for modern living—tiptoes quietly at first but then accelerates into a fully-fledged rock anthem.

Elsewhere, “Cages” is a vicious indictment of the fractious, polarized and technology-driven nature of society, while “Empire Down” is a self-reflective ode about living up to the pressures and expectations of being in this band. ‘We are the orphans of a revolution song,’ sings Cruz; elsewhere in the song, he quotes the chorus of the 1964 Nina Simone song, ‘Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.’ When the album ends a few tracks later with the breakneck (yet still melodic) intensity of ‘Plastic Skeletons,’ Cruz returns to the importance of that same revolution song. ‘Everybody dancing for applause,’ he sings, ‘when the song is how we rise above.’

“People always talk shit about religious people and spirituality,” says Cruz, “like ‘Oh, you believe in a man in the sky.’ But then the same people come up to me and look to me like I, or my songs, have the answers to their questions. Because everyone’s looking for something, everybody needs something. Sometimes, as a dad and as a husband, I wish I could call my dad or somebody and just ask ‘What the fuck do I do here?’ Everybody needs a Northern star. So, while those two lines kind of contradict each other, at the same time they lend to each other that we’re all just looking for something and we all put our belief in something, no matter how ridiculous or superstitious it is. And those things can let you down, but they also can rise you up.”

Regardless of the pressure it may have put on the band, and despite Cruz’s insecurity that being a Northern star could let people down, Strung Out’s songs have been lifting people up for three-and-a-half decades now. Dead Rebellion is no different. In a world that Cruz sees as incredibly divided, one that—as he outlines in the afore-mentioned “Cages”—sees people constantly building what he calls “ideological walls” around each other, his hopes are this record can help tear them down.

“The key to this record,” says Cruz, “is technology and divisiveness—divisive language, divisive attitudes, divisive ideologies. I feel I was abandoned in a way, by a lot of things. What happened to bringing people together? I thought that that’s what we started doing this for. It’s still a huge part of who I am, and it seeps into the lyrics – trying to just find some common ground with people again and remind people that we’re all the same. At the end of the day, when the lights go out, we all want the same thing. And that’s where the title Dead Rebellion came from – like, we got so far and here we are right back again, just fragmented and at each other’s throats constantly.”

That, then, is the crux of Dead Rebellion. Produced, mixed, and recorded by Shawn McGee at Artistry Recording Studio in Las Vegas, it might represent a new chapter for Strung Out, but it’s guided by the same principles that have always driven them. And while Cruz says he’s never thought of Strung Out as a political band, this record—like all Strung Out records—has captured the zeitgeist and the self-destructive political climate, especially in the USA, perfectly.

“I struggle with the political thing,” says Cruz. “I don’t think we’re political. I think we’re just human. We’re a bunch of guys who are like everybody else. We’re not that smart. We’re just five guys that had nothing in common and we’ve proved to the world that you can come together and make something beautiful if you put your bullshit aside. It’s as simple as that.”

Overtly political or otherwise, Dead Rebellion is nevertheless a record informed by and reacting to the world we live in and all the experience and wisdom that Cruz has attained over the years. It’s also one built on the unwavering principles that the band has had at their core from the very beginning. So, while Cruz hopes that it can help unify people, he’s more than aware that that’s very likely too much to ask. But that doesn’t mean he’s not going to try.

“I know that’s not going to happen,” he admits. “We’re too far gone. There’s a saying ‘You can never go back home’, and I feel like the horses are out the stable and they’re running wild. So this is my declaration of war, in a way—a war to stay true and to just go down like the person I know I am, to stay true to myself and to stay true to my brothers–and go down believing what I know is right, to look people in the eye and give them a chance, and to listen and to try my best to bring people together. And that’s the hill that I’m going to die on.”

Tour Dates with Less Than Jake:

15 Mar 2024 in St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live
16 Mar 2024 in Charleston, SC, US @ Music Farm
17 Mar 2024 in Asheville, NC, US @ The Orange Peel
18 Mar 2024 in Norfolk, VA, US @ The NorVa
20 Mar 2024 in Boston, MA, US @ Big Night Live
21 Mar 2024 in Brooklyn, NY, US @ Warsaw
22 Mar 2024 in Montreal, QC, Canada @ L’Olympia
23 Mar 2024 in Ottawa, ON, Canada @ Bronson Centre
24 Mar 2024 in Toronto, ON, Canada @ History
26 Mar 2024 in Grand Rapids, MI, US @ The Intersection
27 Mar 2024 in Bloomington, IL, US @ The Castle Theatre
28 Mar 2024 in Cincinnati, OH, US @ Bogart’s
29 Mar 2024 in Reading, PA, US @ Reverb

Dead Rebellion Track-listing:

1.    Future Ghosts
2.    Signal Fires
3.    New Gods
4.    White Owls
5.    Life You Bleed
6.    Cages
7.    Empire Down
8.    Resistance
9.    Ceremony
10. Veronica’s Song
11. Dystopian Party Bus
12. Plastic Skeletons

Urgent Care – Fast Medicine

Are you in need of a new primary rock and roll provider? Look no further than Cleveland’s own Urgent Care. They are the nation’s preeminent Healthcore band, and are out to get you the help you need.

Coming in at the tail end of 2023, “Fast Medicine” is a 14 track back alley lobotomy of snarling, snotty, punk rock and roll. The songs are firmly rooted in rock, with a lot of fuzz and growl. Lyrically things are tongue depressor in cheek, with songs about various medical issues and minor ailments. Songs of Frostbite and Allergens abound.

All in all, it’s a fun release and reminiscent of bands such as Boris the Sprinkler and Quincy Punx. There’s some DK influence and some more obvious Ramones-core lineage as well.

So trip and fall your way over to Urgent Care’s Bandcamp page, and get patched up with some Punk Rock. If you’re lucky, your insurance will pick up the tab.

Cheers!
Jerry Actually

COCK SPARRER ANNOUNCE NEW & FINAL ALBUM: “HAND IN HEART”