(c) 2008 Cobra Music
Rating: 
Black President’s here y’all. You ready for it? Get ready for it. Welcome to some change I think we all can agree on, the debut self-titled release by punk rock quasi super group Black President. I’ve truely been looking forward to this release for some time and rest assured it does not disappoint. Black President was formed by Greg Hetson (Circle Jerks, Bad Religion) and Charlie Paulson (Goldfinger). Before the release of this recording, Hetson left the lineup due to conflicting obligations with other bands. If you want a rundown of the member history, checkout the Wikipedia entry. The band has since completed the roster with Jason Christopher (New Dead Radio) on bass and Roy Mayorga (Soulfly, Nausea) on drums. This release contains 14 old school hardcore punk tracks with a modern punk twist and no shortage of social and religious commentary. I don’t want to compartmentalize anymore than necessary to give you a big picture of what I’m listening to, but I’m thinking a mix of Bad Religion, Descendants and left leaning political fund raiser. Aside from the the obvious punk/rock trappings, be on the lookout for kickass little guitar frills and rock solid percussion. Whatever you do though don’t misconstrue the name of the band or the album as a tacit endorsement for any particular candidate. Instead, listen to the kick ass punk rock sounds and maybe think a little bit about who you really trust! Incidentally, the cover of Alice Cooper’s Elected is perhaps one of the best Alice Cooper covers I’ve heard to date … it brings a whole new meaning to “Rock the Vote”.
–Jerry Actually
Ok, here’s how it is. Sometimes things rock. Sometimes things also roll. And some other times things both rock and roll and summarily kick ass! Bad Luck Charms new self-titled release falls under that summarily kick ass category. Not to be confused with the Hobart, Tasmania band of the same moniker, Bad Luck Charms, the Brooklyn variety are punked up rock with a street brawler type of vibe not unlike The Disasters, Mike Ness or many of the Duane Peters derived bands. The new relase contains 11 tracks of heart and guts drenched with sorrow and regret. Bad Luck Charms have an undeniable appeal in that when wallowing in their bad times, your situation doesn’t seem half so bad. (plus they really do rock) So do yourself a favor and book a trip to Tasmania to tell those other guys to change their names and while your there, pick up a copy of the American Bad Luck Charms new release and listen to it the whole trip back. Go for the guts. Stay for the glory! Let’s have a round of applause (read drinks) for Bad Luck Charms.
So out of the blue I get this package in the mail. A great beginning right? You (the reader) are now intrigued about what it was that may have shown up, right? I suspect that my suspicion is correct, but I am a bit pretentious, so we’ll take that with a grain of salt. Never the less it was a CD in my mailbox from a band outta Pensacola (Wings of Gold) Florida (known to some as the Redneck Rivera) Let me tell ya though, Out of Nothing is on to something: 7 tracks blending punk and ska and gators … ok well maybe not enough gators, but they do have a nice 3rd wave thing going on, not unlike a mix of MU330 and Voodoo Glowskulls (if you can maybe imagine that, I know I am right now) … but I digress. There is guitar, there are horns, (and drums and bass and vocals et al.) Basically what I’m trying to boil down to is that Out of Nothing is a good band. They have a nice blend of punk edge and excellent horn chops (I would like to hear the horns a bit more upfront in the mix though. I’m sure the horn players would agree.) Mix aside, take note of Out of Nothing ’cause they got the rock goin’ on. Do what you can to get yourself a copy of “Everyone Perishes” because it’s good and despite the internet you can still impress your friend when you have some shit that they don’t already have. (unless they already do)
Civets are small, lithe-bodied, mostly arboreal mammals native to the tropics of Africa and Asia. Civet may also refer to the distinctive musk produced by the animal.
All aboard the Lagwagon party goers. The original Fat band is back with a new release. By my account it is an EP. Seven tracks clocking in at minus 20 total, not that EP’s are a bad thing by any means. An EP is a great amount of work when your band is focused on more than one project. (Two of the members are also in Me First and the Gimme Gimmes.) Side projects notwithstanding, the obviously back dating and self-depricating “I Think My Older Brother Used To Listen To Lagwagon” is exactly what one should expect from an older and wiser Lagwagon. The songs have more depth, both sonically and contextually. Along with additional depth comes additional weight. I’m pretty sure that must be what is making the songs a bit slower than I like 🙂 In all seriousness though, this is a must have for any fan and for all the new kids to the punk rock block, pick up a newie but a goodie from an oldie but a still goodie band. As I said, “All aboard the Lagwagon!”
The Real McKenzies are to Scotland what the Dropkick Murphy’s are to Ireland. That is punk rock music with strong ties to cultural heritage. Like Dropkick, The Real McKenzies are displaced from their roots, but those roots still run deep. The new release, “Off the Leash”, will have you swearing that, “If it ain’t Scottish, it’s crap!” Though these fellows hail from the land of DOA and Michael J. Fox, their music still has the rebellious power of William Wallace. “Off The Leash” delivers 13 tracks of Scotted up punk, all of them totally sweet. If you like your punk anthemic and Celtic culturalocentric, don’t hesitate to let your self off the leash and go buy this disc. Ha! I made a less than humorous reference to the title of the CD in the review itself. That makes it a good review; kinda like movies that use the name of the movie in the dialog of the movie. I win! One to nothin’
Three cheers for the Street Dogs my friends, back again with a brand new record. The disc will be out soon on none other than Hellcat Records. It all seems very full circle, what with Hellcat being the home of the Dropkick Murphy’s. (for those of you outside the know, Street Dogs’ Mike McColgan is the former frontman of those very same Dropkick Murphy’s) Since their forming in 2002, Murphy’s connection aside, Street Dogs have come into their own.
The U.S. Bombs are back with a new CD — fronted per usual by the venerable Duane Peters. Peter's is arguably one of the hardest working guys in punk rock with The skating, the shoe and clothing lines and of course the myriad of musical projects: U.S. Bombs, Die' Huns and The Duane Peters Gunfight.