Punk

New Album: Hjelle || Det Måste Inte Vara Så Här

Hjelle is the singer for Swedish pubpunkband extraordinaire Bäddat För Trubbel. Det Måste Inte Vara Så Här (It Must Not Be Like This) is his third solorecord. It was released last month by the Swedish Ken Rock Label, but only just arrived on Spotify which is how I discovered its existence. The record consists of 15 short and sweet lo-fi tunes that border between pubrock and rock’n’roll with the occasional and very welcome sax-solo. If you like Bäddat För Trubbel, I am pretty sure you’ll dig this as well.

Add to wantlist: Discogs || Hepcat.se

New compilation: Various Artists || Fakes

I’ve always had a weak spot for cover compilations, particularly when the originals are classics and the recreations sound faster, angrier of weirder. So thank you, Drunk Dial Records for asking some of today’s best punk and garage acts to cover their favorite song of fictional artists from movies and tv shows. The result is a highly entertaining compilation. What about Pavid Vermin covering The Beets from ’90’s cartoon Doug? Or Jiffy Marx & kcar doing a delightfully weird version of Sugar Sugar? Or Berwanger doing Welcome to the Dollhouse? What about Careful making this Mitch & Mickey song actually sound good? And bless Charlie Continental for changing Wet Wet Wet’s Love is all Around into Covid’s All Around (“there was a start, there will be an end”). Though I hope this will ultimately get a physical release, it’s currently digital only. There are worse ways to spend $5. And if you need any further encouragement, all proceeds will be divided between the bands and four charities.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: The GTO’s || ¡No Están Muertos!

The GTO’s are from Spain and play fast bubblegum poppunk in the vein of Screeching Weasel and The Queers. This type of music is made for summer, but I don’t mind at all that the band released their new record ¡No Están Muertos! in the middle of winter. The songs are catchy, the music is tight and the record injects a welcome burst of energy into my brain. Great album cover as well, which, if I am not mistaken, is taken from a Jack Kirby horror comic.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New single: The Chisel || Come See Me / Not The Only One

The Chisel is Charlie Manning’s other band. Charlie, of course, is Chubby of Chubby And The Gang, who arguably released the greatest record of 2020. That does not mean that if you like Chubby And The Gang, you will automatically dig The Chisel. Or his previous classic straight edge hardcore project, Violent Reaction, who you should definitely check out. The Chisel sounds more hardcore, more street punk, more classic British punk. It’s angry, it’s furious. it’s confident, it works. Play it loud! Oi!


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs

New single: Midnite Snaxxx || Contact Contamination

It’s great hearing Midnite Snaxxx take their sound to new heights with each release. It’s still high intensity punk, but are layers of sounds that were not present on their early releases. Here is the excellent new single Contact Contamination, accompanied with a trippy video. I think I like the B-side Fight Back even more. And as if these two songs alone aren’t already worth the purchase, take a look at the gorgeous artwork by Sarah Sequoia. Make sure you check Sarah’s other work as well!

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs

New album: Miracle Debt || Miracle Debt

Miracle Debt come from a long pedegree of bands from Minneapolis that incorparate classic rock elements into punkrock. Or vice versa, depending on your frame of reference. I’m referring to the Replacements of course, but also Hüsker Dü, the Hold Steady (/Lifter Puller), and more recently Lutheran Heat. Miracle Debt will self-release their self-titled debut next month, but the full album is already available on Bandcamp. The band reminds me of early Avail, and that’s a compliment.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

Looking Back || Niek’s Overlooked Records of 2020

I’ve been checking out several 2020 AOTY lists in the past couple of weeks and have to admit: I missed a few. It happens, right? Perfection is overrated anyway. Here are 20+ releases from all kinds of musical directions that I either overlooked or was too quick to dismiss in 2020. They are on my wantlist now, that is all that matters. Click below to check them out. As always, I’ve included links to the purchasing locations for these releases. ICYMI also check out my favorite 2020 albums, singles and EPs, 2020 playlists and Dennis’ 2020 AOTY list. Happy new year!

New song: Space Cadet || Forever For A While

If you, like me, have fond memories of Boston punkrockband The Explosion, then you are familiar with Matt Hock’s powerful and distinct voice. Imagine my excitement when I found out that Matt has started a new project with his former bandmate David Walsh, and that Wiretap Records will release their debut a couple of months from now. Here is the first song, which is a pleasant surprise. It’s a departure from the high-octane and tight punkrock of The Explosion. It’s guitar-driven and loose, and influenced by postpunk, britrock and new wave. It’s the kind of song that intrigues and gets under your skin upon first listen.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Wiretap Records

Best of 2020 Playlists || Niek’s Favorite Songs of 2020

At the start of each year, I create a playlist to keep track of newly released songs I like. Then, at the end of the year, I pick out the best song from this list to create a year-end mixtape, a playlist I like to return to every now and then, and revisit or rediscover songs and memories of a specific period of time. The thing is, I am not a very efficient person. So basically I drag songs to the playlist for 350 days resulting in quite the mess – the playlist currently has 1944 songs, almost 92 hours of music. Then, with the year coming to its close, I frantically go to work trimming down the playlist to its essence. That’s the hard part, because I am way better in adding stuff than throwing things away, or so I am told.  I usually end up with a playlist around 300-400 songs, in spite of my good intentions to keep it shorter. This year is no exception. What I did do differently this year however, is split up the songs in two playlists that reflect my two musical taste buds: a playlist with more straightforward punk, powerpop and garage hits from 2020, and one playlist with a little less distortion (i.e., indiepop, jangle, twee, but also postpunk, and more fuzzy and surfy popsounds). As always, one song per artists. Click read more to check them out. Hope you’ll like ’em, and will uncover some new favorite tunes! BTW, in case this is my final post of the year, take care, be well and see you in 2021!

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