Punk

New album: R.M.F.C. || Club Hits

By / / Alternative Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

Congrats everyone, the debut by Sydney’s R.M.F.C. is finally here. Its title is as solid as the music. Club Hits, thirteen of them, and all written, performed, recorded by Buz Clatworth. Club Hits starts with a suspense building intro song before the first highlight and my early favorite of the record kicks in. The short eggpunk blast Spectrum, a song that is followed by its moody and more arty twin Sterile Century. The remainder of Club Hits touches many corner of the post punk universe. R.M.F.C. provide a lot to explore – they are no predictable act and it’s a lot of fun to tag along.

After my second or third spin of the record, Club Hits starting to sound a bit like a reimagination of Wire’s Pink Flag by an Australian Egg-ish punk band if that makes any sense. I like that a lot. Club Hits is out now on Anti Fade (AUS) and Urge Records (USA).




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp 

New album: Brad Marino || Grin And Bear It

By / / Garage Rock, Power Pop, Punk / 1 Comment

When Kurt Baker and Geoff Palmer release new music, you can always expect their New Trocaderos bandmate Brad Marino to follow suit not long after. True to form, just four weeks after Kurt Baker, and two weeks after Geoff Palmer, here is the latest Marino masterpiece Grin And Bear It. The three friends seem to engage in a healthy form of competition, challenging each other to outdo themselves in crafting the best and most enjoyable rock’n’roll hits. It’s a collaborative spirit that drives them though, evident in Baker’s contribution to two of the songs on Grin And Bear It, and Palmer’s performance alongside pop punk legend Joe Queer on a cover of Bobby Fuller Four’s Another Sad And Lonely Night.

What more can be said about Grin And Bear It that hasn’t been said about Brad Marino before? The record firmly establishes Marino at the pinnacle of the punky powerpop’n’roll scene. His songwriting appears effortless on this new batch of songs, yet it carries a distinct sense of inspiration. What I love most about the new LP is how much fun it is to listen to. It really is that straightforward. It rocks, it rolls and boasts an irresistible catchy sound. Twenty years or so in his career, there is zero sign of regression or wear in Brad Marino’s music. Tip of the hat to you, Brad!





Grin And Bear It is out now at Rum Bar Records and Sioux.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs || Sioux

New album: Shoplifters || Second Nature

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Shoplifters are from Novi Sad (Serbia), which feels like an unlikely destination for prime quality melodic punk rock. But color me ignorant, I am thoroughly impressed by the band’s brand new LP Second Nature. Shoplifters play an extremely melodic brand of punk rock that is right up my alley, but you seldom hear nowadays, particularly performed at this high level. Hints of All, Big Drill Car, Down By Law, poppy Hüsker Dü and Leatherface all pop up on the 13 songs of Human Nature. The familiar elements make for an easy gateway, but it is the sheer quality and honesty of the songwriting that makes me particularly excited for the album. It doesn’t hurt that Shoplifters’ singer has a warm sound that is reminiscent, but not an exact copy of Dave Smalley (Dag Nasty, All, Down By Law). It’s a confident and emotional voice that I believe complements the music well.

With their recognizable and mature sound, Shoplifters are a band with the ability to reignite the lingering love for fans of melodic punk rock, old and new. Second Nature is out on Brassneck Records (UK), Waterslide Records (Japan), PopKid Records (US), and Rad Girlfriend Records (US).




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || PopKid Records || Waterslide Records || Rad Girlfriend

New EP: Friend Of Cesar Romero || Cardiac Vacancy

By / / Garage Rock, Power Pop, Punk / 3 Comments

If I asked articial intelligence to analyze my music collection and come up with a prototype of the music I listen to, I wouldn’t be surprised to receive a four-word answer: Friends Of Cesar Romero. The main outlet of the insanely prolific J. Waylon Porcupine ticks so many boxes of what my ears and brain desire, it’s a near perfect match. Upbeat? Energetic? Rockin’? Melodic? Infectious? Check, check, check, check, check. This is precisely why you’ll never hear me complain about FOCR’s habit of releasing new music practically every couple of weeks.

This Wednesday marked the release of Cardiac Vacancy aka installment 38 of the band’s Doomed Babe series. Seven songs long, it’s the closest FOCR has ventured to a full-length album since last year’s Six Banger (number 31 of the series). Given all these releases it’s easy to lose track but Cardiac Vacancy may be my favorite FOCR release of 2023. It’s not solely due to the genuinely affectionate rendition of the Sal & Bobbi Trimachi penned bubblegum classic 1-2-3 Red Light – made famous by 1910 Fruitgum Company. The song serves as just one example of the playful nature of the songs on the EP.

While these tracks of course originate from his bruised and battered heart, there’s an unmistakable sense that J. Waylon wants to transform those feelings into upbeat, head-bopping tunes infused with wry and dark humor. Take, for instance, the classic rock’n’roll driven The Ballad Of Fred Upton which kicks off with the lines: “I might be cruel, But she was crueler. If I’m a diamond, Then she’s a jeweler.” It’s impossible not to move. And when you read the liner notes that Cardiac Vacancy was recorded by “ol’ Narcissistic” Fred Upton, your grin is bound to broaden.

FOCR sounds razor sharp and in top form on other tracks as well. You’re Dreaming, Schoolgirl, Leave The Rest To Me, One More Night and Make Up Your Mind Up all serve as bittersweet powerpop hits. Adding some variety to the mix, Might As Well Dress Me In Black emerges as the most garagey song of the EP. I am aware that labeling most if not all songs on the EP as standouts or highlights might dilute the meaning of the term, but truth be told, I don’t really care. They are all hits!




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

Dusted || The 10 Best Cover Songs Of October 2023

By / / Alternative Rock, Country & Folk, Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Power Pop, Punk / 1 Comment

Not all new music is really new, as many artists cover songs. Sometimes these are songs by their favorite artists, eg as a tribute to such a musical hero for a special reason, or they simply feel that a song deserves to be dusted and polished to reacquaint fans with great songs from the past. Other times, bands cover songs as a parody. Regardless of intent, some of those cover versions are so good or so much fun, we’d like to put a spotlight on them. Chosen from a wide range, here are – in random order – ten of our favorite covers from last month – links to the pages where you can add them to your wantlist included.

In October we stumbled across cover releases from The Anchoress (Versions), Duran Duran (Danse Macabre) and Kid Congo Powers (Sings the Subsonics), and tributes to The Replacements (Let The Bad Times Roll), Black Sabbath (Evil Lives), Creedence Clearwater Revival (Burn on the Bayou), The Jasons (Rock N Roll Vandalism) and Pavement (Brighton the Corners) by various artists, but below we would like to draw your attention to the following tracks.

(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding || Cover: Hallelujah The Hills || Original: Nick Lowe
A present-day and important subject, proceeds that will be donated to Doctors without Borders, cover art by Robert Coburn from a poster contest run by Avant Garde magazine in 1967, but above all a beautiful, subdued version by Boston’s indie rock band Hallelujah The Hills. Respect.

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Dusted || The 10 Best Cover Songs Of October 2023Read More »

New post: Sonic Beast || Sonic Beast

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

Here is another fun release by Barcelona indie label BCore Disc. Sonic Beast is comprised of four veterans of the Spanish underground movement and include members of Illinoise, Bad Mongos, No More Lies and Bullit. Instead of singing about the glory days and cut-and-pasting the sounds of their previous projects, the four members wanted to challenge themselves and create something contemporary yet fun. The result? A wonderful self-titled debut. Sonic Beast is a tasty brew with a lot of well-known elements that provide a time lapse of the band’s musical preferences. Listening to the 11-songs, I lost count over the times I compared bits and pieces to certain bands I like. Just some of the names I wrote down: Samiam, Lone Wolf, Hot Water Music, Bob Mould, Danko Jones, Rival Schools, and a whole lotta tip-of-tongue guesses. By the end, I was mostly impressed by the immaculate execution of Alfred, Chris, Roger and Xavi. Sonic Beast is a quality indie punk/ alt rock record.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New single: Moron’s Morons || Go Pop!

By / / Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

Quite the year for Warsaw’s Moron’s Morons. Following up their gritty gritty punk’n’roll sleazefest High-Tension Situation (released in February of this year), here is an amazing two-song 7″ single on Big Neck Records. The title is Go Pop! and you may want to take that as a hint that it is a bit more melodic relative to High-Tension Situation. It has a slightly lower pace as well, but the energy level is off the charts, it is still loud and honestly, these two songs rock like crazy. Play this one loud!



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Big Neck

New EP: Jonesy || Doppelgangbangers

By / / Glam Rock, Power Pop, Punk / Leave a Comment

Canadian four-piece Jonesy plays a cool mix of bubblegum punk, glam rock and power pop, with big riffs borrowed from classics like Deep Purple’s Smoke On The Water and Rainbow’ Since You Been Gone, supplemented with a catchy organ and an effective cowbell. The 70s sound of the four new tracks here is just as sleazy as the hormone-driven lyrics – this Doppelgangbangers EP – “ten inches of sleazy pleasure centered around girls, cats and rock & roll” – rocks and swings, and is a nice counterbalance to everything that is too well-behaved and politically correct these days.

Doppelgangbangers is out now digitally and on 10″ vinyl through Heavy Medication Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

EP Premiere: Night Court || Frater Set

By / / Garage Rock, Power Pop, Punk / Leave a Comment

Do you have five or six minutes to spare? Great! That is about the time it takes to listen to the new 5-song EP by one of our favorite bands of late: Night Court. Today, a day ahead of its official release, we proudly premiere the Frater Set EP, Night Court’s Autumn follow-up to last Spring’s amazing Humans! LP.

The EP kicks off with Bride Of Frankenstein (watch the video here), which is one of the first songs the band wrote but the band wanted to save for a special occasion. Well, Halloween Twenty Twenty-Three and a handmade one-of-a-kind lathe-cut picture disc sounds like a perfect fit for the Vancouver band.

Night Court’s Jiffy Marx talks about the EP: “I think of this as our horror punk EP, even though I am totally unfamiliar with the genre; other than the Misfits…unless you consider Rocket From the Crypt horror punk? We may be too old to go trick or treating so we released an EP instead.” His band mate Dave-o Soul adds: “When we started talking to Dromedary Records about doing something for halloween, we looked at the slew of demos that we have laying around and chose the 3 spookiest songs, and added the Judy’s cover (an old favourite which also seemed to fit the theme of the EP).”

The Frater Set EP is comprised of four originals, and one cover (The Judy’s Joey The Mechanical Boy) and has everything we love about Night Court. Succinct bursts of poppy garage and punk that brim with spontaneity. In today’s tech-savvy era, discovering new music has become more convenient than ever, and that might occasionally lessen the thrill of encountering fresh tunes with certain releases. But when Emilor, Jiffy and Dave-o join forces as Night Court the excitement always ignites immediately. The Frater Set will be out tomorrow via Dromedary Records, listen in full now below!


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Dromedary Records

New album: NOBRO || Set Your Pussy Free

By / / Punk / Leave a Comment

After two awesome EPs, Sick Hustle and Live Your Truth Shred Some Gnar (collected on one LP), Canadian all female punk rock outfit NOBRO returns with their first full-length, a record about the ecstatic pursuit of personal escape and liberation which bears the provocative title Set Your Pussy Free. Not only are the lyrics of the eleven new songs explicit, the music also is quite straightforward. Kathryn McCaughey (bass, raspy vocals), Karolane Carbonneau (mean guitars), Lisandre Bourdages (keys, percussion) and Sarah Dion (heavy drums) navigate the tension between protest and party, and like no other they link a dangerous appearance and gang sound to an inviting enthusiasm and catchy ‘whoo-hoo’ choruses. This record is tough but uplifting, with an exciting live feel.



Set Your Pussy Free, produced by Dave Schiffman, is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Dine Alone Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Dine Alone || Discogs

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