Punk

The Loose Ends || June 2026

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Country & Folk, Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Jangle Pop, Power Pop, Psych, Punk / Leave a Comment

There are more wantlist-worthy releases than time to cover them all. Starting this year, Loose Ends is our monthly fix for the great records that slipped through the cracks. Expect a key track and quick take on each release (40+ this month!), and a link to add it to your shelves.

Annual Leaf || Sign of the Bellbird
In April’s Loose Ends, we’ve put the spotlight on the most recent EP from these Melbourne indie pop janglers and slackers. This new CD compiles that EP and songs from 5 other releases of the past 5 years. Turns out Annual Leaf have been great for a while!

Baby Jane || Surfing To Hell
This Barcelona “kebab punk” riot grrrl quartet looks like trouble and sounds even better. Fast, loud, and gloriously unruly.

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The Loose Ends || June 2026Read More »

New EP: Adult Learners || Adult Learners

A Boston crash course in budget garage pop

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The wait for the follow-up to Adult Learners’ promising demo was refreshingly short. Turns out the Bostonians really are fast learners. At least they play like they’ve got somewhere to be, with no interest in fancy recording techniques or songs that outstay their welcome. A hundred seconds? More than enough, thank you very much.

This is punky budget garage pop that somehow makes the organ sound cool again. The Adult Learners EP is out now (on 7″!) at Saccharine Tryst Records.

RIYL: The overlap between Adult Learners fans and Itchy & The Nits fans should be close to 100%.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Belfast || Belfast

A hook-filled, melody-packed surprise from Joe Quine (Pist Idiots)

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

Here’s an under-the-radar gem I can’t wait to introduce to you. Part of that has to do with the story behind it, but let’s start with the music. Imagine the kind of power pop inspired by the Powerpearls compilations. Think late ’70s Northern Ireland bands, sounding like a Good Vibrations version of The Jam, with a touch of the Saints, later-era The Clash, and present-day The Prize. Well, Belfast sounds a lot like that, pairing irresistible hooks with songs about the challenge of “keeping your heart in the right place in the big city.”

About that origin story? It is pretty good too. In 2023, Joseph Quine (Pist Idiots) started demoing solo material. When he had to return to Sydney for his job and ended up staying at his parents’ house for a week, he decided to record the songs properly in his childhood bedroom, which as Quine puts it, “together with the humiliation of making a power pop record as a 30 year old in my parents house in Bankstown, seemed perfect.” I like to imagine him clocking off work, heading home, and recording these songs surrounded by posters, old trophies, and whatever else his parents never got around to throwing out.

Two years later, those ten songs are finally here for all of us addicted to scrappy, hook-filled, melody packed, riff loaded guitar pop. Time to pump those fists, nod those heads, scream along (“I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I need it soon…that little spoonful of your love!”) and text your friends your latest discovery.

Belfast is out now through Proud of Hell and Endless Recordings.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Get The Net || Til House Lights

New Jersey pop punk for fans of The Copyrights, The Dopamines and Teen Idols

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I don’t think I’d heard New Jersey pop-punk trio Get The Net before, even though they’ve been around since at least 2017, when they released their debut album Breakers. Their brand-new second LP, Til House Lights, made me circle back to that record over the weekend, and I’m glad I did. Get The Net were already onto something back then, but they’ve clearly picked up a few tricks when it comes to songwriting and recording.

Til House Lights has everything you want from the good kind of pop punk: hooks, energy, flow, and production smooth enough that even your non-punk friends won’t complain when you blast it in the car. Get The Net would slide effortlessly onto a bill with The Copyrights, The Dopamines, or Dear Landlord, although songs like Palamino and Someday (Not Today) give serious Teen Idols vibes as well.

The fact that the singer is wearing a Tony Sly shirt that rips off the Twisted Sister logo only makes me like this band even more. 2026 is a great time to become a Get The Net fan. Pick up Til House Lights on LP directly from the band.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Taxi Girls || Static

Montreal's Taxi Girls sound bratty, catchy, and effortlessly cool on debut LP

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Some bands you just know are going to make a great record eventually. Taxi Girls were one of them. What you can’t always predict is the margin of victory.

And damnit, the Montreal crew featuring Jamie Radu (Pale Lips, Reta Records), Vera Bozickovic, Lynn Poulin (Pale Lips, Dirty Cheetah), and Gabrielle Noël-Bégin (Margarette Tracteur) have blown my expectations for Static out of the window.

Taxi Girls occupy the exact coordinates where The Go-Go’s, Joan Jett, The Runaways, and Bikini Kill converge.  That’s a recipe that requires more than just good songs. Attitude and execution matter too. Taxi Girls nail it because they don’t seem to be thinking about any of that. The confidence here borders on bratty. Just when the vocals start sounding sweet and inviting, a snarl or howl cuts through the mix to remind you that this band isn’t interested in playing nice. Taxi Girls come across as effortlessly cool, which is the hardest thing to fake and the best thing to actually be.

It helps that the songs are ridiculous. The one-two opener of Say It! and Try Harder hits the ground at full sprint. Auto Hysterics is a bona fide pop-punk gem with what sounds like serious Kim Shattuck worship baked in. Midnight Mixtape could pass for a lost ’80s new wave single that somehow never got its due. And that opening chant on Secret Handshake? Zero resistance. It kicks off a run of especially irresistible songs alongside It Makes Me Think and Highs // Lows, a Go-Go’s-indebted earworm with genuine hit potential. There is not a single moment on this record where you’ll want to skip ahead.

I expected this to be good. I didn’t expect it to be this good.


Static is out now on Stomp Records and Wild Honey Records.

Fun fact: Natalie Sweet, who previously graced the latest Yum Yums album while sucking on a lollipop, returns here as the hand model squeezing a lemon on the cover.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Wild Honey || Stomp

New album: Alien Nosejob || How a Mosquito Operates

Jake Davidson goes hardcore on eight (!) Alien Nosejob LP

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It is a major event any time Jake Robertson releases new music as Alien Nosejob. How a Mosquito Operates is already the eighth full-length album from a project that only started six years ago. Not bad, eh? Did I mention there are seven EPs as well? Oh, and that Jake also plays (or has played) in bands such as Ausmuteants, Hierophants, Leather Towel, and SWAB?

The best part of Alien Nosejob is its chameleon-like approach. Every record sounds different. Maybe you remember the classic punk record from 2024, or the AC/DC–Bon Scott-era inspired outing from 2022? And those are just two examples. So what is it this time, Jake? That’s on my mind when I press play. I’ll answer it as soon as I catch my breath and find some ice for the bruises I picked up along the way.

You see, How a Mosquito Operates is the hardcore punk one. Seventeen songs of relentless, furious hardcore driven by what Jake himself describes as “just whatever was giving me the shits on the day of writing.” Clearly, Jake Robertson has little interest in The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, as many F*cks are given here, as it should with a record this furious.

This thing moves at a reckless pace. Angry, fast, and wildly entertaining, it’s the kind of record that feels like a minor health risk. We should probably wrap Jake Robertson in bubble wrap and keep him away from any serious responsibilities. The world clearly needs more records like this.

A co-release by Anti Fade (Australia) and Iron Lung Records (USA).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Iron Lung

New compilation: Various Artists || Drunk Dial: Fakes – Volume three

The most delightfully niche compilation series returns

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It’s been three years since Drunk Dial released the second installment in its Fakes series, a concept that tends to confuse people until they discover that Sugar, Sugar was indeed performed by a fictional band. Long story short: the Fakes compilations invite artists from the EDDU (Expanded Drunk Dial Universe) to cover songs originally performed by fictional bands.

Volume Three features a stacked lineup that includes Night Court, Spells, TV Cop, Keddies Resort, Sex Mex, The Shitfits, and Classic Pat, all familiar names around these parts. Judging by the results, everyone involved had a blast. SPELLS may have had the most fun of all, transforming The Thermos Song from Steve Martin’s The Jerk into 50 seconds of gleeful pirate-punk chaos.

Part of the appeal is that many of these songs are obscure enough that you may not even realize they exist. Others ring a distant bell from movies you watched once years ago, such as Teacher’s Pet from School of Rock or Garbage Truck from Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. A few are more recognizable, including Sugar and Spice from The Archie Show, Listen to the Flower People from Spinal Tap, and Somebody Kill Me Please from The Wedding Singer.

The niche premise is exactly what makes this compilation so enjoyable. The songs themselves are short, but chances are you’ll spend three times the running time looking up the originals, comparing versions, and falling down increasingly ridiculous YouTube rabbit holes. Case in point: I Love Beans by Regdar and the Fighters. Listen to the cover, watch the original, then return to the cover. Smiling is pretty much unavoidable. Just know, I saw a clip from a 1964 episode of Stingray, and it’s amazing.

More than anything, Fakes – Volume Three captures the sense that everyone involved is having an absurd amount of fun. It even reveals new sides of bands you thought you already knew (e.g., listen to the Sex Mex cover). The only concern is whether there are enough fictional bands left to sustain future installments. I sure hope so.

As always, all proceeds from the digital and cassette release go to charity. This time, funds will benefit KIND (Kids in Need of Defense), an international nonprofit that provides legal and psychosocial support to unaccompanied and separated refugee and migrant children. Purchasing this one comes with guaranteed zero regret.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Riccobellis || Afterparty Heroes

Italy delivers another dose of pop-punk sunshine

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The sun is out, the fridge is stocked with cold drinks, the ice cream is melting faster than you’d like, and the beach is calling. Pop-punk season has officially arrived, whether you’re ready for it or not.

Europe certainly is. Yesterday we stopped in Spain with The GTO’s, the Netherlands are up next with a new The Windowsill album arriving July 17th, and now it’s Italy’s turn. Riccobellis have returned with their fourth LP, released through their Austrian home away from home, Monster Zero Records.

Afterparty Heroes overflows with “na-na-nas,” “oh-oh-ohs,” and irresistibly simple hooks. More importantly, it features some of the most infectious songs Riccobellis have written to date. Riccobellis know exactly what makes this kind of pop-punk work: big melodies, bigger choruses, and just enough silliness to make you feel like summer holidays will never truly end. The embedded tracks below should provide all the evidence you need.

Between this, the new albums from The GTO’s and The Give It Ups, pop-punk fans sure are getting exceptional value for their money this week.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp | Monster Zero

New album: Adult Magic || Are You Even Happy Now?

Members of RADAR, Iron Chic, Get Bent and Broacaster return with an essential record FFO Superchunk and Samiam.

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The last time Adult Magic released music, Add to Wantlist was still just an idea waiting for a pandemic to become reality. Their new album, Are You Even Happy Now?, finally arrived last Friday on Dead Broke Rekerds, making this a belated introduction to a band well worth your time.

Adult Magic is a New York trio featuring Chris Arena (Crow Bait, Sister Kisser, Radar), Jesse Litwa (Iron Chic, Broadcaster), and Mike Bruno (Get Bent, Iron Chic). If those names mean something to you, you already know you’re in good hands. If not, imagine a meeting point between ’90s alternative rock, the orgcore boom of the early 2010s, and heartland punk rock with more than a few miles on the odometer.

This is one of those records that sneaks up on you. You put it on while answering emails, only to realize you’re no longer working but listening. First comes the recognition that these songs are exceptionally well written. Then you notice how patiently the band lets them unfold, allowing the hooks and emotions to sink in gradually. And those vocals? You can’t wait to learn to words to join their gang.

There are moments that recall the heartfelt anthems of Samiam or The Creeps, particularly on Seneca Mantra, while The Wreck carries a touch of Superchunk’s driving urgency. On A Little Light, the band picks up the pace with punchier, almost pop-punk energy. Throughout it all, Adult Magic sound like a band in perfect synergy.

What I’m trying to say is this: I’m smitten with Are You Even Happy Now?. It’s the kind of record that reminds me why Ifell in love with honest, heartfelt loud music in the first place.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Dead Broke Distro

New album: The GTO’s || Problemas de Ciencia Ficción

Let's Go! Summer starts the moment Toledo's The GTO's hit play

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The sunnier it gets, the stronger my craving for bubblegum pop punk becomes. Cue The GTO’s, Toledo’s answer to The Queers and Screeching Weasel. Thankfully, the band have finally chosen a season that matches their sound. As enjoyable as their previous two albums were, releasing them in the middle of winter always felt slightly unfair.

Open the windows, put on your sunglasses, and turn the volume up. Problemas de Ciencia Ficción (Science Fiction Problems, although Pablo, Víctor, and Miguel mostly stick to Spanish throughout) tears through 16 songs in just over 30 minutes and immediately sets the tone with opener Let’s Go!

The recurring chant of “Let’s go!” is stickier than melted ice cream on a car seat. The synth hook in Me das Asco is irresistibly sweet, but the hits keep coming from there. With Ramonescore, execution is everything, and The GTO’s sound fully locked in. Problemas de Ciencia Ficción is the most accomplished GTO’s record yet. Fast, catchy, and powered by pure summer energy, these songs bottle that magical moment when the final school bell rings, your backpack hits the floor, and the summer suddenly feels endless.

The GTO’s have the soundtrack ready.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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