I’ve been a fan of Darkbuster’s “A Weakness for Spirits” for a while now, but for some reason, I never really got around to checking out their debut release “22 Songs That You’ll Never Want To Hear Again”. For those unfamiliar with Boston’s Darkbuster, they play punk rock / oi with the occasional ska song, […]

Seriously, Kid Dynamite can get me stoked no matter where I am. Shit, I’m ready to stage dive off my desk and get my ass fired. The second and final release from arguably the most influential Philadelphia hardcore band, “Shorter, Faster, Louder” has 18 songs that clock in just under 25 minutes. It’s hard to […]

Last night, I rushed out to the North Star Bar to catch a rather impressive lineup: Have Nots, The Copyrights, and then headlined by veterans The Swingin Utters. Fuck yeah. Have Nots:When the Have Nots took the stage, the room was feeling pretty empty, and there were originally only 4 or 5 people up front […]

I’ve heard Youth Brigade declared as the most important punk band from Southern California that you’ve never heard of, and that is certainly the truth. Youth Brigade was founded by three brothers and became one of the most influential punk bands of the 1980s with their blend of hardcore and melody. While they focused more […]

The title of Banner Pilot’s latest Fat Wreck re-issue “Resignation Day” is something I wish I can declare. But alas, while I can’t afford to quit my job, at least I’ll have something sweet to jam out to while I work. First off, I usually feel pretty negatively towards remastered/re-issues. Sure, let me spend my […]

When you think of New Jersey ska, bands such as Catch 22 or Streetlight Manifesto come to mind (maybe if you’re a long time reader here, you’ll think of Hub City Stompers or Folly). Face First however was one of the most underrated NJ ska bands out there. I popped in their “Overexposed” album for […]

Holy fucking shit. How can something be right under your nose and rock so hard and you don’t even realize it? Case in point: for years I owned Kill Your Idols “This Is Just The Beginning”, but never really gave it a spin until recently. Completely. Blown. Away. Giving a new meaning to Long Island […]

I’ve seen Philly’s The Holy Mess’s name thrown around quite a bit these days and even have seen them open a few shows I’ve gone to (to which I’ve described their set as: “tight, but jesus christ they like to hear themselves talk). For some reason though, I never really got to sit down and […]

Man, why couldn’t Trenton, NJ’s The Great Explainer be in existence when I lived 15 minutes away from there growing up? With their debut EP “The Way Things Swell” released a few months ago on Chunksaah, these guys got the gruff melodic punk rock down to a science. While The Way Things Swell is only […]

Well I’m back and I hope you all had an awesome socialist day yesterday (and for those who are forced to work, I’m sorry… time to quit.) We’ll be having some cool reviews up soon, some new shit, some old… but in the meantime, here’s some Labor Day jams for you all. MP3:The Slackers – […]