This Drama – Tarantula Mata

Following up their debut “San Diego XIII”, This Drama from the Canary Islands is back with a new 7-song EP produced by The Bronx’ Joby Ford. “Tarantula Mata” is the name of the album and it rocks from start to finish with a mix of Spanish and Enlish lyrics, heavily distorted guitars and rocking rhythms. It’s halfway stuck between danceable and moshable… choice is up to you I guess. This Drama is doing nothing new, they just like to play rock ‘n roll the way The Bronx and Riverboat Gamblers like to go at it. Ain’t nothing wrong with that!
Score: 7 out of 10
http://www.deepelm.com
http://www.myspace.com/thisdrama

Terror – Keepers Of The Faith

Terror is one of those bands that lives up to its name. You know exactly what you’ll get when you hear their name and that’s once again no different on album number five. As far as I’m concerned these guys are one of the best NYHC bands around and they definitely do not disappoint on “Keepers Of The Faith”.

Okay, so they’re no longer the pissed off little bundle of hate that exploded through the speakers on “Lowest Of The Low”. They’ve grown a little more melodic over the years but as far as I’m concerned that’s not a bad thing. It just makes “Keepers Of The Faith” a more diverse album. It’s not like they became all cuddly and shit, Vogel still sounds pissed as fuck on songs like “Your Enemies Are Mine” and “Dead Wrong”. The only difference is that you will come across a melodic riff here and there in “Return To Strength”, “The Struggle” or “You’re Caught”.

Like I said before, when it comes to kickass NYHC Terror is the band you’re looking for and “Keepers Of The Faith” is just more proof of that.
Score: 8.5 out of 10
http://www.centurymedia.de
http://www.myspace.com/terror

Orbs – Asleep Next To Science

Orbs started when Between The Buried And Me’s Dan Briggs started trading music with Ashley Ellyllon, who has played keyboards for both Abigail Williams and Cradle Of Filth. Rounding out the band are Fear Before’s Adam Fisher, Clayton Holyoak and Chuck Johnson. Despite their metallic background, Orbs’ debut is more like an epic space-rock adventure where you are constantly surprised.

Guitars and keyboards are constantly swirling around and feeding off of one another while busy drumwork sets the pace with Fisher’s vocal stylings further whipping up a wall of sound. While it could’ve easily turned out to be a cacophony of sounds, Orbs sounds amazingly restrained in all its exuberance. It all makes “Asleep Next To Science” a must for all the Muse fans out there. If this is just a debut, I can’t wait to hear what else they have up their sleeves.
Score: 8 out of 10
http://www.equalvision.com
http://www.myspace.com/orbsband

Street Dogs – Street Dogs

When some snotty kid in tight jeans and a bad haircut tells you that the world needs a little punk rock and roll, it’s OK to roll your eyes, shrug your shoulders and say ‘whatever’. When Mike McColgan and his Street Dogs says exactly the same thing, it’s perfectly acceptable to sing along while throwing your beer in the air.
The difference is that McColgan is the real deal. This former Dropkick Murphys vocalist / firefighter / Gulf War vet / Street Dogs frontman is blue collar and punk as fuck and has the right to demand more punk rock and roll. After all this self-titled album is already the band’s fifth so he has done his fair share of providing punk and rock and roll with a little bit of folk thrown in for good measure.

With a whopping 18 tracks to get through, the songs don’t outstay their welcome. They come in, blow up in a singalong chorus and then quickly ring out to make way for more pounding drums and loud guitars. Nothing wrong with that because after all, we all need more punk rock and roll.
Score: 7.5 out of 10
http://www.hell-cat.com
http://www.street-dogs.com

Devil’s Brigade – Devil’s Brigade

While the other Rancid members all already came out the closet with their own side-projects, Matt Freeman was kinda quiet compared to his brothers in arms. Featuring Freeman on vocals and bass, Armstrong on guitars and former X drummer DJ Bonebrake, Devil’s Brigade formed back in 2000, but have only sparingly released anything. A couple of EP’s and contributions to Hellcat Records’ “Give ‘Em The Boot” compilations was all up ‘til now. That’s all changing now that Devil’s Brigade first full-length is finally a fact. And this album may be many things, quiet it is not.

Freeman whipped out his standup bass for this one and wrote some loud and fast punkrock/psychobilly songs around his runs up and down the bass neck. Right from the start he storms out the gates with the one-two combo that is “I’m Movin Through” and “My Own Man”. He doesn’t mind slowing things down though as is proven on songs like “Gentleman Of The Road” and “Bridge Of Gold”.

As it happens it’s the mellow songs I like the most. Not that there’s anything wrong with the fast cuts on here, it’s just that Freeman’s barks are a little over the top and get kinda tiresome after one or two songs. That’s the album’s biggest flaw if you ask me. If you can look past that though, you have yourself a well-written punkrock meets psychobilly album on your hands.
Score: 7 out of 10
http://www.hell-cat.com
http://www.myspace.com/devilsbrigadeofficial

Kid Liberty – Fight With Your Fists

Wow, this Dallas outfit really is all over the place on their debut album! On “Fight With Your Fists” Kid Liberty mix up pop punk and hardcore with additional metal riffage, gang vocals and single note breakdowns. And that’s just the opening song which follows up an unnecessary intro in which they mutilate Ennio Morricone’s “Ecstacy Of Gold”. But hey, every album has its flaw, right?

Next to the intro, they are doing a pretty solid job here keeping things upbeat and melodic with just the right amount of aggression to let the kids beat each other up in the pit. Kind of like Four Year Strong and Set Your Goals getting it on with A Day To Remember. They will occasionally slow things down to give the listener a breather (like in the instrumental “The New Recipe”) but overall “Fight With Your Fists” is an adrenalin rush that unleashes some serious energy.
Score: 6.5 out of 10
http://www.bullettooth.com
http://www.myspace.com/kidliberty

The Dopamines – Expect The Worst

Whipping out a ton of whoa’s, singalong choruses and melodic hooks over a foundation of fast-paced drums and distorted guitars never fails to grab my attention when executed properly. And properly executed is what The Dopamines do best.

All you need are good punkrock songs, passion, energy and a sense of humor doesn’t hurt either. It all sounds simple enough yet so many bands fail at getting these things right. These guys on the other hand have all of the above and what makes me like them even more is their own description: "We're a punk band from Cincinnati, Ohio. We don't have cool hair cuts". Amen to that! If poppy punkrock is what you’re looking for, then get high on The Dopamines.
Score: 8 out of 10
http://www.paperandplastick.com
http://www.myspace.com/thedopaminesohio

The Holy Mess – Benefit Sesh 7”

Hey, apparently you don’t need just three chords to make it in punkrock. Three songs are all you need! This is proven by The Holy Mess, an outfit operating out of Philadelphia. On “Benefit Sesh” they take you on a joyride with plenty of catchy hooks, shouted vocals and a general sense of fun.

Two of the songs are included on this 7”, the third one you can download with the coupon that comes with the vinyl. Think Latterman, Larry Arms or The Menzingers. The only downside I can think of is that this is just three songs long. I don’t know about you but I’m ready for a full-length by these guys right this second. What’s that? You don’t especially like this? Fuck you… I don’t want to be your friend.
Score: 7.5 out of 10
www.myspace.com/evilweevilrecords
http://www.weirdskull.com
http://www.myspace.com/fucktheholymess

The Order Of Apollyon – The Flesh

All those Christians who are disappointed by the most recent wave of pedophilia in the church will find a new gospel waiting for them in the form of “The Flesh”, the first album by The Order Of Apollyon. “The Flesh” is what you get when you put former members of Aborted, Cradle Of Filth and Akercocke together in a band. What that sounds like? Like a very brutal mix of black and death metal.

It’s explosive, no holds barred, evil and it’s fast as fuck. From the moment that “God Speaks” bursts out of the speakers, there’s no going back and you’ll have to sit all the way through the ride, simply because these guys don’t give you any time to get out. It’s a ride that takes you to some pretty dark places like “” and “”. After you’ve been pummeled completely, they pull out all the stops and race to the finish with “L’Orgeuil”.

“The Flesh” is a very good album. Its only flaw is the production which could’ve used some more time. Seeing as they’ve signed a three-album deal with Listenable, one can only hope this will be remedied on the next album. When that happens, these guys should be able to bring down entire churches.
Score: 7.5 out of 10
http://www.listenable.net
http://www.myspace.com/orderofapollyon

Noctiferia – DeathCulture

What started out in 1997 in Slovenia as a pagan black metal band, evolved over the years into a completely different beast. Metalcore, black metal, some industrial sounds,… these guys have played it all in the last 13 years.

Noctiferia now attacks once again with a new album called “DeathCulture” and it soon becomes clear that this time around, they’ve focused on death metal. I have to say it’s a sound that works well for them. After a slightly abundant opening track, they dive straight into brutal territory with “Terror”. They keep up the pace from there on, only slowing down every now and again for an ominous intro. And while vocalist ? claws his way through the songs, grunting one time and using a creepy whisper at other times, the rest of the band does a solid job of backing him up with lots of shredding and just the right amount of electronic bleeps to give it all an industrial edge on songs like “Monarch” and album highlight “Demoncracy”.
Score: 8 out of 10
http://www.listenable.net
http://www.myspace.com/noctiferia

Kruger – For Death, Glory And The End Of The World

No idea why I haven’t heard of these guys before but listening to “For Death, Glory And The End Of The World”, I wish I had. Kruger is a Swiss band and they know how to make a shitload of noise. Like an early Mastodon or Baroness, they plow their way through nine sludgy as fuck songs that almost always go on for longer than five minutes without ever feeling tired.

Then there’s the slower parts which come close to what a band like Godflesh is doing. And listening to the clinical drone of “Muscle”, they reel me in completely. Not in the least thanks to the guest vocals by Gojira’s Joe Duplantier.

If you like metal bands who display a mind of their own and aren’t afraid to experiment a little, then by all means do check out Kruger.
Score: 7 out of 10
http://www.listenable.net
http://www.myspace.com/krugerband

Pierce The Veil – Selfish Machines

When Pierce The Veil dropped their debut “A Flair For The Dramatic”, all I could think about was that the album title was quite the understatement. These guys are back with a new album called “Selfish Machines” and unfortunately they still display that same flair for the dramatic. And the bombastic. And the over the top. And the auto-tuned.

While wrestling my way through the dozen tracks on this album, I can’t help but feel that Pierce The Veil are pretty much everything that’s wrong with music today. Okay, so they’re not the only one around out there with this kinda sound… then again, that’s also part of the problem isn’t it? How many similar sounding bands are out there? They all dress like they’re fifteen years old and colorblind and like to sport five haircuts at the same time. They want to rock out on one hand but use girly voices to do so and are so over the top that even a gay ballet dancer would frown at the display of so much pathos. So yeah, I don’t really care for this album.
Score: 2 out of 10
http://www.equalvision.com
http://www.myspace.com/piercetheveil

Maps & Atlases - Perch Patchwork

With two EPs under their belt, Maps & Atlases decided the time had come to capture their math pop (if that’s what you want to call it) on a full-length. On “Perch Patchwork” you’ll hear the band taking off in different directions such as psychedelic folk, prog pop and art-rock. Not the most attractive genres if you ask me and while their technical skills are obvious, they somehow fail to incorporate any real hooks. They’d rather dwell through carefully built structures constructed with unusual rhythms, complicated guitar work and a solid production job. I guess it makes them one of those acts where you know they’ve got the chops but use them to do … well, not much of anything really. Guess that only adds to the frustration of listening to “Perch Patchwork”!
Score: 4 out of 10
http://www.barsuk.com
http://www.myspace.com/mapsandatlases

Defiance Ohio – Midwestern Minutes

On their fourth album Defiance Ohio continue to treat us to some finely carved out folk tunes. The band’s positivity is still as contagious as their socially aware lyrics are insightful. Not that the band ever gets too heavy with those, making sure they are always wrapped up in warm and melodic tunes that always sound like Defiance Ohio even though most of the members of the band share lead vocals on different songs. With plenty of gang vocals, these songs are also a plea for crowd participation at live shows. A plea that will not go unheeded because the songs are simply too damn catchy to be dismissed. It all makes “Midwestern Minutes” a serious contender for folk-punk album of the year.
Score: 7.5 out of 10
http://www.noidearecords.com
http://www.myspace.com/defianceohio32

Heartsounds – Until We Surrender

Ben Murray and Laura Nichol were previously in the metalcore beast that was Light This City but their true calling has apparently always been punkrock. So when their previous band came to a halt, they were quick to grab the chance and formed Heartsounds as a duo with Murray and Nichol sharing guitar and vocal duties and Murray also tracking bass and drums on what would become their debut album, “Until We Surrender”.

If I didn’t know I would’ve never suspected them to have been in a metalcore band before. All you could say is that that’s probably where they picked up their speed and technical chops. Other than that “Until We Surrender” is filled with fast yet poppy punkrock songs that harken back to the mid 90s Fat Wreck sound… think Strung out or 88 Fingers Louie but with additional female vocals and a bit of a No Motiv vibe at times. It’s all positive though and I’m already psyched to see them at this year’s Fest!
Score: 8 out of 10
http://www.epitaph.com
http://www.myspace.com/heartsoundsband

Caulfield - Caulfield

Caulfield is a band from Sacramento, CA I had never heard anything about until I started listening to their self-titled LP. From what I heard I think these guys are some mighty depressing pricks who willingly mislead their listeners by luring them in with some mellow instrumental parts. Okay, so even those parts didn’t exactly fit the ‘happy’ mold but still… And then they launch into this all out war with menacing crusty parts and some Clevecore echoes that will waltz right over you. Think of Integrity mixed up with Neurosis… Integrisis or Neurogrity. Bleak bunch of motherfuckers!
Score: 6.5 out of 10
http://www.a389records.com
http://www.myspace.com/caulfieldsacramento

The Tired And True – Scenarios

“Scenarios” comes with some of the most misplaced cover art I’ve seen in a long time. I was already on the floor doing push-ups, getting all pumped up to unleash hell in my living room. Only to then find myself listening to the kind of melodic pop-punk Drive-Thru used to drop back in the day. Think The Movielife or New Found Glory.

The songs on “Scenarios” are not too shabby but I’ve heard this kind of thing a bunch of times before right down to the lyrics about ‘boy meets girl and gets dumped’ sung by a high-pitched vocalist. And to be perfectly honest, the recording quality was a lot better back then. This sounds like a polished demo and it takes something away from the sheer enthusiasm these guys play with.
Score: 6 out of 10
http://www.eulogyrecordings.com
http://www.myspace.com/thetiredandtrue

End Of A Year – You Are Beneath Me

On album number three End Of A Year offer more of what they are best at. Call it post-punk, post-hardcore or post-something. Or describe it as hardcore disguised as indie rock. It all works.

This New York outfit is not the easiest band to get into but once you let “You Are Beneath Me” get its hooks in you, it will not let go. Opener “Composite Character” consists of a simple rhythm and some distorted guitars while vocalist Patrick Kindlon tells us how to best enjoy this album. Kind of like a post-hardcore version of Underworld’s “Born Slippy” if you will.

From there on they gently move on to a bunch of songs named after actual people that all come with neat drumming, swirling guitars and more witty and poignant observations. “Eddie Antar” sounds a bit like Fugazi while “Marissa Wendolovske” has a Hot Water Music vibe. Whatever these guys go for, it always shows great songwriting skills and it comes with enough surprise twists and melodic hooks to make “You Are Beneath Me” a solid listen.
Score: 8 out of 10
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.myspace.com/endofayear

The Bitter End – Guilty As Charged

Here to bring back crossover from where most bands left it in the late 80s and early 90s, is The Bitter End. These guys get to call San Antonio, TX home but should’ve really lived in New York City. These guys rage through 10 songs in about as much time as it takes me to lace up my shoes and get my mosh on. Songs that are as blistering as the Texas sun they were written under.

With shredding riffs, thundering drums and pissed off barks, these guys aren’t out to make any new friends. They launch straight into “Corrupted Souls” with a vengeance and don’t let go until the instrumental “Suenos Muertos” comes up in the middle of the album. It’s just long enough to give you a quick breather before you’re thrown right back into the pit for the remainder of the album with “Victims” as the absolute standout.

This one’s not quite as good as Cruel Hand’s latest but if you’re into the likes of Biohazard or Madball, there’s really no going wrong with “Guilty As Charged”.
Score: 7 out of 10
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.myspace.com/bitterend

The Black Pacific interview

For all of you who feared Jim Lindberg would be a fulltime punkrock dad after leaving Pennywise last year, rest assured. The good man pretty much immediately started a new band called The Black Pacific. They are currently gearing up to release a self-titled debut album which will be out September 14 on Side One Dummy. While the songs on it do bring back memories of his former band, it's different enough to sound fresh and invigorated. Read on to see what Lindberg himself had to tell us about both The Black Pacific and Pennywise.

PRT: Did you already regret not calling the band The Black Atlantic? With the whole BP thing it could have generated a lot of free publicity. How did you come up with the name The Black Pacific in the first place?
Jim: We named the band and then the whole BP oil spill thing happened the next week so maybe it was prophetic in a sense. I grew up at the beach in the South Bay of Los Angeles and so I wanted the name to reflect that in some way. Adding the ‘Black’ part was meant to reflect the whole yin and yang of good vs. evil and all that. Basically I just liked the sound of it better than the Jim Lindberg Explosion or something ridiculous. It seems these days a lot of bands just name themselves after a quote from a bad television show or something.

PRT: Was there any ever doubt in your mind about starting a new band or did you immediately start writing new material?
Jim: There was never any doubt in my mind that I’d start another band. I’ve been playing guitar and writing music since I was 12 years old. I played in a few bands before I was in Pennywise. Some pretty good, others really bad, but I always had fun doing it. This is what I do, for better or worse. I play music and write songs and play shows, and when I’m not doing that I’ll write books and use my writing in other ways. I’m unbelievably appreciative for the opportunity we had in Pennywise and I’m glad that a lot of people enjoyed the band and themusic we made together, but for me it was just time to move on. No one’s fault. I just wanted to be happy playing music again, and for whatever reason it wasn’t happening in my last band anymore. So the minute the decision was made, I literally picked up my guitar and haven’t looked back. I hope people can understand that, but I also understand if they don’t. Like the saying goes, you’d have to walk a mile in my shoes to understand things from my perspective.

PRT: The other two guys in the band are Alan Vega and Davey Latter. How did you hook up with them?
Jim: I’ve gotten to know a lot of musician’s over the last two decades, and unfortunately the stuck up, wannabe rock star a-holes outnumber the nice, cool, down to earth people about 2 to 1. My first priority for this band was to find normal, well-adjusted, cool people without attitudes. I met Alan on the Warped tour and we hit off right away. I sent him a track to put some drums on and he just killed it. He loves being in the studio and working on songs and so that’s great also. Davey has been my friend for years. We played in a cover band together and even though we played a few really embarrassing songs, we had fun doing it so I always wanted to be in a band with him again. We’re having a crap load of fun which is exactly what I wanted. That’s always been my focus for playing music and it always will be. Never been about money or fame. That shit’s ephemeral and overrated. I couldn’t care less what anyone else thinks.

PRT: On the one hand The Black Pacific is a new band. But you also have all your years in Pennywise behind you. How much of this feels like starting over?
Jim: It’s completely starting over. New band, new label, new everything, so that’s really great. A lot of bands from when we started out are going through a serious mid-life crisis right now. Some implode, some evolve and some just keep milking it. Basically I just wanted to rediscover what I loved about playing music and luckily I got that chance. Starting all over makes it all fun again. You can look at everything from a new angle, which makes it interesting.

PRT: I have to congratulate you on the album…it sounds extremely fresh and more diverse. Was it liberating for you to be able to write whatever you wanted to? Because with Pennywise it seemed as if you had certain criteria a song would have to live up to.
Jim: It’s definitely liberating to have the freedom to write whatever and however I want, and that goes for everything surrounding the band not just writing. Thepigeon hole that we were allowed to slip through seemed to be getting narrower instead of broader after 20 years. It’s hard not to feel stifled and frustrated in that situation. But I think this first album then is a transition from where I was to where I want to be. You have to make your own happiness in life and that’s what I had to try and do. The band is just getting started and there’s a lot of influences I haven’t explored yet that I think will surprise people, both lyrically and musically, that I didn’t have the freedom to pursue those before. There was always a sense I was writing for the Pennywise sound and representing thePennywise outlook. That wasn’t the other guys fault, I felt that more than anyone, that I was writing words and music that had to adhere to a certain list of constraints, so in that way it was easy to get trapped creatively, but now I’m free to do whatever I want. Which hopefully won’t result in some really bad disco salsa techno music at some point.

PRT: Now that I dropped the P-word… how did you feel about stepping out of a band you helped start 20 years ago and have you already seen the band live with Zoli?
Jim: Here’s the problem. I don’t bus chuck – which means slagging people in public. I think it makes bands look really bad. At some point in my last band all of us acted like assholes at one point or another. I had my reasons for leaving Pennywise but it would be impossible to go over them without chucking people under the bus, especially people who, regardless of our differences, we did something really great together. Pennywise and our fans and our experiences mean the world to me, we had our differences and there didn’t seem to be anyway to fix them anymore without someone getting burned. When it became obvious it wasn’t working, I did us all a favor and took myself out of thesituation. Now they have a great singer and can carry on what we did together and I can start all over again.

I feel I did everything I could possibly do right in leaving the band. I didn’t jump out of the van in Europe or walk off during a show like some guys do. We made our last album, and did a shit load of touring for it. When things got to a breaking point, I called a meeting and tried to discuss the situation like grown men and I offered to help find a replacement if we couldn’t find a compromise. I don’t know many people who have left a band that way. I never wanted it to be a situation where we flip each other off and never speak again.

As far as Pennywise with Zoli goes, I like Zoli a lot and I love Pennywise. I am inextricably attached to the band, but I don’t follow what they’re up to now. Too weird to see someone else singing a song I wrote about getting kicked out of a frat party. I lived it. I know what it’s about.

PRT: One of the reasons of leaving Pennywise was that you didn’t feel like touring as much as the other guys. So what’s the plan with The Black Pacific? Will you be going out on short two-week runs or will it be more of a studio project?
Jim: That was reason number twenty of a hundred. I love touring and I love playing shows. I’ll tour my ass off for this album just like I did in the past. In the Punk Rock Encyclopedia, it says, we were popular “Due to relentless touring” – that’s not a mirage or some unfounded misconception. We did album then tour without a significant break for about two decades. I’ll tour now exactly how I want to tour but it won’t be at the same level or intensity.

PRT: After having read “Punk Rock Dad” I’m guessing that not wanting to tour as much has something to do with wanting to spend more time with your family. I heard something about an upcoming “Punk Rock Dad” documentary. What can you already tell us about that?
Jim: These friends of mine are doing it and I suggested people for them to interview for the doc. There’s everyone from Tim from Rise Against, Fat Mike from NOFX, Duane Peters, Lars from Rancid, Mark from Blink 182, Tony from theAdolescents, Hetson from Circle Jerks, just countless dads talking about growing up listening to anti-authoritarian music and then having to be an authority figure for their own kids. A lot of these guys came from broken homes, so it’s amazing to see the heart coming from these guys when they choose to be great dad’s for their kids after coming from a bad situation.

PRT: You’ve always been someone with strong opinions and outspoken ideals. Something that apparently hasn’t changed when I listen to songs like “TheSystem” and “Put Down Your Weapons”. Do you never become discouraged and tired of fighting?
Jim: Sure. Sometimes when I read the newspaper every morning I just want to stop reading it and build a cabin in the woods and retreat from it all. It seems to get worse instead of better the older you get unfortunately. A lot of the population is self righteous, idiotic, selfish, ignorant, greedy…you can supply the adjectives by just watching the news every night. Hard not get discouraged in that environment. Only way not to give in is to try and focus as much as possible on positive things and reduce the negative cognitive dissonance in your life, focus on family, friends, music, skating, surfing, art, Mexican food, helping old ladies across the street. Everyone just being decent to each other is the only real answer to the man made problems of the world, its not more complicated than that.

PRT: Your first show will be September 26 at the Epicenter Twenty Ten festival. What can people expect and are there already plans for more shows after that?
Jim: Yeah we are putting some stuff together. I think we are doing a Europe tour and then back here in the states we’ll go out next year after the holidays. We really want to get out there and start playing.

PRT: Any last words for our readers?
Jim: Yes – check out theBlackPacific.com and go online and watch “Flight From Death” if you want to understand why the world is the way it is. Don’t be a hater. Peace, love, barre-chords, backyard ramps, and a nice swallow tail.