Tag Archives: melodic punk

(news)Much The Same Release New Single & Announce Album Pre-Orders

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Chicago skate-punks Much The Same return with their first single in 13 years! ‘Snake In The Grass’ is the first single to be released from their upcoming album ‘Everything Is Fine’.

‘Everything Is Fine’ is due for release on 26 July 2019, just in time to celebrate the band’s 20th year anniversary and guitarist Dan O’Gorman’s recent victory over cancer. The release is a collaborative effort by Lockjaw Records (UK/EU), Thousand Islands Records (CA) and Pee Records (AUS).

The first single ‘Snake In The Grass’ deals with the songwriter’s experience of being treated as an unwanted intruder when living under his in-laws’ roof while his marriage was coming to an end.

“This song was an eye opener for me,” says guitarist Dan O’Gorman. “The original idea was to write about a shitty person I was living with and how they made my life miserable, then after looking at the situation retrospectively, I realised I was the bad guy; I was the villain living among them, the snake in the grass.  

“Also, I’m a history teacher and I loved the story behind the Culper Spy Ring during the revolutionary war, where a spy loyal to the patriots is still living with his Tory wife and pledging his loyalty to the British. I found our two stories aligned quite well, so I tried to use older English terms and vocabulary to cross both ideas together.”

Revitalising their mid-noughties skate-punk heyday with a musical nod to Lagwagon, ‘Snake In The Grass’ demonstrates the refreshed, upbeat sound of Much The Same’s newest release.

‘Everything Is Fine’ is available for release on 12’’ vinyl, in a mix of blue suede shoe and cherry cola colour. It’s also available on CD and alongside a range of t-shirt and hoodie bundles.

PRE-ORDER NOW!

Much The Same spent most of the previous decade as a staple of the Chicago punk scene and making a name for themselves worldwide. They kept 90’s-style skate-punk alive on two albums, ‘Quitters Never Win’ on Anti-Flag’s own A-F Records, and then on the more musically mature ‘Survive’ on Nitro Records.

Their focus has always been on writing fast and catchy songs that chronicle their struggles with friendships, faith, and failure. During their otherwise successful 2007 European tour the band broke up under the strain of changing dreams and character flaws. But in 2015, with a fresh perspective, a still-growing fan base, and a desire to make music together again, the band picked up where they left off and began the process of writing new material.

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Everything is Fine Tracklisting

1. Burner
2. Snake in the Grass
3. You Used to Have a Garden
4. Haunted
5. Man of Science, Man of Faith
6. Homecoming
7. Strangers in Fiction
8. In the Event of…
9. Passengers

 

(record review)BANDAGE-Build

Bandage are punkrock band from Athens, Greece and I listened and reviewed their new record for our zine.

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Bandage started their path on the scene in 2010.and since then they released four records and played countless shows. This new record contains 11 songs. The music of Bandage can be described as melodic punkrock, but they are rather leaning to the more mid tempo emotional side of melody than fast skatepunk, so they are similar to Menzingers, Nothington and similar bands that came to my mind while listening to this record, but that doesn´t mean they copy anybody. I read the lyrics while listening and they are beautiful, personal stuff which I and also any other listener can relate to. My personal favorite songs on this record are Belong, I Believe You, Touch The Ceiling. This is a strong record for all of you who love your punkrock melodic, with emotions and you will catch yourself humming to the melodies of Bandage all day long.

8/10

https://www.facebook.com/bandagepunkrock

https://bandageband.bandcamp.com/

 

 

(record review) TEN FOOT POLE-Escalating Quickly (Thousand Islands Records)

The legends are back! 90-is skatepunk heroes Ten Foot Pole released their first new full length music in 15 years with Thousand Islands Records and I listened and reviewed it for our zine.

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Led by Dennis Jagard, the guys released 11 new songs of melodic punkrock/skatepunk that takes me back to the times when I was a younger kid with these guys being all the time on my tape recorder playing their cassette all over again. Judging by the singles that were released prior to the record I knew I will not be disappointed. What I love about these guys is that they managed to recapture the old spirit and vibe, atmosphere with the new record taking old school to the new millenia.  Everything Dies and Don´t Be A Dick we all heard prior to the record, but real jewels lie later like Numb, Victim Of Humility, The Jackals….The mix of faster and slower songs is great on the record, I also love synth(is it synth, keyboard) parts in some song structures like in said The Jackals or The Antidote. Dennis´vocals sound better than ever and the musicianship and new songs are really convincing and crafted to stay with us fans for long time. I would love to see the band play live, I have never witnessed them live before, I am happy that I will get the chance now. Awesome record, probably also a candidate for one of the best melodic punk releases of this year!

10/10