Saturday fucking night. What to do, what to do? I was torn between going to see a friend’s band at a house show, going to see thrash legends D.R.I at the Troc, or going to see the one man hi-jinks of Franz Nicolay. After some deep pondering, I decided to head out to Philly’s Kung Fu Necktie to see the mustachioed man.

David Dondero:

When I got into the small bar, David Dondero was on stage in the middle of his set. I’m not usually a fan of singer-songwriter with acoustic guitars, but his songs were pretty catchy and funny. There were maybe 20 people in the room watching him play, and it seemed like a strong majority knew who he was and requesting songs. I don’t know any names of his songs, but he played one about a waiter which was pretty sweet.

Franz Nicolay:

Franz Nicolay of World/Inferno and The Hold Steady fame puts on some damn good live shows. To my surprise, nobody in the crowd really knew who he was besides myself (or at least they didn’t make it apparent) , and the numbers of people watching dwelled down to maybe 10-15. Whatever, they don’t know what they were missing out on. And for what it’s worth, Franz Nicolay is one of the only singer-songwriter’s that I enjoy.

He took the stage and set up his 3 primary instruments around him: his guitar, accordion, and banjo, and opened into the saddest song he knows “The Ballad Of Hollis Wadsworth Mason, Jr”, and had the small crowd clapping along through the accordion solo.

Franz Nicolay is not only an incredible musician, but a great showman as well. His stage banter and stories are usually hilarious, and his stage presence for a one man band is impressive. Playing my request of “Jeff Penalty” to which he responded “ahh, the novelty song about a guy from Philly, of course” it was around this time that the bar started packing out for a dance party that was to happen after the show. The crowd was incredibly loud talking in the back, often times making Franz difficult to hear. Still, he powered through and I give him mad props for that.

He played through a few songs off of his newest “Luck and Courage”, and was about to call it a set until I requested “Dead Sailors” (which he played, fuck yeah.) Closing with a cover, Franz looked a bit frazzled by the inattentive and loud dance party peeps, but the man respects his fans by plowing through what I’m sure was a difficult set when I’m sure it would have been easier to just end it early, and for this, Franz Nicolay gets insane props from me.

Highlights:
The Ballad Of Hollis Wadsworth Mason, Jr
Jeff Penalty
Cease-Fire, or Mrs Norman Maine
Dead Sailors

MP3:
Franz Nicolay – Jeff Penalty

More:
Franz Nicolay – Major General
World Inferno Friendship Society – The Anarchy And The Ecstasy
World Inferno Friendship Society – A Demonstrational Introduction to the Astral Plane
World Inferno Friendship Society – Addicted to Bad Ideas
World Inferno Friendship Society – Just The Best Party
World Inferno Friendship Society – Red Eyed Soul
World Inferno Friendship Society – East Coast Super Sound Punk of Today

Buy:
Franz Nicolay

Tom’s River NJ famous for having the Little League World Champions, a skatepark I used to hit up back in the day, and world famous for being the place where my grandparents live. However, having a thriving punk/hardcore scene is not one of it’s claims to fame. Despite the odds though, One Win Choice has been going strong for a number of years though, and with their latest release of “Conveyor”, OWC shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Playing melodic hardcore punk, One Win Choice takes plenty of cues from bands such as A Wilhelm Scream and Strike Anywhere (the singer actually has a SA tattoo). Compared to their earlier releases, “Conveyor” is a bit more experimental, with the guitars exploring more of the fretboard by having more melodies intertwined as apparent in songs such as “Paint Me A Better World”. Lyrically, the band mostly deals with socio-political issues, and the singer’s voice is gritty and switches between singing and your more typical hardcore shouts.

If you’re a fan of melodic hardcore, you’ll dig this album. It might not be anything you haven’t heard before, but it’s damn solid. I find it to be a bit of grower, and with each listen, I’m enjoying it a bit more. Oh, and if they come around your area, do yourself a favor and go see them. It’s rare to see a band with the pure excitement they have when they’re playing a show, and it shines through their set.
MP3:
One Win Choice – Places

More:
One Win Choice – Define/Redefine EP
Strike Anywhere – Iron Front

Buy:
Jump Start Records

The World Inferno Friendship Society’s “The Anarchy And The Ecstasy” has been one of the most highly anticipated albums of 2011 ever since the Brooklyn/NJ cabaret punks announced it’s release date of March 15th. The 5th studio album from one of my favorite bands, I was a bit nervous upon first spin since I didn’t really dig their “Vox Inferne” EP the band released last year.

So was my nervousness founded at all? That depends. People used to the high energy songs that we’ve come to know and love from World Inferno may be a bit disappointed. The majority of music on “The Anarchy And The Ecstasy” is a much more mature sound, and for me, definitely a grower (which is why I waited so long to post on the album even though it was sent to me a while back).

Now after a few spins, I can definitely respect what World Inferno has done. The cabaret punks have incorporated even more musical styles in their music. Sure, they still have a few songs that older fans will love (particularly “I Am Sick Of People Being Sick Of My Shit” or the hitting close to home “Canonize Philip K. Dick, OK”), but the other songs incorporate elements of Casa Nova, Calypso, piano ballads, and celtic music to name a few. The songs are much more like ballads as well.

If you’re a World Inferno fan, you’re obviously going to pick this up regardless, but before you dismiss it, give it a few listens. It’ll grow on you, and I’m liking it with each additional spin.
MP3:
World Inferno Friendship Society – I Am Sick Of People Being Sick Of My Shit

All Of The Blog Is A Stage (Dive):
World Inferno Friendship Society – A Demonstrational Introduction to the Astral Plane
World Inferno Friendship Society – Addicted to Bad Ideas
World Inferno Friendship Society – Just The Best Party
World Inferno Friendship Society – Red Eyed Soul
World Inferno Friendship Society – East Coast Super Sound Punk of Today

Pre-order:
Chunksaah

I swear, I still post on albums up here, there’s just been a flux of shows in Philly I’ve been going to as of late… Fuck yeah. Last night, after chilling with the madre all day for her birthday, I headed out to Philly’s Ox to go see Bomb The Music Industry do a solo performance where it was just Jeff and his mp3 player. I’ve seen him do this before back at the Ava House, and it was a damn good time then.

Ceasefire:

Photo Taken By Blake Larson

Last time BTMI came around, I couldn’t get into the show because it was completely sold out, this time around, there were maybe like a total of 40 people hanging in the warehouse. No matter, more room to move around.

First up was Philly’s Ceasefire, who I’ve never heard before, but was blown away by their live performance. They played aggressive melodic hardcore, and it sort of reminded me a bit of After The Fall, and I definitely think I heard some Propagandhi influences. I picked up their cd, so I’ll probably be posting on that sometime in the relatively near future.

Luther:

Photo Taken By Blake Larson

When I was talking to a friend of mine who’s seen Luther before, he described them as “straight out of 2003″. I can definitely see what he is talking about. Luther played melodic punk with some emo influences that reminded me of bands such as Algernon Cadawalder or Tiger’s Jaw. I’m not really a big fan of that particular style of punk, but they put on a decent live set and the crowd seemed to dig them a lot.

Glocca Morra:

This three piece had a lot of people in the crowd pretty stoked to see them. Their style was incredibly similar to that of Luther’s (the emo influenced melodic punk rock) and if they played before Luther, I may have dug their set a little bit more, but by this point I was getting a bit bored.

Bomb The Music Industry:

Photo Taken By Blake Larson

Finally, the reason I came here in the first place. Jeff bypassed the stage and set up right on the floor for the now dwindled crowd, and even though the show was small, he looked stoked to be there. Doing his first solo show in over a year, he opened up and I immediately opened up a small pit.

I didn’t last long in there though, as it was overtaken by skankers who weren’t looking to mosh and people flailing their arms like Dee in the boat episode of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and the rest of the crowd seemed pretty uninspired. Bummer.

Compared to other BTMI shows, this was definitely the weirdest and most awkward one I’ve been to (the other’s have always been a blast), and I was a little disappointed during the set (through no real fault of Jeff’s, more the crowd reaction… at one point I was going to stage dive on the group of people below during “Syke Life Is Awesome” and was told not to… very different than most BTMI shows I’ve been to). The sound levels were all off and it was sort of difficult to hear his voice, but he played on through regardless.

Some of the highlights:
2 new songs
First Time I Met Sanawon
Bike Test 1 2 3
It Shits!!!
Does Your Face Hurt? No? Cause It’s Killing Me!
25!
Syke! Life Is Awesome
Side Projects Are Never Successful

Mp3:
Bomb the Music Industry – The First Time I Met Sanawon

More:
Bomb The Music Industry – Adults!!! Smart!!! Shithammered!!! And Excited By Nothing
Bomb the Music Industry – Scrambles
Arrogant Sons Of Bitches – Discography

Buy:
Quote Unquote

When I heard that Government Warning would be playing their last Philly show ever as they were breaking up after this tour, I knew that I had to go see them. Last night I headed out to Philly’s great Ox, to check out these Richmond VA punks.

Bucket Flush:

First up were Philly’s dirty punk rockers, Bucket Flush. These guys played incredibly sloppy street punk influenced by bands such as Dead Kennedy’s and GG Allin. I was digging them in the beginning of their set, but they played way too long for an opener band (I think they played a total of 40 minutes? Pretty sure Government Warning had a shorter set) and I started to get pretty bored, as did the rest of the crowd. At least they didn’t get naked (which they are sort of notorious for doing).

Leather:

The crowd warmed up once these guys took the stage. A pit opened up within the first opening chords, and people lost their shit during these Philly duders set (and someone started throwing firecrackers in the pit, nicely). I haven’t heard these guys previously, but they play heavy hardcore with a touch of melody and cleaner vocals (which is sort of refreshing in this genre) and they have an EP coming out soon on Jade Tree records, so I’m pretty stoked to check that out.

Night Birds:

I’ve heard good things about this band… good, good things. Night Birds definitely did not fail to deliver. The second the band started, the guitarist jumped into the pit and rocked the fuck out. They played a mix of 80s punk rock influenced by surf punk, definitely a good mix. I need to check out their recorded stuff for sure.

Government Warning:

The reason I, and the majority of the crowd came. Within their opening song, the pit broke out and people started the pile ons and stage dives instantaneously. Unfortunately, the majority of the crowd stood in the back, but us dedicated few up front lost our shit. Firecrackers were going off in the pit, and someone threw one onstage that landed right on the guitarist, who completely disregarded it as he rocked out. Punk rock.

The band had an insane stage presence, with the singer constantly jumping into the crowd, swinging the microphone, brought some of the spotlights down, and took down some of the hanging christmas lights and started whipping them into the crowd. Bottles and cans were flying, and it was just a giant party. The band blasted through their set relatively quickly, and didn’t leave much room for stage banter… in fact, there was none at all.

A solid set, bummer to see these guys go.

Setlist:
No Moderation
Trend City
Jocks And Cops
Cutting Room Floor
Glued
Fat Nation
Shot Full Of Holes
Rot & Decay
Railroaded (cover I think)
Sick Of Home
Arrested

MP3:
Government Warning – Arrested

More:
Dead Kennedys
Steve Versus The Volcano

Buy:
Grave Mistake Records

What’s the best treatment for a sinus infection? Going to a smoke-filled basement to go see some hardcore bands god damn it! This past Sunday, I headed out to a specific house somewhere within the bowels of Philly to catch a bunch of bands I’ve never actually listened to before hand, but figured it would be a blast. There were about 5-6 bands on the bill, but only 2 and a half got to play… Bummer.

Callous:

Described as “drugged-out sludge from non-junkies” these guys played brutal grindcore, consisting of dual duder/dudette vocalists, a guitarist, and a drummer. The guy’s vocals reminded me a bit of Phobia, and the girl’s vocals were pretty brutal as well. The music was a bit sludgier than I usually like, but I was digging the fast parts. Solid set.

Cop Problem:

Fucking damn it, why did their set have to get cut short? They were completely brutal, and their drummer was sick. Playing hardcore crust dbeat, the vocalist’s voice was straight up awesome. She knew how to scream for sure. Unfortunately, and at the risk of being the 100th person to make this joke, we had a bit of a cop problem at the show, and they ended their set early, allowing only Coke Bust to play.

Coke Bust:

I was tempted to leave at this point since I was bummed about the cops shutting it down, but I stuck around for Coke Bust, and thank god I did. Washington DC straightedge, it was an interesting mix of people in the crowd. You had your hardcore straight-edgers mixed with people downing their PBRs and their 40s… this is what punk is all about.

Coke Bust plays sped up hardcore, and I definitely was won over as a fan on Sunday night. Most of their songs barely made the 60 second mark, and things got pretty wild down in the basement (at one point, I thought a friend of mine was going to pull out the plumbing as he crowd surfed in the just above 6 ft tall ceilings).

The band seemed a bit preachy about straight edge (now, technically I am straight edge, but I have nothing against people who do it), but that didn’t seem to bother the fans with the 40s. I would definitely recommend checking these guys out, pure brutal live show.

MP3:
Coke Bust – No One To Impress

More:
Phobia – Cruel
Disfear – Live The Storm

Buy:
Coke Bust

First off, all the pictures in this post are from the show and taken by an incredibly talented photographer named Blake. You should check out his concert photography over at blklrsn.tumblr.com.

Secondly, there’s been a lot of good shows lately. Last Friday, I headed out to the Ox to catch philly relocated own The Menzingers play with The Loved Ones and The Holy Mess. This place is one of my favorite venues, except for their god damned bathrooms. Also, random props to the girl who after the show as I was driving home, pulled up next to me with the sole intent to make fun of my Hyundai Accent and the fact that I dress like I’m from 1995, you hilariously made my night (Hata’s gonna hate)

This Is Jazz:

Photo courtesy of http://www.blakelarsonphoto.com

First up were Philly’s hardcore act This Is Jazz. They seemed a little out of place on the list of pop-punk bands that were playing, and it seemed like a lot of people in the crowd weren’t really feeling them. I thought they were tight though. Playing straight up hardcore with a touch of metal, I was a bit saddened to learn that this was NOT indeed jazz. Actually, fuck that, I hate jazz.

The Holy Mess:

Photo courtesy of http://www.blakelarsonphoto.com

I’ve tried to see these guys a few times now, and every attempt was a complete failure. Finally, I got to see Philly’s party band again. Staying true to their reputation, as they took the stage they carried a keg with them and had friends do keg stands throughout their set. The Holy Mess surprisingly kept the banter to a minimum (as in, they only talked for 5 minutes before the set as opposed to the 15 I’ve become accustomed to), and a few dedicated fans were singing along to every word, with a small pit breaking out up front.

They also played all 3 songs off their Benefit Sesh 7″, so that was pretty sweet.

The Menzingers:

Photo courtesy of http://www.blakelarsonphoto.com

It seemed like a strong majority of the crowd was there for these guys, including myself. The night finally livened up once The Menzingers took the stage with stage dives and crowd surfing in full effect. These guys are incredibly consistent live (well, the two times I’ve seen them) and I was beer/sweat soaked by the end of their set. As expected, they played the majority of songs off their highly regarded “Chamberlain Waits” album, with a few older nuggets sprinkled in for good measure.

Highlights:
Who’s Your Partner?
I was Born
Timetables
Tasker Morris Station
So It Goes (I think)
Rivalries
My Friend Chris

The Loved Ones:

Photo courtesy of http://www.blakelarsonphoto.com

In all honesty, I’m not too familiar with these guys and when I saw them in my friend’s living room last year, I was sort of injured and took it easy in the back, so I’m considering this my first real Loved Ones experience. The crowd was really into them, and for some reason, a few kids decided we were at a Madball show and started the tough guy hardcore dancing (hey, I’m not judging… just seemed sort of strange to the Loved Ones music).

These guys put on an enjoyable set, and it makes me want to pickup some of their recorded work to check out.

MP3:
The Holy Mess – A Soulful Punk Tune About A Working Class Dreamer
The Menzingers – Home Outgrown
More:
The Menzingers – Chamberlain Waits
Holy Mess – Benefit Sesh

Buy:
interpunk

Little sick, running a fever… fuck it, nothing was going to stop me from going to the Bouncing Souls Home For The Holidays Snow Out Blow Out. I headed straight from work in Philly to Asbury Park to the Stone Pony. As I was parking my car, I heard The Great Explainer finishing up their set (fuck), so I completely missed that. Bummer.

Full Speed Ahead:

I never heard of these guys before, but holy fucking shit I think I need to start listening. While the majority of the crowd didn’t really seem to dig them, I was completely blown away by this hardcore band. They said they formed 16 years ago, and broke up 10, and this was just a one-off reunion show. Whatever, the hardcore scene needs a dose of their punk rock driven music.

Reminded me a lot of Kill Your Idols or Negative Approach, and there was a total of maybe 2 kids in the crowd who knew them and opened a pit for them. Fuck yeah.

Anti-Flag:

I have not seen these guys since 2003, and even then, I didn’t know any of the songs they were playing as I’m only a fan of their first two albums so I wasn’t expecting much from their set, but they opened with “Die For Your Government” much to the surprise of myself and all of the older punks, where we immediately lost our shit and opened a pit. A lot of the younger folks were stoked when new stuff (read: anything after “New Kind Of Army”) was played, and I actually really enjoyed their set.

At the end, the drummer took his set, put them over the barricades and into the crowd and played there much to the bouncers dismay. Fucking awesome.

Highlights:
Die For Your Government
Indie Sucks, Hardline Sucks, Emo Sucks, You Suck
Drink Drank Punk
That’s Youth

Bouncing Souls:

Nothing could have prepared me for what was to come tonight… nothing. The Bouncing Souls have been my favorite band for nearly 12 years now… and I have seen them craploads of times. Let me just say, that this show was the best Souls show I have been to since I was a young angsty teen seeing them for the first time at Skate & Surf back in 2003.

I knew that the band was going to be playing songs mostly off of their first two releases tonight, but I did not expect them to play it in it’s entirety, which they did. A boxing announcer introduced the first contestant for the night: The Good The Bad And The Argyle. The Souls came out, and opening the pit (and not letting up for the rest of the night). Fucking amazing to hear them play Inspection Station and Deadbeats live. After blasting through the classics, they took a brief intermission while the announcer named the next contestant, Maniacal Laughter.

Again, myself and the crowd didn’t let up throughout ML, and it was awesome to hear them play what is probably my favorite Souls album in it’s entirety. It’s going to take a month for me to get down from this high. I’m tempted to try to go tonight and see if I can get into the sold out show to hear them play their self-titled in it’s entirety.

Setlist:
I Like Your Mom
The Guest
Joe Lies (When He Cries)
Some Kind Of Wonderful
Lay Em Down, Smack Em, Yack Em
Old School
I Want Candy
These Are The Quotes From Our Favorite 80s Movies (they skipped this by mistake at first)
Neurotic
Inspection Station
Deadbeats
Lamar Vannoy
No Rules
The Freaks, The Nerds, And The Romantics
Argyle
All Of This And Nothing
BMX Song
Quick Check Girl
Headlights Ditch
Here We Go
Born To Lose
Moon Over Asbury
Ballad Of Johnny X

MP3:
Bouncing Souls – The Freaks, The Nerds, And The Romantics

More:
Bouncing Souls – The Good The Bad And The Argyle
The Bouncing Souls “Worst” Album
Bouncing Souls Split Series

Buy:
Chunksaah

While running this lovely little website, I have gotten a lot of demos over the years from many, many bands. I appreciate them all, and try to listen to each and every one. Once in a great while though, a demo will completely blow me away. This was most certainly the case with The Haverchucks.

Hailing from Richmond VA, The Haverchucks sent me their 5 song demo, and let me say, it’s completely awesome. Playing high energy punk rock that sounds like a threesome between Screeching Weasel, The Ramones, and The Descendents, these guys definitely know how to write a catchy tune.

They have their demo up for free on their website, and I highly recommend you check it out if you’re a fan of real pop-punk at all.

MP3:
The Haverchucks – Allison Don’t Love Me Anymore

More:
Hold Tight! – Can’t Take This Away
The Menzingers – Chamberlain Waits
The Scandals – The Sound Of Your Stereo

Buy:
The Haverchucks

After The Fall has certainly outdone themselves this time. When I first heard their debut album “Fort Orange”, I was impressed with the raw, melodic aggressiveness of the music, but let me straight up say, “Eradication” completely blows out “Fort Orange” out of the water.

Their 2010 LP is a much more fine tuned sound, and they have mastered blending melodies with pure fucking anger. After The Fall is able to pull influences from bands such as Propagandhi and Strike Anywhere without sounding like a ripoff (although when I first put the album in, I didn’t look at the track listing and when a song came on, I was like “wow, this sounds EXACTLY like I-Spy… oh… it’s a cover”).

Definitely worth a spin if you dig the melodic, thrashier punk rock.

MP3:
After The Fall – Ruins

More:
After The Fall – Fort Orange
Propagandhi – Supporting Caste
Housewives Interview Propagandhi

Buy:
Mightier Than The Sword