Last night, I headed out to South Philly’s finest punk dive bar, JR’s to catch my buddy’s band Old Stuff and also thrash skate punk dudes Cerebral Ballzy. There was a decent amount of people in the tiny bar, and things got nice and rowdy (like a punk show should, god damn it.)

Dopestroke

First up was Philly’s Dopestroke. I’ve seen the vocalist’s other band before The Teenage Whore Moans, and wasn’t sure if Dopestroke was going to be playing the same surf-rock style as his former band. Nope, Dopestroke is completely different. Their music sounded more street punk in style, and they put on a catchy set.

Old Stuff

Let me say right off the bat I was really impressed by Old Stuff. These Philly dudes were playing their 3rd show ever, and they had a lot of energy. Playing a nice mix of surf punk and Ramones influenced punk rock (they even threw in a cover of “Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World”). Frontman Ryan was constantly in the crowd dancing, go see them if you get a chance.

The Trowels

First off, the lead singer of the Philly band had a broken foot, but still played the show sitting on a stool (which his bandmates protected him by surrounding him) so that’s pretty hardcore. Second off, these guys were awesome, ranging all over the punk spectrum as far as style goes. One minute they’re playing surf rock, and the next they’re playing some Bones Brigade influenced thrash. Definitely worth checking out.

Cerebral Ballzy

These Brooklyn skate thrashers traveled from Boston down to Philly on an off night with their tour with OFF and Trash Talk (more importantly, why the fuck did you skip Philly OFF!). They seemed pretty happy (or drunk) to be playing in the intimate bar, and the singer seemed pretty damn drunk.

They played a few newer songs I wasn’t familiar with, but also played some of my favorites such as Insufficient Fare, Don’t Tell Me What To Do, Skate All Day, Puke Song, and Anthem. The singer was constantly in the crowd, on the bar, and pissing off the bartenders by jumping behind the bar as well. I know I definitely lost my shit throughout their set.

Refusing to stop when the bartenders told them one more song and shut off the PA, they played through with one more song before they finally left. These guys are a bunch of assholes, but I love them anyway (and to be honest, I think a lot of it is part of their act… if you talk to them afterwards they’re pretty nice dudes, and don’t seem to be anywhere as drunk as they appear when they’re playing).

Glad they took the time to come down to Philly on their off night.

MP3:
Cerebral Ballzy – You’re Idle

More:
Cerebral Ballzy – You’re Idle EP

Buy:
Cerebral Ballzy

When I first heard Converge’s touted masterpiece “Jane Doe” nearly 9 years ago, I didn’t really appreciate it much. Sure, I dug a few songs off it (particularly “Homewrecker”), but the lyrics and the metal influences were lost on me. Recently I’ve given it another spin… and holy fuck.

There are few bands that can blend thrashy, progressive metal with the straight up aggressiveness and anger of hardcore as well as Converge does on this album. Jane Doe is a term used to describe an anonymous girl, and their concept is one that anyone who has ever had a long-term relationship fall apart can relate to: a girl that once had meaning in your life become nothing.

The music is fluid and sporadic at the same time, capturing the emotional turmoil created by a relationship dissolving. Did I mention it was heavy as fuck without any of the bullshit emo influences usually that tag along with the subject matter? Jacob Banner (vocalist) is quoted as saying “The album’s lyrical themes were born out of a dissolving relationship and the emotional fallout from that experience” and damn do they nail it.

Songs such as Concubine and Fault And Fracture are more grindcore in influences, while Homewrecker and fucking stellar track The Broken Vow take more pages from their book of hardcore.

I highly recommend this album if you need something heavy as shit or if you were considering shelling out a few hundred bucks for therapy. But I have to warn you, it’s not for the faint of heart.

MP3:
Converge – The Broken Vow

More:
Protest The Hero – Fortress
Protest The Hero – Kezia
Hope Conspiracy – Cold Blue

Buy:
Equal Vision

On Friday, I headed out to the sold out basement of Philly’s Unitarian Church to catch one of my favorite bands, circus punk act World Inferno Friendship Society. It’s been nearly two years since I’ve had a chance to catch these guys, so I was pretty excited for the show.

Mirrors and Wires:

I got there right in time for New Brunswick NJ’s Mirrors and Wires, and I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Playing surf punk, the band had a few technical difficulties where the vocals cut out completely. The band stood up there for a little while trying to figure out what was wrong, until they decided “fuck it” and played a bunch of instrumental songs.

Oddly enough, a small pit broke out during the instrumentals, and once the vocals came back in, the continued their set as usual.

World Inferno Friendship Society

Energy levels were running high with people chanting and crowd surfing before the band ever took the stage. Finally, World Inferno came out, gave a slight introduction, and blasted straight into their cadence of arms, Tattoos Fade. They didn’t let up for the rest of the night. It was packed and difficult to get to the stage, but I was able to sneak a few stage dives in.

They played a solid set picking songs off the majority of their releases, and the crowd was actually pretty responsive to the new songs off of Anarchy and the Ecstasy. Unfortunately the show ended a bit early when the fire alarms started going off in the middle of Fiend in Wien, and the band stopped playing halfway through (although us in the crowd finished the song out for them).

Still, a tight show, and luckily World Inferno got through the majority of their songs.

Fiend In Wien with Fire Alarms

Setlist:
Tattoos Fade
Just The Best Party
Canonize Philip K. Dick, OK
Your Younger Man
The Disarming Smile
Zen and the Art Of Breaking Everything In This Room
With A Good Criminal Heart
Paul Robeson
I Am Sick Of People Being Sick Of My Shit
Let’s Steal Everything
Thumb Cinema
Heart Attack 64
Brother of the Mayor Of Bridgewater
Fiend In Wien

MP3:
World Inferno Friendship Society – Tattoos Fade

More:
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:
Chunksaah

I’ll be honest, these days I don’t really listen to as much ska as I used to with a few exceptions. Perhaps it’s the lack of newer ska bands that don’t completely suck, or perhaps it’s because all my favorite ska bands rarely tour (*cough* Mustard Plug *cough*) or just release albums I don’t dig anymore (River City Rebels). However, there are a few gems in my ska collection that I will always cherish, and Big D and The Kid’s Table’s “Good Luck” is one of those albums.

Big D used to be hands down my favorite ska band. Sure, they’ve mellowed out a bit with their newer albums, but Good Luck is straight up catchy ska punk. Released back in 2000 (really? 11 years ago? ugh…), Good Luck was Big D’s first full length album, having only a split before hand.

The songs on Good Luck have a very upbeat feel to them, and while a few songs tackle more serious matters, the majority are light-hearted (such as “Dirtlip”, an ode about shaving your upper lip).

Easily one of Big D’s best albums, I recommend checking it if you ever once loved ska. You may fall in love again.

MP3:
Big D and The Kid’s Table – GLD

More:
Less Than Jake – Pezcore
Bomb The Music Industry – Adults!!! Smart!!! Shithammered!!! And Excited By Nothing
Against All Authority – 24 Hours Roadside Resistance

Buy:
Big D and the Kids Table

I can tell you right now, you’re either going to love Atom and His Package’s “The First CD” album, or you are going to completely despise it. There seems to be very little in between when it comes to this Philadelphia one man synth rocker.

Atom and His Package released “The First CD” back in 1997 and compared to his later releases, it contains the most light-hearted and silly songs. Mixing Atom’s off key singing, odd sense of humor, and ridiculously catchy sequence melodies, these songs are not exactly for those who take themselves to seriously (*cough* Pitchfork *cough*).

Atom even takes on some covers on the Self Titled album, making an electronic version of The Misfits “Where Eagles Dares” and probably the least ghetto version of Geto Boys “Mind’s Playing Tricks On Me”.

Fans of Matt and Kim, Totally Michael, or any of the other newer electronic rockers could probably take refuge in Atom and his catchy silliness. I fucking love this album, and it’s tough for me to listen to without putting a giant smile on my face.

MP3:
Atom And His Package – Avenger

More:
Atom and His Package – Attention Blah Blah Blah
Atom and his Package vs Fugazi
Atom and His Package – Society Of People Named Elihu
Totally Michael Debut
Team Robespierre

Buy:
Atom and His Package

In a world full of chuggy break downs and predictable patterns, Coke Bust is a breath of fresh air. Concentrating on the faster elements of hardcore, their 17 song release “Lines In The Sand” completely melts faces.

The majority of songs clock in under a minute, and have a power violence feel to them while remaining hardcore as fuck. There seriously isn’t a chance to breathe on the album between the frenzied guitars, erratic drumming, and throaty yells of vocalist Nick.

If you dig Ceremony’s “Violence Violence” or Punch, then Coke Bust’s “Lines In The Sand” is right up your alley.

MP3:
Coke Bust – No One To Impress

More:
Ceremony – Violence Violence
Ceremony – Scared People EP
Ceremony – Still Nothing Moves You

Buy:
Coke Bust

On Friday, I rushed out to a random West Philly house straight from work to catch the One Win Choice record release show which featured an incredibly stellar line-up. Afraid I was going to be late, I made it there with plenty of time to spare… thank you punk rock time.

Lighten Up

Ok, anyone who reads this blog should know that Philly’s Lighten Up has become one of my favorite bands, and I was looking forward to hearing them play their newest songs. Only a handful in the crowd had any idea who they were (play more shows dudes), and the band was having some technical troubles (the bass kept cutting out, vocals difficult to hear, etc). I also think it was the first time they played as a 5-piece.

Regardless, I enjoyed their set, even if they decided to skip their last song “Lighten Up”.

Setlist (Not in Order)

Absolutely Not
Get The Poison Out
Lost In Space
Same Shirt, Different Day
Summer Fiction
Born To Perspire
Life On Earth
Boys To Wolves

Static Radio NJ:
I’ve been listening to these guys for a while now, but for some reason, anytime I try to go see them, I either completely miss their set or show up while they’re ending it. Not this time. Unfortunately the crowd was pretty mellow throughout, but I sang along to each word. The band was on, and the set was made mostly of songs from “An Evening Of Bad Decisions” (would have been cool to hear more off of “One For The Good Guys”).

Setlist (from what I remember):
Green Hoody
Marc
Bothered
Places
One For The Good Guys
Cut The Tie (I think)
Fin
The Waiting Game

Choke Up:
I’ve never seen these Boston dudes before, but they played a pretty solid set and while playing melodic punk rock (leaning more towards the heavy side) but I was impressed and will need to pick up some of their recorded stuff.

One Win Choice:

I was upstairs for Bridge & Tunnel and missed their entire set, but I made my way back downstairs for NJ / now Philadelphia’s One Win Choice. Playing a decent amount off of their newest “Conveyor”, the crowd finally got rowdy for the headlining record release.

As usual, the band played an energetic set, with the singer being constantly piled-on in the small basement for sing-a-longs.

For some reason, I’m drawing a blank on the songs they’ve played, but they did a double-encore (we wouldn’t let them leave), but my favorites were Movements and the Refused cover.

MP3:
One Win Choice – Places
Lighten Up – Invisible Checks
Static Radio NJ- Marc

More:
One Win Choice – Conveyor
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not
Static Radio NJ – An Evening of Bad Decisions

Buy:
interpunk

Last night, I headed to a basement show to catch a stellar line-up: Go Rydell, Hold Tight!, This Is Your Life, and Reservoirs. I didn’t really catch the headlining two piece Omar, but they sounded pretty tight from what I’ve heard.

After wandering in the rain for a while trying to find the house, I walked into the place and went straight down into the tiny basement. There were maybe a total of 30 kids there (and it felt packed)… fuck yeah.

Reservoirs:

I never heard of these dudes before, but they made it to the show with broken windshield wipers in the pouring rain, so props for that. They played a mix of catchy punk rock with touches of post-hardcore and some more emo riffs. Not usually my thing to listen to, but they played a tight set.
This Is Your Life:

I’ve caught these Richmond dudes last time they came around and I dig their Self Titled 7″, so I was pretty excited about seeing them again. They played their mix of passionate hardcore and more technical riffs, sounding a bit between A Wilhelm Scream and Comeback Kid. The band threw me and the rest of the crowd a bit of a curve-ball with their cover of The Ataris “San Dimas HS Football Rules”, which I will unashamedly admit was ridiculously excited for and sang along to each word. Felt like I was high school again.

I don’t remember too many of the songs they played, but they did play Perseverance and A Well Needed Cleanse.

Hold Tight!:

Last year I Hold Tight’s album “Can’t Take This Away” as one of my favorite releases last year, so I was really stoked to be seeing them again. It’s rare for a band to play such solid, feel good pop-punk while keeping the punk elements. Hold Tight played a tight set, and played the majority off of their release, with a few new songs sprinkled in (which were fucking tight, and heavier by the way…)

Fun fact: Apparently I went to college with one of the dudes in the band… small world.

Songs That I Remember (Out of order and incomplete)
-Virginia is Beautiful, Wish You Were Here
-Our Pets Heads Keep Falling Off
-Can’t Take This Away
-Pull The Trigger
-This Is My House, I Have To Defend It
-Collectibles
-Kill Cops

Go Rydell:

These Orlando punks have been getting a decent amount of press lately, and rightfully so. With their debut “Golden Age” and their highly anticipated split with Grey Area coming out soon, their Kid Dynamite influenced hardcore sound translated really well live.

They also put on a really energetic live show for the space they were in, and at one point, I’m pretty sure the singer broke / sprained his hand… They threw in some Lifetime covers as well, with the highlight being Turnpike Gates. Definitely need to check these dudes out again next time they come around.

I’m blanking for some reason on what they played (NOT 1955 though… bastards), but I remember a few songs off the split, MTA, and The Golden Age.

MP3:
Go Rydell – Golden Age
Hold Tight! – Virginia Is Beautiful, Wish You Were Here
This Is Your Life – A Well Needed Cleanse

More:
Grey Area / Go Rydell Split
Go Rydell – Golden Age
Hold Tight! – Can’t Take This Away
This Is Your Life 7″

Buy:
Interpunk

Holy shit. A split between Grey Area and Go Rydell? Pinch me, I’m dreaming. It’s been nearly 11 years since Grey Area released any new materials (seriously, think of where you were 11 years ago), and having Go Rydell on the split is an added bonus.

The NYC melodic hardcore veterans contribute 2 songs, and both are fucking stellar. Grey Area obviously haven’t missed a single beat in their songwriting, and these two songs sound like they could have come off their first album.

Go Rydell puts in 3 songs, and I’m pretty sure there couldn’t have been a better choice of a band for a split with Grey Area. Since these dudes pretty much take almost all their influences from Kid Dynamite, they’re perfect for the split. All of Go Rydell’s songs are fast, heavy, and full of melody.

Get this. It rules.

MP3:
Grey Area – No Guarantees

More:
Go Rydell – Golden Age
Full Kid Dynamite Set (2010)

Buy:
Black Numbers

After an interesting weekend in DC that involved going to support my friend’s brothers band Atomic Tom and parties, I rushed straight to the First Unitarian Church for the sold out Paint it Black show. I made it just in time for Punch.

Punch:

I think I have a new addition to my favorite female fronted bands. San Francisco’s Punch completely destroyed it with their heavy as fuck riffs and the singer’s brutal vocals. The crowd broke into a pit up front and the stage dives were strong. I’ve never heard of Punch before last night, but they definitely won over a new fan.

Screaming Females:

I’ve heard about New Jersey’s Screaming Females a lot, but I never got around to checking them out. Playing garage/punk/indie music, they had a decent amount in the crowd singing along every word, and some dancing up front. I could respect their music, but it wasn’t really my thing. The girl singing definitely had an interesting voice.

Paint It Black:

I can’t believe it’s been nearly a year since they’ve last played Philly at the Terrordome (R.I.P), so I was ridiculously stoked about the show. While the band was setting up, Andy was cracking jokes and making fun of Dan while the crowd waited for him (“I’m going to let you in on a secret, before every set, Dan runs to pee in the bathroom due to nervousness. You’d think a man who’s played as many shows as him would not be nervous.”) I thought this was actually really cool that he still gets excited/nervous about shows and has not become your jaded musician… but I digress.

Blasting straight into “The Ledge”, I apparently wasn’t the only one who was missing Philly’s hometown heroes. We immediately began the pile ons and stage dives, and the place was a shit show (as it should be). As usual, the band seemed stoked to be playing in Philly again, with Dan often jumping into the crowd and inviting everyone on stage for sing-alongs.

There may have been on a new stage dive record set by me (I lost count), and a new record for the amount of times I was dropped… Surprisingly enough, the band did not play an encore (actually, I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen them do an encore), but they put on such a solid set, I wasn’t too bummed.

Setlist:
The Ledge
Exit Wounds
Homesick
Atheists In Foxholes
Womb Envy
C.V.A
Past Tense, Future Perfect
Surrender
Pink Slip
Cannibal
Salem
Shell Game Redux
Bliss
Atticus Finch
Memorial Day
We Will Not

MP3:
Paint It Black – Memorial Day

More:
Paint it Black – CVA
Paint It Black – Amnesia
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not

Buy:
Paint it Black Myspace