I have to admit, besides having an awesome name, I was still a little skeptical when I first received Crucial Dude’s debut album 61 Penn. Pop-punk is a tricky genre to do right, and I am a stubborn listener. Rest assured though, these Crucial Dudes deliver.

Playing 10 songs in approximately 20 minutes, 61 Penn is an energetic pop-punk ride that pulls from all the right influences. The music (especially title track) reminded me of Saves The Day “Through Being Cool” era, and they didn’t have any of those emo breakdowns that make me hate 99% of the genre. Often compared to The Wonder Years, Crucial Dudes have much more punk rock grit, which makes it more accessible to us jaded punks.

When listening, I kept saying to myself “these guys have to be from Jersey”, and sure enough, New Jersey is referenced in their songs. You know these guys nailed it when they make me nostalgic… even though the album just came out.

MP3:
Crucial Dudes – 61 Penn

More:
Saves The Day – Can’t Slow Down
Saves The Day – Through Being Cool
The Ataris – Look Forward To Failure

Buy:
Jump Start

This was one of the first image results for “Long Island”. I’m now terrified.

What up trusty housewives readers? For you dudes/dudettes in the States (the colonies for you British homies out there), I hope you all have a kickass Memorial Day weekend. I’ll be heading up to Long Island to visit some friends, praying for an impromptu Barnaby Jones reunion show, and maybe try to catch that stupid fucking serial killer. Little bummed I’m not heading to my home state beaches (I love you NJ), but all good.

Fact: The majority of people from that god awful show “Jersey Shore” is from Long Island.

Here’s a lil’ lil’ Memorial Day/Long Island mix for all you.

MP3:
Paint It Black – Memorial Day
Kill Your Idols – Enjoy The Show
Bomb The Music Industry- I’m a Panic Bomb, Baby!
Barnaby Jones – Danielle Steel Reserve
Arrogant Sons of Bitches – Kill the President

More:
Homecoming 2010
A Ramones Core Mix For The Shorties
Songs to Piss Off The Personal Fitness Trainer Below Me Mix
Drunken Yuppies Breaking Into My House Mix

Buy:
Interpunk

It’s funny how an album or song can take you back to a very specific place and time. I remember jamming out to the Impossibles “Brick Bomb” EP my freshman year of college (8 years ago, damn…) while skating, and having the song “Oxygen” pretty much sum up everything I was feeling: homesick, missing NJ, wondering what the fuck I was doing with my life.

I’m listening to the song now, and I still get butterflies, with it bringing me back to that exact moment (except now it makes me homesick for the days of college… funny how that works out). While I like The Impossibles Anthology better (before they’ve given up their ska roots), Oxygen is by far the song that has the most impact on me.

MP3:
The Impossibles – Oxygen

Read These Or Die:
Scenester 101 – How To Be A Third Wave Ska Dork

Buy:
Fueled By Ramen

I really dig crossover thrash, but a problem I often run into when listening is bands pursuing too much of the metal roots as opposed to the punk side. And if the vocals are more growling like metal, then fuck that. This unfortunately leaves me with a limited number of crossover bands I listen to regularly (Municipal Waste and Crucial Unit to name a few). Recently, I’ve added A.N.S to that list.

After seeing these dudes in Philly, I bought their album “Pressure Cracks” and was completely blown away. A.N.S plays aggressive hardcore tinged thrash on this 9 song album, and pulls more influences from DRI and Municipal Waste than Slayer or whatever it is you metal cats listen to (I don’t fucking know).

For the most part, the songs are the quick thrashy goodness I love, while there are one or two songs sprinkled in that are a bit more mellow and experimental ( sort Black Flag esque).

A solid album, this shit makes me want to go skate and start some circle pits.

MP3:
A.N.S – I Killed Porcho

More:
ANS Live
Municipal Waste – Waste Em All
Massive Aggressive
Tango And Thrash EP (Tribute to Kurt Russell)
Hazardous Mutations

Buy:
Myspace

I’ve been a pretty big fan of Bedouin Soundclash for a while now, ever since they released “Sounding A Mosaic” back in 2004. After their prior and personal favorite release of “Street Gospels“, I was pretty excited to check out their latest release “Light The Horizon”.

In all honesty, I’ve actually been sitting on the review of “Light The Horizon” for months now, hoping I’d warm up to it more. It’s a solid listen, but it’s a bit of a departure from their earlier stuff, and in my opinion doesn’t really quite compare to Street Gospels or Sounding A Mosaic. Still, it’s a decent listen and definitely worth your time.

Except for opening “On A Mountaintop”, LTH abandons the perky, experimental reggae/ska for a more roots, ambiance, and almost folky sound. It makes for a solid, easy listening album, but besides a song here and there, nothing that really sticks with me.

Still, a good listen to put on every now and then, it just doesn’t get the same amount of rotations as Street Gospels.

MP3:
Bedouin Soundclash – Elongo

More:
Bedouin Soundclash – Street Gospels
Ruder Than You – God’s Ghetto
Pietasters – Willis
Two and A Half White Guys

Buy:
Bedouin Soundclash

If my mp3 player was able to keep track of play counts, it would tell you the amount of times I’ve listened to the Cobra Lung / Piss boys split has to be nearing triple digits. It’s just so damn good and also a quick listen so I can always squeeze it in (that’s what she said).

For those who don’t know, Philly/NJ’s Cobra Lung plays hardcore in the veins of Negative Approach, and they bring 5 of their hard hitting songs to Side A of the split. Their music is heavy, their lyrics are usually pretty humorous with their tongue in cheek straight edge lyrics. If you want an idea of what the band is all about, I think a motto on a shirt they sell says it best: “Straight Edge With Our Own Rules – Abstaining From Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking, Sex at your convenience”.

Admittingly, I listen to the Cobra Lung side a lot more than the Piss Boys (I’m a bad dude), but the Piss Boys are damn solid as well. Playing aggressive hardcore, musically they remind me a bit of Coke Bust.

If you can get your hands on a copy, definitely check the split out. I don’t know if the band is still selling it or not, but if so you can grab a copy for like a few bucks.

MP3:
Cobra Lung – XVX

More:
Lighten Up – I’d Rather Be Snoring
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not
Cobra Lung Live

Buy:
Cobra Lung

Lighten Up record release show? No way I was missing and not losing my shit at this one, even if I was getting an MRI earlier in the day. I headed out to the DBAJ house and caught the 4 bands playing for the night.

No Lessons Learned:

First up were Philly’s own No Lessons Learned. Playing hardcore that sort of reminded me of Sick Of It All, these guys put on a relatively quick but hard hitting set that got a few people in the crowd moving. They’ve got their Demo up for download on their site, so if you’re into that style of hardcore, go check it out here.

Sweet Tooth:

Next up were St. Louis Sweet Tooth, who after a brief introduction, the singer immediately kicked me in the knee (that bastard) and charged the crowd. Uhh… ok. They played a spastic set without any breaks, their music reminding me a bit of Ceremony’s early stuff. The microphone was cutting out a lot, but that didn’t stop the vocalist from just throwing the mic down and screaming along still.

A.N.S

Holy fuck. I’ve never heard these guys before, but they made a fan out of me with their set. Originally from Texas, these guys are now spread out all over the country, and this was their first tour since October (they didn’t even bring their own equipment, as they claim they’re touring in a Ford Taurus).

These guys played crossover thrash that just made me want to skate. Similar to D.R.I and Municipal Waste, they had a bunch of kids in the pit moving around with their boards. ANS played a pretty long set, and usually with a band I don’t know I get bored, but I was hoping they’d keep playing. It’s rare to find thrash bands this solid.

Lighten Up

I’ve seen Lighten Up a bunch of times over the past 2 years, but I have to say, this was easily the best and most fun Lighten Up show I’ve seen. Celebrating their release of their newest EP “Where Fun Goes To Die”, Lighten Up played the longest set I’ve ever seen them do (fuck yeah), and played shit spanning off of all of their releases.

We went into a frenzy as well with dancing and piling on, and shouting along every word. They opened up with their self titled fan favorite “Lighten Up” and were relentless the rest of the set. When the band finished, we demanded them to play “Lighten Up” one more time, which they complied. A damn good time, they should probably keep their sets this length at all of their shows.

Setlist:
Lighten Up
Skateboarding On Thin Ice
Tired
Invisible Checks
Nervous
Same Shirt, Different Day
Ajada
Taking My Own Advice
Born To Perspire
Serenity Now!
Boyz II Wolves
Buttspeak
Life On Earth
Get The Poison Out
Summer Fiction
Lost In Space
I Don’t Think So Tim
Absolutely Not
Lighten Up

MP3:
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not

More:
Lighten Up – I’d Rather Be Snoring
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not

Buy:
Bandcamp

Over the past 2 years, Philly’s own Lighten Up have become one of my favorite hardcore bands around. With their release of “Absolutely Not”, I was blown away by their melodic hardcore. Recently I checked out their earlier “I’d Rather Be Snoring” EP, and while a bit different, it’s still solid.

Released back in 2007 “I’d Rather Be Snoring” is a 5 song blast that ends almost soon as it starts. While their newer stuff is more melodic, pulling a lot of influences from Kid Dynamite, the early EP is much more straight forward hardcore. You can definitely hear the “CVA” era of Paint it Black.

Short and to the point, if you can get your hands on a copy, I highly recommend it. If you’ve never heard Lighten Up before, do yourself a favor and check out their newer shit as well.

MP3:
Lighten Up – Skateboarding On Thin Ice

More:
Lighten Up – Absolutely Not
Paint It Black – Amnesia
The Steal – Bright Grey
The Steal – Self Titled

Buy:
Over Dose On Records

Once in a great while, a show will do something amazing for my health. I can only think of a few instances where I truly needed the show (Give Up The Ghost back in 2003 and Smoke or Fire back in October), and last night was one of them. Incredibly stressed and on the verge of a panic attack (only had 2 in my life), a little Protest The Hero was exactly what I needed… Fuck Yeah.

I made it to the Trocadero just as the second last band was finishing up (not my thing, they were like a Southern Rock metalcore band) and got there in time for Protest.

Protest The Hero:

Protest The Hero is one of those bands that I’ve been following since their inception, and have watched evolved over the years. From a Propagandhi/Strike Anywhere influenced melodic punk band to the ridiculous progressive metal riffs they’re famous for now, I fucking love everything these guys have put out.

Playing Propagandhi over the PA while the band’s equipment was getting set up (which I sang along to every word), the band finally took the stage and blasted straight into C’est La Vie. Some people were dancing (myself included) throughout their set, although people never really seem sure how to keep up with Protest’s ridiculous time changes, etc.

Rody seemed to be in high spirits, and overall the band played pretty tight. They played a solid mix off of their big three albums, with plenty off of Fortress and Scurrilious, and a few off Kezia. At one point they said they were going to play one so old, they don’t remember the name (getting me all amped that it was going to be “Red Stars Over The Battle Of Cowshed”), but it turned out to be one off Kezia (C’mon, it’s not THAT old).

A damn good time, I would love to see these guys in a smaller venue such as The First Unitarian Church or The Barbary. Unfortunately not treated to a cover of Fuck The Border this time.

Setlist (Not In Order, Pretty Complete)

C’est La Vie
Bone Marrow
Reign Of Terror
Wretch
Dunsel
Sex Tapes
Turn Soonest To The Sea
Heretics and Killers (I think?)
Sequona Throne
Bloodmeat

MP3:
Protest The Hero – Heretics And Killers

More:
Protest the Hero – Scurrilous
Protest the Hero – A Calculated Use Of Sound
Protest The Hero – Fortress
Protest The Hero – Kezia

Buy:
Protest Official

Holy crap things have been crazy on my end here, hence the delay of posting. Anyways, on Friday night, I headed out to South Philly to catch Cobra Lung play a basement show, fuck yeah dude.

Nona:

First up was a three piece, female fronted indie influenced punk band from West Chester called Nona. They played a really quick, yet enjoyable set. I can see people who dig Screaming Females liking these guys. You can check out their demo over here.

Spraynard:

I didn’t know Spraynard was playing the show, as they weren’t on the flyer, but their quick set was a nice little surprise. More West Chester punk, these guys have been getting exploding in the local Philly scene here. Playing punk rock similar to The Menzingers, they’ve been a bit of a grower for me, and this was my favorite show I’ve seen of them.

Lee Corey Oswald:

These dudes put on an acoustic set without a drummer, and when I checked out their recorded non-acoustic stuff, I dug it, but I really wasn’t feeling the acoustic thing at all. They also played way too long as well.

Cobra Lung:

The reason I came out to begin with. Cobra Lung played their blistering no frills hardcore, and shit got real fun in the crowded basement. Check out their set on the top of this page.

Setlist:
Straight Edge With Our Own Rules
John F Ryan Kennedy
XVX
Throwback Soda
Pissant Sign
Machine Gun
Straight Edge Revenge (Project X Cover)

The Credentials

I’ve never heard these dudes before hand, but these Boston guys played a really damn catchy pop-punk set. I definitely need to check out their stuff, and if you dig bands like The Copyrights, I recommend you do the same.