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Editor's note: For our best of 2013 coverage, we once again reach out to some friends of the blog to get an idea of what made the year in music so great for them. For today's installment in the guest series, Josh Smith, owner of local record shop Black Dots and member of punk band Bad People, submitted his best of list. Bad People recently released their latest EP Mean Talkin' and will kick off their tour tomorrow night at the Jungle Gym.
Being surrounded by music for 60+ hours a week is a mixed blessing. I spend a lot of time sifting through garbage new releases—a mountain of plastic and wax that will litter the Earth long after my death and yours—just to find a few things worth holding onto.
But every year, there are a handful of releases I find myself returning to over and over again, worthy of the material used to create the physical form. I thought of six shining examples, all released in the year of our Lord 2013, that you should go out of your way to track down.
MILK MUSIC - Cruise Your Illusion LP (self-released)
I was underwhelmed by the first MILK MUSIC record—just didn’t get the hype. It’s no question that the riffs are there, but the record sounds like a really long fart to me. I'm far from a production snob but their second outing was an obvious step up in terms of recording. It’s crisp, and the addition of a second guitarist has really upped their overall power. It’s probably my most-listened-to record this year. I spun it constantly when I first started setting up to open Black Dots, and, for that reason alone, it will remind me of last summer for the rest of my days. The record weaves in and out of somber, melodic hooks into really upbeat hits in true ‘90s-college-rock fashion. Yeah, I’ll throw in the obligatory DINOSAUR JR comparison, but there’s a lot more going on. This is a fully realized vision of a full-length record.
TENEMENT - Freak Cast In Iron b/w Books On Hell And Sermons On T.V. (Cowabunga), Puke & Destroy 2 comp (Snuffy Smiles) and split with SCREAMING FEMALES (Recess)
For years, the Midwest’s best-kept secret released record after record, crafting a sound that’s really hard to pin down, with heavy nods to Midwestern pop-rock, the SST back catalogue, and maybe even a touch of the blues, some real soul. The term “pop-punk” could never do TENEMENT justice, although it is pop, and it’s undeniably punk. But these guys are hardcore outsiders, just as likely to spin a Charles Mingus record as they are to jam on DIE KRUEZEN riffs during a mid-set tuning session. With their most recent full-length offering in 2012, the band showcased their widest array of influence—from country to garage and everywhere in between. Somehow, it all works, and every subsequent release has continued down the path of reinventing their sound. This band is a real powerhouse—true style all the way through. We were only graced with a series of small-vinyl singles and splits this year, but the next 12 months promises at least their third full-length on Don Giovani Records. Here’s hoping for more!
RIVAL MOB - Mob Justice (Revelation)
This gets my vote for best ‘core record to come out in recent memory. With the heart and soul of New York hardcore’s golden age (nods to bands like BREAKDOWN and WARZONE), RIVAL MOB presents the listener with a modern take on a classic hardcore style. I’m a fan of just about anything singer Brendan Radigan touches. Time and time again, he proves himself to be one of the most versatile voices in punk today. There are his SABBATH-inspired croons in MAGIC CIRLCE (another recent release everyone should search out) and the NWOBHM hooks in his previous band, BATTLE RUINS. And now, he spends most of his time devoted to the MOB—some serious, hard-nosed, meat-and-potatoes ‘core.
SPACE WOLVES - IV CS (Ut Records)
Far and away, this is my favorite cassette-only release of the year. SPACE WOLVES is the brainchild of Buffalo punk rock Svengali Nicholas Reynolds. I feel like the rest of the country— nay, world—is missing the mark, as you have to meet the man behind the music to truly appreciate SPACE WOLVES’ unique brand of retro-pop. Resting well beyond the bounds of social graces, there’s something genius in making the hipster kids bop around to depraved songs about police homicide and crack cocaine. While this is a sub-sect of modern punk I normally hate—a bunch of horn-rimmed gasbags doo-wopping over their grandparents’ 1950s garage riffs—SPACE WOLVES proves to be the exception to the rule. It’s cute but not too cute, ya know. With four releases in the span of 12 months, each tape surpasses the previous one. If “less is more,” just think of how much more MORE could be, right? If this stays a Buffalo-only anomaly, you should thank your lucky stars you were there to see it firsthand, but I’m hoping the coming year sees the WOLVES step outside of the underground musical bubble that is the Queen’s City.
UNA BÉSTIA INCONTROLABLE - Observant Com El Mon Es Destrueix LP (La Vida Es Un Mus)
This band is the most recent in a long line of Barcelona hardcore bands that take the DISCHARGE blueprint, force it to its knees, and stomp on its guts. Like predecessors INVASION, DESTINO FINAL, and GLAM, la BESTIA creates a truly menacing and demented soundtrack to criminal insanity. The DIY scene has seen an explosion of glue-huffing, raw punx over the past two or three years, but nary a one of them can write anthemic hardcore with the power and precision of UBI. These are distorted nightmares sonically forcing their way into your drug-addled brain, never to escape.
PLEASURE LEFTISTS - Elephant Man b/w Not Over 7” (Katorga Works)
In a sea of post-punk/new-wave/goth-y clone acts, this one stands head and shoulders above the rest. Their previous work, a 12” EP on Fandeath Records, was, for the longest time, overlooked by most of the punk universe. I scored a copy a couple years back and was shocked that I hadn’t heard anyone talking about this band. The melodies are haunting, the vocals sound like a ghoulish version of that fruit from RUSH, and the rhythms and tempos beckon for the listener to just “dance, dance, DANCE!” The fact that they’re made up of members of one of my favorite Cleveland hardcore bands (9 SHOCK TERROR) is icing on the cake, and it’s a damn good cake, too! This is a two-song single on Katorga Works that serves as a teaser/demo to their most recent 12”, but I kinda like these cuts better than the later versions. These freakers live a mere three hours southwest of Buffalo, so there’s little excuse to miss a live showing in the coming year.
MILK MUSIC - Cruise Your Illusion LP (self-released)
I was underwhelmed by the first MILK MUSIC record—just didn’t get the hype. It’s no question that the riffs are there, but the record sounds like a really long fart to me. I'm far from a production snob but their second outing was an obvious step up in terms of recording. It’s crisp, and the addition of a second guitarist has really upped their overall power. It’s probably my most-listened-to record this year. I spun it constantly when I first started setting up to open Black Dots, and, for that reason alone, it will remind me of last summer for the rest of my days. The record weaves in and out of somber, melodic hooks into really upbeat hits in true ‘90s-college-rock fashion. Yeah, I’ll throw in the obligatory DINOSAUR JR comparison, but there’s a lot more going on. This is a fully realized vision of a full-length record.
TENEMENT - Freak Cast In Iron b/w Books On Hell And Sermons On T.V. (Cowabunga), Puke & Destroy 2 comp (Snuffy Smiles) and split with SCREAMING FEMALES (Recess)
For years, the Midwest’s best-kept secret released record after record, crafting a sound that’s really hard to pin down, with heavy nods to Midwestern pop-rock, the SST back catalogue, and maybe even a touch of the blues, some real soul. The term “pop-punk” could never do TENEMENT justice, although it is pop, and it’s undeniably punk. But these guys are hardcore outsiders, just as likely to spin a Charles Mingus record as they are to jam on DIE KRUEZEN riffs during a mid-set tuning session. With their most recent full-length offering in 2012, the band showcased their widest array of influence—from country to garage and everywhere in between. Somehow, it all works, and every subsequent release has continued down the path of reinventing their sound. This band is a real powerhouse—true style all the way through. We were only graced with a series of small-vinyl singles and splits this year, but the next 12 months promises at least their third full-length on Don Giovani Records. Here’s hoping for more!
RIVAL MOB - Mob Justice (Revelation)
This gets my vote for best ‘core record to come out in recent memory. With the heart and soul of New York hardcore’s golden age (nods to bands like BREAKDOWN and WARZONE), RIVAL MOB presents the listener with a modern take on a classic hardcore style. I’m a fan of just about anything singer Brendan Radigan touches. Time and time again, he proves himself to be one of the most versatile voices in punk today. There are his SABBATH-inspired croons in MAGIC CIRLCE (another recent release everyone should search out) and the NWOBHM hooks in his previous band, BATTLE RUINS. And now, he spends most of his time devoted to the MOB—some serious, hard-nosed, meat-and-potatoes ‘core.
SPACE WOLVES - IV CS (Ut Records)
Far and away, this is my favorite cassette-only release of the year. SPACE WOLVES is the brainchild of Buffalo punk rock Svengali Nicholas Reynolds. I feel like the rest of the country— nay, world—is missing the mark, as you have to meet the man behind the music to truly appreciate SPACE WOLVES’ unique brand of retro-pop. Resting well beyond the bounds of social graces, there’s something genius in making the hipster kids bop around to depraved songs about police homicide and crack cocaine. While this is a sub-sect of modern punk I normally hate—a bunch of horn-rimmed gasbags doo-wopping over their grandparents’ 1950s garage riffs—SPACE WOLVES proves to be the exception to the rule. It’s cute but not too cute, ya know. With four releases in the span of 12 months, each tape surpasses the previous one. If “less is more,” just think of how much more MORE could be, right? If this stays a Buffalo-only anomaly, you should thank your lucky stars you were there to see it firsthand, but I’m hoping the coming year sees the WOLVES step outside of the underground musical bubble that is the Queen’s City.
UNA BÉSTIA INCONTROLABLE - Observant Com El Mon Es Destrueix LP (La Vida Es Un Mus)
This band is the most recent in a long line of Barcelona hardcore bands that take the DISCHARGE blueprint, force it to its knees, and stomp on its guts. Like predecessors INVASION, DESTINO FINAL, and GLAM, la BESTIA creates a truly menacing and demented soundtrack to criminal insanity. The DIY scene has seen an explosion of glue-huffing, raw punx over the past two or three years, but nary a one of them can write anthemic hardcore with the power and precision of UBI. These are distorted nightmares sonically forcing their way into your drug-addled brain, never to escape.
PLEASURE LEFTISTS - Elephant Man b/w Not Over 7” (Katorga Works)
In a sea of post-punk/new-wave/goth-y clone acts, this one stands head and shoulders above the rest. Their previous work, a 12” EP on Fandeath Records, was, for the longest time, overlooked by most of the punk universe. I scored a copy a couple years back and was shocked that I hadn’t heard anyone talking about this band. The melodies are haunting, the vocals sound like a ghoulish version of that fruit from RUSH, and the rhythms and tempos beckon for the listener to just “dance, dance, DANCE!” The fact that they’re made up of members of one of my favorite Cleveland hardcore bands (9 SHOCK TERROR) is icing on the cake, and it’s a damn good cake, too! This is a two-song single on Katorga Works that serves as a teaser/demo to their most recent 12”, but I kinda like these cuts better than the later versions. These freakers live a mere three hours southwest of Buffalo, so there’s little excuse to miss a live showing in the coming year.
~ Post by Josh Smith
