Stiletto Bomb - Screaming From The Bottom

 

I'm very happy that I can bring you an exclusive today, the song I'm posting below is appearing online for the first time so I'd like to thank Jay for allowing a small blog that's nothing more than a labour of love hobby the chance to debut it.

  Some of you may remember that I posted a song called Ampgrinder a while back. It was the calling card of Stiletto Bomb and I predicted it would end up being one of 2015's best tracks. Now, very impressively, they've added another 5 tracks to it, and it's part of their debut ep, In The Dark. Rather pleasingly every track's a winner and my early prediction is going to be spot on. It's due out on Mooster Records on 7 August but you can pre-order it here : https://stilettobomb.bandcamp.com/releases

  The band, for those who haven't already discovered them, features J & Matty Prozac (The Prozacs) and Scotty & J Blood (The Uncomfortables/Pajama Slave Dancers). Possibly the most pleasing aspect of the band however is that Jay's recruited his wife, Andy Nihilate as co vocalist and their duelling vocals, combined with the fast tempo tunes and catchy as hell choruses make me declare that this could well turn out to be his best work yet.

  An adrenaline rush of a song, this is Screaming From The Bottom......

Give it everything you've got
your heart, your soul
sometimes it's not enough
and it keeps us wondering...

If there's even a point
a time or place
where things will balance out
or at least seem worthwhile

I hate these feelings of depression and despair
it's a disease runs deep it's rotting at the core
it's something in our hearts we just can't let it go
the blood, the sweat, the tears
we call it rock and roll

We're screaming from the bottom one more time
we'll give it all we've got
we're screaming from the bottom one last time 
we're never gonna stop 

Sloppy Kisses - New Pompeii

  One thing I've noticed about compiling the songs in this blog is that more often than not a song by a band that not many people have heard of will get more views than one by someone well known, for example last week The RiceCrackers and Broken Talent both had around three times as many views as Billy Bragg. I'd like to think that this is a sign that people are reading this blog because they want to discover something new.

  If that's the case then hopefully today's update, a track from a demo released last year by Portland, Oregon band Sloppy Kisses will be tempt the curious amongst you to listen to what is a very promising debut. (You can check it out here : https://sloppykisses.bandcamp.com/releases).

  The band feature members who are in, or were in, a number of other bands (Dottie Attie, Wild Mohicans, Therapists, Final Massakre). They are Rose (vocals), Jeramy (guitar/vocals), Jason (bass) and Chris (drums).

  I know very little else about them other than they're shortly supporting Piss Test and there's new recordings on their way. Until then, this is track 7 from the demo and it's called New Pompeii......


New Pompeii is the place to be
 
New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

The trendy fucks flock to this city 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

Two looming giants sleeping nearby
 
New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

Waiting to blow ash into the sky
 
New Pompeii, New Pompeii 



You have a false sense of protection 

Living in the shadow of ashy extinction 

Just wait until the eruptions begin 

And your ash-filled lungs are burning 



So quickly we forget the past 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

30 years ago a 27 megaton blast 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii
 
The northern giant unleashed death
 
New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

Destroying acres with its ashy breath
 
New Pompeii, New Pompeii 



New Pompeii is the place to be 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii 

To relive the events of 1980

New Pompeii, New Pompeii

But just remember Vesuvius 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii
 
Next time that could be us 

New Pompeii, New Pompeii

Billy Bragg - Sexuality

"A progressive is someone who wants to see society re-organised so

 that everyone has access to the

 means by which to reach their full potential"



A song from one of Britain's greatest ever songwriters today. Billy Bragg, the Bard of Barking, has been a firm favourite ever since his first release, Life's A Riot With Spy Vs Spy (1983).

  Armed with a guitar and a social conscience, he's been the creator of a stunning body of work, but you know all this so I don't need to write too big an intro.

  The song I've chosen is quite apt in a week in which the USA has made same sex marriage legal nationwide. Co written by Johnny Marr and featuring backing vocals by the much missed Kirsty MacColl (the video was directed by and features comedian Phil Jupitus), this is Sexuality......


I've had relations with girls from many nations
I've made passes at women of all classes
And just because you're gay I won't turn you away
If you stick around I'm sure that we can find some common ground

Sexuality
Strong and warm and wild and free
Sexuality
Your laws do not apply to me

A nuclear submarine sinks off the coast of Sweden
Headlines give me headaches when I read them
I had an uncle who once played for Red Star Belgrade
He said some things are really left best unspoken
But I prefer it all to be out in the open

Sexuality
Strong and warm and wild and free
Sexuality
Your laws do not apply to me
Sexuality
Don't threaten me with misery
Sexuality
I demand equality

I'm sure that everybody knows how much my body hates me
It lets me down most every time and makes me rash and hasty
I feel a total jerk before your naked body of work

I'm getting weighed down with all this information
Safe sex doesn't mean no sex it just means use your imagination
Stop playing with yourselves in hard currency hotels
I look like Robert De Niro, I drive a Mitsubishi Zero

Sexuality
Strong and warm and wild and free
Sexuality
Your laws do not apply to me
Sexuality
Come eat and drink and sleep with me
Sexuality
We can be what we want to be

Wasted - Doom Train

 
  Today's song is by Wasted, a band who've been together since 1996 and who are from Joensuu, Finland.

  Influenced by the likes of Black Flag, Adolescents, Operation Ivy, Spermbirds and Stiff Little Fingers, they came together with the desire to play raw old school punk rock, something that was a rarity in the Finnish music scene at the time.

  Writing songs about the things that piss them off, they improved gradually and a move to Helsinki saw them progress to a level where they were ready to enter a recording studio. Their first release was 1998's Inside Out ep, this was shortly followed by the Battle Of Life ep. Interest was high enough by then that they played their first European tour and released debut album Suppress And Restrain (2000), as with many of their subsequent releases it came out on Combat Rock Industry and Boss Tunage.

  The years since have seen several line up changes, lots of touring and several great albums (Down And Out, Can't Wash Off The Stains, Heroes Amongst Thieves, Outsider From Choice and Here Comes The Darkness). There's also a couple of collections, Here We Go Again (2003) and The Early Years (2012).

  Curently touring Poland, the band is made up of Ville Ronkko (vocals/guitar), Tuomas "Jamppa" Jarvinen (bass), Antti Ronkko (guitar) and Mikka Jarvinen (drums).

  The song I've posted below is from 2011's Outside By Choice and is an top notch anthemic mid paced punk anthem called Doom Train.....
 

The RiceCrackers - Mall Girls

 

 Yesterday, I noticed I had a message. It was from Olivia West and read thus;

 "My name is Olivia and my band RiceCrackers recently released an EP. We would love to submit our EP, Kohole Kid, to be reviewed in the Just Some Punk Songs blog. Or if you don't want to review it, that's cool too.

  We are an all-Asian female-fronted punk band from Boston, MA. We draw inspiration from grunge, ska and early punk. Formed in the sewers of Berklee College of Music. The RiceCrackers is a musical experience that was described by Thrash N' Bang as "confusing, intriguing and very good."

  We will be on tour in the PNW this August."

  And those are the sort of messages that send me into a panic. I started the blog during a Christmas break when I was bored and wondered if I could suss out how to do it. I just wanted to post some of my favourite songs and hope there would be others out there that would discover them. I don't really do reviews (they're just brief introductions to the band) as I'm not a good enough writer and who am I to tell anyone with far more talent that I possess that I think their labour of love sucks! That's why I worry when people send me stuff, if I don't like it do I post it anyway or do I try and squirm out of it. The fact that anyone wants me to write about their records still amazes (and humbles) me.

  So back to Olivia's message. I clicked play and was confronted with something a little different to what I was expecting. A lone guitar ushered in an ethereal, floating female voice which was pretty eerie and haunting. Before too long though, things had speeded up somewhat and a feeling of anger began to dominate. Things were getting interesting. Then there were the backing ooo's before the singer started raging about the current fashion of people getting fucked up for fun..... Possibly not the best description of a song you've ever heard but hopefully good enough to tempt you to go and listen : http://berkleepunx.bandcamp.com/album/kolohe-kid

  Anyway, to sum up, I'd describe it as eerie post punk. They (they being Olivia, Huxley, Yoshi and Andy) describe it as "Jangle Punk" "Hapa Grunge" and "Angry Fuzz" but whatever label you want to tag it with, it's inventive, fresh and deserving of your attention. The lead track from the EP, this is Mall Girls.....



*A good friend brought up some concerns to us about the “drinks getting laced” line being possibly interpreted as victim blaming. This refers to people getting fucked up for fun and thinking it is counter culture to do so. It is not referring to people spiking other’s drinks to sexually abuse them. This is not, in any way whatsoever, intended to be victim blaming.*

Mall girls show me what they bought 
Mall girls do just what they're taught 
Mall girls, mall girls, mall girls 

Mall girls think that they’re so clean 
Mall girls can never be mean 
Mall girls, mall girls, mall girls 

Mall girls are so edgy 
Stealing my pride and identity 
Mall girls, mall girls, mall girls 

Hype me up then tear me down 
Named me the Queen but you threw me half a crown 

(ooo’s) 

Hey Becky, nice $50 pre-pilled flannel 
heard you have every color of Doc Martens 

Spangles on your face, drinks getting laced 
This is fun, this is a good time 

We’re so cool, We’re so punk 
We’re so high, We’re so drunk 

Hanging out after school 
chilling in my dad’s pool 

We have money this is fun 
pretending we come from 
a land 

S O F A R A W A Y 

Mall girl show me what you bought 
Mall girl, do just you're taught 
Mall girls, mall girls, mall girls

Sorry State - Better Days

  Sorry State are a hardcore punk band from Long Beach, California who currently feature David "Pee Wee" Martinez (vocals), Steve Porter (guitar), Steve Beaver (bass) and Bryan Bailey (drums). Influenced by the likes of D.R.I., Suicidal Tendencies and S.O.D. they've been together since 2009. One of the most hardworking bands around, they've played hundreds of shows, sharing a stage with acts of the calibre of Discharge, Dr Know, Angry Samoans, Channel 3, Fear and Agnostic Front.

  Recording wise, they debuted in 2010 with the Last Ride ep, this was followed a year later with the Hook Hands ep before the release of debut album No Hard Feelings (2013).

  Following a number of line up changes they released sophomore album Protect And Serve (from which today's song is taken) and their latest, the Vacation ep.

  Longing for a times past, this is Better Days.......

Broken Talent - Might As Well Die (Punk)

"I'm so bored
I don't know why
I got nothing to do
So I might as well die...."

  Don't you just hate them? Those select few who can make sloppy, couldn't give a fuck music sound so good. It's an art form being able to produce something that sounds as though it probably took 5 minutes to cobble together but which timelessly still sounds as magnificent 30 years down the line as it did when it first saw the light of day.

  Broken Talent were from Miami and featured the talents of Richard "Santo" Mallia (vocals), Malcolm Tent (bass/vocals), Marky Awesome (guitar) and Kat Holzhauser (drums). Their first release was 1984's Blood Slut 7" which came out on Tent's T.P.O.S. label and is now a must have purchase for collectors despite being largely ignored at the time.

  The following year T.P.O.S. also gathered together all their early recordings and added a few unreleased tracks to make up the Good, Bad, Awful album..... Fast forward 30 years and Floridas Dying has lovingly compiled a 14 track collection of their best material. Called Rules No one, it's definitely one you don't want to miss, you can check it out here :  http://totalpunkrecords.bandcamp.com/album/broken-talent-rules-no-one-lp 

  The song I've posted below is the punk version of Might As Well Die.....

The Rebel Spell - Last Run

  Today's song is by East Vancouver's The Rebel Spell, a band who formed in 2002 and who play socially conscious punk rock with a d.i.y. attitude. They originally featured Toddserious (Todd Jenkins) on vocals, Wretchederin on guitar, Chris Rebel on bass and Stepha on drums though by the time of their latest release Elliot was on bass and Travis on drums.

  They've released four albums; Expression In Layman's Terms (2003), Days Of Rage (2005), Beautiful Future (2011) and Last Run (2014). There's was also 2007's Four Songs About Freedom ep. You can check them all out here :  http://therebelspell.bandcamp.com/album/last-run. If you like your punk music heartfelt, honest and with a coherent message, you're probably already familiar with them. If they've passed you by then now's the time to put that right.

  Tragically, Todd Jenkins passed away earlier this year. On Saturday, March 7th, he was in a fatal accident whilst rock climbing in Black Velvet Canyon.


  Today's song is one of the best I've posted thus far, it's the title track from their Last Run album......


Run run run run my gorgeous cousins to a beautiful place where the helis don’t fly 
Out of the reach of man and industry away from this scourge, the destroyer of all 
This doesn’t come from logic or ignorance you’ve been set up and sentenced to
die
 
You’ve been blamed but you won’t be tried just poisoned or shot for someone
else’s crimes 

Don’t blame the wolf, don’t blame the seal if it will help you can blame me 
Blame the tar sands and the fishing fleets, or forestry, blame industry
 

200,000 cattle trample the land, roads end wilderness for everything it has 
The tailing ponds kill the river that runs through and wolves get the blame for
missing Caribou 
Giant drag nets scrape the ocean dead and somehow seals are the new threat 
Double the humans in less than 50 years and it’s someone else’s fault when the
herds disappear
 

Don’t blame the wolf, don’t blame the seal, if it will help you can blame me, 
Blame the tar sands and the fishing fleets, or forestry blame industry 
Don’t blame the wolf, don’t blame the seal, if it will help you can blame me, 
How about the growing cities and the sprawling streets, blame agriculture, blame
industry
Blame me Blame me

Every witch hunt the same purpose, be it women, wolves, snakes or albatross 
How long will these games go on they do nothing to help and only deepen the loss 

Blame the war on nature, blame the fear of green, blame the lazy cowards in huge
machines, 
Blame us all together as we poison the sea, blame the way we consume and
breed and breed 
or pesticides and the GMO wheat, the water you waste for the taste of meat 
Blame acid rain, yes it’s still a thing, clear-cuts you can see from space 
reactor leaks, open pits, massive dams and their floods of death 
Blame our anthropocentric mind disease, science dragged out back and forced to
its knees 
Blame your own inaction while the world bleeds, blame that on the distractions of
your silly scene 
I know you need a sacrifice to your god of greed if it will help you can take me
blame me blame me blame me

Violent Affair - Trapped Like Rats

 

  Today I'm bringing you some brand new and really rather wonderful "Fast As Fuck Punk-Rock" from Oklahoma City.

  Violent Affair have been stoking the flames of rebellion since 2009. They play fast yet catchy street punk which reminds me of The Casualties at their best, other influences they mention include Krum Bums, Clit 45 and The Pinkerton Thugs.

  The band comprises of Dave Affair (vocals), The Jesse Machine (guitar), Tony Cozzaglio (bass), Dom The Destroyer (guitar) and Ryan Violence (drums). Seasoned musicians all, they've also featured in a number of other bands including The Rippers, The Violence and The Costellos.

  Their debut release was 2009's self released Armageddon ep and this was followed a year later by debut album, Stand Trial. Since then, Jailhouse Records have released the Call To Arms 7", The Pressure Is Rising ep and album number 2, The Cockroach Theory.

  The song I'm posting today is from the newly self released ep Anthems Of Defiance In A Dying World Volume 1. It's the first of a planned 5 eps in the series which will eventually make up a full length album. If every installment is this good we're in for a treat. You can check it out here : http://violentaffair.bandcamp.com/album/anthemsof-defiance-in-a-dying-world-vol-1-denial/ .

  I recently posted the link on the new punk music group on Facebook and it seemed to go down very well (and rightly so). Strap in, this is one of the best songs of 2015, it's called Trapped Like Rats.....

does every day have to be the same?

I've got half a mind to put a bullet in my brain

I'm sick to death of the same old shit

its like I'm running in place and it makes me sick

does anyone else here feel the same way

like your staring at the world through bars on a cage

so I'm climbing up the walls and I'm pacing all around

like a rat in a cage and i wanna get out!

trapped like rats we're trapped like rats

we're trapped likes rats in a cage

dreaming of the day we escape

now we're spreading like the plague

these rats will rule the world some day

does everything have to frustrate me?

I get angrier every time that I blink

I'm so fed up with everything that I see

its like the whole fucking world is out to get me

does anyone else here seem to relate

or am I all alone imprisoned by my rage

so I'm biding my time and plotting everyday

just a rat in a cage and I wanna break free

trapped like rats we're trapped like rats

we're trapped likes rats in a cage

dreaming of the day we escape

now we're spreading like the plague

these rats will rule the world some day

plotting every day and we wanna break free

Tank Girl - Eh Bau!

"You're sick, you're sick, you're really, really sick....and you don't even know it......."  


  After I posted a song from India yesterday I was told by The Strange, Obscure, DIY And Outsider Music Group's head honcho  Gary Riley that whilst there is punk in India, Nepal is better. So today, I'm adding a song from that country.

  Tank Girl were a diy anarcha-feminist trio from Kathmandu who formed in 2005 and featured a couple of members of Nepal's best known diy punk band, Rai Ko Ris. These were Sareena Rai (bass/vocals) and Olivier Bertin (drums), they also featured Sampretty Gurung (guitar/backing vocals).

  Most of their songs concern themselves with the exploitation, hatred, sexism, domestic violence, unequality etc towards the women in the Nepalese community. They played many benefit gigs in support of those causes.  "Grim as the subject matter might be, Tank Girl's music makes you want to jump around and join them in rebellion against the infuriating reality of sexism."

  As for their music, in 2005 they released an album called ...Kids With Guns + Choco Fun!! which received a European release on German label Dorfpunkgangdeluxe. Featuring on that album is a great cover of X Ray Spex's I Live Off You which I was tempted to make song of the day but I decided instead to go with one of their own compositions (if you want to hear the X Ray Spex cover click here :  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz-PQVeqdy4 ).

  If you enjoy ballsy female fronted punk music, you should love this. It's called Eh Bau!......

Punk On Toast - Democracy Is a Lie

 

  Glancing at the statistics for this blog I noticed a couple of things. Firstly, if I want a lot of hits then I should keep posting updates that feature The Dwarves. Secondly, and more relevantly to today's song choice, was that in the list of countries who provide most page views, India features highly. Most of the others (USA, UK, Germany, France, Canada, Spain, Italy, Russia and Australia) are understandable (although I'm a little surprised Japan doesn't feature a little more prominently) but India? I didn't realise there was much of a punk scene there and I can't remember hearing anything so I decided to search around and find something that I liked to post today.

  I settled on a song by a band from Mumbai called Punk On Toast who've been together since 2009 and feature Aditya Naik (guitar/vocals), Kalidas Shenoy (drums), Prathamesh Sandansing (bass/vocals) and Yogesh Lokare (guitar/vocals).

  Influenced by the likes of The Ramones, Rancid, Sex Pistols, Social Distortion, and NOFX, they've been steadily increasing their following at home through frequent gigging and now they're being noticed around the world, largely due to the release of the 5 track For Hire ep which came out at the start of this year. You can check it out here : http://punkontoast.bandcamp.com/releases

  If you want to discover new punk music from different countries around the world, there's plenty of interesting and exciting scenes worth seeking out. If you stumble across anything you like then spread the world. Far from being dead, punk rock is probably more widespread in 2015 than it's ever been.

  Railing against the way the India makes a joke of the term democracy and abuses it, this is Democracy Is A Lie.......

Vicious Cycle - I Hate Cops

  This will be a quick intro as I know very little about today's band. The song's supposedly a cover of a classic by The Authorities called I Hate Cops (which appeared on this blog last August http://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/authorities-i-hate-cops.html).

  This version is by Vicious Cycle and sounds rather different to me but is still a short, sharp blast of killer punk rock that deserves it's place in this collection of top notch songs.

  You can find it on a compilation called Killed By Trash 2 which originally came out in 2009 on P Trash Records and has recently been re released : http://www.drunkensailorrecords.co.uk/products/551051-v-a-killed-by-trash-vol-2-lp-full-trash-20-bonus-v-a-killed-by-p-trash-vol-50-7-p-trash-50

  Anyway, please compare and contrast both versions, as they're both great, and see what you think......

Thee Tsunamis - Trash Talk

  Thee Tsunamis describe themselves better than I could so I'll just throw in a couple of quotes :

   "Thee Tsunamis blend girl-group bubblegum with feral punk, hugging every

 hairpin turn of Kim Fowley's trashbucket heart with their fuzz-crusted pop hooks"

   " jagged harmonies over fuzz-crusted pop hooks, marries the New York Dolls’

 gutter-glam attitude with the sound of Brill Building teen-sploitation, to a much

 bloodier effect." 


  The all girl trio, Betsy Bebop (vocals/guitar), Juana La Loca (bass) and Bongo

Birdsong (drums) are from Bloomington, Indiana and have been together since

2012. Influenced by artists as diverse as Jerry Lee Lewis, The Shangri-Las and

The Oblivions, they're definitely worth checking out.

  
  The song that I'm posting today is called Trash Talk and is taken from their latest

 album, Saturday Night Sweetheart. Recently out on Magnetic South Recordings,

 you can find it here

 : http://theetsunamis.bandcamp.com/ 

The Underdogs - Never Gonna Give Up On Myself

  Another song from the 80's today, one of several that I've posted recently that would probably have been hits if they'd been released a few years earlier before the mainstream decided that punk was no longer relevant. For all those people that swapped their bondage trousers for their partner's make up bags once punk had been pronounced dead, you missed some killer tunes guys.

  The Underdogs, like many bands from that era, weren't overly prolific. From Leeds, they only released a couple of demos (Riot In Rothwell and East Of Dachau) and a 3 track ep, also called East Of Dachau, which came out in 1983 on Riot City Records.

  They were U.G. (vocals), Col (guitar/vocals), Bill (drums/vocals) and Martin (bass/vocals) though Martin was replaced after the single came out by former Expelled bassist Macca.

 Forthcoming is their Punk Demos Collection that will feature remastered versions and is out on Common People Records in October :  http://commonpeoplerecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-underdogs-the-punk-demos-collection-cpr011

  Probably my favourite of theirs, this is Never Gonna Give Up On Myself....

When I was small,
I learned lots of things,
pissed it all back by the wall

Memories of school, 
kicking cobbled stones,
smoking and breaking the...
prima donna of power still calls

Tells me how I made a mess of it all
But I ain't finished yet
So let's go...

I'm never gonna give up on myself!

I'm still in spring,
getting older everyday,
but learning how to live

Bring myself up, to do things my way,
disregard the...
prima donna of power's still there,

And they still stop and stare
But I ain't finished yet...
So let's go...