Sister Disaster - Fools

  

  So there I was, wondering what I could post for today's update and up pops Lorna from Rabies Babies with "...would you like me to send you a copy of the Girlz Disorder comp. The label sent us a few CDs extra and I thought it'd be good to send them to people who might enjoy hearing it and maybe play some tracks on your show sometime. The UK bands on the comp are us, Ramonas and Menstrual Cramps, who I know you will have heard of, and the rest of the bands are all female from all over the world, all proper punk. I'd never heard of any of them but they are all really great bands." 

  The 3 UK bands certainly are really great so I was more than happy to check out the rest of the comp. I didn't even wait for the cd, I went straight to Bandcamp and like a hungry kid at the Woolworth's Pick And Mix counter I gorged myself on some of the tasty treats on offer. The comp boasts "24 100% female punk / hardcore bands from 15 countries" and includes songs from places like Brazil, Poland, Peru, Colombia, Lithuania, Indonesia, Singapore, Mexico etc... The standard is high throughout and you're guaranteed to discover something new that you like. It's available via French label Mass Prod and you can find it here : https://massprod.bandcamp.com/album/girlz-disorder 

  I'll play a couple of different tracks on next week's Just Some Punk Songs show but the song I'm posting below is by Finnish band Sister Disaster (https://www.facebook.com/sisterdisasterband/). They're from Jyväskylä, line up with Hanna (bass), Sanna (guitar), Kaa (vocals/guitar) and Riikka (drums) and in 2018 they released an album titled Away which you can download "name your price" on Bandcamp :  https://sisterdisaster.bandcamp.com/album/away 

  This song is called Fools...

The Fistulas - Inside Of You! (Review By Dirk Ceustermans)

  Our resident expert on all things Belgian Dirk Ceustermans brings us another killer band from his native land today....

Fistulas - Inside Of You! 

  Sometimes I don't open my letterbox for days, my records are sent to the address where I work so only commercials, bills and flyers from stupid politicians get dropped in it. Don't they read the sign saying "No Commercials / No politic promises"?

  But sometime ago, checking the amount of paper to be thrown away from the letterbox, there was this tiny parcel. in it a cassette, from the Fistulas! Yeah course, Dr Weskes said they were recording, and here it is. But a cassette? ok, get the deck activated again and er... hang on, this is not a cassette!
It's an usb stick in the size and shape of a cassette! Brilliant!

  On gets the pc, opening the folder (sooo modern.. oh la la) and play the mothers. The Fistulas are brave: They get some (un)healthy PNC dished up on your earplates. In times like these it takes some bravery.

  Garage punk in its ultimate simplicity and titles like Glitch Bitch, Bikini Girls, Sex Machine, Pushy and Inside of You! don't deny their urge for ehm Rock 'n' Roll

  I know Dr Weskes for quite a while now, and I know he is a real good guitarman, and on stage he is quite a showman as well. In this band that won't be any different. The rhythm section Krikke on bass & Wizarizer on drums keep things easy enough for us to shake a hip or two.

  The song Inside of You! sounds like someone desperately has an urge to... well.. you know. I only just now watched the video they put onto the tube, and it made me Laugh Out Loud. Fistulas are eL Ow eL, and they sure are enjoying the fun, I can hear that.

10 tracks on this usb cassette, you can hear 8 of them on their website: http://thefistulas.com/music/
Make sure to watch the header movie too, coolage!!

Inside of you!

Hetze - Selfish (Review By Dirk Ceustermans)

(photo : Gwinny Punk)

  Another review by Dirk Ceustermans today of a band I was previously unaware of so thanks to him for introducing them to me.

HETZE - SELFISH 

taken from BEDBUGS (june 2018)

https://hetze.bandcamp.com/track/selfish

  3 ladies and a bloke from 2 different towns in Belgium teamed up to form the noiziest girl fronted band in Belgium that I know of. Hetze can be best translated as witch-hunt or agitation, and I believe they couldn't have found a better name for the music they create.

  Eva's vocals just rip through the blasting guitars, while the drums pound faultless beats with neat breaks, occasional backings of a high pitched voice makes it even scarier at moments. Damn I love this release from start to end.

  I chose selfish, as it makes me think of the days I was toying with the idea of starting a family.
Questions popped up in my brains back then (over 20 years ago) whether it is ok to put kids onto a world like this. In the end me and my then wife were SELFISH, and I regret nothing about that at all!!! har har.

  I haven't had the opportunity to catch them live, but listened to their release numerous times for while now. Although released already last summer, this -as so many other bands - was kept well under my radar. Yup, I'm lazy! Thank god there's Facebook friends getting bands like this one to my attention.

  11 furious tracks gathered on a plastic slab baptised "Bedbugs" and brought to you by a cooperation of the labels:

Loner Cult records - nico.vuur@gmail.com 

Emergence records - vincemergence@hotmail.com 

Up the Punx Records - upthepunxrecords@gmail.com 

Fucking Kill Records - killchris70@googlemail.com 

ZAS Autoproduzioni Records - zasrec@libero.it

  This is Selfish...

are we scared to be lonely 

is there an urge to reproduce 

commit to nature not humanity 

don’t worry and watch the news 

world population is out of control 

enough people in this world 

don’t drag someone in this misery 

a kid is not a band aid 

to fix and solve your tragedy

The Serpent Motors - Rollercoaster

  The Serpent Motors are a 4 piece punk n roll band from Chesterfield and The Peak District. They've been gigging for around 5 years, mainly in the North of England but they ventured down to London last year to play the Dublin Castle. Their next gig will be at The Tipsy Toad in Matlock on 19th April. Their influences include old school punk bands Ramones, Sex Pistols and Sham 69 as well as the likes of Nirvana, AC/DC and Slaves. You can find more info on them here :   https://www.facebook.com/TheSerpentMotor/

  Last year they released a 7 track album titled Rock n Roll Radio. Sharing a name with the classic Ramones song there's definitely hints of the Forest Hills legends in their sound but they definitely aren't a Ramonescore band. You can check out the album here :   https://theserpentmotors1.bandcamp.com/album/rock-n-roll-radio

  This is the opening track, it's called Rollercoaster...

I've been waiting all my life 
I've been waiting all the time 
I've been waiting all of my life 
I've been waiting all my life 
I've been stood, stood in line 
I've been waiting standing in line 

Now I'm going to ride the Rollercoaster 
I'm going to ride the times getting closer 
I'm going to ride the Rollercoaster with you 

I've been waiting for my chance 
I've been waiting for my dance 
I've been waiting all of my life 
I've been doing what I like 
I've been doing it all the time 
I've been doing what I like 

Now I'm going to ride the Rollercoaster 
I'm going to ride the times getting closer 
I'm going to ride the Rollercoaster with you 

Whoa oh ride the Rollercoaster 
Whoa oh ride the Rollercoaster 
Whoa oh ride the Serpent Motor with you

HAEMERS - NOISE (Review By Dirk Ceustermans)

  I think it's fair to now call Dirk Ceustermans the official Just Some Punk Songs Belgian correspondent. Every so often he'll pop up with "I've got another one for you Mick."  He's yet to disappoint.

  Dirk's written a couple of paragraphs about a hardcore punk 4 piece from Ghent called HAEMERS. They line up with Bram (vocals), Joris (drums), Bert (bass) and Pieter (guitar). Their Facebook page is :  https://www.facebook.com/haemersband/

  Last year they released a Demo and you can find it Name Your Price here :   https://haemers.bandcamp.com/album/demo

  And now over to the song that Dirk's chosen....

HAEMERS - NOISE 
taken from DEMO released June 6, 2018

  Patrick Haemers was a criminal from Brussels who was part of a gang known for its violent robberies on money transports back in the 80s. At the end of that decade, this gang kidnapped a famous and rich Belgian politician, for whom they asked ransom which they got. However police were on his tail as they arrested a few involved. But by then Haemers was already in Rio De Janeiro. A bit like Ronald Biggs' story innit?
Brazilian authorities arrested him and sent them back to Belgium. 
Finally he committed suicide (some argue about that) in jail in 1993.

  So this band took up his name to unleash their violent attacks onto us, successfully so. There's more bands in Belgium that use the names of famous people over here, Travolta comes to mind, or the yet to be unleashed band called Johnny Flamingo.

  I wanted to write more about the band but by the time you've read this, the song will be over.

  This is NOISE...

Rites Of Hadda - Keep Buying Things

  Rites Of Hadda are from London and tag themselves as an anarcho, pagan, gothic, psychedelic witchpunk band. They were born from a weekly jam session in a London squat and have released 3 eps;  Samhain Ritual #1 (Live At The Gunners), From The Blow and the recent 7 track Witchpunk. If you're wondering what a combination of anarcho, pagan, gothic, psychedelic and witchpunk sounds like, all 3 releases are name your price on Bandcamp :  https://ritesofhadda.bandcamp.com/

  Listening to the opening track on the latest release (From The Blow), it sounds like fairly pacy bass led post-punk. I was expecting something akin to Bauhaus and maybe the deep vocals do remind me a little of them but the sound overall is less gloom laden. And then we get track 2 (Raven), which actually does bring to mind Bauhaus. Then the next track, the one that you'll see a video for at the bottom of this update, is more of a politically motivated garage stomper railing against corporate greed. Rather than have me struggling to describe the rest of the songs, check them out yourselves but to sum up it's good stuff. Even the threat of psychedelic meandering didn't really come to pass so a sigh of relief was given.

  For more info go here :  https://www.facebook.com/ritesofhadda/

  And onto my favourite song. This is Keep Buying Things...

Is the point of life just to have more things 
To earn more cash get super thin 
buy the next TV, the right Asian food 
Feed the fads, feel anew. 

Is the point of life to drift aimlessly 
Down the tow path with the family 
Dress the kids in the latest threads 
Then drown the puppies ripped from their beds 

Is the point of life just to have more fun 
Keep on drinking girl fuck everyone 
Keep the vomit down although that seems absurd 
Keep trudging through, don't speak a word 

What am I looking for in all this fun 
What am I looking for on the canal with Mum 
TV is shit and makes me scream 
I've starved myself and shaved pristine. 

What are we looking for in the latest car 
As we drive about poisoning the stars 
Is this the peak of it our time here 
Buying things because we're lost in fear 

Created woes are now our everyday 
As we take the kids to the park to play 
Our thoughts are locked by those who know the game 
Those who work against us, with no shame. 

Keep buying things don't think beyond 
Keep buying things and you'll belong 
Keep buying things you dunno why 
Keep buying things that make you cry 
Keep buying things that make you coo 
Keep buying things that manipulate you 

Our thoughts are boxed our thoughts are holed 
By corporate greed and those in the know 
It doesn't pay if we search for truth 
In the soil we walk on, in horn and hoof 

It doesn't pay if we look around 
At all her nature at the profound 
Then you're lost in the world unknown 
Despatched departed dismissed as stoned 

Keep buying things don't think beyond 
Keep buying things and you'll belong 
Keep buying things you dunno why 
Keep buying things that make you cry 
Keep buying things that make you coo 
Keep buying things that manipulate you

The Elite - Feel The Heat

 

  The Elite are from Buffalo, New York and describe their sound as being oi/hardcore punk. To be honest, I hear much more hardcore than oi but tags are pretty much irrelevant when the music's this good. There's hardly any info on the band online that I can find but fortunately their 3 track demo is available as a name your price download on Bandcamp so you can just snap it up and enjoy some hard hitting, female fronted (the vocalist is Julie White, formally of Selective Aggression) punk rock. https://eliteusa.bandcamp.com/album/demo                                                                          They're also on Twitter :  https://twitter.com/ELITEUSA13

  This is the lead song on the demo, the opening few seconds remind me of the intro to Sleaford Mods' TCR but this is just a fleeting impression as it soon kicks up a gear into a melodic hardcore banger that promises great things. Similar to the highly rated ep by Petite (https://petitepdx.bandcamp.com/album/ii-remastered) that I featured on here a while back, The Elite have that happy knack of mixing hooks, melody and aggression to produce a sound that should please pretty much everyone who visits this blog. I look forward to hearing more from them. This is Feel The Heat...

HEXDEBT - Covenant

 

(photo : Louise Rocketeer)
 

  So what's on this week's Just Some Punk Songs show (later today at 8pm UK time :  https://www.facebook.com/events/323741474929021/)?  As usual it's an hour's worth of great new punk releases including the recent single from HEXDEBT (who are one of three Melbourne bands to feature this week).

  Featuring Lucy Fry (drums), Agnes Whalan (vocals/guitar), Isobel D'Cruz Barnes (bass) and Aife Larkin (guitar), HEXDEBT are preparing to release their debut album. As a taster they recently released a single on Poison City Records and you can find it here :  https://poisoncityrecords.bandcamp.com/album/covenant-single  

 You can find their 2017 single Bitch Rising here : https://hexdebt.bandcamp.com/album/bitch-rising and find more info on them here : https://www.facebook.com/HEXDEBTBAND/

  The new single is a post-punk maelstrom of swirling guitar, intense drumming and passionate vocals which addresses the issue of Australia's displacement of indigenous populations and calls on the government to acknowledge those injustices and make reparations. It's called Covenant...

Ero Guro - Corkscrew (Review By Dirk Ceustermans)

  A guest review today by Dirk Ceustermans (Host of Zaphod's MediaMofos :  https://www.mixcloud.com/GlobalPunkRadio/zaphods-mediamofos-71/).

  Dirk's chosen a song by Ero Guro, a band from his native Belgium.  https://www.facebook.com/erogurodiest/


CORKSCREW

from No Nansensu 7" by Ero Guro

https://eroguro.bandcamp.com/track/corkscrew

"I don't wanna get out of line
but you're quite good at spitting -
the messiah of town all preaching about
but too scared to fit in"

  The newest Ero Guro 6 track EP released mid December, 2018

is an amazing trip through obnoxious poetry of best kind.

  The band had already released a superb 7" in 2017, but with this EP 

they continue their journey into a direction that borders 

maddening thoughts supported by great music: 

Short, simple, catchy and demanding attention. 

Ero Guro is definitely a live act to witness, their singer is all over the place,

... and the floor 

  I selected Corkscrew for Mick's blog to give you an idea what these Belgians 

from the little town called Diest are doing. It's a spriralling riff with vocals 

penetrating deep into your mind, screwing your head until it pops into a slow motion 

picture show Do I laugh? Or do I kill?

No shit Sherlock!

Welcome to the twisted mindscapes of Ero Guro's lyrics

  

Higgins and The Magic of the Marketplace - Emily Goes To Public School...

  Another new band to me today but Higgins And The Magic Of The Marketplace is the solo project of  Litterbug bassist Andy Higgins. From Blackpool, he (with I think the aid of a drummer) recently released a debut album titled Dream Consumer Dream!  It's on Just Say No To Government Music on cd and yellow vinyl (ltd to 250 copies) and you can find it streaming here :   https://higginsandthemagicofthemarketplace.bandcamp.com/album/dream-consumer-dream

  It's 11 tracks of punk influenced alt rock, it's inventive and although they're not The Rolling Stones, The Beatles or Ramones, they're bloody good. If you're looking for something a little different then this may be it.

  This is the opening track, Emily Goes To Public School...

It’s a song about Emily 

Emily goes to Public School
Eton Rifles all the way
Britain follows her own rules
Repeat Repeat like Groundhog Day – day – day ….

Sarah’s sharing silent culture
I’ve got no fire in my wine
UK sensibilities unfolding
Buying privilege is fine – fine - fine

We looked around – Kept our feet on the ground
And I thought I’d seen everything
And I thought I’d seen everything

Now all the kids that went to public school
They’ve dismantled the welfare state
Privatised the air we are breathing
Finance war and finance hate – HATE – HATE – HATE

Music
D on G string
(V) F C F G x 2 (FG CG AG CG FG)
(M8) D G D G – DEGE – D ED
BREAK – D G - D A G D

Skull Cult - Braindead

  Skull Cult are from Bloomington, Indiana. As I know pretty much nothing about them this will be a pretty short update but worry not, it just means you get to the music sooner. They released a Self Titled album in 2017 (https://erstetheketontraeger.bandcamp.com/album/ett-053-skull-cult-s-t-lp) which earnt them comparisons with the likes of Coneheads and Liquids. Definitely required listening for those of you that like their punk to be on the quirky side.

  As well as the album, there's also a number of other releases including their recent New Mutilator ep. Check them out here :  https://skullcultusa.bandcamp.com/album/new-mutilator

  The ep features 5 tracks, one of which will be familiar to fans of Talking Heads. Think slightly weird, think very wonderful and you won't be far off. This is the opening track, it's called Braindead....

Derkovbois - Büszke Gyerekek

 

  Back in 2016 I featured a song by a band from Szombathely, Hungary, called Derkovbois admitting I knew pretty much nothing about them but enthusing as to how the song broke out into one of the catchiest gang vocal singalongs you'll hear (https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2016/05/derkovbois-bomba.html)

  Last month they released an ep titled Helyetted senki sem fog a ringbe szallni (google translates it as No one will go to the ring for you) and it's another bunch of infectious street punk anthems. Check it out....  https://derkovbois.bandcamp.com/  

  Another song from the band that surfaced last month was titled Fagyallo, it featured on the Fegyelmezo Reszleg 15th birthday Tribute compilation and it definitely also deserves your attention   https://fegyelmezoreszleg.bandcamp.com/track/derkovbois-fagy-ll

  Find more info on the band here : https://www.facebook.com/derkovbois/

  This video is for the song Buszke Gyerekek (Prideful Kids) and it proves exactly why Derkovbois are one of street punk's catchiest outfits....

Lehetsz te bármennyire kemény, ha szívedben nincsen több remény
Szórhatod másokra átkaid, ha kiszáradtak már saját álmaid
Céltalanul csak sódródsz és túlész. Hősök nélkül mit sem érsz
Büszke gyerekek nem felejtenek. Élnek. Remélnek. Mindig küzdenek

Büszke gyerekek

Kemény időkben nem téblábolsz. Pofonok völgyéből tuti kitáncolsz.
Nehez kesztyüt mindig felveszed, hogy célod elérd te mindent megteszel
Kell hogy a hited fűtse valaki. Egy hős, mint Papplaci
Csak mennek előre. Mindig küzdenek. Büszke gyerekek sohasem felejtenek.

Mennek előre. Mindig küzdenek. Büszke gyerekek nem felejtenek
Érjen kihívás téged bárhol, jusson eszedbe Papp László!

<english>

No matter how tough you can be, if there's no more hope in your heart
You can curse others if your dreams dried out
Without goals you are just drifting away and survive. Without heroes you aren’t worth anything
Prideful kids never forget. They live. They hope. They keep fighting

Prideful kids

In rough times you don’t hover around, You dance away from the valley of slaps
You always take up the heavy gloves, you do everything to reach your goal
There must be someone who feed your faith. A Hero, like Papp Laci
They just go forward. They keep fighting. Prideful kids never forget.

They just go forward. They keep fighting. Prideful kids never forget.
If you are ever challenged, think about Papp László.

Murderer - Piece Of Candy

  Q.  So what's on the Just Some Punk Songs show later today?

  A.  The usual round up of great new punk releases including a track from the recent album by Murderer, the New York 3 piece that features Hank Wood And The Hammerheads frontman and Crazy Spirit drummer Henry Wood (guitar/vocals) alongside Eric Hughes (bass/vocals) and Sam Ryser (Crazy Spirit & Dawn Of Humans - drums/vocals). I'll play a different song on the show to the one that's posted below so if you're a fan of modern day punk music (and if you aren't why are you reading this?) then tune in (8pm UK time  http://mixlr.com/global-punk-radio/ ).  https://www.facebook.com/events/385067092062267/

  Murderer dipped their toes in the water back in 2013 with the release of a 6 track demo, all the tracks were pretty raw and raucous and not a million miles away from what you might expect given the band members history. Fast forward to December 2018 and they returned with debut album I Did It All For You. The sound has been polished, those raw and raucous moments are complimented by tracks that exude an ethereal delicacy. Both styles combine to great effect. You can get both releases from Bandcamp : https://murderernyc.bandcamp.com/

  If vinyl's your thng then head over to Toxic State Records :  https://www.toxicstaterecords.com/records/murderer-lp-2018

  This is the video they released to promote the album, a gentle start launches into an insistant, hypnotic earworm. It's called Piece Of Candy...

The Deckchairs - 1970s

 

  "Not to be confused with any other shitty band" The Deckchairs are the original 1980's punk band from Reading. Last year they released a new album titled UP YOURS and I'll be posting a song from it today. No Bandcamp link that I can find but you can check out the album on Spotify  https://open.spotify.com/album/3ZET7OH4ifF667ePeZQB68

  It's also available from their site : http://www.thedeckchairs.co.uk/

  The line up of the band is Johnny Durex (vocals), Baz Nasty (guitar), Dave (bass) and Jonny Wah Wah (drums). Their sound is unapoligetically old school punk rock and no doubt they'll go down a storm with the punters when they play the Rebellion Festival in August. You can find more info on them here : https://www.facebook.com/TheDeckchairs/

  This video is "a nostalgic look back at the greatest decade ever." The song references staples of that era such as Linda Lovelace, The Sweeney, Huggy Bear, Jimmy Savile, Double Diamond, Curly wurlys and Chopper bikes. It's called 1970's and it's a blast (from the past)...

The Tokyo Rankers - Ordinary People

 

  Here's another band that got a couple of plays on the Just Some Punk Songs show last year but weren't featured on here.Today I'll post the video they released last month from their latest album.

  The Tokyo Rankers are Spud (vocals/guitar), Dario (drums), Jimmy (bass) and Krystian (guitar). They're Peterborough's only street punk and oi band. They formed in 2016 and released their debut album Don't Get Me Started on Evil Records  http://www.evilrecords.org/press-uk-tokyo-rankers

  It's available digitally here : https://thetokyorankers.bandcamp.com/releases

  If you're a fan of singalong working class punk anthems then you're possibly already familiar with the band, if they've passed you by then the 14 tracks on Don't Get Me Started will be right up your street. You'll also have plenty of chances to catch them playing live around Britain throughout 2019.

 

  This is one of the more mid paced tracks from the album, it's an observation of the people around the band, people stuck in a rut surviving day to day with no real change in their lifestyles. The line between being ok and being thrown on the scrapheap seeming to be narrower than ever. This is Ordinary People...

The Exbats - Hercules

 

  The Exbats are one of many bands that featured on the Just Some Punk Songs show last year (Kill Yr Boyfriend was played back in August) but who for whatever reason didn't get a plug on the blog. Last week I came across a video they'd just posted and loved it. So better late than never they feature today.

  They're based in Tucson, Arizona and feature a father/daughter line up of drummer/vocalist Inez McLain and guitarist/vocalist Kenny McLain. Influences are numerous (The Monkeys, Ramones, Blondie, Velvet Underground etc), they liken their sound to "The Partridge Family picking up the Cramps hitchhiking." Their most recent album is titled I Got The Hots For Charlie Watts and it came out last January https://theexbats.bandcamp.com/album/i-got-the-hots-for-charlie-watts

  Making this update timely is the news that Burger Records are releasing a "best of" album, E Is For Exbats. It's the band's debut vinyl lp and you can pre order it here : https://burgerrecords.11spot.com/the-exbats-e-is-for-exbats.html They'll also be recording a new album in the Spring so watch out for details of that here : https://www.facebook.com/TheExbats/

  A tribute to Michael Hurst, the New Zealand actor who played Iolaus in both Hercules : The Legendary Journeys and Xena : Warrior Princess, this is a delight. Hopefully it'll melt the hearts of some of you grizzled old punks, it's called Hercules...

The Control Freaks - I Hate Your Face

 

  One of the best releases from last year that I didn't feature on here (as it wasn't on youtube, hopefully the band don't mind me now rectifying that) was the Double Dose Of Hate single which was by The Control Freaks and came out in November on vinyl via Dirty Water Records. You can check it out here :  https://thecontrolfreaksband.bandcamp.com/album/double-dose-of-hate

  If you caught them last time they featured on this blog (https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2017/04/control-freaks-control-freaks.html) you'll know they're from San Francisco and feature Rip Off Records' boss Greg Lowery on bass and vocals. Alongside Greg are Sherrilynn Nelson (rhythm guitar/vocals), Tim Curry (drums) and Jeff Glave (lead guitar). As you might expect from a band featuring the man behind Supercharger, The Rip Offs, Infections and Zodiac Killers, The Control Freaks are a) a garage punk influenced powerhouse and b) fucking awesome!

  I'm guessing it won't be too long before the band are featured again as they've a new album in the pipeline. Keep an eye on updates here :  https://www.facebook.com/ControlFreaksSF/

  From the single and written by guitarist (and former member of bands such as The Velveteen Loveseat, The Omens, The Hampton Wicks, The Satisfactions, The Krells etc) Sherrilynn Nelson, this is called I Hate Your Face.... 

The Smarthearts - Only A Name

 

  I read somewhere that my favourite band of the moment, Dark Thoughts, were heading out on tour and that they were taking a band called The Smarthearts along with them. It therefore seemed the obvious thing to do to check out The Smarthearts and boy, what a good decision that was.

  They're from Philadelphia and feature members of bands such as Sheer Mag, The Guests, Devil Master and Graveturner; Matt Palmer (guitar/vocals), Alki Meimaris (lead guitar/backup vocals), Max Gordon (bass) and Ian Dykstra (drums). 2016 saw them self release a demo cassette but more importantly they've recently released debut album On The Line and if you like your music to be a catchy as hell mixture of power pop and punk then you need to check it out immediately. It'll be available in a couple of weeks on vinyl from Wilsuns Recording Company (Pre order here :
https://wilsunsrc.bigcartel.com/product/pre-order-the-smarthearts-on-the-line-lp) or you can snap it up digitally now :  https://thesmarthearts.bandcamp.com/album/on-the-line

  This is the opening track from the album, it's a great example of the quality songwriting and top notch melodies that populate a very promising debut. It's called Only A Name...

I was flipping thru my magazines
Bending the pages, stressing the seams
Something made me take a second look
A proper noun from another book

It was only a name
But it tripped a nerve in my brain
Something from the past
But just how long is this gonna last?

Six weeks later i was on the go
Sat behind a man watching a show
I was looking on, when, to my surprise
Emma stone made me close my eyes

It was only a face
But something bout it didn’t take
So i don’t look back
If i do i’m gonna crack

If you got a problem you can’t talk about
If you know it’s all over without a doubt
And if you got someone that you can’t leave behind
Well you better work it out before you lose your mind

They wrapped me up in everything i love
But it’s hard to tell what i was thinking of
I always knew that bye and bye
You’d come back and see me eye to eye

But it was only a dream
Everything not as it seems
And it’s not quite right
But i hope i get to dream tonight

Klackers - Sleepover

 

  Tomorrow sees the first Just Some Punk Songs show of 2019 (tune in and have a listen : https://www.facebook.com/events/361523054674063/) and as always I've been searching for new punk releases to share with a growing audience. One of those songs on this week's show will be this cover of the Adicts' classic My Baby Got Run Over By A Steamroller. It was on the 1982 album Sound Of Music and remains one of the highlights of their back catalogue. Now it's been remade and retitled and remains really rather good.

  Klackers are a 5 piece from Moncton, New Brunswick who line up with Shannon Goguen (vocals), Sammy Klacker (guitar), Dylan Hackett (bass), Julie Daigle (keys) and Emily Wiliston (drums). Last week they released their debut, Self Titled, album and it's a great introduction to a very promising new band :   https://klackers.bandcamp.com/album/klackers

  They've been together for around a year, tag themselves diy candy pop/garage punk and play off kilter, edgy pop songs with distinctive female vocals and nagging keyboards. Reinforcing their riot grrrl credentials is a cover of Bratmobile's Gimme Brains (the 2nd cover on the album, the remainder all being original compositions). As well as the digital version of the album you can pick it up on cassette from the band : https://www.facebook.com/klackersband/

  So the Adict's cover, this is Sleepover....

Fit To Work - All Cats Are Beautiful

  Back in 2014 I featured a song by New York City band Comrades called Cats Not Cops (it was so good I even got the t shirt!, listen to the song here :  https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2014/07/comrades-cats-not-cops.html). I think the sentiments in the song may well be shared by the band I'm featuring today.

  Fit To Work is "a quasi-autonomous, non-governmental punk act from Scotland featuring an award winning poet/performer, members of Cradle Of Filth & The Phantom Band and a guy from an office. The line up is Daniel Firth (guitars), Harry Josephine Giles (vocals), Duncan Harcus (bass) and Iain Stewart (drums). They play a mix of punk, metal, crust, hardcore, queercore and crippunk and whilst they're very angry and political they aren't afraid to introduce elements of humour into their music.

  You can get more info on the band here : https://www.facebook.com/fittowork/

  In 2017 they released the Dealing With Anger In The Workplace ep and they followed it last September with the Voluntary Severance ep. If you prefer your punk music to be of the type that'll blister the paint from your walls you should check them out :  https://fittowork.bandcamp.com/

  From Voluntary Service and begging to be played loud, this is called All Cats Are Beautiful...

Cops are fucking racist rapist motherfuckers 
Cops are fucking murdering pigfucking scum 

But All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 

Cops are fucking scab snitch spycop shitbrains 
Cops are fucking pathetic little sadistic little wanks 

But All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 

Don't be a school cop (kill the cop in your head) 
Don't be a mall cop (kill the cop in your head) 
Don't be a border cop (kill the cop in your head) 
Don't be a fucking cop (kill the cop in your head, kill the cop in your head) 

Cops are fucking racist rapist motherfuckers 
Cops are fucking murdering pigfucking scum 
Cops are fucking scab snitch spycop shitbrains 
Cops are pathetic sadistic wanks 

But All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 
All Cats Are Beautiful 

Don't be a cop 
Be a cat 
Dont be a cop 
Be a cop-eating cat 
Don't be a cop 
Be a cat that eats cops 
Don't be a cop 
Be a beautiful fucking pussy cat