Radio Blast - King of the Block (Guest Review by Ralph J Rivera)

First off gotta say Thank You to our host Mr. Mick Fletcher for letting me get this completely biased review up on his blog. YOU inspire me to keep doing this! Now some quick history...

Back on February 29th 2020 I went to the Altantic City Leap Day Pop Punk Festival here in good ol' New Jersey. Some of the best East Coast bands were fully representing with a stacked line-up. Now about 4 bands in, this band from NYC called Radio Blast (https://www.facebook.com/radioblastofficial) took the stage and proceeded to leave my jaw on the floor! I'd only heard their 2019 EP "Let's Rock" but those songs, plus all the newer ones took on a different level in a live environment. These guys played REAL Pop Punk with balls! In the end Radio Blast held their own against such heavyweights as The Sheckies, The Prozacs and headliners The Huntingtons. I walked away a fan and made 4 new friends that day!

After the world collapsed a month later we stayed in touch and their singer/guitarist Kasper always kept me in the loop on new material. Needless to say - I absolutely LOVE this band. So here we are on Halloween 2022 and what has finally seen the light of day? Radio Blast's long awaited Self Titled LP/CD! https://radioblast.bandcamp.com/album/s-t. Available on their Bandcamp and Mom's Cellar Dwellars. The 2 previous EP's were excellent Ramonescore but this LP seems to take that formula a little further. Kicking off with a cool 50 second intro that bursts right into the first song "Lefty (Doesn't Own A Leather Jacket)". No time to take the foot of the pedal now boys! Following with some kick-ass new songs like "Latchkey Kids", "Debbie Downer", "One Track Mind" and ending on the perfect high note with "Back To Coney Island". An album nearly 2 years in the making this is the end result of hard work and perseverance. I can't recommend this album highly enough and do yourselves a favor and check out the video for "King Of The Block"...

Radio Blast - Teddy (Guest Review By Ralph J Rivera)

  Ralph returns today with a review of another cool new release...

  In 2019 Radio Blast (https://www.facebook.com/radioblastofficial/) from the Lower East Side of NYC released their debut EP "Let's Rock". 7 Songs of no nonsense straight up Ramonescore. I was hooked. Fast forward to February of 2020 and Atlantic City NJ hosted one of the best Pop Punk festivals in ages. With a stacked lineup that included The Sheckies, The Prozacs and The Huntingtons. I literally watched this band with one EP under their belt hold their own against scene veterans. To say I was blown away would be an understatement.
Since they played that show, one week later the world got shut down. With no shows these guys soldiered on and have released one of the best EP's of 2020. Their newest release is 4 songs of pure Rock and Roll energy. Appropriately titled "In Your Face" this is Radio Blast's testament!

It's available through Mom's Basement or the bands own website. Trust me Kasper, Dom, Mike and Franco are veterans and it shows in the quality of these songs. Don't sleep on this one folks.
https://radioblast.bandcamp.com/album/in-your-face-ep 

  They're almost as powerful in the studio as they are live and this is my favourite song off this platter. Here's "Teddy" a pure Hockey anthem!

He's got his game face on He's got his twig wrapped tight He's gonna show them all Who runs the barn tonight Won't be no face washing When he's on ice If you mess with his guys He'll send you to the pine Keep that chirping in check Or you'll be getting wrecked Better hold on to your mitts He's breaking chiclets with his fist Teddy the enforcer Teddy the enforcer Checking hosers in plain site Teddy the enforcer Teddy the enforcer Watch out its lights out time Teddy the enforcer Teddy the enforcer Timid turtles should think twice Teddy the enforcer Teddy the enforcer Lumber, biscuits, and blood on the ice

Radio Blast - Radio Blast

  Radio Blast (https://www.facebook.com/radioblastofficial/) are a relatively new band, they formed in the lower east side of New York City in 2018 and their mission statement is to write catchy songs that pay homage to their favourite Ramonescore bands. I'm guessing they take their name from the 1992 Screeching Weasel single? (https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2014/03/screeching-weasel-radio-blast.html). They line up with Kaspar Kielland (vocals/guitar), Dom Sorace (drums/backing vocals), Mike Horowitz (guitar/backing vocals) and Franco Jaramillo (bass/backing vocals).

  Last May they released their debut ep. Titled Lets Rock! it features 7 catchy tunes (including the song you'll find below). It's available as a free download. Also on Bandcamp is September's Dog In The Window single https://radioblast.bandcamp.com/ An upcoming release that they'll feature on is the compilation album Ramonescore Brigade Volume One which will also feature The Prozacs, Radio Buzzkills, Follow Ups and many more.

  They're currently busy putting together a debut album for release later this year. In the meantime, this is the lead track from Lets Rock! It's not a Weasel cover but it is called Radio Blast...