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Sometimes, It's just easier to let the music speak for itself. These boys and girl from Ireland are creating a sweet, fuzzy, poppy Emo racket that just sticks to my ribs and makes me smile. I always get a nice twinge of excitement when I can't find other bands to compare. right now, as I listen to these songs for the 6th or 7th time in a row, It is almost impossible for me to find a comparison. This demo reminds me of the 90's. It reminds me of living room shows in Madison. It reminds me of cute, nerdy Emo girls wearing backpacks filled with Sylvia Plath and Emily Bronte literature and dancing wildly while The Promise Ring plays away on stage at The Loft... This is the sound of youth and I can't get enough. I will be celebrating my 35th birthday this coming week. I am glad there are bands around like The Winter Passing to remind me that life is still worth living and living is always more fun when we don't allow the constant oppression of time to weigh us down and turn us sour on the wonder that is hope.
Filesonic Link
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This is BEAUTIFUL!! Extremely bouncy, often self-deprecating, morose and snotty Pop Punk that ranks right up there with F.Y.P and Screeching Weasel. There are some songs with really infectious sing along potential. Also, for all you noodly, twinkly fans, I hear a healthy heaping of Kinsella worship as well. I never listen to Pop Punk, like ever... This album has really been making me reevaluate that decision. Too bad I didn't discover this when it came out. It most certainly would have made it on my 2011 best of list. You should also listen to their split with Joyce Manor, who are another AWESOME gruff Pop Punk band worth paying attention to. Their guitarist Mark was nice enough to offer us a direct download link. It is posted above, as per usual. Support them, send them love letters, say hello.
Little Ease At Mediafire
Some New Songs On Their Blog
Little Ease Last.FM Page
There is so much of an unhinged, traditional Rock-n-Roll feel to these songs. Which is definitely blowing my mind right now. I have been stuffing myself with so much Screamy, Post-Hardcore lately, it's nice to hear some straight forward, pissed off Punk Rock. Yes, they are a Hardcore band, but, I hear some oddly comforting surf guitar here and there as well. Combine that with a snotty, almost Pop Punk bounce not unlike the noise Chicago was making in the early 90's with bands like the Vindictives, the Bollweevils and Apocalypse Hoboken. I am suddenly feeling 15 again. Oh yeah!! The Yah Mos!! In other words, this is spazzy, sloppy Garage-n-Roll played with wild abandon. No song makes it past the two minute mark, so there is little room for grandiose posturing. Right for the throat with claws out!! Look, KITTENS!! They come from Great Britain and that accent shines through loud and clear. I am not sure how long this band has been active, seeing as I just discovered them about an hour ago. I have been thoroughly floored though. Short songs, great spiteful lyrics shouted with venom and an inescapable feeling of contempt makes this record feel like something very special. There is no Emo, Screamo or Post-Hardcore here. There is no Doom, Sludge, Drone or Post-Metal here. Just unabashedly youthful chaos centered on a strong Rockin' foundation. I guess some other comparisons that might make it easier to understand would be: The Stooges, Trapdoor Fucking Exit, Light The Fuse And Run, The Shitty Limits... Books Lie... I don't know. What I do know with certainty is that I love this and am gonna say this might just bump something off my year end top ten.
Deadverse at Mediafire
Coming from Switzerland, Deadverse have concocted a potent mix of Hardcore grit, Jehu-like chaos and some sweet Midwest Emo. I hear hints of Small Brown Bike, FIYA, maybe early to mid-period Jawbreaker and something like Fugazi sometimes. Or, more so just an overwhelming Revolution Summer sound. I can definitely see this band tearing apart a basement or living room in their hometown. I haven't listened to anything like this in awhile, but, I was certainly hooked right off the bat. Makes me want to dig out my old Dag Nasty records.
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Still one of my favorite albums of all time. Braid make me proud to be from the Midwest. I don't know if there is anything more Emo than this record. If you are familiar with bands such as Cap'n Jazz, Boys Life or Christie Front Drive, you have to know who these sensitive boys are. They were definitely a Punk band, first and foremost. Though they relied on cryptic, poetic lyrics and a jangly duel guitar attack more than anger and blind sloganeering. I only ever got the chance to see them one time, but, it was a show I will never forget. Backpacks and sweater vests were everywhere!!! I would have loved it if Braid had been the band to make it big instead of shit like Jimmy Eat World or Weezer. These guys were so much more heartfelt in their delivery than any of that other "Emo" quackery. I can't say enough good things about this record!!!
Longitude At Bandcamp
Holy Hell!!! New favorite band!!! Longitude are from NY and have graced us with an album filled to the brim with mid 90's Emo goodness. Like a perfect mix of Braid, Cap'n Jazz and 8Bark (Ha! I bet you haven't thought of them for years!!!). They also throw in some lovely electronic flourishes here and there which only enhances the listening experience. This is perfect winter music. "I made this bed for you, and I don't ever worry about which side you choose". Fucking brilliant!!! Fans of the above mentioned bands as well as My Heart To Joy, Promise Ring or the Jazz June will eat this up.
Mediafire Link
I am thirty three years old. I did not hear Jawbreaker until I was twenty three. Bivouac being the first record I heard. The album that completely changed my life. Though, I had known about them for a long time before that. Having been involved in the Punk/Hardcore community in the Midwest for awhile, very few bands escape the radar when kids are starving for any sound from "out there". As a younger man I explored every facet of the scene to see which social group I could most comfortably align myself with (as young men are prone to do). First, at Thirteen or Fourteen, it was Straight Edge. That was fine for awhile, we loved Minor Threat, we loved Uniform Choice, we loved skateboarding and Coca Cola. All fine activities for children before the discovery of girls, alcohol and the almighty plant. Eventually, middle school became high school. I was left with little comfort from my peers. Sure, I had a few cohorts with similar beliefs and interests. Mainly skating around, getting stoned, listening to Black Flag or Minutemen. Some friends were getting turned on to bands like Braid, Evergreen, Still Life. At the time, maybe I thought those sounds were just a bit too tame for me. I was hearing Crust and Grindcore for the first time, absolutely falling in love. I could never explain to Willie what it meant to me that, while he was developing a love for 311 and Sublime, I was getting more out of bands like Septic Death, GISM or Deviated Instinct. I am sure those bands from our youth still meant plenty to him, I just didn't understand why his tastes were beginning to travel so far askew of our original path. My beliefs, and clothing were getting a bit grimier, while he was beginning to resemble the jocks we fought so vehemently against when they would hurl insults, rocks and fists at us after school. Looking back, I realize how closed minded I was. If it wasn't Hardcore for the Hardcore, I didn't want to have anything to do with it. How ridiculous. Needless to say, our friendship did not last. I wonder what ever happened to him? Eventually... 1995, Graduation, escape from Wisconsin!! As soon as I had a bit of money saved up, I decided to buy a ticket to California. Oakland to be exact. I wanted to be where Gilman was. I wanted to walk the same streets that Neurosis walked. I wanted to live the Crust Punk dream. With my Dreaded Mullet just right and my clothes patched up with all the right band patches, I sure looked the part. The problem was, it just wasn't moving me the same way it had a few years prior. For all the shocking, outward imagery and revolutionary banter Crust Punks had, there was very little action. The music was not standing up to the message. I saw far too many punks succumb to living for the bottle, the needle, the nothingness. Shit, I am plenty guilty of wasting my life away on pointless substance abuses. It is still a struggle today. Maybe that is why I am writing this blog. Sober now, I feel like my mind is finally clear after years of clouded motionlessness.
Anyway, the late nineties were filled with hopping trains, organizing Food Not Bombs, collecting vintage typewriters, writing as much as I could and exploring new sounds. I was finally beginning to understand the attraction to Classic Rock. Robert Johnson became a salvation. Suddenly, those bands I was too afraid to grasp as a younger man were beginning to make an impact. I devoured everything Ebullition Records, everything Gravity Records, everything No Idea Records, anything and everything that was or could be considered Emotional Hardcore. Frail, Jasmine, Ivich, Current, Portraits of Past, Reversal Of Man, Forstella Ford, the Ladderback, Orchid. These bands were proving you could write thoughtful progressive lyrics without having to resort to tired cliches. I had found a new favorite sound.
The new Millennium was upon us. Everyone was in a panic, wondering if the world was going to go black at the stroke of midnight. Luckily, 2000 came and went with little fanfare. I had just moved back to the Bay Area after a much needed break from the road. I was living in Richmond with a roommate who had the largest record collection I had ever known. It was a veritable wonderland. Everything from original Avengers records to one off pressings of Zappa bootleg 45's!! One day, as I was exploring the letter J in the LPs, I happened upon Jawbreaker. I hadn't thought of them for a long time. But, I had learned one really important thing about them by then... Girls ABSOLUTELY loved them!!! Shit, if the ladies like them, than they would have to like a guy who likes them, right...? I might as well throw it on the turntable and see what all the commotion is about. Holy Shit!!! First song!!! "Shield Your Eyes"!!! Fucking Brilliance like I had never heard!! And those lyrics!!! Never before had I encountered such naked, raw emotion!! And the title track!! Ten minutes and six seconds of hectic, distorted beauty that made me weak in the knees!!! At that moment, Jawbreaker became my favorite band. 'Unfun' is certainly a fine first album. Filled with shining moments of the wonder to come. 'Bivouac' is, well, quite possibly the greatest Pop/Post/Punk/Hardcore/Emo/Whatever record ever made. '24 Hour Revenge Therapy' is also amazing. Absolutely tear jerking Post Punk written by a man who could only speak from his heart. Lyrics laid so bare, it was almost discomforting listening to them. Shit, I even enjoy listening to 'Dear You'. Unfortunate for me, I had, by years, missed the boat on ever seeing them live. Jets To Brazil was a competent replacement. 'Orange Rhyming Dictionary' had some very strong, stand out tracks. Still, where was the energy? where was that bitter restlessness? Where were those tears of rage? Gone with the years, I guess...
Enter Forgetters. The first new band from Mr. Schwarzenbach since Thorns Of Life, and the first to produce any vinyl. This self titled double 7" is a welcome return to form for Blake. Gone is the polished Pop of Jets To Brazil, opting instead for that fuzzy, distorted, whiskey and cigarette delivery we all loved so much. The songs are darker, more driving, more in line with 'Bivouac' than anything from the three Jets albums. Hallelujah!!!! Also featuring Caroline Paquita from the band Bitchin' on Bass and Kevin Mahon from Against Me on Drums.
This is a much appreciated reintroduction from one of the most amazing lyricists of the last thirty years. Thank you Blake, Welcome Back.
