Top 10 – Fat Wrecked for 25 Years

This weekend, punk label Fat Wreck Chords is throwing a 25^th anniversary bash in its home city of San Francisco. The two-day festival is the penultimate stop for the label’s celebratory run – I’ll be at the final show in LA on Monday (the tour will also reassemble in November for a show in Japan) – that features Fat Wreck Chords staples old & new, including NOFX, Lagwagon, Swingin’ Utters, Strung Out, toyGuitar, The Flatliners, & several others. Suffice to say, it’s a bit of a dream tour for me. In honor of the legendary label’s 25^th, I decided to write up a Top 10 list of Fat records that have heavily influenced my life, which is also in its 25^th year.

If it wasn’t for Fat Wreck Chords, I wouldn’t be who I am. I’m the youngest of four boys, & my brothers raised me on Fat bands since adolescence. My first Fat record was Swingin’ Utters’ Five Lessons Learned. There’s a picture of me (lost somewhere back in Pennsylvania) unwrapping the CD on Christmas morning, 1998. I was 8 years old, & my bucktoothed smile couldn’t have been wider. From an early age, my brothers made sure I didn’t turn into a “radio kid.” They would bring me into their rooms & play me songs, genuinely interested in whether I would like them or not. It was (admirably) important to them that I understood that mainstream culture wasn’t all that was out there. My brother Nick called me into his basement bedroom to hear NOFX & Propagandhi for the first time. Jon would make me mix tapes, aptly titled “Sam’s Cool Tapes,” with songs by Rancid, Bad Religion, Less Than Jake, & One Man Army. While not all of these are Fat bands, each spoke to the West Coast punk sound Fat Wreck Chords represents. Today, I own 95 of the label’s releases, not including the NOFX 7” box set. So yeah, this list was pretty tough. I restricted myself to one record per band, because otherwise you’d be reading about 3 None More Black records & at least 2 Utters records. It has some curveballs, as well. Trust me, it hurt when I had to cut out Dillinger Four.

10. Rise Against – Revolutions Per Minute (2003)

“I have an American Dream / but it involves black masks & gasoline.”

Every record on this list fell into place relatively easily except for this #10 spot. I’m honestly a little surprised to be writing about Revolutions Per Minute & not D4’s C I V I L W A R or Western Addiction’s Cognicide, but I couldn’t deny how crucial this record was during my formative years. Compared to much of what I listen to now, this second LP from the Chicago superstars is pretty tame, but when I was 13, this was the heaviest record I had. Songs like “Dead Ringer,” “Halfway There,” & “To the Core” paved the way for the hardcore bands I would eventually get into. Its politics were influential, too, teaching me not to accept everything authority has to say at face value. I remember when my oldest brother first showed me “Heaven Knows.” I would sit at the family computer with the music video (below) on repeat until my dad finally drove me to Chester County Book & Music Co. to buy a copy. While I may not still follow the band, Revolutions Per Minute will always be an important record to me.

9. NOFX – The War on Errorism (2003)

“The industrial revolution has flipped the bitch on evolution / The benevolent & wise are being thwarted, ostracized / What a bummer / The world keeps getting dumber / Insensitivity is standard, & faith is being fancied over reason.”

The War on Errorism was my first new NOFX record. Sure, my brothers had me well-versed on their crucial older records, but this was the first time I could share in their anticipation of fresh material from one of our collective favorite bands. I was 13. Before its official announcement, vocalist/bassist & Fat Wreck Chords owner Fat Mike joked that they were going to call it Our Second Best Record (he once cited So Long & Thanks for All the Shoes as his favorite), which makes sense, because this is some of the best NOFX material out there. George W. Bush’s incessant buffoonery sparked something in Fat Mike, whose newfound social conscience produced the band’s most intelligent and poignant content to date (well, okay, The Decline is the exception). Songs like “The Irrationality of Rationality” & “The Idiots Are Taking Over” bitterly lament American society’s dark truths (“Helen was living in her car trying to feed her kids / She got laid off of work, & her house was repossessed / It’s hard to think clearly when it’s 38 degrees / Desperate people have been know to render desperate deeds / But when she shot that family & moved into their home, the paper read she suffered from dementia”), while “Separation of Church & Skate” & “Medio-core” tackle the sorry state of the music scene (“Where is the violent apathy? / These fucking records are rated G / When did punk rock become so safe?”). “Franco Un-American” had me watching Michael Moore and reading Howard Zinn. Sure, I was young, naïve, & impressionable, but I’m lucky to have been impressed upon by intelligent, subversive ideas. I have NOFX to thank for that.

8. Smoke or Fire – Above the City (2005)

“While they’re working for a drug free world / they’re taking all the money from the working man / so the working man turns to drugs / Forget everything they said / Don’t let them into your head / Can’t you see that’s what they want from you?”

I fucking love this record, & it disappoints me that I haven’t seen Smoke or Fire on any other Top Fat lists. It’s unfortunate that they never really got the attention or following they deserved. Above the City was the band’s Fat debut (& first release under the Smoke or Fire name), & I still spin it monthly. Save for its solitary acoustic track (an enjoyable drinking song), every song on this record is dimed out. Vocalist/guitarist Joe McMahon is rarely not at the peak of his register. There’s just so much energy here. Above the City is blue collar punk focused on the plight of the working class & political society’s failure to bolster the country’s backbone. Unfortunately, the message is as prevalent today as it was then. Here’s hoping McMahon writes another. I’m drowning in student loans & could sure use it.

7. Banner Pilot – Collapser (2009)

“Something in the air makes me wonder / why the hell I’d care about tomorrow / when it’s all right here / the wine, the hope, & you.”

Banner Pilot has it all. If someone asked me to encapsulate the “Fat Wreck Chords sound,” I would just drop the needle on Collapser. Its driving, bouncy basslines, snotty, gravelly vocals, high degree of catchiness, & thick coating of drunken sentimentality make it one of the best Midwestern punk records I’ve ever heard. I downloaded “Greenwood” & “Skeleton Key” from Fat’s website & burned them onto their own CD so I could listen to them on repeat in the car until my copy arrived in the mail. I was 19, but I felt 12 again. I felt excited about punk. I felt affected. Even though I live in San Diego now, I can still feel a breath of early autumn wind when I listen to Collapser, & I hope that never fades.

6. Propagandhi – Potemkin City Limits (2005)

“Chalk it up to an overdeveloped sense of unbridled vengeance / Somebody fed me too much New Hope for breakfast / ‘cause as The Empire (preemptively) Strikes Back (again) / & the voice of Luke’s father baritones, ‘This is CNN’ / I recall Arab kids slaughtered, reduced to sand-niggers & rag-heads / & now I’m expected to mourn dead Americans? / The executioner’s willing citizens?”

Like with NOFX’s War on Errorism, this was my first new Propagandhi record. Thanks to my frequent visits to Fat Wreck’s website, I heard “America’s Army (Die Jugend Marschiert)” before my oldest brother, an already big Propagandhi fan. I called him upstairs to hear it & vividly recall him, dumbfounded, saying, “That’s the best song they’ve ever written.” To this day, I’m still blown away every time I listen to this record, & the fact that they were a trio at the time defies reason. I genuinely don’t understand how Chris Hannah can play these guitar parts while singing. It goes without saying that Propagandhi is the “smartest” band you could find. Hannah’s lyrics read like graduate-level political science theses, each a focused, logically sound takedown of the issue at hand, be it war profiteering, systematic racism, or the Vans Warped Tour (before it was cool to hate on it). He even calls out Fat Wreck Chords’ label owner Fat Mike. Yeah, the guy funding & distributing the record. Hannah’s soaring vocals and blistering guitar leave no stone unturned. Propagandhi has since released two more masterpieces, but Potemkin City Limits will always have a special place in my heart.

5. Swingin’ Utters – Poorly Formed (2013)

“The concrete bridges that span the highway are pretty / The concrete bridges that span the highway are ugly / I wanna live inside a house that’s a wilderness where no one goes / I wanna drink from a well, swim the lakes & rivers cut into the overgrowth.”

Picking a favorite Swingin’ Utters record is like picking a favorite friend. Sure, some edge out the others, but you don’t even want to. But I tried, & I’m near-certain it’s 2013’s Poorly Formed. Considering the Utters are one of my longest running beloved bands (17 years now, shit), it’s pretty remarkable that my go-to record is a recent one, & is surely a testament to how deliciously their songwriting has aged. They are a genre unto themselves, having blended folk, classical, & street-punk into an entirely unique sound. No band sounds like the Utters, not even the members’ other bands or solo endeavors. Poorly Formed is special to me because it was the first Utters record to showcase Jack Dalrymple’s stylistic contribution to the group (yeah, yeah, I know “Effortless Amnesiac” was on Here, Under Protest, but that’s one song). The addition of Dalrymple (ex-One Man Army, The Re-volts, Dead to Me, toyGuitar) has no doubt been a rejuvenating factor for the band, which was on hiatus from 2003 until 2011. They’ve already put out 3 LPs in the last 4 years & have no plans on slowing down, which frankly astonishes me, because if you’d have told me when I was 8 & rocking Five Lessons Learned that the Utters would still be killing it when I was 25, I may have had trouble believing you.

4. Dead to Me – Cuban Ballerina (2006)

“An overwhelming, resonating voice / second-guessing every single choice / Now I’ve gotta find a new escape / for this blood that itches & this head that aches / I’ve got no reaction / Every action is true.”

I can’t even begin to describe to you how excited I was when I read about Dead to Me on Punknews.org. One Man Army had been a favorite band of mine for years solely because of Jack Dalrymple’s raspy croon, & I think I cried when they called it quits (I was 14 & emo had made crying cool, okay?) When the first few Dead to Me demos showed up on Myspace, I ripped them onto a CD-R that I quickly wore out. Luckily, the band re-recorded those songs for their debut LP, Cuban Ballerina, which has since become a unanimous favorite among us Fatties. I was initially a bit bummed that Dalrymple wasn’t handling 100% of the vocal duties, but I quickly realized how important to the DNA of Dead to Me & the effectiveness of Cuban Ballerina the vocal interplay of Dalrymple & ex-Western Addiction member Chicken actually was, especially since much of the record’s subject matter deals directly with Chicken’s history with hard drug addiction. Cuban Ballerina is fast, loud, catchy, dark, & dynamic, & I couldn’t be more thrilled that Dalrymple recently rejoined the band. Now can we get a repress of this one, Fat?

3. Against Me! …as the Eternal Cowboy (2003)

“So can your pop sensibilities sing me the end of the world? / Turn gunshots and mortar blasts into a metaphor of how we are all the same / Well, there’s a lot of things that should be said, so we’re hammering six strings / Machine gun in audible voices / This is the party we came for.”

This was my first Against Me! record, & it led to an all-out obsession. I picked it up in anticipation of a 2003 Fat-centric tour featuring None More Black, AM!, Rise Against, & Anti-Flag. Holy shit, indeed. In a dark, indecent time when bands like Sum 41 & New Found Glory were considered punk, Against Me! was A New Hope. Led by Tom Gabel, who has since revealed herself as punk rock queen Laura Jane Grace, the four-piece were, for a time, unrivaled when it came to sing-along folk-punk, a genre that’s not easy to make your own. But with a tinny snare drum sound, a jangly Rickenbacker guitar tone, & Grace’s ability to sound gruff & still carry a vibrato, AM! pulled it off. …as the Eternal Cowboy’s details alone read like the perfect punk record – 11 tracks in 25 minutes, including 3 acoustics & an instrumental. Melodramatic anarcho-punk assholes were offended when Against Me! signed to Fat & put out this more “polished” record, but I guarantee you they felt like idiots while the rest of us were screaming along to “Sink, Florida, Sink.” I still tear my throat apart to this record, & I always will.

2. None More Black – File Under Black (2003)

“Sit down & let the feeling take control / Creepy, can’t hide it with a smile / I’m pretty sure I don’t believe in god / but I can pretend for a little while.”

Jason Shevchuk is, without a doubt, my favorite songwriter. No matter the project, be it Kid Dynamite, None More Black, OnGuard, or Lagrecia, Shevchuk’s punk sensibilities are untouchable. No one on this or any other planet knows better where to put a “woah-oh” or a “hey!” It’s just in his blood. None More Black rose from the ashes of Kid Dynamite (Shevchuk is rather infamous for ending projects), & File Under Black was their first full length record. There has since been two more LPs & an EP, & frankly, File Under Black isn’t necessarily my favorite. It’s just my most spun. It’s also inarguably the most straightforward NMB record. While follow-ups This is Satire & Icons upped the complexity level with varying paces & keys, File Under Black is lungs-to-the-wall, piss & vinegar-soaked punk rock. This is my “fuck off, everything” record, the one I put on during a heated bike ride when everything in my brain is flashing middle fingers. It also doesn’t hurt that the songs titles are mostly derived from Seinfeld (there’s an OFFICE SPACE one, too). Please, Mr. Shevchuk, make another record. I don’t care what you call it!

1. The Lawrence Arms – The Greatest Story Ever Told (2003)

“I’m tending the pyres of my frustrations / burning leaves on buried dreams, kneeling in to rake the ashes / I’m embering / You’re smoldered out / My hands are free / My lungs are proud / Your forgiveness is a fading fiction / These flames have never burned so high / I won’t be staring in your eyes.”

Not only is The Greatest Story Ever Told my top Fat record, it’s my favorite record of all time. For those unaware, The Lawrence Arms are 3 best friends from Chicago who had previously played in several quintessential Midwestern punk bands, such as Slapstick, The Broadways, & Baxter. This record is the trio’s 4^th LP, & still stands as their most unique due to its romanticized circus theme, literary influences, & generally somber tone. I ordered the record off Fat’s website after hearing “On With the Show,” which features a breakneck pace & bassist Brendan Kelly’s rocks-in-a-blender vocal style, so imagine my surprise when I popped the CD into the stereo & heard guitarist Chris McCaughan’s crisp-as-an-autumn-night croon on “The Raw & Searing Flesh.” It’s this duality that makes The Greatest Story Ever Told. Kelly’s songs take care of the punk with high infusions of speed & attitude, while McCaughan’s tracks paint a dreamy portrait through melody & melancholy. The record is rife with literary & cultural references, including nods to Kafka, J.D. Salinger, & most prominently Mikhail Bulgakov. It’s a bit pretentious to say, but this is the record that made me want to be a writer.

Top 13 2014

2014 was an unprecedented year for alternative music. I can’t say I’ve ever seen more high-profile indie releases in a single trip around the sun. Even Rancid put out a new record, and it was really good, which is crazy. But when so many good records come out, it makes the end of the year list even harder, so instead of choosing just 10, I went with 13, because there’s no one to tell me not to.

Epitaph Records and Tiny Engines Records came up big for me this year, Epitaph having put out new material from The Lawrence Arms, Every Time I Die, Joyce Manor, Pianos Become the Teeth, and The Menzingers. Tiny Engines, who I was only familiar with because they put out the first Restorations LP, hijacked my year with The Hotelier and fantastic debuts from Somos and Cayetana. Several bands came back from the grave and released not just acceptable, but even better music (looking at you, Death From Above 1979, Lagwagon, and Rancid).

2015 already seems to have big things in store – like Fear Before and Crime In Stereo being back together – and it looks like 2014 may be given a run for its money. Hardcore gods Blacklisted are releasing “When People Grow, People Go” on February 10^th, Murder By Death has “Big Dark Love” coming, mewithoutYou is ready to unleash LP6; there will most likely be new Brand New, Propagandhi, and The Bronx should be ready with “The Bronx V.” There’s 2 Drug Church records coming, 7 Sefense Defense Family releases, Defeater is recording, Converge is writing, and I’m not altogether convinced the recently reunited Blood Brothers aren’t writing as well. I’ve got high hopes that both John K. Samson (The Weakerthans) and Jason Shevchuk (None More Black) are writing, and I’m still waiting for Colour Revolt to come out of nowhere with a fresh masterpiece.

Now, without further ado…

13. ’68 – In Humor & Sadness

“I’ve sung every song I know.

You’ll never know what it meant to me

that you came along and didn’t disagree.”

If I had it my way, The Chariot wouldn’t have called it a day with “One Wing,” but from its formidable ashes rose ’68, the new project from frontman/madman Josh Scogin. As a duo (Scogin on guitar and Michael McClellen on drums), ’68 made more noise in 2014 than most bands could dream to. As I write this, they’re in Istanbul gearing up for a short run of shows in Israel. Yeah, Israel. The music is still “stressful,” as Scogin has put it, and fans of his old band will find the same tenacity they’ve come to expect from him, but the record shines brightest the farther it diverges from The Chariot, such as in “e,” “n,” and “t” (respectively tracks 5, 7, and 9 – Scogin typically plays with track listings, this record’s song titles spelling out “Regret not.”) “In Humor & Sadness” is undoubtedly aggressive, but also incorporates melodic elements of grunge, blues, and garage rock, leaving me with no option but to call Josh Scogin the Jack White of hardcore. Watch the awesome video for “R” (Track 1) here.

12. Self Defense Family – Try Me

“Simple folk need their love songs,

idiots love an anthem,

dinner bell for the dumb,

cattle-call for morons.”

Self Defense Family is not an easy band to describe. The group functions as an artistic collective rather than as a set team of members. There are mainstays, certainly, such as vocalist Patrick Kindlon, but not even he is guaranteed. It’s horrible to throw around the word “art,” but I’m admittedly horrible, and have no reservations in saying that Self Defense Family is more artistically engaging and, more importantly, challenging than any other group I could name, and “Try Me” is the band’s most difficult offering yet. It’s softer, more entrancing, and employs even more repetition than SDF followers have grown accustomed to. Kindlon is ready to push you more than ever, espousing sentiments like “I understand the pull of religion…when there’s a loss that won’t stop itching” and “All the dumb cunts, they get what they want.” This is all not to mention that “Try Me” is tied to the personal history of porn star Jeanna Fine. Nearly 40 minutes of the record is comprised of an interview with her split into 2 tracks, “Angelique One” & “Angelique Two”. Hearing her story from her own mouth, her life’s course – essentially hearing her humanity – is more than just an experiment or a gimmick. Kindlon writes in the record’s liner notes, “This album started by examining the seemingly small adolescent influences that shape my adult life. But it became something else. Angelique is more than an influence. Her story stands on its own, without any need for my filter. Enjoy or don’t.” Hear one of my favorite songs of the year, “Turn the Fan On,” here.

11. Andrew Jackson Jihad – Christmas Island

“The older I get, the better I am at lying,

the more friends & family I have dead or dying,

it’s harder to define love – I gotta drink more if I wanna catch a buzz –

the older I get, the more articulate I am at whining.”

This record was a pleasant surprise. I’ve been a casual fan of Andrew Jackson Jihad since 2007’s “People That Can Eat People Are the Luckiest People in the World,” but they’ve never truly dominated my listening. Producer John Congleton took AJJ’s typically acoustic folk-punk and fed it through an indie-rock filter, yielding a sound not unlike a poppy Neutral Milk Hotel. The songs that make up “Christmas Island” find lyricist Sean Bonnette as clever, weird, and personal as ever, full of their usual social commentary (“I’m a hologram of a tanning booth in a history class from the future”) and quirkiness (“We’ll set it off like Microsoft in ‘94”). Andrew Jackson Jihad has the uncanny ability to induce both laughter (“Hey, dude, I hate everything you do, but I’m trying really hard to not hate you”) and tears (“How can I live without ever knowing the beauty of forgiveness?”), sometimes even in the same song. I beg of you to listen to the best song of 2014, “Linda Ronstadt,” here.

10. Swingin’ Utters – Fistful of Hollow

“You’re gonna tire of the tragic

and curse every night you’re alone for the ride.

You’ve been embracing the silence,

the solitude’s been a ruse, and now you’re wise.”

I really don’t understand how they do it. In 1998, Swingin’ Utters’ “Five Lessons Learned” was my first real punk record. In 2003, they released “Dead Flowers, Bottles, Bluegrass, & Bones,” which is still one of my all-time favorite records. Then, they disappear for 8 years, come back out of the blue in 2011 with the highly enjoyable “Here, Under Protest,” put out “Poorly Formed” last year (was my #2 of 2013), and BAM! Another record already. These guys are their own genre at this point. Claiming collaboration and encouragement toward all members to write songs as the reasons for their recent prolificacy, these Santa Cruz street-punk savants are able to demonstrate an unrivaled amount of freshness and enthusiasm for such a long-established band. They have certainly evolved beyond “punk,” and so it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what the Utters sound like, especially considering how much variety can be found on each record. This one has 15 songs, and every single one deserves its place. Even though they formed in 1987, “Fistful of Hollow” has some of the best Swingin’ Utters songs ever (“Spanish,” “Tibetan Book of the Damned,” and “Tonight’s Moons”), and is therefore a great place to start if you’re feeling daunted. I couldn’t recommend them more. Listen to “Spanish” here and let Johnny Bonnel’s gravelly melodies swoon you with red wine and Catholic guilt.

9. RX Bandits – Gemini, Her Majesty

“You wanna be the storm, then be the storm.”

When I contributed to RX Bandits’ Kickstarter to fund this record, I had remarkably low expectations. After being more or less unaffected by their previous, “Mandala” (save for it being recorded live), and their subsequent disbanding, I had little to no interest in this “reunion” record, and supporting it was mostly a loyalty move. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more wrong about a record, seeing as “Gemini, Her Majesty” may have dethroned “The Resignation” as my favorite Bandits record. When it came out, I made a comment likening it to a Maroon 5 record written and performed by The Mars Volta – an absurd simplification, of course, and yet, still entirely apt. “Gemini” exhibits an older, wiser Bandits. The songs are refreshingly structured and distinct, but without sacrificing the band’s high level of technical ability. They maintain their signature jamminess, but successfully avoid aimlessness. The typical RX genres are explored (prog, psychedelic, roots, rock, blues) but they are streamlined, tightened, and more digestible than ever. I actively anticipate each song (something I can’t say about a few older RX records), and my word, are they catchy. If mainstream radio weren’t in a constant state of crisis, this song would be huge. You can’t deny it.

8. The Lawrence Arms – Metropole

“Yesterday, I woke up to find

the black in my beard had turned to white,

and the pretty girls that used to smile at me

just stared off straight ahead

or looked down at their feet.”

Even though it’d been 8 years since their last full-length (2006’s rollicking “Oh! Calcutta!”), I knew my favorite band wouldn’t let me down. “Metropole” brings us an older, more reserved Lawrence Arms, with warmer tones and timbres reminiscent of their seminal slow-burner “The Greatest Story Ever Told.” Dual vocalists Brendan Kelly (rough) and Chris McCaughan (smooth) find themselves coping with age and their place in an ever-escaping world, yearning for the comfort they once had. Each does so in his expected way – Brendan with piss & vinegar, and Chris with his trademark literary dreaminess. The songs are tied together with actual live recordings of Chicago street performers that fill out and add character to what may be the best Lawrence Arms record to date. Watch 3 lifelong best friends have a blast in this video for “Seventeener (17^th and 37^th).”

7. Fucked Up – Glass Boys

“The records we used to play still hum, still vibrate.

The frequency decays, but the fidelity remains.”

Fucked Up is the arthouse act of hardcore. They’re just as likely to release a 2-minute barrage of yelling as they are a 15-minute three-guitar soundscape featuring spoken word from indie director Jim Jarmusch (they have). While the band’s previous LP, “David Comes to Life” – an 18-track rock opera set in 1970s England – will probably go down as their magnum opus, it is inarguably dense. “Glass Boys” is anything but. At just 10 tracks, all between 3 and 6 minutes long, the record feels like the most focused Fucked Up has ever been. Although I love when bassist Sandy Marina lends her voice to the mix, she is much less present on this release, leaving frontman Damian Abraham to wrestle with some interesting growing pains, with much of the lyrical content struggling to reconcile his aversion to the mainstream with the growing popularity of his band. Hear for yourself how interestingly Fucked Up blends the bright and brutal here on “Sun Glass.”

6. Pianos Become the Teeth – Keep You

“Whatever keeps your heart right.

Whatever keeps you is alright by me.”

When a (relatively) established band undergoes a major sonic overhaul, two things can happen: (1) everyone gets nervous and/or angry; or (2) everyone overhypes things into the stratosphere. When it became evident that Pianos Become the Teeth were all but abandoning aggressive vocals (what simpletons would call “screaming”), the latter occurred. Luckily, “Keep You” met the lofty expectations and proved to be one of 2014’s best listening experiences. The content is still focused on vocalist Kyle Durfey’s dealings with the passing of his father, but fortunately the subject is a positive means of inspiration for some hauntingly redemptive material. His newfound wavering singing style is incredibly endearing, and his willingness to bare himself personally (hell, even his father’s burial plot location and number) is both inspiring and refreshing. The band’s previous record, “The Lack Long After,” tackled the same material, and considering the dramatic softening in sound, it’s as if “Keep You” is a companion piece, the flip-side of the same coin, so to speak. I’ll spare you my theories regarding the similarities in the records’ cover artwork (“The Lack Long After” featuring passive feet; “Keep You,” active hands), and urge you to watch this stunning video for the emotional “Repine,” here.

5. Every Time I Die – From Parts Unknown

“Love is the way.

Love is the only way.

Love is the only way out.”

What is there to say about Every Time I Die’s most brutal, blistering record to date? That it’s another milestone in a near-flawless discography? That going with Kurt Ballou of Coverge as producer was the best decision they’ve ever made? That these are some of the best drums and vocals I’ve ever heard on a heavy record? Yes. All of these things, and then some. Just keep shoveling the accolades on top. While vocalist Keith Buckley has never shied away from personal lyrics, “From Parts Unknown” finds him relinquishing a few of his old tricks in favor of a more straightforward approach, making this record their most progressive to date. For more on this opus, check out my full review HERE, and to be pummeled with magnificence, check out the NSFW video for “Decayin’ With the Boys” here.

4. Joyce Manor – Never Hungover Again

“Don’t say goodbye,

say you’re not sure anything could ever come between the two of us,

and I would say the same thing.”

Joyce Manor is another band I was indifferent toward until 2014. I enjoyed their first self-titled record, but not enough to care too much. My interest piqued a bit when Epitaph picked them up, and then…I heard “Catalina Fight Song.” I can’t say much more than I already did in my review, but I will say that this will go down as my of my all-time favorite pop-punk records, on par with Say Anything’s “…is a Real Boy.” Joyce Manor’s short song formula succeeds in making the listener always want more, and the fun the band had recording it (live) shines through. It’s the ultimate summer record, and just so happens to perfectly encapsulate mid-20s angst and the general malaise of aging. Treat yourself to “Catalina Fight Song” if you haven’t yet.

3. The Hotelier – Home, Like Noplace is There

“So why don’t you come with me?

We’ve got acres with streams,

we won’t keep you in cages, or make you beg for your treats,

we won’t tell you to heel, though you might need some time

to dig up those old bones your young self left behind.”

Out of this god-forsaken “emo revival” actually came a timeless record in the form of The Hotelier’s “Home, Like Noplace is There.” While I neither respect nor invest myself in this “revival,” I can’t deny that had this record come out in the heyday of the genre, it would be regarded with the same respect as Taking Back Suday’s “Tell All Your Friends” or Brand New’s “Deja Entendu.” Yup, that good. Rarely do you see such unanimous acclaim, and even more rarely do you see me agree with it (I am, for those that don’t know, quite grumpy). “Home, Like Noplace is There” does everything right. At 9 songs, it doesn’t overstay its welcome. Unlike most of their peers, The Hotelier wrote a remarkably varied record, each song sounding little like the next. One is just over 2 minutes, another is nearly 6. The lyrics are some of the year’s best, but it’s bassist/vocalist Christian Holden’s impassioned delivery that makes the record. Be sure to check out its staggering opening, which quite literally draws “the curtain” on a truly moving listening experience. Now, a full record that sounds like “Life in Drag,” please!

2. Weatherbox – Flies in All Directions

“And I receive a deleted memory of you and me,

on the run from a team of sickening police forever.

We used to have such fun together.

Do you remember?”

The record that almost wasn’t. Or at least it seemed that way. After the frustrating release of Weatherbox’s second LP, “The Cosmic Drama,” constant delays and various production woes were hell-bent on not letting ‘Weatherbox 3’ happen. Thanks to support from Triple Crown Records, “Flies in All Directions” was handled correctly and finally came to fruition, and is it a doozy. Brian Warren (Weatherbox’s main component) is an entirely unique songwriter, and witnessing his progression has been fascinating. This record is everything Weatherbox fans knew Warren to be capable of. It’s a pop-rock masterpiece and there’s a brilliant lyric at every turn. For details of how “Flies in All Directions” is strung together in a pseudo-narrative, read my full review HERE, but for now we’ll just say that this record is more meta than an episode of Community. Check out the insanely catchy/clever “Radio Hive” here.

1. Trophy Scars – Holy Vacants

“Killing angels right, one by one,

eating marrow and drinking blood,

and though it seems like so much fun,

my mouth is itchy from their holy tongues.”

I won’t rest until Trophy Scars is revered to my satisfaction. The talent this band exhumes is unmatched. The technical ability they display while shamelessly weaving in and out of genres from blues to psychedelic to gospel is, quite frankly, astounding. A concept record following the Bonnie & Clyde-like escapades of two eternally doomed lovers – “Holy Vacants” is a rollercoaster, both sonically and emotionally (for more on the story and its themes, check out my full review HERE). I was worried about a new Trophy Scars LP being a little hard to digest, but every song is so unique and intricately fleshed out with pianos, horns, organs, female backup singers, and the best guest appearance of the year in the form of Adam Fisher (Fear Before, All Human) as a twisted, haunting spectre, that the listener is constantly called to attention. Once again, I implore you to watch the video for “Archangel” here.

10 Fall Records

When initially planning a special fall entry, I was torn between wanting to focus on film or music. Coincidentally, I recently wound up in a conversation with a friend about records that reminded us of fall, and was inspired to choose something trickier than a few quick horror movie write-ups. What follows is a list of ten of what I believe to be are the most objectively autumnal records I have to offer. Some are obvious and timeless – some I hope to sway you on. Since rating “fall-ness” is absurd, here they are in alphabetical order. Happy Halloween!

AFI – All Hallow’s EP (1999)

“Deadened branches stirred by whispers in the wind, fall children fill the streets at dusk – at last, it all will begin.”

I admit this one’s a little on the nose, but over its four aggressive Halloworshiping tracks (including a cover of the Misfits’ seminal “Halloween”), ALL HALLOW’S exudes an almost unrivaled amount of late-October eeriness. The band’s second release with the lineup that remains intact to this day is bursting with backing vocals howling from beyond that accentuate singer Davey Havok’s signature wail. Even at just four songs, it still remains a horror-punk masterpiece. Check out the video for closer “Totalimmortal” here.

ALKALINE TRIO – From Hear to Infirmary (2001)

“Everything that you could ever say would never matter anyway – I took a hammer and two nails to my eardrums long ago. Before that steak knife took my eyes, I looked up to the sky for the last thing I would ever see, for the last time I’d cry.”

Another solid bar of goth-punk gold, Alkaline Trio’s FROM HERE TO INFIRMARY is perfect for exercising (spelling intended) those depraved, autumnal thoughts. While touching on all that’s ghoulish (corpses, chainsaws, and self-mutilation, to name a few), dual vocalists Matt Skiba and Dan Andriano power through twelve pop-punk joyrides that won’t be quick to leave your head. Check out “Mr. Chainsaw” here.

THE BLED – Silent Treatment (2007)

“Spare me the small-talk – every second, the price on my head grows.”

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what makes The Bled’s SILENT TREATMENT so fall-laden. Over eleven angular, breakneck barn-burners, guitarist Jeremy Ray Talley somehow establishes a tone that cuts razor-sharp while maintaining warmth in its timbre. It’s an all-out assault on the ear, yet tinted by oranges and browns. But what really makes SILENT TREATMENT autumn fare, is vocalist James Muñoz, who is absolutely possessed on this record. His demonic aggression breathes urgency and horror into lyrics that dance on the fine line dividing egotism and self-hatred. Try the expressionistic video for opener “Shadetree Mechanics” here.

BRAND NEW – The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me (2006)

“Before you put my body in the cold ground, take some time and warm it with your hands.”

Released in November, THE DEVIL AND GOD ARE RAGING INSIDE ME immediately established itself as essential fall listening, and not just because of its cover art. Every single song is immense, building tremendously only to fall again (pun intended). It’s at times off-putting, at times deranged, and always unpredictable. An acoustic intro can swiftly be obliterated by a wall of feedback, a repeated line will entrap you before you’re pummeled with explosions of noise – I mean, hell, the end of “Luca” and all of “Welcome to Bangkok” – need I say more? While there may not be anything distinctly autumnal in its lyrics (well, maybe “Sowing Season”) TDAGARIM evokes the crisp, overcast scene depicted on its already iconic cover. If you somehow haven’t heard “Sowing Season” yet, do so here.

DILLINGER FOUR – C I V I L W A R (2008)

“It feels like summer in October to me.”

This could just be a personal one, but hear me out, because this record bleeds fallen leaves. On C I V I L W A R, which remains D4’s latest (hopefully that changes soon), the beloved punk kings sacrificed a bit of their speed and vinegar to deliver a more nuanced, emotive record. It’s clearer, more mature, and its tones are warm as all get out in color. Patrick Costello’s signature bouncy bass lines are more prominent than ever before, and while you may not love the vocals (Costello’s hefty bark and Erik Funk’s whispered rasp are a fascinating and polarizing combination), there’s a distinct catchiness here you can’t deny. Check out the album closer and my personal favorite, the somber yet uncompromising “clown cars on cinder blocks” here.

THE LAWRENCE ARMS – The Greatest Story Ever Told (2003)

“I’m trying hard not to remember the way the smoke drifts through the air. We’ll all be dead come November, four months out of every year.”

Those who know me may call me biased, but just because THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD is my favorite record doesn’t mean I’d misrepresent its aesthetics. Its applicability to autumn is rooted deeply in its romantic circus theme and reverb-ridden minor keys. With near-constant literary references and burnt-brown imagery, the record’s portion of songs helmed by guitarist (and resident Holden Caulfield) Chris McCaughan makes THE GREATEST STORY EVERY TOLD perfect for that crisp, dreary day. Hear what I’m on talking about on “The Raw and Searing Flesh” here (but don’t watch the idiot’s video).

THE MISFITS – Static Age (1978)

“If you’re gonna scream, scream with me.”

No-brainer. There will never be a better horror-punk act better than the Misfits. There just won’t. It was difficult to choose exactly which release to include here (because every Misfits song fits), but I chose STATIC AGE because it was actually the first full collection of songs the Misfits recorded in 1978 (although due to funding problems, the album was never released as intended until 1996 in a vinyl box set). Even though it doesn’t have “Halloween,” it does have some of the Misfits’ all-time best tracks, including “Hybrid Moments,” “Bullet,” “She,” “Teenagers from Mars,” and “Last Caress.” If you’re unfamiliar with the Misfits, you owe yourself a listen, because frankly, I don’t think anyone could dislike these songs thanks to vocalist Glenn Danzig’s dreamy ‘50s-style croon. Do yourself a service and check out one of my personal favorites, “Hybrid Moments,” here.

O’BROTHER – Garden Window (2011)

“Lay me in the dirt and I will grow.”

I was surprised when this record jumped out at me when choosing this list, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it may be one of the most apt choices of all. The eleven songs that make up GARDEN WINDOW sound as if they were tilled from the very earth – not written, but harvested. Each is distinctly eerie, with haunting melodies and layers of vocals and fuzz that more often than not coalesce into a devastating wall of sound. If you’re going on an autumn hike through a gnarled, twisted wood, this is the record to spin. Check out the (very good) video for “Lo” here.

UNCLE ACID & THE DEADBEATS – Blood Lust (2011)

“I don’t know what I hold in my hand – could it be that I’m evil?”

This is another no-brainer. Uncle Acid’s BLOOD LUST may just be the be-all end-all of fall music. Recorded live in an dilapidated barn in the UK known as “The Slaughter House” using only lo-fi equipment and a lot of fuzz pedals, Blood Lust sounds like the soundtrack to a late-‘60s exploitation film. It is simultaneously psychedelic and groovy, eerie and disturbing, and most of all, a blast. If you love horror movies and early Black Sabbath, this may just be your new bible. Check out album opener “I’ll Cut You Down” here.

UNDEROATH – Lost in the Sound of Separation (2008)

“I’m not scared, but this is happening. I’m not afraid, but this is real.”

Something about underOATH’s LOST IN THE SOUND OF SEPARATION absolutely reeks of decay. It’s like that smell in your old apartment you could never find the source of. The musicality itself evokes a sense of deterioration, of paint peeling off walls as mold & dust pollutes the air. The demonic Spencer Chamberlain trades in his frantic, almost melodic screams found on the band’s previous record, DEFINE THE GREAT LINE, for an approach much more hollow and deadening. With lyrics focusing not only on wrestling inner demons, but on mankind itself as a failure, an infestation, LOST IN THE SOUND OF SEPARATION is what you need on that dark November day when you’ve just had enough of everyone. Check out the album’s awesome opener, “Breathing in a New Mentality,” here.