It’s pretty safe to say that 2014 has been the year of amazing releases by artists old and new.
Honestly I think I say that every year, but you know what? I mean it every single time I say it.
I have a new favorite band to listen to as of late and they are called Beach Slang. Featuring members of Weston, Ex Friends & Crybaby, this Philadelphia threesome is seriously one of the best new acts I have heard in a while.
If I had to compare them to someone out there in the music world, I would say an easy-going Jawbreaker. This indie pop-punk act defines themselves as: “Guitar, bass, and drums. Played loudly.” I could not agree more.
Recently, Beach Slang debuted their EP Who Would Want Anything So Broken? and I can not stop listening to it. Check out “Punk or Lust” and “Filthy Luck” to see why exactly I am all about these guys.
I seriously can not wait until Beach Slang drops a full length. I have the feeling it is going to be an incredible listen. Until then, good luck finding this EP on a 7″. I think it’s sold the hell out right now on Dead Broke Rekerds, but with good reason of course.
Mr. Joshua Voland promised me a pizza if I reviewed his band on my site, so here we go…
I am kidding about the pizza of course. I don’t take bribes, even if in the form of delicious pizza.
All jokes aside, Voland did ask me to check out what his band recently dropped on Bandcamp and man, I am stoked I did.
Shibuya Crossing is the debut EP by Cleveland’s very own The Public. Lasting just under 20 minutes, this release is impressive as hell. Not sure why they named the EP after the busiest intersection in Japan, but I am sure stranger things have happened.
“Liquor Store” was such a powerhouse of a song to start off the EP with. This will win fans automatically with sing along qualities. Damn shame it wrapped up so quickly. I liked that track.
“The Breaks” reminded me of a certain little band from Scranton, PA that people might have heard about. I loved the lyrics “I was just too set in my old ways. Trying to pry my way out of your ribcage.” I seriously could not get enough of this song.
“No Bother” had enough breakdowns and group vocals to make this my favorite cut on the release. Maybe it was the fact that it reminded me of a Seahaven track for a moment or probably because it was just catchy as hell. “The Dogs” might have been even catchier though.
As much as I hate to have a negative comment about any song I hear, there was a part in “Mexico” that just did not sit right with me and it was mostly due to a brief group vocal harmony that lasted not even a second. Voland asked me to be honest on how I felt…
Fans of the Lawrence Arms, Menzingers, The Tim Version, Banner Pilot, and even Cleveland sweethearts Worship This! need to check out The Public.
This band just kicks so much ass. I am really looking forward to hearing their full length debut which should be out in 2015.
Check it out and pay what you will on the band’s BandCamp page.
Chances are if you’ve heard of Pittsburgh political punkers Anti-Flag, you’ve heard about their label A-F Records.
For the longest time, I thought A-F Records was just a fading memory as I did not see a lot of releases coming from the independent label. In fact, the label pretty much stopped putting out releases about 8 years ago…until recently.
A-F Records have gone through a huge overhaul and have reinvented themselves adding multiple artists to their roster in just the past year alone.
This said reconstruction can be credited to Mr. Chris Stowe who has been working hard the last couple of years to make the independent label even bigger. He’s the label manager / jack of all trades.
Last year alone, Stowe was the man who added All Dinosaurs, Worship This!, and Worlds Scariest Police Chases (WSPC) to the roster. This year he will be releasing his own solo album on the label as well as look for more well-deserving bands to add to the A-F family.
As if busting his ass for the label is not enough, Stowe has a solo project going on, rocks out with White Wives, and is also a permanent substitute of sorts for WSPC. Needless to say, he is a busy, busy man.
Recently, I was able to catch up with Stowe who was still in heavy celebrations for signing himself to the very label he represents. Check out what he had to say:
BHP: Hey man, thanks for taking some time to chat with me today. What have you been up to recently?
CS: No prob man. Lately we’ve just been laying the ground work for our 2014 releases we’ve got planned and just trying to be as prepared for that as [soon as] possible. We’ve made some moves to expand this year and i’m stoked about that.
I am sure many can agree with me that A-F Records has revitalized themselves over the last couple years. Word on the street is that you have been pouring your blood and sweat into the label. How did you happen to fall into this role?
Blood and sweat huh? To be honest, I’m not really sure how the hell I ended up doing this. A few years ago, I joined White Wives [and] then got to know Chris and Chris [#2] through being in that band with them. Then Anti-Flag needed someone to drive/tour manage them for Warped Tour two summers ago and they asked if i could do it. Since I’ve never experienced anything like that, I jumped at the opportunity.
We talked a lot about label stuff while we were out there and how it would be cool to be able to put out records. When we got home, the dudes decided they wanted to make that bacon shaped picture disc thing and all of a sudden we had relaunched A-F Records and I was managing it.
Just like that? Crazy. To someone who may not know of the indie label A-F Records, can you give them some history?
Yeah sure. Anti-Flag started A-F Records in 1997 to release Their System Doesn’t Work For You and then they just grew from there. They put out a ton of classic punk records. Reagan Squad was amazing, The Unseen, etc. In the early 2000s, they continued to grow with the boom of the record industry and put out a ton of great bands but eventually fell prey to the great collapse in 2006 and then eventually went dormant around 2008 until we relaunched it last year.
Some of these hand-picked bands on the current roster are top-notch in my book, but also seem to challenge the former A-F alumni. Would you agree?
Hmmmm, not sure what you mean by “challenge” here? I’m thinking maybe you mean that they’re not necessarily in the same genre of political punk rock as some of the old A-F Records bands?
Yeah, I meant the political punk rock. Sorry about that. Can you tell me when you say you hope to move A-F into a less genre specific label that you might try something completely different, say like gangster folk? I kid about that of course but not really.
Gangster folk. That sounds terrible, so probably not. But I mean, I’m not opposed to anything as long as it’s awesome and the people that made it are awesome.
My end goal with the label is to put out great records that are pieces of sonic and visual art, and that’s it. I feel like we’ve done that so far with our new bands even though they don’t necessarily live within a specific genre, and that’s how i think it should be anyways.
Ideally in the next few years, I’m hoping to move A-F records into being a less genre specific label and we’ve got a bunch of stuff coming out this year that we hope challenges our core group of hard core fans and also brings some new faces into the family at the same time.
Speaking of new faces… Who would win in a street fight: Worship This! or World’s Scariest Police Chases?
Police Chases obviously, as they will have zero problem fighting dirty. pepper spray, dick punches, purple nurples, etc.
I appreciate the detail in that answer.
When A-F Records started, social media was barely existent. These days though it is almost impossible to not be emerged in. How are you taking advantage of social media to better the label?
It’s definitely got its good and bad elements, but mostly the key to properly utilizing all of the various social media outlets is to just keep your crowd engaged. The best response we’ve had I feel has come from the level of personal engagement we have with people that follow our bands and buy our records.
Anti Flag celebrated their 20th year as a band last year. I was 17. How old were you?
I was 8. That’s over 2/3 of my lifetime that these dudes have been together…it’s really amazing.
You were 8? Holy shit. I feel old now. Thanks dude. Seriously though, that is beyond amazing. You are living a punk rock dream.
Yeah, 8 years old. There’s a John Waters quote, and I’m paraphrasing, that goes something like, “if you want to do what you love for a living, plan on interning for yourself for at least 20 years”, and I feel like that definitely applies in music. Just don’t stop doing it, no matter how hard it gets, and eventually you’ll find that you accidentally made a job for yourself.
That was deep dude. Well said. So, whose idea was it for the 20 Years of Hell subscription series?
That idea kind of evolved from a combination of a bunch of different ideas, so no one person was responsible for it i don’t think. We mostly just wanted to kind of create a platform to engage people in a new way, which i think we did with the subscription website. Ultimately, we did the whole thing as a project of love for the real hardcores, ya know? I can’t tell you how hard it is to die-cut 3000 record sleeves…
How’s the response been so far?
Really great. I feel like my favorite part is that, since it’s mostly just myself and Josh Massie – Anti-Flag merch guy / most helpful dude ever – communicating with the subscribers, I’ve been able to develop a cool personal relationship with a lot of kids that I wouldn’t have otherwise come in contact with.
A-F seems to be leading in throwing contests lately. Can you tell me the current contest that is going on?
We just wrapped up the Anti-Flag “Power To The Peaceful” cover contest, which was awesome. We got so many really good submissions for that, and they’re all up on our YouTube page.
Our next contest is going to be really cool and involve some rad Anti-Flag gear. Stay tuned on that.
Being a musician yourself, how tough is it to pack up all the A-F orders, mail them out, and then play a White Wives or WSPC show let alone focus on your solo stuff?
I’m not sure how many people know. It can definitely be a challenge to get everything done sometimes, but it’s also such a blessing to be busy doing shit that you love you know? I mean, basically my dream was to one day be doing music constantly, and I’ve somehow pulled that off so that’s cool. And it’s not just my music, it’s my solo stuff, White Wives, WSPC, plus all the A-F bands we’re working on this year. It’s a dream job dude, for real.
Hell yeah. So when is your solo stuff supposed to drop? Anything Wives related you care to mention?
I can’t really speak to Wives stuff, but I’ve got a record coming out on A-F this summer as Chris Stowe.
How’s it feel to be signed, a rock star, and have your own material coming out on wax?
It’s not that cool dude. “Hey Stowe, you wanna sign this Stowe guy? Sure Stowe, if you like it I’m all for it. Well sounds good, Stowe, you’re signed!” It does feel good.
I believe that. So I noticed the pre-orders for your solo release have posted to the A-F site already. Charlie Brown yellow may be the most unique color I have heard of in a while. Is there any reason behind this?
I just love the peanuts man, always have. Plus I like to come up with cool “inside” names for our vinyl colors like Forest County green. Forest County is a magical place in PA that I go camping with my buddies every summer and a lot of my record was inspired by that part of the country.
So how were you suckered into WSPC? I will not lie, they are currently one of my favorite bands right now and it has nothing to do with my bromance via instagram with DeLucia.
Well, DeLucia, in real life, became a mailman. and he couldn’t play Fest last year, so I learned all the songs and played in his place – although my head blew up after just 1 song so I didn’t end up playing Fest really… Then I played some more out of town shows with them, Detroit and Asbury Park…then they tried to kick me out, but I got real sad about it so they let me stick around. Now there’s too many guitar players.
Tell me about A-F Records and Turnstyle Films. I might have heard a little something something…
Yeah we’ll have to keep the kids in suspense on that for a little while longer. I will say that we’ll be working heavily with Turnstyle this year on a ton of projects, which i’m excited for. They are amazing at what they do.
I credit A-F for making Cleveland and Pittsburgh friends again. What city do you think you will swoon over next?
I love Cleveland. A lot. And Pittsburgh. A lot. I’m not sure I can take credit for them becoming friends again, I feel like they always have been. We’ve both got amazing music scenes and live in the same economical climate for the most part, so it only makes sense to me that we should combine forces as much as possible.
What is next for Chris Stowe?
Just A-F Records stuff, solo stuff, maybe a secret band no one has heard yet….all the stuff. ALL.
What about A-F Records? Seems like the label has built up a ton of momentum as of late and isn’t slowing down anytime soon.
Yup, just forging ahead. Going to put out some great stuff this year and see where that takes us. the future is bright.
Head on over to A-F Records site and secure your copy of Stowe’s upcoming release of Hallow. The album drops in late June.
For more info on everything else A-F related, check out the A-F Records website.
I soon befriended the now disbanded Ninja Gun and even was able to house them for a couple of nights in the middle of one of their tours. Without going into too much detail, I can tell you that all four members were quality individuals and we’ve kept in touch ever since.
As I was a huge fan of the Valdosta, GA act, it was no surprise to anyone that I was bummed out when Ninja Gun said announced they were calling it quits in 2010. How couldn’t I? I loved everything that band ever had to offer and also was fully away just how bad ass each of the members of the bad were. I was just stoked to have gotten to know them.
Jeff Haineault, Ninja Gun’s former drummer, got in touch with me recently to let me know that his new band, New Natives, were going to be releasing an album. I was beyond stoked to listen to what he and his new band had created.
New Natives can best be described as a chill indie pop rock act with a hint of a small town vibe. Members not only include Haineault on guitar and vocals, but also Taylor Patterson on drums, Jackson Dean on guitar, and Joe Martin on bass.
Their self-titled debut started with the fun track “Gets Around”. a song clearly about fun loving times. The song really perked my attention with their upbeat indie rock style. Had this song come out in the 90s, it probably would have been featured on the Empire Records soundtrack. I am sure that just made no sense at all, but for whatever reason, I thought about that movie while listening to this track.
“Too Far” was an instant hit to my ears. This radio-friendly song would be perfect to include in any road trip mix or even would be perfect to listen to at a summer shindig.
“Broke Your Heart” had Haineault resembling the singing style of Gregg Alexander at times and I loved it. I am sure it is no shocker to many of you out there, but I was a HUGE New Radicals fan. Guilty pleasure folks. Don’t judge.
“Hopes and Dreams” really carried that Ninja Gun style I was hoping to hear from Haineault. This was a definite laid back jam full of plenty of ohhs and ahhs.
Continuing was the farmland indie rock, was “Lonely Eyes”. This song was all over the place and I loved it. I thought from the start the song would be a country love track, but soon it morphed into an indie jam all about moving on.
Ending the album was “Take You With Me”, another track where I could not help but think of Alexander as Haineault sang. I liked how the piano hid in the background of the song, it just added just enough extra support to an already well-written song.
This really was a refreshing album to listen to from beginning to end. New Natives have the ability to take over college stations all over the place with their unique blend of indie and small town rock. Original and catchy, this album is well worth the listen.
I know I have said in the past that I usually do not review any of my friend’s album releases, but I seriously think it’s time to change that.
Within the last year alone, a whole slew of my friends have been dropping excellent releases left and right. Many of those said releases were immediately thrown into my regular rotation and also made it to my “Best Of 2013” list without me even thinking twice.
One of these bands I speak of is Cleveland’s heartthrobs (and beer snobs), Signals Midwest. I learned of them through friends who had shared stages and basements with them and soon became not only a fan, but also a friend. All four members are some of the coolest, kindest people I know.
They have a musical style that ranges from punk rock to indie rock while also carrying a progressive technical grace that is just so appealing. Featuring Max Stern on guitar / vocals, Jeff “JR” Russell on guitar, Loren Shumaker on bass, and Steve Gibson on drums, the band has been doing their thing since late 2008.
The band’s sophomore release of Latitudes & Longitudes was easily one of my favorite releases in 2012.It was no surprise that I turned into even an bigger fan once I heard Light On The Lake. Yeah, it may have dropped a few months back, but after listening to it again today, I realized I needed to write a little something-something about it.
Released through the ever cool folk at Tiny Engines, Light On The Lake is an impressive release from start to finish. It’s an album not only composed of great tunes but also layered with a very narrative story containing a journey of self-realization, injury, and coming to terms. The more I read into the story throughout this album, the more I am loving it.
“308” started off the album with Stern and crew singing a somber yet catchy into. With Stern singing, “give me time ’cause I’m trying to process this”, clearly emotions were beginning to rise. I really dug how the opening track snuck its way into “In The Pauses”. I enjoyed this track tremendously with continual up and down arrangements throughout.
“A Room Once Called Yours” picked things up, but the song continued down a gloomy route. The guitar playing and brutal drumming really is what grabbed my attention throughout. I loved when Stern sang: “So why do we decide to leave when what we really wanna do is stay? And when all we want to do is sleep, we force ourselves awake.”
“St. Vincent Charity” sat on me heavier than the others with technical guitar playing added to an array of group harmonies throughout. What a killer track to listen to. Listening to the song build up and climax was beyond satisfying. The lyrics though is what made this song so poignant. Easily this was one of my favorite tracks on the album.
Having been far away from home before leaving loved ones behind, “The Desert To Denver” really stuck to me. I felt that I really related to the lyrics: “Save me from sinking in this city. Be the light that guides me home.” After all, it was the love in my current relationship as well as from my friends and family that kept me stable until I was able to travel back east.
Signals Midwest – Photo Credit: Andee Wells
I loved Loren’s distorted bass-smashing on “Lowercase”. It really reached back to the 90s alt-rock that I have always adored.
“San Anselmo” opened reminding me of an Avett Brother’s song – no joke. Remember the part in “Pretty Girl From Chili”right after Gabriella’s voicemail?Ok, I am sure I lost some of you just now. Anyways…the song opened up pretty awesomely and just continued to amaze throughout. I loved this west-coast-love-affair-with-a-rust-belt-local track so much.
Closing the album was “A Glowing Light, An Impending Dawn”, a track that was like a tribute and a procession. The song put the album to rest as well as the story that was being told throughout. It started softly and built up almost to a celebration status, only to thin out.
I’m pleased to have gotten to know these swell guys over the last few years and plan on keeping them pals for life. From seeing them live on stage to hanging out with them for a night when I was out in the middle of nowhere, these dudes are top notch.
Cleveland is full of amazing bands and honestly, this is the best the music scene has been for as long as I can remember. Take that how you want it, but if you are not caught up with the area talent, then maybe you need to turn your attention to some of these hard working acts in the area. Start with Signals Midwest and branch out accordingly. You will not be disappointed.
Signals Midwest are playing Brite Winter Fest this weekend before taking a well-deserved break. You can follow their shenanigans on their Tumblr page or on good ol’ Facebook.
To snag your very own copy of Light On The Lake, head on over to the Tiny Engines website and give them all of your money.
This music blog could have a driver's license by now…
It’s pretty safe to say that 2014 has been the year of amazing releases by artists old and new.
One of the best things about attempting to run my own blog is the amazing humans I am introduced to because of it.
Their self-titled debut started with the fun track “Gets Around”. a song clearly about fun loving times. The song really perked my attention with their upbeat indie rock style. Had this song come out in the 90s, it probably would have been featured on the Empire Records soundtrack. I am sure that just made no sense at all, but for whatever reason, I thought about that movie while listening to this track.
