Venues are still running on limited capacities but through the fog the green shoots are starting to emerge. Is culture dying in Dublin or ready to fight?
Play of the Day S:Bahn are motoring along
Melbourne Post punks S:Bahn have a new record out. This is a Gang of Four crashing instruments and creating a glorious noise
Play of the day: chiming in from New South Wales
Debut album from 2 piece Australian post punk hardcore band Chimers. Sounding like Mission of Burma playing Cult songs but with lods of nods to soaring sounds of Husker Du or Lungfish this is a record well worth chasing down
Acoustic Melvins on the way
Lockdown sent everyone crazy. Electric gigs and performances dwindled as bands took to doing Lockdown sessions. The Melvins have never been a band to jump on any bandwagons over their 4 decade history and while their next record will be a stripped down version of the band it was done because it was time.
Book of the week – What was that 30 year plan again?
This book details the journey of 30 years. It is written in yearly chapters and gives a perfect feel for the journey Therapy? went on. All the albums are dissected and lots of direct quotes from the members show how when they started they were just music fans and thirty years later that’s what they still are. Lovers of other people music playing music that suits them. That feeling really comes across here. Times may have changed, creases may be on faces but deep down they are still those kids making a racket.
Play of the day – the dressing rooms are starting to unlock
Continuing on with the excellent series of benefits is the latest Locked in the dressing Room comps. As the light is starting to emerge on live music once again it will be more difficult to remember how many venues and staff were left with no income. For most reading this blog live music was a pulse we clung on to. We looked forward to the camaraderie of gigs, the explosion of sound and sight on stage as our world revolved so much around music. That came to a halt as we re-assesed and some tried to recreate that experience online. But it was difficult. Live In the Dressing Room was created to show support to venues by the musicians.
Play of the day The Deathset can tune more than parrots
Three is definitely a crowd for the death set, a power pop punk rock fuzzed up duo with synths, drum machines tunes and noise aplenty. Blistering and poppy third album
Celebrating 20 years of positivity
Punk rock, cut and paste, 40 issues and 2 decades on from its first issue Positive Creed is still coming out with great regularity
Dealing with more damage – Ask More questions, please
Re-release on vinyl with extra tracks of Dealing With Damage as they ask more questions and bring back that punk rock back to us that we all love
Play of the day it’s not just mush it’s a classic
What a game changer this album was. It took the punk rock bits many of us had grown up with, for some we had discovered us hardcore and the tunes that were going with that. We felt that music was changing trajectory, it didn't have to continue to be confrontational, it could be conversational. Leatherface were the band that made the next leap.