The Queers/The Scissors show review (3.14.09):

So tonight, Reggie's in Chicago hosted The Queers with The Scissors. There was another band in between called The Poison Arrows, but they had to cancel due to alleged "van trouble."
It was cool because unlike the last four times I've seen The Queers, this time had something different; something special. They had, on tour with them, Wimpy Rutherford. Wimpy used to play in the original Queers in like 1982 (See:The Queers story) when they first started out as just a local punk band to piss off local art fags, as he once called them. Ah, who am I kidding? Art fags are everywhere.
They did a Ramones cover of "I Don't Care," which was pretty cool considering they usually do "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" and "Blitzkrieg Bop." Adam from The Leftovers was playing drums for them, which was awesome because The Leftovers are a really great band. He was a really nice guy too, which is always cool. They all are nice guys.
They played a lot of the usual stuff - "Debra Jean," "Granola Head," "Hi Mom, It's Me," "Ben Weasel," "Teenage Bonehead," "I Hate Everything," "I Want Cunt," "You're Tripping," "Fuck the World," "Punk Rock Girls," "No Tit," "Born To Do Dishes," "etc...
But with Wimpy, they did "MacArthur's Park," "Fagtown," "This Place Sucks," "Tulu Is a Wimp," "Kicked Out of the Webelos," "Terminal Rut," "I Spent the Rent," "I'm Useless," "Wimpy Drives Through Harlem," "We'd Have a Riot Doing Heroin," "I Like Young Girls," "Nothing To Do," "Fuck You" and I think some others. They did a cover of Screeching Weasel's "Cindy's On Methadone" too.
It was a really good show. The Scissors were pretty good. I don't recall seeing the chick guitarist the last time I saw them play at The Note. So, possible new addition there. Pretty good stuff though. Queers are coming out with a split with The Riptides sometime this year as well as a new full-length, I believe. I'm pretty sure both are going to come out on Asian Man Records. Go catch The Queers with Wimpy Rutherford, it was fuckin' good.

The Queers Are Here!

The first known usage of the term "punk rock" was in the Chicago Tribune on March 22, 1970 in an article about a New York band called The Fugs, where lead singer Ed Sanders described his solo material as "punk rock - redneck sentimentality."

Punk was not just about making a different style of music for the hell of it, which is a common misunderstanding. Punk seemed to be a necessary step taken in the 1970s by those across the globe who didn't agree with the pompousness and sentiment of the era's rock 'n' roll bands and society.

"Punk rock had to come along because the rock scene had become so tame that [acts] like Billy Joel and Simon and Garfunkel were being called rock 'n' roll, when to me and other fans, rock 'n' roll meant this wild and rebellious music," said John Holmstrom, founder of "Punk Magazine."

By 1977, the punk movement was in full swing. England had The Clash and The Sex Pistols. The U.S.'s punk scene stretched from The Germs in California all the way to The Ramones in New York. Australia had The Saints.

While it had a tendency to spawn in urban areas, punk was not just found in big cities. Many obscure towns birthed some of the longest-living and most influential punk bands of the era. One such place was in Portsmouth, N.H.

In 1977, then-vocalist John Hayes (also known as Wimpy Rutherford) was practicing with guitarist and current vocalist Joe King when his friend, Kevin came running in saying, "'Come out to the car, come out to the car, you gotta hear this tape I got,' Hayes said.

"So we went out to his car and we sat in his car and we listened to 'You're a Loudmouth, Baby' and 'PT Boat On the Way to Havana' and I've never heard The Ramones or anything like that before and that was the day - that was the actual day - that we just stopped doing all the shit we were doing and went down a whole other road. Once I heard the energy of that kind of thing, that just sent me right down the road."

"We were just inspired by The Ramones and Black Flag and we kind of just wanted to start a band," said King. "We were fooling around with our instruments and then we just said, 'Let's start a band.' And that was really it, to just have a legal reason as it were, to drink and try to pick up girls and stuff like that," said King.

At this time, Hayes and King (also known as Joe Queer) played in a local punk band called The Bugs and another called The Falling Spikes. Then in 1981, Hayes, King and bassist Tulu declared themselves "The Queers."

"Joe and I were both just sick of the crap of the '70s, the music that was out and what people listened to, like fuckin' Steely Dan and The Eagles and all that kind of crap, and we just wanted to be anti all that," Hayes said.

King and Hayes just wanted a name people would remember that was provocative and also pissed off the art community.

"We just wanted a name that we could spraypaint around our town to piss 'em off, so that's kind of where it came from and it stuck with us," King said.

When The Queers started out, punk was just punk. There was no "this type and that type" like there is today.

"You were nasty and snotty and played power chords with no beats and it was really, everything was kind of similar," Hayes said. "The only dissimilar things you had was, you had the east coast American and west coast American and then the English."

The Queers released two 45 rpm records between 1982 and 1984.

"I remember when we put out the first two Queers records, it was so small then, I remember being at my house, I was a just little kid, living in my little apartment and in came a letter from Jello Biafra and he said, 'Hey, I heard your two singles on some radio station somewhere, where can I get a hold of them? Thanks, Jello Biafra,'" Hayes said. "So even people like that were already in touch with other people that were doing the same. It was pretty small, pretty close-knit. I sent him the singles, I sent him a letter back and I never heard back, but I had come to find out that the guy's an asshole."

In the mid-'80s, the bandmates went separate ways.

King got into the restaurant business, and owned a two-story bar/café in New Hampshire at the time that had burgers, nachos and things of the sort.

"It's creative and there's a good energy," King said. "A lot of people complain about the restaurant business, but it doesn't have to suck, you know, it could be really fun if you get a good crew in there." We had the dining room area (where) there would be a lot of grilled salmon and Italian food and stuff. It was a pretty cool place and I miss cooking. Every once in a while, I wish I still had the restaurant."

King took me back to the 1980s and early 1990s when he had his own place in N.H.

"I was really dedicated, it was a small place. We only sat 46 upstairs and 46 down in the lounge. Everything was fresh," King said. "So, I cooked my own turkey for the roast turkey sandwiches, I cooked my own roast beef, I cut my own French fries, I made my own tomato sauce - I used canned tomatoes - but I used as much stuff fresh as I could, whether it's a burger or whatever. There's a right way and a wrong way to make it, so I didn't just have a restaurant that I opened up to throw frozen French fries in the fryer, no. I didn't do that, that'd be kind of boring."

As King got into the restaurant business, original bassist, Tulu and Hayes went to Boston.

The bandmates were doing their separate things until 1990 when King put out the first record with bassist Greg Urbatis, drummer Hugh O'Neill and guitarist "Young" Sean Rowley.

"I owned the restaurant then, Hugh and B-Face (bass) worked for me - my friends, you know. We were the punks and so I said, 'Let's make one album. Let's get together and make one more album, we'll put it out ourselves and we'll call it a day, but at least it'll be a great punk album,'" King said. "OK, so we hadn't played in about a year, but we still had a bunch of songs. I met Ben Weasel out in Chicago, I sent him an old recording or something. And he got on Lookout! (Records) in 1992 or 1993 and I was working at the restaurant and Larry Livermore called me from Lookout! and he said, 'Do you want to make an album?' So here I am in N.H. and I'm thinking 'Hey, fuck it, I was going to buy a restaurant in Portsmouth, N.H. There was a great deal, I had the money, I was going to go in there at the restaurant downtown and Larry called."

At that time, Lookout!'s own Green Day was just hitting it big.

"I said, 'You know what, I haven't gone down that path in life and I need to learn those lessons. So I know I'll probably regret this, but I'm not going to buy that restaurant,' so I didn't buy it," King said. "The people went in there and they made a lot of money. But I went down that path in life with music and I traveled and that's what happened."

To King, it was weird because he and his friends just wanted to have fun and play on weekend and work the restaurant business.

"That's the point where we made 'Love Songs For the Retarded' and put it out ourselves, we pressed like 500 vinyls or something and called it a day, but here I am," King said. "Then all of a sudden, I went down that path in life and that's how I met my wife and all my friends now are through music, so this whole big life I have was all because I took that decision not open the restaurant and take a chance and go on the road and play music and meet people and learn about life. It all worked out."

Before 1993's "Love Songs For the Retarded," The Queers' 1990 release, "Grow Up," was the band's first and, undergoing numerous lineup changes over the years, The Queers today have over 15 releases between full-length albums and 45 rpm singles. The band's 2007 release, "Munki Brain," deviates away from straight punk and into bubblegum pop and surf.

It's rare that a punk band outlives The Ramones' 22-year career, but The Queers have done it and are still traveling the world.

"You kind of get to the point doing music where listen, all of want to party, at least a bunch of us musicians, want to party and do drugs and drink and not have to work a regular job and sleep with girls you wouldn't meet otherwise," King said. "You want to do all that stuff, but ultimately, it was something inside, that I had to do music. Once I started doing music, I realized it was all about punk rock to me, and music was about being the better person and learning about life and becoming a better person through it. People think it's just about playing a gig to a bunch of drunken people, but its so much more. It's like a journey; if you don't learn anything from the journey, then I should've just stayed in the restaurant."

To King, musicians are lucky to take on the job of going out and touring and playing music to lots of people.

"Not many people get to do a job where they cheer, you know? And say 'MORE MORE MORE.' That doesn't happen when you're flippin' burgers or writing for the paper or whatever, right? You know, if you don't learn from this lucky trip that you're on right here, then you might as well go manage a fuckin' Taco Bell 'cause you're a fuckin' asshole and you haven't learned anything."

"Like George Harrison from the Beatles said: 'We woke up one day, we're the biggest band in the world but then we looked at each other and said, 'Now what?'' So yeah, that's the way I look at it, it's all about learning about life," King said.

Over the years, a lot of now-famous pop punk bands have opened for The Queers.

"A lot of the pop punk bands that got famous like Lit or Good Charlotte or Fall Out Boy or Blink-182 and tons of those other bands - Sum 41 - but really, the only truly great one was Green Day. I'm inspired by it, it's great and that's cool and more power to 'em, I mean, I did it 'cause it was something inside, but bands like us, Green Day, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Screeching Weasel, The Muffs, we didn't do it 'cause it was a career move," King said. "Now it is a career move. If you look like you dress at Hot Topic and got eye shadow on and you write some gay ass songs, you can get famous whether you have fuckin' talent or not, if you got the look.

"It was like a loser's proposition. You were either fuckin' 'Welcome to Burger King, may I take your order ma'am?' or a punk rocker. There wasn't any fuckin' safety net under you. You did it because something told you to do it. Green Day, they were going to do those songs on 'Dookie' whether they got fuckin' famous as hell or they didn't. They had those songs written - we saw 'em, they were showin' 'em to us - before 'Dookie' came out. Some of us got really famous, some of us got semi-famous and some died, some lived, some learned, some moved on, you know. But it touched all of us. Punk rock really did a bunch of cool people out."

King is now married, but playing more than 30 years of punk rock, he is definitely not looking to call it a day anytime soon.

The Queers, who tour a lot, can live off touring, but the band needs a break, King said.

"I'm opening up a recording studio and starting my first session next week, working with The Riptides from Ottawa, Canada," King said. "We're going to do a split with them and a couple other projects. I got a bunch of bands coming in. We're starting slow, but it's pretty cool. I'm spending all my money on stuff, but it's fun. To be honest, I'm more into getting behind the scenes. I see some of the newer pop-punk bands, not many of them really excite me and none of 'em can really hold a candle to Screeching Weasel or Mr. T Experience or The Muffs back in the day. So, I get inspired to show 'em how it's done properly."

Hayes is currently fronting The Jabbers, G.G. Allin's first band. The Queers' current lineup consists of King on vocals and guitar, The Bugs' Dangerous Dave on bass and backup vocals and Ryan from the Atom Age on drums.

At 7 p.m. Sunday, October 5, The Queers will be rolling through Urbana, stopping to play a show at The IMC, 202 S. Broadway, with The Independents, Roberta Sparrow and Dizzy Chair Time. Admission is $10.

May 24, 2008: The Queers show at Reggie's

I'm creating a blog for the first time, so until I figure out how to make things fancy, this is what I'll be writing on.
I am going to review albums, shows and things of the sort here as well as banter about topics of relevance as well.
Enough time-wasting.

Saturday, May 24, 2008
Reggie's Rock Club
Chicago

The Queers
Lemuria
Bomb the Music Industry!
Andrew Jackson Jihad
Kepi Ghoulie

I've been promoting this show with posters kindly provided to me by Mike Park, of Asian Man Records for a while now. After hanging up a few around town, Mike put me on Kepi's guest list. Right off the bat, I was very stoked, but since I haven't been on many guest lists before, I waited in line with all the other kids like a moron, missing about half of Kepi's set. It bummed me out, as I wanted to see him the most. The Groovie Ghoulies vocalist played "The Beast With Five Hands" as his last song, so it made everything OK. He also played "The Highwayman" off his solo CD, Yes Depression as well. A familiar tune. It was nice seeing him, as I had never seen the Ghoulies before. I'll keep my fingers crossed.
Andrew Jackson Jihad was OK. They were very folky, kind of like every other band up on the indie scene right now. Your typical scruffy looking (probably vegan) guy with an acoustic guitar and a stand-up bass player singing some Against Me!-sounding songs over and over again. Not horrible, but not too original either.
The next band, Bomb the Music Industry!, intrigued me a bit. They were a 'collective' band, meaning there were no concrete members to it, and the members revolved as the show went from town to town. I'm not 100 percent up on how it works, but I assume there's some tabs somewhere and whoever wants to play as the band for whatever show just learns the music and does it. Kind of interesting, but it still wasn't that good. Just a bunch of amateur kids who want to be on stage singing and whatnot. Very fun, but not so much to look at.
It's more interesting that all of Bomb the Music Industry's mp3s are free via its MySpace page. Somewhere on there, I think it says Matt from Shinobu is on the recordings. So, kind of following the same 'indie-folk/punk' template, Bomb the Music Industry! didn't impress me much overall.
Lemuria was next. Unfortunately, I didn't catch much Lemuria as after being upset about the Kepi thing and then having to sit through two crappy bands, I went next door to drink. But they weren't bad. It's not all that often I see a girl-fronted band. I don't know what it is about that, but it's always more interesting for some reason, and not in a sexist or perverted way at all. It's just that after you see so many dudes singing for months and months of shows on end, it's kind of refreshing in a way to get that change of audio scenery in a live setting.
Anyways, The Queers headlined the gig. I enjoy them, they're fun and all that, but the only beef I have with them is that every time they come to town, they blow through the same set every time. They are a band sitting on a pretty hefty mine of good material, but they play the same fast short songs over and over again. Again, not a bad time, but I would love to hear some of their slower pop stuff live sometime.
The highlight of the night was when Ben Weasel came out to sing "Love Love Love" with The Queers. It was awesome. I had tickets to the Ben Weasel show the next day, so seeing and actually hearing his voice over the PA was a VERY nice appetizer to Sunday night.
But I'll talk about that later. After Mr. Weasel left the stage, Kepi came out to sing some Ramones tunes with The Queers. He did "Kill That Girl" and "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker," both very enjoyable. Seeing that cleared all feelings of angst from before, when I missed a chunk of his solo set.
So, all in all, it was a good show. The beer's overpriced as always and they do get you good on that, but other than that, it was an enjoyable night.

Q&A with Ryan Young of OFF WITH THEIR HEADS

While Ryan was in the studio recording Off With Their Heads' next record, he took some time to chat with me about the new record coming out on Epitaph Records as well as a bunch of random shit.

Squid Pro Quo: I listened to "Listerine" today (via www.myspace.com/ryanyoungowth). I dig that. That's going to be an OWTH tune?

Ryan Young: Yeah. In the studio now.

SPQ: Now that you guys are on a bigger label, how's the sound? Kinda keeping that momentum with "From The Bottom"?

Ryan: It will be a little better than that. We have two weeks in a crazy good studio as opposed to three days in a shithole, so we have time to make it rule.

SPQ: About how many songs are you guys lookin' at having on there?

Ryan: We are recording 15, but I dont think they will all go on there.

SPQ: Cool man. Do you guys have a name for the album yet?

Ryan: Not yet. We usually take the album name off some lyrics from the last song. Haven't gotten that far yet.

SPQ: Oh, neat. Where are you guys recording it?

Ryan: We are recording at The Terrarium. Dillinger 4 and Banner Pilot did records here.

SPQ: That last Banner Pilot album sounds phenomenal. Especially compared to Resignation Day.

Ryan: Yeah it does. This one will be even better because those dudes are mastering it at some crazy expensive place.

SPQ: Shit yeah. So what next? Awesome tours? I know you guys toured with Against Me! semi-recently. More stuff like that?

Ryan: Nothing much planned yet. Just that couple months touring starting in February.

SPQ: Headlining that, right?

Ryan: Except for the dates with The Queers.

SPQ: Oh, no way. Are you guys coming through Chicago with The Queers?

Ryan: Nope. Its mostly canada

SPQ: Word. So how did this thing with Epitaph end up? Did they just randomly discover you or how did that work?

Ryan: Brett (Gurewitz) called me last year and said he was a fan. We chatted for a while, went and had pizza at his house when we were on tour, visited the office and he basically gave us a really good offer that we would have been dumb to turn down, especially with the decline of record sales.

SPQ: Awesome. So how come it's not "official" yet. Just needs to be announced kinda thing?

Ryan: Yeah, they wait for the right time or something.

SPQ: So here's a cliche question for ya: where do you guys get influence from? Most songs seem like just personal events/situations. Still doing that?

Ryan: Yeah. It's all the same.

SPQ: So what's the lineup for the recording? And will it stay the same for the touring?

Ryan: It's Justin, Zack, Nate (Gangelhoff) and I and no, it changes for touring.

SPQ: With so much time on the road, how do you find the time to write?

Ryan: I write about as much as I did before we toured all the time. It either comes to me or it doesn't and when it does, it happens fast.

SPQ: Just those random cosmic waves of inspiration, eh?

Ryan: I guess so. Probably just the weed though.

SPQ: I had to take a hair test for my job now. It's retarded how some employers are.

Ryan: I think I would be unqualified to work any kind of job. I'd ruin the drug test lab.

SPQ: What's been your biggest obstacle over the years?

Ryan: Probably coming to terms with the fact that this is just what I do and I'm not really good at anything else. I always kinda wonder what I would be doing if it weren't this, and it's always something much less meaningful or completely worthless. At least I'm doing something that most people won't get a chance to.

SPQ: Realistically, what do you think you'd be doing if it weren't for playing music? Or even not-so-realistically. Hell, what did you want to be when you were a kid?

Ryan: I've always wanted to do this, so I guess I win. It isn't nearly as glamorous as it might seem, especially with the record sales being way down. If we were doing this 10 years ago, I would probably be pretty well-off. If I weren't doing this, I'd be painting houses.

SPQ: Probably better money in painting houses, haha. But also probably not as gratifying since you've always wanted to play music. Gotta live your heart. That's good! Man, playing music 10 years ago would be cool. Just when the illegal downloading of music was in its infant stages...

Ryan: Yeah. I would actually make more money delivering pizzas two days a month than being in this band. We have been touring for six years. I didn't start getting paid anything until last year.

SPQ: So all the show money just went to food and gas?

Ryan: Yeah, and that didn't cover it. We are still out years of paying for all that stuff. Even with From The Bottom selling around 10,000 (copies).

SPQ: So you've really gotta "make it" in order to actually MAKE anything these days.

Ryan: Pretty much

SPQ: Well, hopefully with Epitaph, you guys take off. I know they push the hell out of their catalog with street teams and a wider distro and all that.

Ryan: Yeah, we'll see. I'm not sure if the masses are ready for this kind of music. Especially the masses that Epitaph deals with. It's clearly different than that other silly stuff they put out over the last while.

SPQ: Not the ol' California Warped Tour garbage, eh? That's comforting. Well, hey man. Maybe it'll be a tide of change and you guys will pioneer it.

Ryan: That's what I'm hoping for.

SPQ: Aside from Epitaph, what's been the best part of fronting OWTH over the years?

Ryan: I'd say getting to meet all of my "idols". That's pretty awesome.

SPQ: Best show ever?

Ryan: The Fest shows the last couple years were rad.

SPQ: I saw the video of you and Paddy where you burned the money, haha. That shit was hilarious.

Ryan: We are dumb together

SPQ: Hahaha. Committing crimes on camera. Tsk tsk. Do you have any pet peeves? Or anything while touring that you don't like?

Ryan: TONS of shit. You just get overly sensitive about little things when you spend too much time with anyone. Once you realize that, you see that it's not a big deal.

SPQ: Kind of like any relationship, I guess?

Ryan: Totally

SPQ: Speaking of, you guys have women? How does that work with you all being so busy on the road? Is it just different chicks every night? Banging in all 50 states-style?

Ryan: Hahaha. I have a girlfriend. Same one for over the last year and a half.
It's fine. I don't really like hooking up with random girls. They usually suck.

SPQ: That's the best part! I guess only when it's with their mouths. What are some of your favorite bands "today"?

Ryan: I don't really like much current music. I like gangsta rap because it's funny. I like pop music for the same reasons. Lady Gaga rules.

"Japan Invasion" this September...

I don't know how many people actually read this, but a couple of you know I play bass in a band called The Kobanes. The other day, Mark, Eddie and myself went to a travel agent and bought some plane tickets to Tokyo for September 18. Nonstop flight from O'Hare and everything. We were given the option to stop in Texas for $62 less but having to get your stuff, go through customs and then re-do all that in two hours all while risking the safety of our guitars seemed a little much. Anyways, a nice sum of money's worth later, we're going to Japan to play six shows in about a week and a half.

We're going to arrive September 19 in the afternoon sometime and stay the night in Tokyo. On the 20th, we're playing some festival in Tokyo with over 30 bands, which is gonna be rad. Here's the itinerary the dude from the label sent me:

9/19(Sat.) Arriving Tokyo Airport

9/20(Sun.) Tokyo-Akihabara (Club Goodman)
Punk Rock Fest with over 30 bands!!

9/21(Mon.) Nagoya (Memory Pops)
w/Sense Of Identity, The Because, Navigations, Navel

9/22(Tue.) Okayama (Pepperland)
w/What's What, The Urchin, The Because, Origin Of M

9/23(Wed.) Hiroshima (Border)
w/So-Cho Pistons, The Urchin, Residents, Dug Out, Wrong Way, Jailbird

9/24(Thur.) Off - Sightseeing Hiroshima/Moving Tokyo

9/25(Fri.) Tokyo-Shinjuku (Nine Spices)
w/So-Cho Pistons, See Her Tonite, Disgusteens, Zero Fast

9/26(Sat) Tokyo-Musashisakai (Statto)
w/So-Cho Pistons, Headbangers, Idaho Rainys, The Cumings, Havanas

9/27(Sun.) ????

9/28(Mon.) Leaving Tokyo Airport

I have a Japanese neighbor who keeps asking me for a CD and an itinerary and stuff and I keep hesitating to give it to her because a lot of the lyrics are pretty offensive but she seems rad enough. She said she used to go to Anthrax shows so that's cool. Anyways, that's the Japan tour part. Now I'm going to talk about the new album actually called "Japan Invasion."

It's gonna be 11 or 12 songs. Five of them are up on the MySpace player now. This is the artwork: It's in the works but that's it more or less.



Kobanes Theme
Please Don't
You Are The One
Ice Scream (Instru-mental)
Population: One
I'm Not Right
Nobody (Chixdiggit! cover)
I Can't
Fan Mail (The Dickies cover)
Me Vs. Myself
A new fast Queers-style song

A lot of those aren't even named yet and I might be missing a song in there but yeah that's pretty much what the album is going to look like (and not in that order). Fixing A Hole Records and Dumb! Records I think are going to do the same thing they did with the first album and co-release it. Both labels are out of Japan and fucking rock. Hopefully this album goes over well. I'd like to send out a bunch for review to Maximum Rock n' Roll and other mediums of the sort. I'll share my review here and talk about the recording process and all that fun stuff when the time comes but for now, I have to learn that new fast Queers-style song and it would be nice to write another one. Also, Knowhere Records expressed interest in putting out a Kobanes 7'' so we might do two or three songs there. One of which will be a Sheckies cover of "Then She Got Married." Mark wants to do that one really bad. Also I'm going to learn "She's The One" by The Ramones...we'll probably play that in Japan and at shows. They used to play it before I joined the band but that is actually one of my favorite Ramones songs so yeah, that's about it for now. Expect a new CD in about a month or so and if we get lucky maybe a nice label will put it out on vinyl! Oooohhhhhhh.

'Over Leavitt' by Noise By Numbers

By Kevin Toomey
Rating: 2/5
Jump Start Records CD/LP
August 2011

My first impression of Over Leavitt was to say that Noise By Numbers is a very apt name for this band. After a couple more chances, I can’t say that my first impression was very far off. While I like Dan Schafer’s work in most of the other bands he’s been in (Screeching Weasel, The Riverdales, The Methadones, The Mopes, Sludgeworth, The Queers, Generation Waste), the majority of the material on Over Leavitt didn’t seem to really measure up to the songwriting standard that he’s set for himself in The Riverdales or The Methadones. The songwriting style isn’t that much different, although the sound of the band is a break from form. Everything '90s seems to be a thing right now and I guess it’s the case for punk music too. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I think that once that fad is done, Over Leavitt might sound a little dated. Noise By Numbers are definitely going for a bigger type of sound than The Riverdales or The Methadones ever had, but the substance isn’t really there to back up the big feel that they’re shooting for. The layered guitars sound good on “Yeah, Whatever,” but the guitars aren’t varied enough for each to shine through and the effect is a mostly boring song, even though it’s one of the better songs on the album. “Swarm of Flies” pulls off the big feel a little better and I wish more of the songs stayed in this vein. Two of the other decent tracks are “Lost My Way” and “I Don’t Think So,” where I can really hear the attempt at recreating an early ’90s Replacements sort of sound. I’d say listen to “Lost My Way” and “Swarm of Flies” and you can probably pass on the rest of the album.

Top 10 of 2010

This year has produced a lot of bullshit. An earthquake in Haiti killed 230,000 people. Monsoons left 20% of Pakistan under water. An Antarctic collision between an iceberg and a glacier gouged out a chunk of sea ice the size of Luxembourg. An Icelandic volcano pissed off a shitload of Europeans. Winter was so warm that Canadians couldn't even make fake snow for their Olympics. Man just made things worse - between the BP oil leak and this country's lawmakers not being able to balance a fucking checkbook, it's been a stressful year being an American (that's why I rid myself of all nationalism - I don't have to feel guilty when shit like this happens, it's great). But you know what, despite all that, at least some great records came out in 2010. Here's the Squid Pro Quo "Top 10 of 2010."


1. Iron Chic - Not Like This


2. The Dopamines - Expect the Worst


3. Sundowner - We Chase The Waves


4. The Brokedowns - Species Bender


5. The Riverdales - Tarantula


6. Alkaline Trio - This Addiction


7. The Methadones - S/T


8. Old Wives - See You In Hell


9. Off With Their Heads - In Desolation


10. The Queers - Back To the Basement


If Deep Sleep's new album were officially released, it would have made this list.

Thinking Back On Insubordination Fest: Day 1 - THE SECOND AND THIRD STAGES

Well, shit. I can't say as much about both these stages because most of my Friday was spent at the main stage, standing up, wishing there was a place in that god damn club to sit down for a minute.
Anyways, I did see The Dopamines, which was awesome. They really tore it up. The fans are almost as bad as they are, in the sense that they probably drink and party too much. All The Dopamines do is bring that out of them. Man, people were going ape shit. And as loud as it was, that band is pretty fucking awesome and definitely worthy of a crowd like that.

The Dopamines (sorry they're sideways, deal with it)




I caught the Backseat Virgins on the second stage as well. They were pretty awesome from what I can remember. I don't have any pictures of them playing though. Ah! The 20 Belows I saw though. They rocked. They're a band from Denmark, kinda like The Queers mixed with Dillinger Four I want to say...anyway, they're good, check 'em out. They also came back to the states and played the Goin' Knowhere Fest in Grand Rapids, MI. Well, that's all for Friday, folks! After that, I think we went up to my friends' hotel room with two guys from Le Volume Etait Au Maximum and partied, drank, etc...etc...then went to bed.

Kobanes Japan Tour (Journal) 2009: Sept. 22, 2009

Hiroshima - Kei's parents' home:

The festival that day went great. I don't think we ever fell back asleep after my last entry. I think we went back out to get food. I had a burger, coffee and a hash brown that tasted just like at McDonald's. Anyway, we pull up to Club Goodman and unload our stuff. We moved it down the street to the other venue, where they had three floors, each floor, a very tiny room where the bands played. Very hot. Does It Float? was the first band I saw play and they were awesome. Seventeen Again was great too. The rowdiest band - fuckin' crazy. Jumped into the crowd. I got kicked in the face. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt at all. I got a bunch of free CDs. Stoked to listen to Weezie And The Moelies. I guess they sound like the Kung-Fu Monkeys. So yeah, I had a beer and some convenience store food - sandwich slices with no crust and a pastry. Eddie doesn't have any yen, cause his ATM card doesn't work in these ATMs. So he can only use it at places that accept Visa like convenience stores and stuff.
I was walking back t the club and saw a group of people outside playing Nintendo. Old school Mario Nintendo, so I watched and the girl asked if I wanted to partake, so I did! I finished the level and handed it off. They all went in some building nearby, so I played another level and went back to the club. Kei sold about 20-25 of the new Kobanes CDs ("Japan Invasion") and some T-shirts with the album artwork on them. There was an after-party Sunday night, but we were all too tired and still jet lagged to do anything of the sort. I think I lost a pound in sweat playing in that room. We quickly crashed.

We woke up early around 6 or 7 a.m. Kei was back, I guess he only stayed out after dropping us off from 10:30 to midnight. He doesn't drink or anything, which is good in some ways, especially for us. He's the only driver we have. He's a "tax man." His mother's a protestant Christian and his dad is a Buddhist. Interesting mix. Kei said he has not yet found a religion but someday hopes to. I guess I can empathize with that, having also been raised with no religion. We left Hotel Kamatsu for a little bit and got McDonald's. I ate the cheapest thing, a sausage breakfast sandwich. Only 190 yen! Like $2.20? Afterward, I got some lemon-flavored 8% ABV drink and in Japan, it's legal to drink in the car as long as you're not the one driving. So that was cool. The drive from Tokyo to Narita was a long one. About 8 or 9 hours because there was so much traffic, plus getting gas here off the highway takes like an hour because there are so many cars in line for it.
So we stopped. I had a burger, fries and a soda, which I think was diet...I got Kei two burgers and a Coke. Came to 970 yen. I guess we passed up Mt. Fuji, but it was hazy, so we couldn't see it. He said on the way back, we'll check it out. I hope we get to see a lot of cool stuff.
Anyway, we got to Memory Pops in Nagoya. The first band, Navigations came about 4 hours father than we did to play first of five bands. Crazy. hey were good though. It was fun to hear a Queers cover of "I Only Drink Bud" and a Sloppy Seconds cover in Japanese. I think they were amused by us singing along in English too. I guess music really is the universal language. Sense of Identity played too, they were pretty cool. The Because was also pretty good. Nice too.
About 30 people were rocking out to us. A bunch singing along too, which is strange to see. I think Kei is our biggest fan though. They love pop punk out here. Some girl was wearing a patch on her hat that said "I Read Zines" so I went out to Kei's car and grabbed some Squid Pro Quos to give to her, even though I know she didn't read English. But hey, what the hell, she might know someone who can and at least she can listen to the CD.
After the show, I was asked to autograph three CDs, something I've never done before. Two were in silver autograph pen ink even! I guess now it's official - we're rock stars. Haha. I grabbed five pot stickers for 100 yen and 5 dumplings for 100 yen and a chocolate cookie thing too. It was sustaining. Nice of the convenient store to microwave them for me. From Nagoya, we drove straight to Hiroshima. Actually, we stopped once for gas. And Kei's girl cigarettes that he says smell like raspberries. Pretty funny. The car was really uncomfortable. My legs were tired and my neck and back hurt. We stopped near Kei's parents' home and I bought rice crackers, a corn dog and some traditional Japanese sake. Have yet to try the sake though. Anyways at last night's show, Kei was surprised we did "Surfin' Bird" and "Have You Ever Seen The Rain." Did them last, in opposite order. I went to a small grocery store before the show and bought two cans of 6% ABV oolong tea. At first, it was disgusting drinking fermented tea. Some guy traded me his tall boy of beer for it, so that was nice. Then I had one more, and it wasn't so bad after that first one. The guitars really weren't too distorted at this show, which made us sound weird. But it was fun. The venue was full of American '50s nostalgia. Memory Pops. Pretty cool. So anyway, we got to Kei's parents' home. His mom laid out bed mat things and stuff for us, which was really nice. I gotta remember to give his folks some chocolates. I wanted to get Jenny something at the convenient store - it's like a card, really beautiful though, meaning "Happiness and Pleasure" but I held off because I want to get her something nicer than a card. Perhaps kimono PJs? I want some too. So yeah, I'll figure out something. My suitcase is only so big. It's a carry on. Later today, we're playing at Okayama, Japan! I can't wait to see yet another city in this awesome country. Then tomorrow, we play Hiroshima! Then sightseeing. I want to see temples, go in hot springs, get some souvenir-shopping done...I want to see more and not just sleep. But now, I must sleep. It's almost 8 a.m. Not running on much. Plus I took two sleep aids Eric gave me. Mark's fuckin' snoring is countering their effects though. Eddie's typing either (This is all taken from paper, if you didn't figure that out already, that's why it's being typed out now!). Anyways, more to come soon!

Ben Weasel/Danny Vapid - "My Brain Hurts" show review

Saturday night started out pretty well. I got some food, had a few RC Colas and was feeling pretty damn good. There was a terrible DVD looping on the TVs of Gang of Four footage. They were really artsy and didn't seem to carry any sort of rhythm. But luckily after that, there was a Dwarves DVD. It wasn't much better, but it beat that Gang of Four crap.
So between looking at the naked Dwarves on four screens and looking at the Repellants on the live Reggie's feed, I decided to get up and go next door. I missed the Repellants unfortunately, but caught the Chinese Telephones. They were great, as always. During the show, a dude that goes by codename Jerry Cola requested "Crying In the Chapel," to which Justin Telephone, the lead singer, said "No requests!"
I figured it was worth a shot. They did play it at the Subterranean a little while back, though.
I was disappointed to learn that the Chinese Telephones might be breaking up really soon. Justin informed me after the show that the show I just witnessed very well possibly could be their last, which sucks. Something about the drummer leaving, I believe, but I don't want to spread non-facts.
That kind of bummed me out, because the Chinese Telephones are absolutely awesome and fun fun fun to watch. It's a shame the crowd is never really into them. Then again, most of the words are impossible to decipher.

Next up were the Jetty Boys, who I wasn't all too impressed with. The lead singer/guitarist of the band played in Ben Weasel's band in May, so I recognized him right away. The music was pretty good, but after all the clap-your-hands stuff, I got kinda turned off. They weren't bad at all. I just wasn't feeling them, and I was so excited to see Danny Vapid play with Ben Weasel, that any band that was up there, I probably would have felt the same restless feeling.

After the Jetty Boys left the stage, Ben Weasel's band came out and tore right into "Making You Cry."
My favorite part of the night was the fact that Reggie's doesn't give a shit who goes backstage. I witnessed the whole show from the side of the stage, and wandered up to the fence-balcony for a song. It was cool.
"My Brain Hurts" is my absolute favorite album, blah blah blah. It's a lot of people's favorite.
What I especially enjoyed were Vapid's background vocals. That's something Ben can't capture solo. His backing band does a pretty dead-on job of nailing the notes and has timing down. Simon Lamb, Ben Weasel's guitarist, did a great job especially. But it's the backing vocals that complete the true sound of the album. Ben is great solo. But Vapid and Ben together were incredible. Ace from the Steinways also took over for Simon on a song. They played, I think, four Riverdales tunes. Which, obviously with Vapid there, was really really cool. Ben will do Riverdales tunes, like in May. Sometimes Vapid will do Riverdales tunes during Methadones shows or that Mopes show in 2006. But having them together was awesome. One more person, and it would have been a Riverdales reunion show.

After the show, there was a free Vacation Bible School gig next door. They were fun. I want to check out some of their stuff. Another band of note was Teen Slut. They were fast and right on as The Queers, and they did a couple of covers, too. They covered "Terrible Monster" by The Vindictives and "Island of Pogo Pogo" by the Groovie Ghoulies. I think they did "Rockaway Beach" too. But I forgot who sings that originally.
After THAT, The Arrivals played next door.
Both shows were free if you attended the Ben Weasel/Danny Vapid show. You can't go wrong with the Arrivals. They've got a certain charm about themselves. I believe they are one of the more underrated bands in Chicago. All in all, though, Saturday night was awesome. The burgers next door in the music joint rule, by the way.

TEEN IDOLS: Back in 2009

(Phillip Hill/left, Jason Fanboy Duarte/middle, Pete Mittler/right)

By Jason Duarte

Growing up as a punk rocker in Tennessee or "redneck central," as Hill explains, was tough - the bullet scar on his leg proves that.
"You'd have about 30-50 people at each show. Once Green Day hit, it got bigger. The biggest we ever had was about 700 people for a Teen Idols show. The last few shows I saw in Nashville were pretty small. Even the bigger bands only have maybe 200 people show up. We haven't played there since I think 2002, but it was packed back then - it sold out," Hill said.
But since he left Tennessee in 2001, Hill has been working as an engineer at Sonic Iguana Studios in Lafayette, Indiana . He moved to Chicago in 2003.

One thing's for sure though - the Teen Idols' new album will be out in 2010. The Teen Idols haven't released an album since 2003's "Nothing To Prove" on Fueled By Ramen Records.
"We're thinking about recording around Christmas time, maybe a little after," Hill said.
The new album will be recorded at Sonic Iguana. The current band he's producing in the studio is the Old Wives from Alberta, Canada.

The Teen Idols' upcoming album has yet to get a title, or songs, for that matter.
"Usually, that's the last thing that happens," Hill said. "I think that when we did 'Pucker Up,' we were just calling it 'The Second Album' until we decided to call it 'Pucker Up' because that's the song that stuck out. And our third album - that title's just a joke. It's a play on the movie, 'Full Metal Jacket.' It was supposed to be funny but people took it the wrong way and said, 'Oh, they think they're so cool with their leather jackets,'" Hill said with a laugh.

The band broke up in 2003 after an argument between the band members. "My hollow body guitar got smashed," Hill reflected of the 2003 fight. "I had gotten in an argument with Heather, she pushed me into a drum kit with my guitar and the neck split down to the seventh fret. It sat in its case for five years. Then, a guy I know who used to play rhythm guitar for The Queers said 'I'd like to try and fix it,' so I sent it to him. He brought it to one of the shows and it was like brand new. He used glue, clamps, epoxy...but there were still battle scars. Two days after the fight, I took a Greyhound bus from California to Chicago. I thought a lot and wrote a long e-mail basically saying how things had gotten fucked up. So I made sort of my 'manifesto' - like 'this is the way it should be run' kinda thing. Everyone was still too upset over the argument and weren't willing to talk about playing together at that time."

Predating that, Hill and Keith Witt didn't speak since late 2000, when Witt was fired after their last tour of Japan.
"Keith kind of became our arch-enemy. There were lots of hard feelings," Hill said. "He moved to Chicago, and I had already been living here. He got a hold of my number somehow, called me and told me he was living here now. We patched things up and we're good friends again. He actually got married last year to a girl from Tennessee and I was the best man at his wedding. So the old wounds have healed." Hill said.

In the past year, Hill has tried to get the original Teen Idols members back together to record and play. Drummer Matt Drastic was originally interested, but his busy schedule wouldn't allow him to commit to the band. Heather was also approached to fill her old position as the band's bassist, but she declined.

Since 1992, the band's been through its problems, trials and tribulations.
"There have been about 13 different band members since we started", Hill said.
But the Teen Idols are back in 2009 with Phillip Hill on guitar, Yvonne Szumski of The Scissors on bass, Keith Witt back on vocals and Nathan Bice of Even In Blackouts/Deadly Sins on drums. Catch the Teen Idols for Riot Fest Saturday at the Metro in Chicago with Anxiety High, Teenage Bottlerocket and the Dead Milkmen.

The Roman Line - "Morning Portraits" review:

Toronto's The Roman Line were a band featured on the Merman Records' 4-way Sea Creatures split .
"Morning Portraits" has a very consistent feel and not much dynamic outside of its punk/alt/country influences. The band's MySpace page says they are influenced by Screeching Weasel, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, The Queers, Tom Waits, The Misfits and others. It's an interesting mix. The result of all those influences is a lot of gang vocals and a pretty straight-forward rock and roll band. Their influences show through a lot. For example, "Worst Case Ontario" is a real electrified country lick. It's got all the standards - modesty, references to nature, nostalgia and alcohol.
"Talbot & Inkerman" is more on the Tom Waits side of the proverbial tracks. It's a piano-led song with hand claps as the main percussion. Gang vocals for the chorus on top of it all makes it sound like somewhat of a drinking song. But it's only 1:26, the shortest song on the album (unless you count the intro, which isn't a song). The piano pokes its head out here and there throughout the album.
I got a real Social Distortion-type feel from this. The band's lead singer almost seems to emulate Mike Ness's voice.
"No Vacancy" is a song that kind of hates on their hometown of Toronto. In the end, he laughs and says, "I'm just playing Toronto, you know I love you." I don't really get it, as I've never been to Toronto. But apparently there are a lot of hipsters there. Man, if this band comes to Chicago, hopefully they get a gig in Logan Square or Wicker Park. Hipster-hating song part two will be written. All in all, I kinda dug this album. There's a lot going on and it's pretty original for still somehow managing to fit into the pop-punk scene.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

TOP TRACK: "Dawn After the Wreck" (Merman Records/2010)

Top Releases of 2012

It's time for the fifth-annual Squid Pro Quo "Top Releases" list! It goes without saying that there were a lot of incredible releases this year. The world WOULD'VE ended on a strong note. First up is the top albums, then the top EPs/7''s/collections/demos and finally, the top splits. There'll be a brief write-up with a review (if I wrote one), the album art and then the streaming album. I shot a handful of videos this year too, now that I'm finally a smartphone user, so there's that too. Enjoy!

Top 20 Full-Lengths of 2012

By Jason Duarte

1. Masked Intruder - Masked Intruder (Red Scare)

Masked Intruder sneaked into all our windows and beds and took us by surprise this year. They literally came out of nowhere (as they do), released some 7''s, a full-length and were signed to Fat Wreck in no time. Besides being extremely talented, Masked Intruder embodies a creative, schtick-y mysticism that works wonders to their advantage and got tons of people talking about them. Will creeping and stalk rock finally be cool? It'll probably still land you with a restraining order. But with this year's presidential election, the fiscal cliff, domestic tragedies, this NRA controversy, the "end of the world" and all the other madness that 2012 bought, everyone has been lacking good fun, and Masked Intruder is just that.

TOP TRACKS: "25 To Life," "Crazy" and "Heart-Shaped Guitar"

[Below is a rare look at PINK INTRUDER, being pretty]:

2. Swearin' - Swearin' (Salinas)

A friend/old bandmate introduced me to Swearin' earlier this year. The band features members of P.S. Eliot, Big Soda, Bad Blood and Radiator Hospital. While I never listened to the aforementioned bands, Swearin' really impressed me and proved how good '90s-influenced indie/punk can be. They also received notable recognition this year by landing an opening spot on a large stretch on Japandroids' fall tour after the release of its debut self-titled album.

TOP TRACKS: "Kenosha," "Empty Head" and "Here To Hear"

3. Sundials - When I Couldn't Breathe (Asian Man)

Earlier this year, Jaded In Chicago asked me to review the new Sundials album. I was torn because I had already bought it from Mike Park over at Asian Man, and was afraid I'd write too-biased of a review, but I did it anyway, as honestly as I could. It's really good, and heavily recommended if you like Swearin', Braid, Harvey Danger and Chisel. Check out a more detailed review of this album here. 

TOP TRACKS: "When I Couldn't Breathe," "New York Crunch," and "Strange"

4. Black Wine - Hollow Earth (Don Giovanni)

Black Wine explores more haunting and eerie land in its third full-length release, Hollow Earth. All three members share lead vocal duties, making this album quite unique in its arrangement. The band showcases its talent beautifully on this record and best of all, the songs make you take a second look at things. Check out our glowing review from earlier this year here.

TOP TRACKS: "Burlap," "Hollow Earth 1" and "Naysayer"

[Below is a video from Black Wine's summer tour. It's from July 1, when they played "Burlap" at Township in Chicago]:

5. Teenage Bottlerocket - Freak Out! (Fat Wreck)

Teenage Bottlerocket released Freak Out!, its fifth studio album this year. The band keeps its fast, signature pogo-punk style and continues to dabble in skate/thrash territory. They maintain their sense of humor in songs like "Maverick," "Necrocomicon" and "Headbanger" (which was actually a Sack song first), making for a really, really fun album. This one also features two songs previously released on the Mutilate Me 7''. Read our write-up anticipating the release of this record here and check out an interview I did with Miguel Chen (bass) earlier this year here.

TOP TRACKS: "Done With Love," "Cruising For Chicks" and "In the Pit"

6. Treasure Fleet - Cocamotion (Recess)

Treasure Fleet is a Chicago supergroup, and one of the best new bands in the city. The band features Neil Hennessy (Lawrence Arms), Eli Caterer (Smoking Popes), Isaac Thotz (Arrivals), Dave Merriman (Arrivals) and Mike Oberlin (Sass Dragons) (and sometimes others). I can't call it stoner music. I can't call it psych. I can't call it punk. It's Treasure Fleet. And it rules. I haven't gotten Future Ways in the mail yet...otherwise I suspect that'd make the list too. But that'd be unfair since I haven't heard it.

TOP TRACKS: "Vice," "High On a Bicycle" and "We All Go To the Old Ghost Town"

7. Dan Vapid and the Cheats - Dan Vapid and the Cheats (Torture Chamber)

One of my favorite songwriters formed a band and released an album of new material after quitting his bands, Screeching Weasel and The Riverdales. If you don't know him from the aforementioned groups, you know him from Sludgeworth, The Mopes, The Queers, Noise By Numbers and The Methadones. This album is like a sampler platter of Dan Vapid songwriting. Some are Riverdales-esque, and some even take on '50s doo-wop influence. Check out our review and set list from the Cheats' first show last year here. 

TOP TRACKS: "Devo On Speed," "Work of Art" and "Torture Chamber"

8. Brick Mower - My Hateable Face (Don Giovanni)

After the release of its debut album, Under the Sink and non-stop touring, Brick Mower was signed to Don Giovanni Records earlier this year and released My Hateable Face. It relishes in pop punk, '90s-influenced grunge and rock and a heavy dose of a thing called originality. These guys are on tour all the time, and I highly recommend catching one of their live sets the next time they roll through your city. Check out a review of one of their Chicago shows earlier this year here.

TOP TRACKS: "Back To Haunt Me," "Trip the Stairs" and "Cheap Gasoline"

[Below is a rare glimpse of Eric caught in his natural habitat, feasting on a bhut jolokia - or more widely known as...A GHOST PEPPER (that my brother grew in Carol Stream, IL actually)]:

[Prior to the release of My Hateable Face, Brick Mower played a slew of new tunes on their tours. This was one of 'em]:

9. Wide Angles - Smile More (Dead Broke/Dirt Cult)

Wide Angles is, hands down, Chicago's best new band of 2012. Their 7''s have been very good but their debut album, Smile More, is one of the most solidly flowing, consistently rocking albums I've heard in quite some time. Reminiscent of Dead Mechanical, Hot Water Music and Samiam. This album is gold.

TOP TRACKS: "Blue Tiling," "I'll Get Back To You" and "Much Less Than Nothing"

[Below is Wide Angles playing "I'll Get Back To You" at Kildare Studios in Chicago on October 21]:

10. Mean Jeans - On Mars (Dirtnap)

Portland's Mean Jeans released its second full-length this year, following up Are You Serious? One of the best Ramones-core bands around, these guys are hilarious, but they seriously rule. Heavily '90s-themed and alcohol-fueled, they are all about partying on Earth, Mars and beyond. Their music videos are also SICK.

TOP TRACKS: "Life On Mars," "Nite of the Creeps" and "Anybody Out There?"

[Check out a video from Mean Jeans' Chicago show at the Crown Tap Room on June 12]:

 

11. Screaming Females - Ugly (Don Giovanni)

I've been a big Screamales fan for some time now, and got STOKED when I heard they were recording their new album with Steve Albini in Chicago. I think everyone's expectations were high, as Screamales seemed to blow up and get lots of press - and Ugly lived up to, and surpassed those expectations. Plus every time they come to Chicago, I get to see my buddy Frump, so that rules. I saw them a bunch in 2012,they always slay and I really look forward to what they do next. Stream Ugly here.

TOP TRACKS: "It All Means Nothing," "Leave It All Up To Me" and "It's Nice"

12. Hot Water Music - Exister (Rise)

One of my all-time favorites, Hot Water Music, returns with its first new album in eight years. There was a while I feared the band was done, with Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard going solo, the formation and dissolution of The Draft, George Rebelo drumming for Against Me! and Jason Black playing bass for Senses Fail, but my fears were put to rest when I heard about this gem's release. It was recorded at the Blasting Room earlier this year. Stream Exister here.

TOP TRACKS: "Drown In It," "State of Grace" and "Take No Prisoners"

13. Cheap Girls - Giant Orange (Rise)

Cheap Girls, like Hot Water Music, was also signed to Rise Records and released a new album (also its first on Rise) this year. Cheap Girls is catchy, heartfelt, sincere and damn good indie/punk. This record, their third, might be their best to date. Stream Giant Orange here.

TOP TRACKS: "Gone All Summer," "Cored To Empty" and "If You Can't Swim"

14. The Hextalls - Rock You To Sleep (Self-Released)

The Hextalls are from Vancouver and have been a band since 1998. This is their third full-length since 2008, however. Pop punk gold. Highly addictive, and funny as hell. Songs about Kenny Rogers Jackass ala Mad T.V. with serious notes about becoming a dad. I can't stop listening to it.

TOP TRACKS: "Holy Fuck, I'm a Dad!," "My Name Is Kenny Rogers" and "I Just Want To Sleep In the Treehouse"

15. The Dopamines - Vices (It's Alive)

The Dopamines are known for being short and bittersweet - rocking hard in the least amount of time, and leaving an impression, probably on your forehead. They pack the party-punk in tight on their third album, Vices. If you have any doubts, ask anyone who was at the Subterranean show earlier this year in Chicago and they'll tell you how The Dopamines tear it up. The lyrically dark, introspective and sometimes disturbing themes sung by Jon Lewis have lingering effects, but the honesty and melody rules so inexplicably hard. I hope you can see this.

TOP TRACKS: "10 Stories," "Heads Up, Dusters!" and "Useless"

16. Toys That Kill - Fambly 42 (Recess)

Toys That Kill released its first new album in six years, making this one the band's fourth studio album since 2001. Clocking in at just over 31 minutes, Fambly 42 has a lot of great songs, albeit I admittedly don't know what a lot of them are about, or even mean. Toys That Kill are another one of those bands I love because they make me think and throw in a large dose of originality in the mix. Stream the album here.

TOP TRACKS: "The Nervous Rocks," "I Don't Wanna Be Around" and "Mobbed By the 3s"


17. Cory Branan - Mutt (Bloodshot)

Cory Branan stole my heart this year, seven years after I saw him play for the first time. He's a natural at guitar, telling a story and making you feel. At times, it's haunting, it's funny, it's true and it's sad. It's very much a Human Experience sort of folky-bluegrass/country/alt-indie album and I recommend it to everyone. More than anything, this album contains a good dose of reality. Check out Mutt here.

TOP TRACKS: "The Corner," "Survivor Blues" and "Yesterday (Circa Summer 80 Somethin')"

18. Chris Wollard and the Ship Thieves - Canyons (No Idea)

Chris Wollard is one of my all-time favorite songwriters, and I love hearing both his and Chuck Ragan's solo material, outside of Hot Water Music. I fell in love with his first album, and I fell hard for this one too. Wollard shines, and so does the rest of his band. Stream "Dream In My Head" here.

TOP TRACKS: "Dream In My Head," "Never Have Time" and "Heavy Rolling Thunder"



19. Sick Sick Birds - Gates of Home (Toxic Pop)

Sick Sick Birds is from Baltimore and they put out such a great album this year. Reminiscent of early Cure and Smiths, but with modern indie/punk. This album rules.

TOP TRACKS: "Pick and Choose," "Spinning Jenny" and "Caution Wires"







20. Like Bats - Midwest Nothing (John Wilkes Booth)

Not since early Lawrence Arms has punk been so desperate, gritty, raw, seething and real in Chicagoland area. I don't know what else to say about this album. It's so good. And you can download it for free.

TOP TRACKS: "This Haunted Life," "Sad Stories About Sad People With Pathetic Dreams" and "Double or Nothing"









Top 15 7''s/Collections/EPs/Demos of 2012

1. V/A - The Thing That Ate Larry Livermore (Adeline)

This was one of the best things I've heard this year. A lot of my favorite bands graced it, and I was introduced to some new ones too. Props, Larry Livermore and Adeline Records and Billie Joe Armstrong for doing this. It's so good. Stream here.

TOP TRACKS: "Business Papers" by The Dopamines, " "Anthem For a New Morning After" by The Max Levine Ensemble and "Right Where To Find Me" by Mixtapes.

2. Parasites - Non-Stop Power Pop Volume 1 (Kid Tested)

The Parasites covered a whole bunch of great '60s rock/pop tunes and Parasitized them in the way only Dave can do. This is album is so good and introduced me to so much good stuff from around the world that I hadn't heard before. All the covers are from countries that aren't the U.S. Quite rad. Thanks for this, Dave!

TOP TRACKS: "You Make Me Feel Good" originally by The Zombies, "Things Will Never Be the Same" originally by Just Four Men and "I'm a Fool" originally by The Sandy Coast

3. Masked Intruder - First Offense 7'' (Hang Up)

These guys again. Three songs that were re-recorded and made it to the full length and two that are exclusive to this awesome 7''. "ADT Security" and "Gimme Parole" are two of the most fun songs to sing along to at a live show I think ever, and I can't wait till this gets re-pressed.

TOP TRACKS: "Gimme Parole" and "ADT Security"

4. Lemuria - Varoom Allure 7'' (Bridge 9)

I was camping in Macomb, IL on Record Store Day this year, and was really bummed I couldn't get my dirty hands on this and the Joey Ramone 7''. But thanks to certain websites defeating the entire purpose of Record Store Day, I got them both! These two songs are some of the best Lemuria songs ever recorded, and knowing they are in the process of making a new record kinda gives me a chubby just thinking about how good this shit is going to be. This 7'' Rules. Listen to "Varoom Allure" and "Cannonballs To Hurt."

TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.

5. Big Eyes - Back From the Moon 7'' (Grave Mistake)

I saw these guys in Minneapolis this year open for Dillinger Four and Nato Coles and His Blue Diamond Band. Wow. Needless to say, I bought up everything they've released to date. This EP is what started it all for me though, and it's highly-addicting pop punk with garage/grunge influence. Female fronted, but with an edge. Bittersweet. Fun. Relatable.

TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.





6. Young Leaves - Alive and Well/The Long Song EP (Self-released)

I was introduced to this band via a friend's Facebook post, then again through a new friend from NH. I'm in love with these two songs, and really like their older stuff too. I'm excited to hear what this band does next and I hope it's along the same vein as this post-grungy/punk stuff. This is how it's done. Right. Here. And it's free. This EP is addicting.

TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.






7. House Boat - 21st Century Breakroom 12'' (Bloated Kat)

House Boat really impressed me this year with this album. I was bummed they didn't play it live at the Don Giovanni Showcase pre-show earlier this year in February at their Brooklyn show, but holy shit - a 10-minute pop punk A-side, and a 30-second B-side. Genius. Hilarious. The cover art is a parody. This album is awesome. Check out our review here. Check out a review of House Boat's latest full length here. Some video and a review of that Bklyn show here! That's it.

TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.

8. Great Apes - Great Apes 7'' (Say 10)

Great Apes is Brian Moss's (Olehole/Hanalei/Jahbreaker) new band. I am a huge fan of his voice, his lyrics and his music, and Great Apes seems to take a more pop punk direction to his post-hardcore style, and I'm all over it. Check out a review I did for Jaded In Chicago here.

TOP TRACK: "Sam's Song"








9. Science Police - Science Police EP (Self-released)

Fuck yeah! More post-Steinways Grath songs! Whenever I want to feel better about myself, I listen to Grath sing. Kidding of course, but this is so good. It's not too self-depreciating. Features Marissa Bergquist of Ergquist/The Chandeliers/The Besties on keys/vocals and Grivet and Chris Pierce and other pop punk (message board) celebrities. This EP kicks ass and I hope this band gets signed if they haven't already.

TOP TRACKS: "The Boat Dreams From the Front Desk," "She Blinded Me With Immunobiology" and "No Fun Intended"


10. Young Skin: The Sticky Pages EP 7'' (Paper and Plastick)

This new band came out of the blue, and then I realized it's a couple of my friends' new band! Features Miranda and Jeff of Black Wine, Brian Gorsenger of Night Birds and a guy whom I can't remember (sorry, guy). Very stripped down garage punk mixed with riot grrl mixed with indie. It's a lot of fun. Stream here!






11. Jabber - Too Many Babes (Bloated Kat)

NEW DANNY BAILEY BAND! This is best new all-female band, period (see what I did there?) Seriously, holy shit. Please tour. Please release more music. Pop punk. Spelling Babes with a V on your fridge. Fun hooks. Catchy melodies. You're gonna want to get on this if you haven't yet.

TOP TRACKS: "Maybe Next Year," "Talk To You" and "Girlfriend"







12. Mikey Erg - Fucifier flexi 7'' (Bloated Kat/John Wilkes Booth)

Merg wears many hats. Indiscernible vocals with no lyrics sheet pisses me off, and the music makes me pissed too. MAKES ME WANNA LIFT WEIGHTS. AND THEN THROW THEM THROUGH DOUBLE-PLATED GLASS. Merg is a sweetheart, but even sweethearts fill with rage and pent-up anger. This pain-in-the-dick flexi disc is the captured pressure from his release of anger. Dude's all, "I didn't go tot he studio with lyrics, but I knew who I was pissed at." Pretty hardcore.  I am still trying to figure out if "Chicago Pussy" is about a city full of windy meat curtains or...? P.S. This EP rules. I even bought the matching shirt. The longest song is 0:53. Deal with it.


TOP TRACKS: "Chicago Pussy," "The Art of Stupidity" and "Onezerothree"



13. Brick Mower: Why Are We Doing This? 7'' (Rok Lok)

Only 200 of these were pressed, so if you have one, you're smart. And lucky. These songs were recorded in 2010, according to Eric (I think). This 7'' has demos of "Cheap Gasoline," which was re-recorded and put on My Hateable Face and "Instant Rectification," which was re-recorded and put on Under the Sink. The other two songs weren't released anywhere else, far'z I know and they're a bit different than everything else Brick Mower's done. I love this 7'' and these people. Fun fact: Kristen's (bass) mom is in this photo. Can you guess which one she is?

TOP TRACKS: "Cheap Gasoline," "Instant Rectification" and "National Washboard"



14. The Vindicitives: Mono Flexi 7'' (Sexy Baby)

They're baaaaack. Holy shit. I really hope they play shows. Either way. Stream here.

TOP TRACKS: "Nightmare, Man" and "Joining the Circus"









15. Dan Andriano: Of Peace, Quiet and Monsters 7'' (Asian Man)

Dan Andriano kept busy while bandmate Matt Skiba was busy with theHELL and Matt Skiba and the Sekrets this year. This is better than both those albums combined. Listen here.

TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.








Top 10 Split 7''s of 2012


1. Tenement/Cheeky (No Breaks/Let's Pretend)


Hands down the best split of the year. Released early in 2012, this one has two tracks by each band, and was released post-Cheeky breakup. It's awesome from start to finish - can't stop listening.

TOP TRACKS: "Perverse Universe" and "So Bored"








2. Dead North/Strong City (Bloated Kat)


Servo Jefferson put this one out - and I pre-ordered it before even hearing it, and I'm so glad I did because this split is incredible. I am new to both these bands and both contributed two great songs each. So catchy. Great Midwestern pop punk.

TOP TRACKS: "Letter Carrier" and "This Will Be the Death Of Us All"






3. Masked Intruder/The Turkletons (Hang Up)


Pop punk as fuck! This 7'' rules. I heard the full-length album by Masked Intruder before hearing this one, and noticed the difference in recording, but Masked Intruder still rules on this one, even though it seems a little lighter. The Turkletons are great. I have a demo of theirs from a few years ago, and recognized some of the songs, and I'm glad they re-recorded them and put them out on this amazing split.

TOP TRACKS: "I Can't Get You Outta My Head" and "The Kissing Disease"


4. Mikey Erg/Alex Kerns (Asian Man)


Two of my favorite dudes from one million of my favorite bands. Alex Kerns of Lemuria contributes two originals, and Mikey Erg does a Down By Law cover of "Flower Tattoo" and an electric full-band version of "Song Against Ian Raymond" (inspired from the movie High Fidelity). I would have loved some never-before-heard-from-the-depths Mikey Erg stuff, but this is great. The "Flower Tattoo" cover is one of the best covers I've ever heard. Listen here.


TOP TRACKS: "Criminal To Be Alone" and "Song Against Ian Raymond"

5. Wide Angles/The Brokedowns (Cassette Deck)

Some of my hometown favorites - The Brokedowns and Wide Angles. These guys have been putting out such solid material, it's only perfect that they release a split with each other. Flawless victory. 

TOP TRACKS: "Crime Still Pays" and "Painted In"







6. Noise By Numbers/The Magnificent (Solidarity/Drunken Sailor)


I hadn't heard of The Magnificent before, but I am a huge NBN fan, and these are two of their best tunes. I am also now a Magnificent fan. Good job, Dan, Jeff, Rick and Jimmy. Stream here.

TOP TRACKS: "Lost Luggage" and "Don't Send Me Flowers"







7. The Homewreckers/City Mouse (Mooster)


Thanks to Mooster for hooking us up with a copy of this 7''. I am so sorry I'm so behind on reviews, but this split is amazing. I am especially fond of City Mouse's side. The Homewreckers kill it - they remind me a lot of X. This split is a must-listen.

TOP TRACKS: "Gemini" and "Nervous Wrecks"






8. Dan Vapid and the Cheats/The Jetty Boys (Merman)


Dan Schafer makes multiple appearances on this list, as he's been a busy dude releasing killer stuff, and this split is no exception. The Cheats offer up an original and cover "Part of the Noise" by Pointed Sticks, while the Jetty Boys throw on an original and cover "Jimmy" by The Roman Line. This split is saturated with fun pop punk. Stream here.

TOP TRACKS: "One More Chance" and "Not Even Close"





9. Dan Andriano/Brendan Kelly (Red Scare)

This release features two of my all-time favorite musicians, put out by a great dude in my hometown. Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio and Brendan Kelly of The Lawrence Arms each offer an original tune on this split. I used to always wish for an Alkaline Trio/Larry Arms split, but this is pretty damn close. I am all over it. Check out Dan's track.
TOP TRACKS: Well, this is awkward.






10. Sundials/Tatlin's Tower

I don't know what the status of this split is, or who's "officially" releasing it, but I've been stalking it on the band's Bandcamp pages and it's great. Check it out.

TOP TRACKS: "Assailant" and "Socialism In America"










Past SQUID PRO QUO best-of lists:

Best of 2008
Best of 2009
Best of 2010
Best of 2011