Sunday, June 26, 2016

Song Of The Week: 6/26/16







Song: "Left On Memory Lane"

Artist: Landmines

Album: "Commerce And Marx"

Year: 2011

Place Of Origin: Richmond, Virginia

Years Active: 2005-2011



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

Couldn't find the lyrics to "Left On Memory Lane" anywhere on the net, but after giving the song a close listen a few times, I get the sense that the vocalist is reliving old memories with old friends, maybe in a bar setting. You can tell that whether they did some things right or if they did some things wrong, the vocalist wouldn't change a thing. Those times are what molded him into the person he is today and those memories hold strong sentimental values.

LANDMINES DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

2008 - Landmines (Paper + Plastick Records)
2011 - Commerce And Marx (Paper + Plastick Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF LANDMINES:

Landmines is a melodic, hardcore punk band that formed back in 2005, hailing from Richmond, Virginia. They are the very first band to ever sign on Paper + Plastick Records, a label that has now gone on to be one of the bigger punk rock labels that are out there. The band released their debut album in 2008, "Landmines", then followed that up with an EP in 2009, "Hell Is What You Make It". Their most recent release was 2011's "Commerce And Marx". By November of 2011, the band had decided to call it quits after just 6 years as a band. Landmines definitely showed some promise picking up where fellow Virginian hardcore punk legends Avail left off. If you are a fan of bands such as Protagonist, Static Radio NJ, Asado, DC Fallout or Hear The Sirens then you should give Landmines a listen. It's a shame where the music industry is right now that small bands have such a hard time making it. There are so many bands that I listen to that just can't seem to make it financially work to sustain keeping their bands together. Landmines is one of those bands that just dissolved before they really left an imprint on the music scene.

TEN LANDMINES SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Hell Is What We Make It
2. Three Little Pigs
3. Sleeping Sidewalks
4. Black Tide
5. 80 Proof
6. Excess And Indifference
7. Ditch Digger
8. In Our Name
9. Careless Haircut
10. Evil Eye

Sunday, June 19, 2016

Song Of The Week: 6/19/16







Song: "See You At The Bottom"

Artist: This Is A Standoff

Album: "Be Delighted" EP

Year: 2011

Place Of Origin: Calgary, Canada

Years Active: 2007-2012



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"See You At The Bottom" appears to be about a girl who's been abandoned by her boyfriend, leaving her with their newborn son. She is struggling to find a job to make ends meet and she totally feels alone. She's in a constant struggle to commit suicide or not to. Her son is the reason she wants to live, yet she sees her boyfriend in the son when she looks in his eyes which brings on the suicidal thoughts. Her future definitely doesn't look to bright when reading the lyrics to this song.

THIS IS A STANDOFF DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

2007 - Be Excited (Effervescence/Feuzeul Records)
2009 - Be Disappointed (Animal Style Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF THIS IS A STANDOFF:

This Is A Standoff formed out of the ashes of the punk band Belvedere. Belvedere members Steve Rawles and Graham Churchill formed This Is A Standoff almost as a side band at first, but when Belvedere disbanded, This Is A Standoff became their main focus. The band hails from Calgary, Canada and formed in 2007. The band released their debut full length studio album, "Be Excited" in that year as well. In 2009, the band hooked up with Animal Style Records to release their sophmore effort, "Be Disappointed". The band's last release would be the 2011 EP called "Be Delighted" through Funtime Records. This Is A Standoff would be a short-lived band as they announced on their Facebook page in February of 2012 that they were going to disband. Some members of This Is A Standoff went on to form a new band called Torches To Triggers. This Is A Standoff is a technical, melodic hardcore punk band much in the same vein as fellow Canadians Propagandhi. If you heard bands such as Much The Same, A Wilhelm Scream, Bigwig, No Trigger or Venerea, then that's the style of punk that you'd expect from This Is A Standoff. This band is pretty damn good so it's a shame that they didn't continue on and broke up so soon. Just goes to show that it's very hard out there for bands to make it. Sometimes the struggle isn't worth it in the long run. In just 5 short years however, This Is A Standoff played some 322 shows in over 25 countries so it was not a lack of effort to get their music out there to the masses.

TEN THIS IS A STANDOFF SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Dream Beater
2. Everything We Take
3. We're Really Doint It
4. The Enlightened One
5. Face The Sun
6. You Won't Pass
7. Head In The Sand
8. Days Go By
9. Underwater
10. See You At The Bottom

Sunday, June 12, 2016

Song Of The Week: 6/12/16







Song: "So Much For The Afterglow" (Everclear cover)

Artist: Four Year Strong

Album: "Explains It All"

Year: 2009

Place Of Origin: Worcester, Massachusetts

Years Active: 2001-present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"So Much For The Afterglow" is a song that appears to be about how the shine of a new relationship has faded as the years have gone by. You get the feeling that the vocalist thought that this was a relationship that was going to last and very much be a part of his future. As the years have past however, the two have grown farther apart and the future is that their is no future for the both of them. Four Year Strong covered this song for their 2009 "Explains It All" album. The original was recorded by the band Everclear and you can find it on their 1999 album "So Much For The Afterglow".

FOUR YEAR STRONG DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

2005 - It's Our Time (Open Your Eyes Records)
2007 - Rise Or Die Trying (I Surrender Records)
2009 - Explains It All (Decaydance Records)
2010 - Enemy Of The World (Decaydance Records)
2011 - In Some Way, Shape Or Form (Decaydance Records)
2015 - Four Year Strong (Pure Noise Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF FOUR YEAR STRONG:

The members of Four Your Strong met when they were still in high school in Worcester, Massachusetts and officially formed as a band in 2001. After a few years of jamming together and playing local shows, the band released their debut album in 2005, "It's Our Time". Their 2007 release, "Rise Or Die Trying" peaked at #31 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart. By 2009, the band hooked up with Decaydance Records, a subsidiary of major label Universal Motown/Universal Republic. The band's 2010 release, "Enemy Of The World", debuted at #47 on the Billboard 200 charts thanks in part to the singles "It Must Really Suck To Be Four Year Strong Right Now" and "Wasting Time (Eternal Summer)". After their 2011 release, "In Some Way, Shape Or Form", the band took a bit of a hiatus. They were back in 2014 however, releasing the EP "Go Down In History" and in 2015, the band released "Four Year Strong" which is their latest release to this date. Most recently, the guys in Four Year Strong completed a late summer/fall U.S. tour supporting their self-titled album in 2015. The band remains pretty active on the touring and recording front so I wouldn't be surprised to see new material from Four Year Strong come out in 2017 at some point. Style-wise, Four Year Strong is a melodic, pop punk band at heart with hints of hardcore at times, but not often. If you are a fan of bands such as The Swellers, Living With Lions, A Day To Remember, Polar Bear Club or Transit, then you'd probably enjoy listening to Four Year Strong. While they are influenced by melodic punk bands like Green Day, MxPx and The Offspring, as shown by their "Explains It All" album, their sound is also heavily influenced by 90's alternative/pop/grunge as they covered songs by Everclear, The Smashing Pumpkins, Third Eye Blind, No Doubt and Nirvana. Mix that all together and you get the sound of Four Year Strong. Pretty solid band, not spectacular, but pretty solid.

TEN FOUR YEAR STRONG SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Wasting Time (Eternal Summer)
2. Stuck In The Middle
3. Bada Bing! Wit A Pipe!
4. Just Drive
5. We All Float Down Here
6. Heroes Get Remembered, Legends Never Die
7. Eating My Words
8. It Must Really Suck To Be Four Year Strong Right Now
9. Go Long Dad
10. Semi-Charmed Life (Third Eye Blind cover)

Monday, June 6, 2016

Song Of The Week: 6/5/16







Song: "Please Return To Battlefield"

Artist: Revisionist!

Album: "Trenches"

Year: 2014

Place Of Origin: Toronto, Canada

Years Active: 2010-present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"Please Return To Battlefield" appears to be taken from the perspective of a soldier who is in battle. He fears the worst every time he steps on to this battlefield, knowing that at any time he could die, yet he stands ready to fight and follow his higher commands. The thing that seems to get him through this is not having faith in God or believing he will go to heaven, but it's the girl who he left behind to go and fight and this war. You get a sense that it's her love for him and his love for her that allows him to push forward and face death each passing day.

REVISIONIST! DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

2014 - Trenches (112 Records/Death To False Hope Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF REVISIONIST!:

Revisionist! is an acoustic punk rock duo featuring members Mikey Burrell and Gabe Delorme. The band got it's start back in 2010 and hail from Toronto, Canada. The band released three demo EP's starting with 2010's "Thoughts" and 2014's "Live At Wembley Stadium" and "Coasting". "Coasting" featured 4 songs which all found their way onto Revisionist!'s debut full length, 2014's "Trenches". Revisionist! is currently signed to 112 Records which is a subsidiary of Death To False Hope Records. The band has sighted the following bands as major influences to their own sound, The Lawrence Arms, None More Black, Against Me!, The Menzingers, Dead To Me, The Loved Ones, The Sainte Catherines and Dillinger Four. Their style is that of acoustic folk punk. If you heard the acoustic recordings of bands like The Riot Before or Get Dead, the style of those bands is very similar to that of Revisionist! I would also say the solo records of Vinnie Caruana (I Am The Avalanche, The Movielife) are very similar to Revionist!'s sound as well. Currently, the band has been playing various small shows all over in their native Canada, still supporting their album "Trenches" I assume. As of now, there is no current news as to whether a new album is in the works but being that the band is actively touring, I would expect new material from Revionist! sooner than later.

TEN REVISIONIST! SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Lac L'achigan
2. Point Pleasant
3. Wake Me Up When March Ends
4. War Pt. 1
5. Coasting
6. Tear Shit Up!
7. Trenches
8. Please Return To Battlefield
9. Life At Home
10. Recalibrate