burning down the billboards

ben weasel. i remember being in high school and utterly worshipping anything with his name attached to it. hearing about screeching weasel via green day at age 13 opened me up to the world of pop punk, and i felt no one did it quite like ben and his band. in some ways, i still find this to be true. screeching weasel, though not being as heavily played as they once were, have remarkably stood the test of time much better than anything else i was listening to at that point in time. nofx grew too juvenile (even for myself), less than jake was just too silly, i realized what poor musicians operation ivy really were, and i generally moved on to discover… whatever it is my tastes have developed into. screeching weasel remained one of the bands i took from that time in my life, and continually listened to. in the present day, when a screeching weasel song pops onto my ipod in shuffle mode, i don’t find myself immediately hitting the “next track” button (unless it’s one of their few songs that is, in fact, really bad). which brings me to this record, and the time leading up to it’s release. in 2000, screeching weasel released “teen punks in heat”, which was, in my opinion, one of the weaker records they put out (with the exception of a few tracks). i didn’t pay it very much attention. in 2002, ben put out his first solo effort “fidatevi”. i listened to a few tracks, and didn’t mind it, but it wasn’t what i had come to expect and enjoy. i still read ben’s blog, and always looked for updates on what was happening, but had, in my mind, written him off musically, which was definitely a mistake. i heard about this record being released a few months ago, and showed minimal interest. when i happened upon one of the songs (i think it was “let freedom ring” but i’m not sure), i listened to it, liked it, but still wasn’t too impressed. i’m not sure what made me download the full album, but i am seriously happy that i did. the record features dan andriano from alkaline trio, and a few guys from the all-american rejects (who i don’t particularly care for, but they do an amazing job on this record), but it is unmistakably written by weasel. at this point, his songwriting, vocal ability, and musicianship are really in a better place than they have ever been. everything i loved about screeching weasel is here, and most of what i didn’t enjoy is gone. keep in mind that this is a very “produced” record compared to what people are probably used to, but i don’t see that as a bad thing in this case. it sounds polished, but not so much that it’s “perfect” in a negative sense. it just sounds tight. anyway, i would reccommend this for anyone who is a fan of real “pop punk”, so-called “pop punk”, pop rock, and pretty much anyone who has good taste. this really has something for everyone.

at first, the news of cave in going on hiatus was, for myself at least, the emotional equivalent of being hit in the face with a shovel. precious few other bands have been able to retain their musical integrity through as many stylistic shifts as cave in has, yet have remained so unbelievably listenable. all seemed lost. enter vocalist/guitarist stephen brodsky’s solo material. he has been releasing an album here and there for the past 6 years or so, but this is the first time it’s been done with additional members. while not approaching the length or sonic complexity of cave in’s exceedingly loud, effect-saturated epics, it’s not as stripped down and lo-fi as his previous offerings. the songwriting is nothing short of fantastic. this record begs to be listened to over and over again.

mp3s to be posted soon.

this site will primarily be an mp3 blog. anything pertinent i have to say about notable artists will be posted, and in some cases, an mp3 will be available for download.

in most cases, the music being posted about will be something i feel is worth listening to. be it something totally unique and new, or a well-worn favorite. i won’t discriminate by genre, era, or success of the band. you’re just as likely to read about metallica or the smiths as you are about a group of friends playing shows in basements. a lot of what you’ll see on that end are artists who call the towns of pittsburgh, greensburg, and latrobe, pennsylvania their home.

some of the posts, however, will be dealing with the uglier side of things. artists that are such an abomination that something absolutely must be said. no mp3s of such music will be posted.

keep in mind, all of this is simply my opinion, and i reserve the right to comment on your poor tastes, should you disagree with me.

in addition, the mp3s posted are simply a reccomendation. a suggestion that you go out and purchase the record, should you enjoy what you hear. however, in the case that you may be in one of the bands listed, or (god forbid) one of those soulless, living-dead record label types, and wish to have the mp3 removed, simply send me a message, and it will be taken down immediately.

enjoy.