Music

Top 5 Punk Releases: May

by Sam Sutherland

Each month, tons of new music from many taste-spanning genres is released into a fast-consuming, unforgiving market; it can be tough to get a handle on what’s new before it’s on to the next. In an attempt to highlight the standout releases, at the end of each month, AUX staff re-cap the month in Punk, Metal, Indie/Pop/Rock, Hip Hop, Electronic, and Pop with the top five releases in each. Consider it your cheat sheet for year-end lists.

Top 5 Punk Releases:
May

 

Toys That Kill – Fambly 42

Folks always say that Toys That Kill sound too similar to its members’ past band, F.Y.P. This is insane. Toys That Kill is more nuanced, more melodic, and leaps and bounds better than the fun but ultimately vapid pop-punk of F.Y.P. Fambly 42 continues the band’s evolution, with better hooks, more creative recording techniques (like panning vocals, it’s still a punk album on Recess Records), and a more nuanced approach to songwriting dynamics. A solemn promise – you will see a kid barf during one of these songs at next year’s Fest.

OFF! – OFF!

Shockingly, OFF! still sounds like OFF! While this self-titled release is technically the band’s debut full-length, the box set package of First Four EPs was really just a clever package for the same. The second time out, the band is offering up the same Keith Morris-esque ’80s hardcore, deviating little from the template of the dreadlocked legend’s time in Black Flag and Circle Jerks. Which is fine, because OFF! is still better than every band currently rehashing the same scene. Morris remains the real deal, always going one better than a simple impersonation of his teenage self, and the rest of the band provides a compelling backdrop for his timeless tirades. There’s little progression here from what came before, but that’s pretty much exactly how it should be.

Japandroids – Celebration Rock

If you can’t fall in love with some part of this album, you are absolutely dead inside. If they remade The Thing today (and I know they already did, but indulge me), the blood-in-the-petri-dish humanity test would be replaced by just jamming “The House That Heaven Built” to determine who is a soulless alien life form. Building on the reckless pop of Post-Nothing, Japandroids have managed to hone in on the best aspects of their sound, refining their approach without losing the shambolic appeal of their earlier material. Punk in approach and energy but broad-based in its melodic influences and appeal, this album should be required summer listening for all non-aliens.

Hot Water Music – Exister

Given how undeniably hard-rock-horseshit The New What Next – the band’s last album before their break-up in 2006 – was, that Exister recalls Hot Water Music’s post-No Idea glory days is pretty much a beard punk miracle. For some, nothing will compare to the band’s rougher, tumbler years, but when it comes to their slick Epitaph era, Exister holds it own against the high water mark of Caution. Flipping from agro post-hardcore to catchy anthems at all the right times, this album will be remember as more than a post-reunion stopgap in the band’s discography; it’s a worthy addition to one of the more storied catalogue in Gainesville punk’s history.

White Lung – Sorry

Catchier than their previous outings, Sorry still possesses all the loose vitriol of the band’s previous Wipers-inspired efforts, but with an even clearer vision and more memorable punch. Crisper recording makes the attack of songs like “Bunny” all the more confrontational, while opener “Take the Mirror” showcases the best of the band’s sound, from its coiled-snake aggression to the memorable conclusion to its shouted chorus.

Surprises, disappointments and albums to watch for next month

Surprise of the month: Unlike his past weird solo endeavours (Heavens, that horrible Demos record, etc), Matt Skiba and the Sekrets first release, Babylon, is really good. It basically sounds like Alkaline Trio but it’s better than the band’s last record, so we’ll take.

Disappointments: Skip the Foreplay is a band that sounds like this.

Out in June: New records from Future of the Left, Turbonegro, and D.O.A.