I Breathe the Underground

The Wonder Years Come of Age

When the Wonder Years signed with Hopeless Records last year, I was stoked to hear they were planning to quickly follow up 2010's The Upsides with a 2011 release as part of the contractual agreement. If Hopeless' track record meant anything, it surely meant a mature album that held together based on the band's prior onslaught of impossibly catchy anthems -- and I wasn't let down.

But that's an understatement. Let's try something a little more positive: TWY have delivered their best performance to date on Suburbia: I've Given You All and Now I'm Nothing. If you can say anything about TWY, it's that they're consistent. Every new TWY song makes at least 30 rounds on my iTunes for the first couple of weeks, and I couldn't even put a number on how long those tunes stay on rotation in my brain.

With SIGYAANIN (yeah, I went for it), TWY delivers more mature lyrics that continue the honest coming-of-age narrative of Soupy and the gang. Musically, you get much the same as The Upsides in terms of hooks and edge, but the former adds a little more diversity in songwriting. What really sets this band apart from most of the crap pop-punk out there is the sheer honesty and passion behind the songs -- an aesthetic reflected in the band's live performance. 

What you get out of SIGYAANIN is an album that parallels how the band has struggled to grow both musically and personally, hitting you on your level with heartfelt and simultaneously angst-ridden and hopeful music. I'm 26, and I barely have the stomach for the teenage pop-punk of yore -- but this is a masterpiece that transcends the age-gap. Go buy it...for yourself and for the kid in you.

"Hey Jess, I woke up older carrying two years in the bags under my eyes / Hey Jess, I watched you wake up and get dressed. You left the room, receded like my hairline." - The Wonder Years, "Woke Up Older"

The Toolbox for Success

Vancouver is the most recent stop on Canada's thriving punk/hardcore scene, the magical place where Smallman's indie-rock/pop-punk act Carpenter hails from. From a mainstream pop perspective, songwriting has taken a backseat to flashy costumes and endless, repetitive onslaughts of mindless hooks.

Carpenter does their best to change all that with well-constructed songs, thought-out and passionate lyrics and fun, hooky riffs. The recipe seems to work; 2010's Sea to Sky is a provocative album that melds the lines between punk, classic rock, indie, country and pop stylings. Hitting home consistently, the album may be a bit less edgy than the group's earlier offering (2008's Law of the Land) but it's production helps make the band more accessible to a mainstream audience while validating its style.

The best tracks on this one include the opening "Mean Things," a song that sets the tone for the album, the ballad "Joan" and "You Might Be Right," a frantic anthem chock-full of oddly-placed but effective gang vocals. Check out "Mean Things" below.

 

01 Mean Things

"And you don't have to say those mean things / when you curse me out on the end of the telephone." - Carpenter, "Mean Things"

Silent Majority Knows How to Make Some Noise

I caught an article on Twitter from Dying Scene the other day, part of a series of posts about how bands got their names. Polar Bear Club was the featured band and I'm a huge fan, so I checked it out.

Turns out PBC's moniker was born from a song by Long Island melodic hardcore band Silent Majority. According to the article, Polar Bear Club members considered Silent Majority's 1997 offering Life of a Spectator one of the most crucial punk albums of the last 15 years. Pretty strong claim. I decided to investigate. And I'm glad I did.

Silent Majority play a raw, emotional breed of hardcore-infused pop-punk that has all the energy of a live performance and the chemistry of Bill Nye the Science Guy. Gruff, melodic vocals surrounded by tight, heavy drums, chugging riffs, complementary guitar work and dominating hooks join to form the totally unique sound that is Silent Majority.

Less talk, more rock.

05 Polar Bear Club

"To me this is a life style and not some silly trend / and years from now when they're all gone I pray that we're still friends."

Green Day Be Damned, the Gamits Are Back

I must admit that I'd never heard of the Gamits prior to their recent reunion. Ashamed though I am, it makes it all the sweeter to finally get a taste of the band's unrelentingly catchy, tight, hard-hitting pop-punk style. 

Straight out of Denver, the Gamits recently dropped Parts, an album that I'd be more than happy to place in my top five of 2010. If you're looking for another fun, playful pop-punk album...this isn't it. This is like Blake Schwarzenbach (post-24 Hour Revenge Therapy) on speed, frontmanning a genetically-engineered cross-breed of the Descendents and Green Day. This is serious stuff kiddies, and no one takes it more seriously than the Gamits. This album is one of the tightest, catchiest works of art I've heard since...well, since this year's Bad Religion -- but now we're talking two different ballparks.

Speaking of Green Day (a comparison I'm sure has been drawn before)...that group of namby-pamby Broadway losers ain't got shit on the Gamits. Sure, the vocal harmonies and vibrato are reminiscent of Billy Joe and GD, but the rest of the elements hold roots in far more diverse pop influences that come together to create a punk rock masterpiece. I can't say enough good things about this album...just. check. it. out.

Here's a little taste of what you're missing.

03-This Shell

"Dude, I never went to college and check me out...I'm kickass!"

Sometimes a Cobra's Bark is Worse than His Bite

Warning: Video contains strong language and heavy-handed douchebaggery.

At least Gabe Saporta and I can agree on something: our distaste for "fratboy-looking ignorant schmucks." 

That being said, it's hard to watch footage of last Wednesday's Cobra Starship show (where Saporta flies off the handle at hecklers and says some truly uninspired and angry stuff) and not cringe. It makes me sad to see the man behind Midtown come to this. The music, not the anger. As for the anger, I'd like to share my own story about Gabe that reflects this incident.

Ten years ago, I went to my first concert accompanied by my dad, who never joined me at another show again following the madness that ensued that night. I went for the headliner, Reel Big Fish, and for the secondary opening band, Catch 22, but lo and behold, the opening act was the upstart Midtown, just beginning their roller coaster ride to underground pop-punk fame with the release of Save the World, Lose the Girl. Some jacked kid in the crowd (who obviously thought ska-core was the most badass genre on the planet) threw something at a young, uber-skinny Gabe during Midtown's set. Saporta proceeded to lash out at the guy over the microphone, was hit with something yet again, and jumped into the crowd, only to be reeled back in by a nervous-looking bouncer. Saporta then promised to meet this scary guy in the parking lot after the show, where I guessed either no one ever showed up or Saporta was pounded into a bloody pulp.

Nevertheless, this experience left me with a sullied opinion of Mr. Saporta, one that he has clearly demonstrated to be a pretty accurate read. The guy's a hothead.

In his own blog, Gabe comments on the Kansas City outburst. "But I’m not gonna tolerate someone coming to our show and trying to ruin it for us, and more importantly, for the kids who paid good money to have an enjoyable experience." These hecklers, who were apparently "giving [Gabe] the finger," weren't the ones who ruined the show for the kids who paid good money. You're a musician, man, and you play really, really poppy music. That's your decision and I respect it, but you have to accept that there are people out there who don't. 

I can't even comment on half of the other shit he says in his blog post. Be a man and apologize to your fans. Five or six kids giving the finger weren't ruining the show for anyone but you, so swallow your pride. After all Gabe, it's just rock and roll, right?

"Hey, it's just rock and roll / even though you might think you lost it all."
- Gabe Saporta, "Just Rock & Roll"