16
Home Front
Watch It Die
La Vida Es Un Mus Discos Punk
There's a song on Watch It Die called "Dancing With Anxiety," a title that wraps up Home Front's style quite well. Because I like to beat metaphors to a pulp, maybe also consider "Between The Waves" as another title that captures how they straddle the punk and new wave worlds. Home Front plays street punk with a lot of synth and tinges of early goth, disguising its call-to-action tone in post-punk danceable beats that can mislead you about the weightier lyrical themes at play. If you like The Cure and 1980s punk rock, this band seems right up your alley. The songs of Watch It Die tend to lean in two directions: fist-in-the air punk anthems and danceable synth-heavy tracks. The format is actually pretty straightforward, with chanted vocals and basic song structures, but the synths breathe in new life and offer a perfect contrast to the dark tones of the lyrics and key signatures.
– Loren
17
The Mekons
Horror
Fire Records
It's hard to believe that it's been five years since the Mekons' last release. However, the wait was well worth the privileged price of entering the collected world of The Mekons. Well crafted composition on the demise of the current world state and how historically we arrived in these stormy high seas.
18
The Men
Buyer Beware
Fuzz Club Records
I wonder if the four members of The Men and I are on a similar algorithm. I hear hints of some all time favourites like Radiobirdman and Eddie Current Suppression Ring that I wouldn't consider highly common influences, at least outside the Australian punk scene. Engineered by NYC’s Travis Harrison, gotta wonder where he finds the time between engineering, producing and/or mixing all of Guided by Voices’ records since 2017 (which is two or more per year for anyone keeping track). Apologies to the London UK’s Fuzz Club label that this review took so long, the fact that I can listen to the whole album on repeat is a great sign and makes me want to go back thru The Men’s catalog and see what I’ve missed!
19
Bad Cop Bad Cop
Lighten Up
Fat Wreck Chords, Hopeless
If you haven’t heard of the Southern Californian band Bad Cop Bad Cop, then you are truly missing out on a top tier, female punk powerhouse. They sit at the crossroads of ‘90s skate punk and modern melodic punk. The band returns louder than ever with their fourth full-length and newest album titled Lighten Up. The album offers up 10 tracks of searing punk rock that you’ve come to love from the seasoned group. This is a solid release like you’d expect from seasoned vets of the scene. The band has perfected hook driven, melodic punk. If you love bands like The Bombpops, Pennywise, and the punk side of The Interrupters, you need the band in your rotation.
20
Bright Eyes
Kids Table
Dead Oceans
Technically an EP, but with eight songs and 30 minutes of music, we'll let it slide. These tracks are leftovers from the sessions for 2024's Five Dice, All Threes and although they don't all fit the vibe of that record, the overall feel is similar. Musically, Bright Eyes are understated and sparse on this outing, as singer Conor Oberst recovers from a 2024 medical issue causing him vocal problems. A band that rarely overjoys or celebrates, even by their standards this is maudlin, self-pitying stuff at times. But there are collaborations and covers here which bring back the energy and warmth, and there's even an unexpected ska song. It's not all bad, sitting at the kids' table.
– Matt
21
Street Eaters
Opaque
Dirt Cult
Sometimes I'm surprised at how averse I am to change. Hearing that Street Eaters had expanded to a trio caused me more trepidation than I want to admit -- and, like most fear of change, it was all for naught. The band hasn't changed and they aren't spilling over with annoying guitar solos either. They just have a little more depth of sound. Joan Toldeo mostly adds a new layer of textured, melodic noise to the band's already tight sound. The magic of Street Eaters has always been how they find melody while using nontraditional methods and that continues. In the end, Street Eaters has added one more to the family but it's the same great balance of punk energy, unique musical twists, that straddles the line between primal anger and human vulnerability.
– Loren
22
The Hives
The Hives Forever Forever The Hives
PIAS
I mean, come on: look at that album cover.
This isn't the sound of a band resting on their laurels; legend status assured. While there's a slight regality to affairs—you don't remain the great survivor of the early-2000s garage rock boom without some pride—this sounds raw, urgent and chaotic without once giving the sense that the Hives are a pastiche of their former selves. With Mike D of Beastie Boys fame getting a co-producer credit and Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age contributing in an "advisory role", this is rock royalty playing for fun – and just a little bit of danger, too. Long live the Hives.
– Matt
23
Spark of Life
Plagued by the Human Condition
New Age Records
Spark Of Life hails from LA and has been around since the early 2000s. Their debut album dropped in 2003, but it took almost two decades to drop their newest album titled Plagued by the Human Condition. This album was released through New Age Records out of southern California, and it is worth checking out. With 13 tracks that run a little over 39 minutes, this album is a masterpiece. For me, the highlights on this record include “Better Keep It To Yourself” (a head bopper with “whoas” you can’t help but sing along to), “No One Hates Me More Than Me” (probably the most emotional song on the album dealing with self-reflection), and “Waiting” (the perfect intense ending to the album). It does feature the cover song “Never Say Never” originally performed by the band That Dog -- which features longtime friend of the band and comedian, Fred Armisen, on drums. If you like post-hardcore, punk, hardcore and everything in between, this album will satisfy that itch.
24
Often Wrong
The Figs Are Starting to Rot
Far From Home Records
Often Wrong is an emo/grunge/screamo hybrid born out of the DIY scene. It was built through the kind of friendships that start in basements, not boardrooms. The band formed in 2024 and quickly started carving out their own lane. They are blending fragile, journal-entry emo with blown-out guitars and throat-shredding catharsis. The Figs Are Starting to Rot is the kind of debut that doesn’t try to convince you but just hands you the offering unapologetically. If your favorite emo bands are the ones that sound like they’re still figuring out how to stay alive, this one’s for you. Emo with dirt under its nails and a scream stuck in the throat. If you like your feelings jagged instead of polished, Often Wrong just became your new favorite.
25
Testors
Prime Primitive: 1976–1977
Green Noise Records
Led by prolific proto-punk Sonny Vincent, sounds like Love’s rock ‘n’ roll swagger with the wild abandon of MC5 or just imagine Arthur Lee fronting Dead Boys. The A side features nine early studio recordings from around the same time as their only official release- the Together b/w Time Is Mine single from 1976. B side features 5 live cuts which sound pretty awesome considering. I have a lot of respect and gratitude for Green Noise, the current champion of indie punk distro in North America, for putting out this crucial release. The kind of record you tell your friends about, which i did. To quote my old buddy Kevin, who pointed out one of the seemingly few upsides of modern conveniences- “Things that shouldn’t be aren’t necessarily banished to obscurity anymore..”
26
Armor for Sleep
There Is No Memory
Equal Vision
Armor For Sleep return with an album that treats memory like a weapon. It’s delicate, devastating, and impossible to disarm. For those who may not be as old as me and missed their emergence into the emo/indie scene, the Teaneck, New Jersey band started in 2001. Led by frontman Ben Jorgensen, they dropped gems like Dream to Make Believe (2003) and What to Do When You Are Dead (2005). They built a reputation for emotionally charged post-hardcore/emo with concept-album ambition. The band went on hiatus in 2009, reunited in 2020, and now return with There Is No Memory. It’s ten years on from their original peak but they are sounding as vital as ever. There Is No Memory is an album for people who understand that remembering is a kind of haunting. AFS don’t offer healing or an answer for it. They just tell the truth about the wounds we keep living in and we get to sing along with them about it.
27
Carnivorous Flower
Carnivorous Flower
Dead Broke Rekerds
A J Church tribute band that became a "real" band. Think East Bay short punchy punk with storytelling lyrics and a whole lot of heart.
28
Middle-Aged Queers
Theatre of Shame
Engineer Records, Sell The Heart Records
Theatre Of Shame is the third LP from Bay Area band Middle-Aged Queers, a band whose moniker definitely gives away the plot. The band celebrates community with party punk songs like "Glizzies Banging" and "Pajama Party," but it also has pointed political commentary about the dangers of a bigoted society. In equal parts, Theatre Of Shame is about celebration and warning, a perfect blend of glittery fun and punk rock cynicism, fittingly paired with a Motley Crue mock-up album cover that spins the iconic tragedy and comedy masks. I tend to stick to albums when consuming music these days, so I was mildly surprised at how much of this 9-song album was already familiar to me. That familiarity comes partly due to last year's live record, and partly due to seeing the band a few times. But it's worth nothing that a handful of these songs were previously available as singles, etc.
– Loren
29
Spite House
Desertion
Pure Noise
Spite House is a post-hardcore band based out of Montreal dropping their second record titled ”Desertion on Pure Noise Records. This is a follow up to their self-titled 2022 album released on New Morality Zine. The band drops these 29 minutes of traumatic punk inspired sounds with the urgency of modern hardcore. The tracks recall some greats from the ‘90s like Jawbreaker and Knapsack, as well as slightly newer bands like Title Fight and Fiddlehead. You won’t be dissatisfied by this record at all so put it on, turn it up, and remember what it feels like to be torn open by a band that actually means it.
30
The Saints ('73 - '78)
(I'm) Stranded Box Set
In The Red Records
The Saints - (I'm) Stranded is often lauded as one of the greatest punk debuts ever. Further, they are also considered one of the greatest bands to come from the land down under. The Saints ('73-'78) (I'm Stranded Box Set) should be a testimony to the power of pure Rock 'N' Roll that sounds desperately fresh as it did upon its initial release. Here is hoping for a box set release around Eternally Yours and Prehistoric Sounds.
Check out the interview SPB did with Ed Kuepper on his North American leg of the tour.
