Direct Hit!
Brainless God
Red Scare (2013)
Direct Hit! get filed in the Midwest pop-punk scene and, while they deviate throughout the course of Brainless God, that’s definitely a fair starting point. While there are some harder influences at play, the band’s core is in that school of Dear Landlord and The Dopamines. It’s melodic, catchy, and peppy. There’s some Screeching Weasel in there, but it’s more serious and is generally better served … Read more
Elway
Delusions
Red Scare (2011)
Pop structures with gruff vocals? Check.Group singalongs at the chorus?Check.A lyrical focus on being lost in the world while simultaneously abusing alcohol semi-therapeutically?Check.There’s definitely a format at play for Elway, the Colorado band who just issued their debut on Red Scare Industries. Say what you will about the whole “beard punk” sub-subgenre, but I’m a sucker for it and Elway … Read more
Masked Intruder
Self Titled
Red Scare (2012)
It’s probably impossible not to smile at Masked Intruder’s self-titled debut. Hidden behind a veil of anonymity, the foursome have converged through a myriad of cell bars and prison yards to construct some of the catchiest, colour-coded pop-punk tunes ever written. Between being as violent and delusional as it is hilarious and heartwarming, Masked Intruder successfully pairs the impeccable harmonies … Read more
Sundowner
Four One Five Two
Red Scare (2007)
I've always thought of The Lawrence Arms' guitarist Chris McCaughan as a bit of a lyrical genius, being able to ever so eloquently put to those seemingly indescribable feelings of your mid-twenties to words. The real magic of his game is the ability to do all of this over the distorted guitars and colossal drums that are often the foreground … Read more
Teenage Bottlerocket
Warning Device
Red Scare (2008)
Bark Like a Dog by Screeching Weasel was the first punk rock album that I ever fell in love with, which means (in theory) that any album that reminds of Bark Like a Dog will serve me as a romantic rehashing of why I fell in love punk rock. This means that by the absurd logic I just put forth … Read more
The Bombpops
Like I Care
Red Scare (2010)
Hailing from San Diego, California, The Bombpops are a female fronted quartet and a force to be reckoned with. Their 6 track debut EP, Like I Care delivers some of the quickest and most melodic punk tracks of the year! The Bombpops open up Like I Care with “Outta Hand.” Taking cues from 90’s skate-punk, “Outta Hand” delivers swift and … Read more
The Brokedowns
Life Is a Breeze
Red Scare (2014)
The Brokedowns have come a long way. That’s not to say they were torchbearers of suckitude earlier, but early reviews of the band were festivals of namedropping and comparisons to various Midwestern-tinged punk groups. On Life Is A Breeze, those RIYL days of yore can go straight into the Springfield tire fire: The Brokedowns have their own sound and it’s … Read more
The Brokedowns
Species Bender
Red Scare (2010)
Three long years after New Brains for Everyone rallied cynical drunks everywhere, the Brokedowns have returned with another full-length, this time for Chicago’s Red Scare Industries. From a stomping wooly mammoth adorning the cover to the shout-a-long climactic ending, Species Bender is a record that both celebrates and lampoons a civilization that bears more in common with its caveman founders … Read more
The Copyrights
Make Sound
Red Scare (2007)
Like the Bible's steadfast conviction in the second coming of Christ, I knew this day would someday come. And goddamnit, it's here! Pop punk - real pop punk - has returned. While far too many bands are priding themselves convoluted songwriting, a whole new batch of bands - some old, some new - are popping up and proving that all … Read more
The Copyrights
Report
Red Scare (2014)
I like most of my music to have a pop bent. Yes, I like it rough around the edges and only mildly repetitive, which often rules out some of the biggest names that fall under ye olde “pop-punk” flag. Ramonescore, for the most part, just doesn’t motivate me like the actual Ramones did.But every now and again, a truly poppy … Read more
The Lillingtons
The Too Late Show
Red Scare (2006)
We're in the middle of a pop punk renaissance. New recruits are signing up left and right and firing off catchy odes to the evergreen vagaries of romance, teenage or any age. But this is a post-Lifetime era, so for the most part today's young turks eschew the Ramonesianism of a Screeching Weasel or a Queers in favor of the … Read more
