Dead Mechanical
OK Night
Toxic Pop (2013)
Dead Mechanical is one of those mid-tempo punk bands, built on life’s grimy surfaces and reflecting that tone of rough-and-tumble, down-and-out luck. The music fits this tone, drudging, cursing, and lamenting, striving for a blend of catharsis and transcendence. OK Night is their third full-length and its title just screams of that blunted worldview, neither positive nor negative.The onesheet namedrops influences of Jawbreaker and Superchunk and … Read more
Sick Sick Birds
Gates Of Home
Toxic Pop (2012)
A lot of bands are waving their 90s flags these days. And I don’t blame them. A) they grew up with the stuff and, B) I’ll take the Alternative Nation over the skinny jeans 20-aught set any day. (Yes, I’m an old man.) Sick Sick Birds are a Baltimore group coming out of the punk scene, although their music doesn’t … Read more
Sick Sick Birds
Heavy Manners
Toxic Pop (2009)
Sometimes life gets in the way of good music. When the Thumbs disbanded in 2003, Mike Hall and Bobby Borte needed a new outlet. They formed Sick Sick Birds, but families and education have slowed the band's production, leading them to release their first full-length in 2008. Heavy Manners isn't a far stretch from their previous band, but Sick Sick … Read more
The Capitalist Kids
At A Loss
Toxic Pop (2014)
The sound comparisons are undeniable when it comes to talking about The Capitalist Kids and their affinity for 1980s-era Lookout Records pop-punk. But the Austin, TX band does have a key difference to be noted. For every saccharine love song, there is a counterpunch of social commentary—not mixed within that same sappy song, but in one of the follow-ups. For … Read more
The Capitalist Kids
Lessons on Love, Sharing, and Hygiene
Toxic Pop (2012)
Holy Lookout Records! The Capitalist Kids’ Lessons on Love, Sharing, and Hygiene bears some stark similarities to the output of seminal 1980s-1990s East Bay pop-punk label. With an ear for clean melodies and crisp chords, the songs are quick, catchy, and witty in similar fashion to early-era Green Day, Mr. T Experience, or Screeching Weasel. It’s a sound that is familiar to listeners and can … Read more
Various Artists
Capitalist Kids/Tight Bros. - split 7"
Toxic Pop (2013)
If sweet and easy pop punk is your thing, this is the split for you. Capitalist Kids take Side A, fresh after releasing Lessons on Love, Sharing, and Hygiene. They play Mr. T Experience influenced pop punk/song-about-a-girl. Here, only two of the three are on that subject: opener “Special Looks,” which features the beautifully self-aware lyric, “I’ll keep writing dumb songs/ because you … Read more
