Angry Samoans "Back from Samoa"

For 40 days I will write short blurbs on what I consider the most essential recordings of all time. Enjoy...


Oh, the Angry Samoans! I <3 me some Angry Samoans! To me this is what California Punk Rock is all about. I'd argue that the Angry Samoans are in the in top three most influential West coast punk/hardcore bands (the other two being Black Flag & The Dead Kennedys).

90's Pop-punk owes alot to the Samoans. Back from Samoa is about as good of any to start. Pick it up.

Tracks to listen for are: Lights Out, Steak Knife, My Old Man's a Fatso

Buy it HERE- http://www.amazon.com/Back-Samoa-Angry-Samoans/dp/B000000P3G

Ramones "Leave Home"

For 40 days I will write short blurbs on what I consider the most essential recordings of all time. Enjoy...




This list of 40 albums should technically contain almost every Ramones record ever made. The Ramones are the reason I love punk rock; hands down, end of story. The reason I chose Leave Home out of their massive catalog is that this was the first record I got from the Ramones. Leave Home radically changed my perception of rock music at the tender age of 13. This record single-handedly made me turn away from mainstream corporate rock to punk. Although I personally enjoy The Ramones' self-titled just as much, Leave Home means more to me because it was my introduction to a sub-culture that had been spewing for a good 16 years at that time.

Honestly The Ramones' first 4 albums should be considered as pinnacle American Rock and Roll albums but if you're reading this you know that already ;)

Tracks to listen for are: Carbona Not Glue, Commando, You're Gonna Kill That Girl.

Buy it HERE- http://interpunk.com/item.cfm?Item=124543&

Groovie Ghoulies "Appetite for Adrenochrome"

For 40 days I will write short blurbs on what I consider the most essential recordings of all time. Enjoy...



In my opinion the Groovie Ghoulies' Appetite for Adrenochrome is one of the best pop punk albums of all time. The Goulies covers of Don't Go Out Into the Rain (You're Going to Melt) from the Herman's Hermits & Lookout! from Neil Diamond (actually written by Neil for The Monkees) are easily the best covers EVER done in punk rock. Although some will claim that the Groovie Ghoulies' sound wasn't refined until later records like Re-Animation Festival I beg to differ and say that what makes Appetite such a gem is it's raw, straightforward musical compositions. Appetite still manages to show Kepi's amazing voice and his ubber awesome vision of campy horror meets the pop sensibilities of American pop legends Neil Diamond and Carly Simon to the mix. Unlike the horror styling of the early Misfits, the Groovie Ghoulies version of horror punk laid more in a Hanna-Barbara world versus a Vampira/Ed Wood world. Appetite for Adrenochrome is an excellent 1st record which still gets me singing along each and every tune.

Tracks to listen for are: My Computer Said Kill, No Blood, Lookout!

Buy it HERE- http://interpunk.com/item.cfm?Item=130487&

The Misfits "Walk Among Us"

For 40 days I will write short blurbs on what I consider the most essential recordings of all time. Enjoy...




I remember when I first listened to this record thinking it was the most amazing thing ever. I actually had this on cassette and man I tore the fuck outta that tape. Walk Among Us is the quintessential Misfits record in my opinion and the ultimate testosterone ride a wimpy kid could ever get their hands on.

Tracks to listen for are: 20 Eyes, Hatebreeders, Skulls & I Turned into a Martian.

Buy it HERE- http://interpunk.com/item.cfm?Item=165041&

Favorite albums of all time

I was asked what I thought the best records of all time were. This is a cynical question in my opinion because music is something that means so much to everyone.

Here's a list of 40 records that I will never get sick of listening to. This is a very personal list of records, they are my musical tattoos of life events if you will.

In the coming days I'll write a short piece on why each of these records have changed my life and why I hang on to them.

In no particular order I introduce you into what makes me happy. I'd suggest you'd check these artists out if you haven't already.

1. The Misfits "Walk Among Us"
2. Groovie Ghoulies "Appetite for Adrenochrome"
3. Ramones "Leave Home"
4. Angry Samoans "Back from Samoa"
5. Beastie Boys "Paul's Boutique"
6. Beck "Odelay"
7. Bouncing Souls "The Good, The Bad and the Argyle"
8. Buena Vista Social Club "S/T"
9. The Clash "London Calling"
10. The Crumbs "Low and Behold"
11. Dwarves "Are young and good looking"
12. Jon Cougar Concentration Camp "Til Niagra Falls"
13. Nirvana "Incesticide"
14. The Vaselines "Enter the Vaselines"
15. Guitar Wolf "Planet of the wolves"
16. The Lillingtons "The Backchannel Broadcast"
17. The Mr. T Experience "Revenge is Sweet, and so are you"
18. Mudhoney "Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge"
19. Mudhoney "Superfuzz Bigmuff"
20. Pixies "Doolittle"
21. The Queers "Love Songs for the Retarded"
22. The Riverdales "Phase 3"
23. Screeching Weasel "Anthem for a new tomorrow"
24. Screeching Weasel "Boogada Boogada Boogada"
25. Sonic Youth "Bad Moon Rising"
26. Sonic Youth "Goo"
27. Sonic Youth "Sister"
28. Suicidal Tendencies "s/t"
29. Weezer "Blue Album"
30. Youth Brigade "Sink with Kalifornia"
31. The Beatles "Rubber Soul"
32. Butthole Surfers "Hairway to Steven"
33. Danzig "S/T"
34. Green Day "Dookie"
35. The Illustrated "Alphabaggage"
36. Pink Lincolns "Back from the Pink Room"
37. Foo Fighters "S/T"
38. Yellowman "King Yellowman"
39. Groovie Ghoulies "Born in the Basement"
40. Glocca Morra "The Working Bones, A Health Decline"

Manifest to Reconcile Miami's Indie Scene by Chuck

So here's the deal.

This one kid spat at Steve Tuner (Mudhoney guitarist) during Saturdays show and Steve had him kicked out. Thanks to this spitting douchebag every Sub Pop band will now know that "Hey don't play Miami, they'll spit at you!"

I've had enough with the bullshit element in our scene. You go to Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco or New York City and you don't have this bullshit. So here are things that we can do to make this scene a better one.

Miami, listen to me for 1 second, this is why good bands don't come here. If you've ever had to tour or travel the idea of playing/driving to Miami is just not a sound one. Especially for bands that are based in areas like the pacific northwest or even the mid-west. As a record label owner and touring band member I see this as clear as day. It's common sense.

Top Reasons Miami's complicated to tour:

1. It's far as shit from every other city.

2. Logistically it's a nightmare.

3. Miami's still blacklisted as a shit town to travel or tour through.

4. Scene Sucks. Word of mouth in the know is that Miami's over-rated! Shit listen to Against Me's Miami for an example.

5. Gas Prices


So here's how we change all that.

1. Go to Shows. Support the scene. I don't care if they're local or Sub Pop big!

2. Be fucking courteous to others and don't make us look like we're fucking retarded Confederate Southerners. Alabama's got that covered!

3. Let's organize this scene once and for all! A band from California doesn't care if the show is in Tampa or Miami; Newsflash it's the same area to them! They played Florida! Yay! Done Move on... That's why we don't get shit down here. It's our job to make them want to come here.

4. Bands talk to bands. If Miami sucked as a show; congrats, every band on the label's roster ain't playing there again.

5. Motherfuckers that start stupid shit at shows (spit, fight, etc.) need to be taken out of the scene entirely. Their shit will not be supported nor feared.

The Miami artists in the Art District got their shit together, now musicians and music lovers let's do our part and get our shit together.

-Chuck

photo credit: jurek d.

mudhoney destroys everything

When I heard that Mudhoney was playing Miami I jumped up with glee. Like a little skank tween Britney Spears fan; the idea of one of my favorite bands performing after 13 years of silently head-banging in my room to Touch Me I'm Sick, 1995 and In N' Out of Grace or trying to mimic their guitar parts on my Epiphone SG finally paid off Saturday Night as Mudhoney took the stage at Churchill's Pub.

It was as the last 13 years of singing along to LPs and memorizing every musical change in the bands catalog was just part of more than a decades practice to follow the band as they performed live. The air was thick and the fuzz even thicker, these guys were fucking better than their own albums which is unbelievable to even conceive. Mark Arm and company dominated the stage and showed every spectator why they're considered Rock n' Roll Gods.

I remember reading years ago this interview with Mark Arm where he said that "the Nirvana guys would open Mudhoney's tour van and carry all their heavy equipment after shows and basically kiss their ass", I never quite understood this ego trip remark made by Arm in the interview until Saturday. Shit even Kurt Cobain must've questioned his own worth when Mudhoney took the stage.

It's been said that Mudhoney should've gotten all the attention Nirvana did. The problem is that you can't bottle and market Mudhoney like you can all the radio friendly shit from the early 90's. The closest the band got was "Piece of Cake" their major label debut, as a matter of fact with a song called "Suck You Dry". But they were too much of the real deal for MTV or Rolling Stone. Nevertheless, I'm just glad they played Miami. I can now die happy. Well after Sonic Youth rolls around here.. then yeah. Jesus take me to higher place!

-chuck

photo credit: Nick Helderman