Punk! [#592]

Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong has recorded a new song, ‘No Pleasing a Woman’, with superstar DJ Avicii for the next Avicii album. Jon Bon Jovi (Bon Jovi), Serj Tankian (System of a Down) and Chris Martin (Coldplay) are amongst the other “rockers” contributing to the album. I use the term loosely, of course.
Hipster pop/rock/punk types Four Year Strong have just dropped their brand new album Go Down in History via Pure Noise Records.
Oooh, we all know by now that I love calling bands out for having terrible monikers (names, if you will!) so this issue I’ll shine my (admittedly somewhat mean-spirited) spotlight on the Melbourne scene. Ready? Here goes! Big Dip (no mention of chips or crackers), Barely Supervised (either you are or you aren’t), Brief Chemistry (the mind boggles), Searching in Silence (what are we, 13?), Notice of Eviction (did nobody tell them that Eviction Notice would sound waaay cooler?) and Stars of Addiction. Stars? Why not SCARS? Scars of Addiction is far edgier. Yikes!
Emo godfathers (and I mean that in the ’90s alternative sense, not the cry-baby soundtrack-to-cutting sense) Weezer have a new record on the way! Finally! Everything Will Be Alright in the End drops on September 30 via Universal Music, preceded by single (and sure-fire smash hit) ‘Back to the Shack’.
Sick Of It All will issue Last Act of Defiance on September 30. It’s their first new record since 2010’s Based On a True Story.
Well, while we patiently await Soundwave news, let’s take a look at the line-up for this year’s Riot Fest, taking place in Chicago on September 12, 13 and 14. Rise Against, Pussy Riot, NOFX, Stiff Little Fingers, ALL, Samhain, Buzzcocks, Anti-Flag, Weezer, 7 Seconds, Mudhoney, Descendents, Bouncing Souls, Face to Face, Marky Ramone (and guests), Social Distortion, RX Bandits, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Yowsa! And those are just the interesting PUNK bands taking part (there are so many more of them – I just can’t devote my entire column to naming them!). The extended line-up also includes mainstream/nostalgia acts like The Cure, Wu-Tang Clan, Jane’s Addiction, The Flaming Lips, Cheap Trick and The Dandy Warhols. Geez Louise!
Christian emo-turned-pop-rock outfit Anberlin may have officially split but their farewell record, Lowborn, has just been issued by Christian punk rock label Tooth & Nail (one-time home to the likes of MxPx, Slick Shoes, Ghoti Hook, Further Seems Forever and Stavesacre).
Ahh, Slick Shoes. They never really took off over here, but were EASILY one of the best pop/punk bands of the ’90s and early ’00s. They were this close to crossing over to mainstream success. A reunion album and tour was on the cards at one stage but never eventuated. Boo-urns. Boo-urns indeed.
Topnovil are headed back our way for a show at the Public Bar on Friday, August 15! Joining them on the night will be K-Mart Warriors, Strawberry Fist Cake and Bendigo lads The Revengers. Sick!
More next time, kids! Stay cool!
Written by Christopher Cruz