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What’s up Sorry Staters?

Another busy week here at the good ol’ Sorry State HQ. Beyond all the tasks on the Sorry State front, Usman and I have spent some late nights trying to get Bunker Punks stuff put together. I’ve hand-stamped so many sleeves that I’ve lost count. I’ve got blisters on me fingaz! Those of you reading who are still waiting on an order from Bunker Punks, thanks for your patience! We’re really stoked on how these bonus Koro sleeves came out, so we think it’ll be worth the wait:)

There’s been tons of boxes of new releases piling up at the store over the last couple days. Toxic State, Iron Lung, Relapse… so much cool new stuff to check out! But I gotta say, all these new 7” reissues on No Plan Records really caught my attention. Funny enough, the Jerry’s Kidz 7” had already been on my mind recently. A friend of mine who lives a couple thousand miles away posted his 2 copies of this 7” the other day… with both different sleeve variants (mad jealous). I think I even remember thinking to myself, “Damn, how come no one has reissued that Jerry’s Kidz record yet?” I had completely forgotten that we had a batch of squeaky clean new copies already in the mail and set to arrive just a couple days later. Funny timing!

Jerry’s Kidz, spelled with a “z” and not to be confused with the other Jerry’s Kids from Boston, were from New Mexico. This 7”, titled Well Fed Society, was their only release and originally came out in 1984. In my obsessive deep dive into the history of 80s USHC, I always wonder to myself if there’s at least one good hardcore record released from each of the 50 States. For New Mexico, I think this 7” is the glowing example. This 7” was also the sole vinyl release on what I can only assume is the band’s own label called Test Site Records—surely a homegrown reference to the Manhattan Project and atom bomb testings in New Mexico. I gotta say, the artwork on this 7” is right up my alley. I mean, come on, there’s a skateboarding skeleton on the back cover! What must it have it been like to be a young hardcore punk band in Albuquerque in 1984? I imagine if you’re in the middle of the desert in New Mexico, there’s gotta be some droughted-out drainage ditches that would be killer for skating. Jerry’s Kidz sound like a bunch of skate rats. The vocals carry a tune, but the singer’s voice is pretty snotty. They sorta sound like a little blend of Rebel Truth, but with the the snotty, haphazard desert flavor of peers JFA… not to mention the skateboard connection. The opening track “Marionetts” is so killer. The lyrics are pretty rad, a metaphorical depiction of being a puppet in life whose strings are being pulled by the powers that be until death. There’s a song about drinking and driving, “DWI, drinking and driving as American as apple pie.” Genius. This record is definitely a sleeper hit of 80s hardcore and seems to be not super well known. I remember we had an original copy come through Sorry State several years ago, and I regret to this day not taking it home with me. Seems like this record is actually pretty rare, because I’ve never seen another one. But now, thanks to No Plan Records, you can get a faithful reproduction for a small fraction of the price.

Welp, that’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s still unseasonably warm around here. What the fuck? The aftermath of Koro pre-orders has kept us busy over at Sorry State HQ. Also, I don’t know if you readers saw our little announcement the other day, but Scarecrow’s 2nd EP Crisis is back in print and now Sorry State has copies in stock! Speaking of which, as I’m writing this, Scarecrow is playing a gig later on tonight with Future Terror and new local band Rovagug. I don’t feel as if I’ll be able to eloquently piece together any other details about my personal life, so here’s some of my usual record blabbing:

So, I will admit, this new Sick Thoughts record came out and I really didn’t pay it any mind. I had several friends pick up Heaven Is No Fun here at the shop, and I guess I just kinda avoided checking it out. One buddy was like, “Dude… Jeff, you should really listen to it.” I FINALLY I got around to it… and goddammit, not only is it good, but it’s reeeeeally good. I love it. Honestly, some of Sick Thoughts’ earlier records I didn’t really care for too much. I lumped them in with a lot of “lo-fi garage punk” that is usually pretty hit or miss for me. And I don’t know if the greasy cover photo of Drew with his hair grown out, his shirt’s top few buttons undone and chest hair exposed is any indication, but I think his style’s evolved.

I don’t know if “produced” is the right word, but this record impressed me because it feels like the band put in a lot of effort from a songwriting and production standpoint. It’s a badass rock’n’roll record. Like homeboy is still snarling, but in-key with lush background vocals. There’s absolutely killer guitar stuff on here. While at its core, this record could still fit in the Goner Records camp, it also feels like there’s some heavy glam influence. Like there’s an injection of Marc Bolan swagger and Mick Ronson-esque guitar flourishes. That said, this still feels like a punk record. I can hear the best moments of the Carbonas. A pinch of Jay Reatard quirkiness. And then lyrically, humor is the predominant force, along with a dash of sneering attitude. “Mother, I love Satan.” “We hit the desert middle of the day, devil on my shoulder leading the way.” And honestly, the high-pitched call and response “yeah yeahs” on the opening track “I Hate You” totally reminds me of the catchiest songs on the first GG Allin record. Hate GG or not, that first record is basically just a power pop record. Then a song like “Someone I Can Talk To” is like the one moment of vulnerability on the record and almost lands in love song territory. There are fucking organ solos. I’m here for it. The record is snappy, doesn’t overstay its welcome. Every song is good. There’s ups and downs, but the songs always feel energetic and fun. It feels like a real album. A killer record front to back. I feel like I need to bust out a paisley button up, throw on some aviator sunglasses, grab a fifth of Jack Daniels, and hit the road while blasting this ripper.

I almost didn’t get a copy of this record for myself. I thought it was sold out, but I think might’ve snagged our last copy. Is it out of print from Total Punk already? If so, maybe it’ll get a repress before too long. It would definitely be worth it. This is probably retro-actively in my best of 2022 now.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s 70-some degrees in February here in Raleigh. Maybe it’s because of the heat emanating from this Koro repress we have available for all you HardcorePunkMetalFreaks! Very exciting. You’re about as likely to find an original copy as a pot of gold under a rainbow, and it will cost you about the same as a used car. So considering that, it’s pretty rad that this 80s hardcore gem is finally back in print with a loving attempt to capture the feel of the packaging and sound of the real deal. On clear vinyl no less! While you’re at it, me n’ Usman will have a special version of the Koro 7” available through our Bunker Punks webstore. AND Scarecrow’s 2nd EP, Crisis, is back in print! If you missed out on the first round, we’re happy to say that now you’ll have a chance to grab a copy. If you’re local to NC, Sorry State will also have a good amount of copies for sale in-store :)

This was already several weeks ago (oh how time flies), but a little while back Sorry State got in just about every single you could ever want from English punk group Chelsea. I’d heard a couple of their early songs like “Right To Work” from 1977, which I always lumped in with UK bands from that era like Menace or even Sham 69. Kind of that gruff, street-wise, working class kinda punk that to me still kinda sounds like it has a foot in pub rock. Almost like the English version of proto-punk. We’ve sold a good amount of them now, but when we first got all these singles, a big stack of 10 or more, Dom and I stood at the counter at the store and listened to every single one of them IN ORDER. I did not realize that I genuinely like Chelsea until this day. It seems like a few years later in the band’s career, once it got to be like 1979 or 1980, that Chelsea’s sound really evolved. The 2 singles I have pictured above that I decided to take home for myself, “No One’s Coming Outside” and “A Look At The Outside” (guess these guys like talking about the outside haha), really blew me away. Since I’ve taken them home, I’ve listened to them constantly. I didn’t realize that they exchanged their rough-edged rock’n’roll for this lush, melodic, anthemic sound. Great production, beautiful jangly guitar work, background vocals with lots of oohs and ahs, intelligent and catchy vocal melodies. Just great, great songs. And even so, it’s still TOUGH. It almost kinda reminds of the direction that Stiv Bators went in on Disconnected. Somewhere between early mod influence, Johnny Thunders, The Damned and like… I dunno, Badfinger? I just can’t get enough.

I even posted a story on Instagram basically saying, “Why didn’t yall tell me Chelsea was good?” I had several people message me, including this cool ass dude from Montreal that I follow who was shocked I’d been missing out. Apparently, French Canadians love Chelsea. Who knew? So, if you haven’t checked out this era of Chelsea and the comparisons I’m drawing tickle your fancy, I highly suggest you check these singles out. Little melodic punk gems. Whenever I make discoveries like this, I always start to wonder if there are cool periods of other band’s discographies that I’m missing out on. Time will tell on that I suppose. But that’s part of the fun, right?

Welp, that’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s been wet and cold as a freezer in Raleigh the last couple days. Good time to sit inside and write about punk. Things have been extra busy around Sorry State HQ lately. We’re holding off on announcing anything just yet, but expect some news from Sorry State, but also some exciting news from me ‘n’ Usman’s label Bunker Punks next week:)

Anyway, time to talk about records:

Thanks to the good people at Lärmattacke Records, Sorry State has been able to stock a killer batch of European punk reissues. Some of these titles have been out of print since the 80s. And while everyone is freaking out about Varaus (rightfully so), I gotta say that these Indirekt reissues got me excited. Indirekt is one of those bands that I can’t even remember how I first discovered. Their LP Op Oorlogspad is one of those records that I had on my iPod back when I had one of those, so I feel like it’s in my DNA after hearing it sporadically over the years. Probably a random addition when on my nerdy voyages into trying to discover more and more international hardcore.

Indirekt is from the Netherlands and was active as far back as 1982. Most notably what stands out about Indirekt’s sound is that they had a girl singer and her vocals are super tuneful and melodic. For a long time, I didn’t realize that the band had 2 different eras with 2 different women singing. The band’s first 7” from 1984 was when they had a singer named Marjolein, and then as of 1985 Anneke took over vocal duties, which is honestly the era I’m more familiar with. I mainly wanna talk about Op Oorlogspad, their sole full-length. Musically, the band plays that umpa-umpa 1-2-1-2 drum beat at ripping fast tempos with soaring, energetic melodies. The guitar sound is perfect in my book. It sounds like a cranked Marshall, and just great, anthemic sounding riffs. I love songs like “Nomen Scio,” which is like a total ’77 style classic punk tune, almost sounds like The Avengers or something. But then interspersed within the hardcore, every few songs or so, the songwriting gets quirky—and I mean like SUPER quirky. When it’s straight hardcore, then it’s great, but sometimes, the vocals are sing-songy to the point of almost sounding folky. It’s almost like a speeded out, Dutch take on Trallpunk, kinda like Asta Kask or something. But don’t let that put you off. I remember the first time I heard this record I was almost put off by the strange, goofy moments. Operatic vocal outros, rockabilly yee-hoos, reggae breakdowns… So yeah, it gets kinda wild. But upon further analysis, I get the impression that Indirekt was more light-hearted and had a real sense of humor. These unexpected musical ideas that kinda make you go “huh?” actually function like brief and welcomed moments of levity. I mean, really the cover art is pretty silly. But the hardcore contained within is killer.

This reissue has awesome goodies with the packaging, and all our copies are on green/yellow/blue mix vinyl. Each copy looks totally unique. The record comes with a poster, stickers and a nice full color booklet with photos, scans of flyers, a biography and interviews with the band. Whereas you might see photos of the Dutch Agent Orange wearing leather jackets, the photos in this booklet indicate that Indirekt’s vibe was more like Minor Threat t-shirt over a hoodie, lookin’ like a member of 7 Seconds or some shit. Not that Indirekt sound totally USHC or anything. They definitely exhibit musical influences that sound distinctly European. But they definitely sound more like Sin 34 than they do like Sacrilege. In my nerdy research, I tried to figure out if Indirekt played with other bands from the Netherlands like Nog Watt or BGK. Looks like Indirekt was from a town called Hoorn, which is many miles north of the Holland/Amsterdam region. And where Nog Watt and BGK sang in English, Indirekt actually sings in Dutch. Interesting distinction.

So yeah, there’s a little write-up about me re-experiencing Indirekt. Really, it’s my first time getting to check it out in a physical format, which was super fun for me. I highly recommend you give this record (or their 1986 7” Nacht Und Nebel) a shot if you’re feeling froggy.

That’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Welp, here we are again in January giving you our run down of the year we just got done with. Man, 2022… What a year it’s been! But now it’s time to say goodbye with a little reflection. Prepare for yet another year-end wrap up with lots of over-indulgent blabbing:

As the years keep whippin’ on by, I still think to myself things like, “Whatever, 2013 wasn’t that long ago.” And then I have to slap myself and realize like, WHOA, that was 10 YEARS AGO. How does that happen? Speaking of which, 2022 was kind of a blur for me. I don’t wanna seem crude, and I’m trying to tread lightly when I say this, but 2022 is kinda the first year since Covid happened that almost felt… normal? Which of course, normal for me meant doing the most traveling I’ve ever done in my life! But, I went back and read my year-end review from 2021 and you can tell I was still in a place of being excited at the prospect of punk gigs actually being able to happen. Kinda wild. But to review, my bands went to a couple fests here on the east coast, I flew overseas to Europe not 1.. not 2… but 3 times! And not to mention, played some amazing shows, met some great people, ate some killer food, and picked up a few records along the way. Not too shabby. Let’s hope 2023 has similar good times to offer.

Really, even in the midst of a pandemic, the last few years have been really great and exciting for new releases in hardcore & punk, and 2022 was no exception. There are so many great releases that came out in the past year, easily more than 10 worth mentioning. I wanna try to touch on everything I enjoyed this year, but I’m still going to fully commit to the “Top 10” format, and I’ve narrowed it down to these:

1. The Annihilated: Submission To Annihilation 12” - The UK powerhouse. What a band. After that demo cassette (which I somehow didn’t manage to get a copy of goddammit!), this LP delivered on so many levels. The poster sleeve packaging and art is top notch. The recording is powerful, but raw. And I just feel like this band, particularly Bobby, the singer, embody the genuine spirit of true hardcore. Real as it gets.
2. White Stains: Blood On The Beach 7” - Funny to include a record for 2022… in 2023.. that has a song called “2021.” The music was streamable online over a year ago, but Sorry State didn’t stock the actual 7” until like March or something, so I gotta include this bad boy. What a great record. Mean and snarling, but also tuneful and catchy in the style of the California punk these dudes are clearly influenced by. Now this band is over with, but great records came out while they lasted. Kills.
3. The Wanted: Demo cassette - People might think I’m funny for including this cassette because I only discovered it recently, but man, I just love it. If you haven’t heard The Wanted from Salem, MA yet, then make sure you track down this cassette. Seriously one of my favorite hardcore recordings in recent memory. Great songwriting. Straight to the point. The singer to me is practically a dead ringer for Alec MacKaye, and the band even kinda sounds like early The Faith. The vocals feel intense and sincere. The drummer Nate was nice enough to mail me a couple cassettes with a hand-written note included pen-pal style. In the note, he said The Wanted has newer material coming soon that he thinks is better than this cassette. If that’s the case, I better buckle up.
4. Long Knife: Curb Stomp Earth 12” - The Portland vets have done it yet again. I feel certain that with the buzz that was happening around this LP that this will make many other people’s year-end lists as well. From their first LP Wilderness, I’ve kept track of Long Knife’s releases through the years. But this new LP felt really ambitious and kinda out there with the song arrangements and production. It felt almost risky to me, which I like. Almost like when The Damned got super lush with the instrumentation on their later records. Maybe not exactly, but you get the idea. Definitely a fun listen that remained on my turntable for several weeks.
5. Invertebrates: Summer Tour CS - My homies! This isn’t nepotism, I love this band. I liked the first cassette that Sorry State released, but the batch of songs on this cassette really knocked me out. Playing that ripping Career Suicide-style clean guitar kinda hardcore, which is what the world needs. If the amount of activity and attention this band has gotten within the last year or so is any indication, then they’re doing something right. Talk of the town is that Invertebrates are gonna release a 12”. These punks will lead us into the future.
6. Warthog: 5th 7” - I would be remiss if I didn’t include my Warthog boiz. More than 10 years strong, and now a ripping 3-song EP in 2022. All crushers. When I look back at my summer in 2022 and think about the run of shows Warthog and Public Acid did together, it really was the time of my life. Hope I get to see my Hogz destroy more audiences in 2023.
7. Indre Krig: Destroyer 7" - A band that snuck up on me in 2022 and now I feel like is going to murder it in 2023—especially after seeing them and hearing this 7”. I met most of the members of this band within just a few minutes of being at Ungdomshuset in Copenhagen when I was in Denmark for the K-Town Hardcore fest. All great people. But then, seeing them play later in the summer, I was like FUCK. When Scarecrow played with them, they covered “It’s OK” by Koro. Me and Daniel met eyes in the crowd and were like “hell yeah.”
8. Vidro: Glöd 12” - I could go into depth about how great this record is again, but you should just read my staff pick from like a week ago.
9. Gefyr: S/T 12" - A a sorta under-the-radar Swedish hardcore release this year. So stoked Sorry State was able to lock down a few copies for distro. Total No Security style. RIPS.
10. Peace de Résistance: Bits and Pieces 12" - I debated whether or not to include this in my Top 10, just because this release was so closely knit with Sorry State happenings this year. But if I’m being honest with myself, I listened to this LP consistently and regularly throughout the year. I remember a friend of mine saying early on when this record first came out, “I guess Peace De Resistance is cool, but I’d rather have another Glue record.” I couldn’t disagree more. What Moses created in this project checks so many boxes for me. Like a creepy Bowie or Lou Reed with Eno-esque melodicism and an aloof yet poignant vocal performance like Mark E Smith or Howard Devoto. Tasteful and understated, yet full of rock’n’roll swagger. What a great record.

Weirdly, I always feel strange including Sorry State releases in these sorta things, almost like we’re patting ourselves on the back or something. But man, I gotta acknowledge Shaved Ape, Yleiset Syyt, and Sirkka that we released this year. This is kinda cheating I guess, but if I had decided to do things differently, then they would also absolutely appear in my “Best Of” list.

--- Honorable Mentions! ---- I just have to throw these on here, because honestly, most of these should be on my Top 10 list because of how much I listened to them. Most of my favorites from this past year were actually cassettes, and I know that most of them are just previews of the proper records that will surely make my “Best of 2023” list:

• Electric Chair: Act of Aggression CS - Best of the best, as expected. Can’t wait for this record in LP format.
• Gripe: Déjame Solo CS - Even though I loved that LP on Neon Taste that came out this year, Gripe’s 4-song cassette is what really grabbed my attention. A band from Chile playing in ferocious style that reminds of Amde Petersen’s Arme? Sign me up.
• The Hell: Promo CS - This new band out of Cleveland gave me a stoke attack when I first heard it. I was almost hospitalized. Surely their LP coming on Not For The Weak will be a highlight next year.
• Nukies: Can’t You Tell That This Is Hell CS - Ripping new band out of Sweden. Members of Axe Rash I believe? I think this same recording is going to be a 12” on Adult Crash.
• Personal Damage: Violent Ritual CS - Another ripper from these LA punks. Do they have like 4? Maybe 5 releases now? This might be my favorite yet.
• Save Our Children/Stunted Youth: Split Tour CS - 2 bands that absolutely destroyed when they played in NC. Texans playing fast hardcore. Absolutely killer. I don’t play cassettes on the regular, but if this recording was pressed onto a split 12” and I’d listened to it more, I’m sure I would’ve put it in my top 10.

Also:

• Slan: Skiter I Allt 7” - Killer Swedish hardcore. US press coming soon ;)
• Stray Bullet: Factory 7” - My Sheffield hardcore punk boiz. They absolutely wrecked K-town. Hope to see my boy Crawford sooner than later.
• Straw Man Army: SOS 12” - I wish my tastes were refined enough to rank this in my top 10. It’s really that good. Adventurous and ambitious outer space kinda take on punk.
• Chainsaw: When Will We Die? 7" - A Boston ripper that came in right toward the end of the year. So fucking good.
• Ammo: Web of Lies 12" - NJ hardcore played mean, fast and tough the way it should be. Nuff said. Hope this band has more releases in the oven.
• Warchild: A Question For Today 12" - I know this band has other releases from years prior, but this LP really caught my attention. Swedish style riffing at its finest.
• Innocent: Architects of Despair 12" - Kinda crusty hardcore from Boston with high-pitched banshee vocals. Definitely killer. I think some of the same people are also in Lifeless Dark. Can’t wait to hear that new LP later this year.
• Savageheads: Service To Your Country 12” - Duh.

Another Top 10 of 2022 that has nothing to do with new records (more or less):

1. Best food. Damn, I ate so much so food in so many different places this year. But, it’s pretty hard to compete with a vegan full English breakfast with the company of Tom Ellis. We hit the same spot each time I visited London—once in the summer with Scarecrow, and the second when Public Acid went over for Damage Is Done fest. I’m craving some bubble just thinking about it.
2. Best record store visited. Really, I didn’t visit quite as many record stores in my travels this year as you might expect. If it were up to me, I would’ve hit a different record store in every city I visited this year. One of my favorites I did get to visit while in London was probably Lee Dorian’s store Rise Above Records. It was just cool to hang out in there, cool flyers all over the walls. But the punk section record bins were just stuffed full of og bangers in great shape for really good prices. I probably bought like every single Damned record I didn’t have. Another shop in London we went to was also great, simply called The Little Record Shop. Tiny little place, but cool and collectible records everywhere. Punk, but also reggae, psych, you name it. The owner was super friendly, just handing me and the gang huge stacks of punk singles he hadn’t priced yet. Okay, one more. I also had a great time visiting Second Beat Records in Copenhagen. I walked there from the venue in Copenhagen with no internet service haha. But I found it! Another pretty small shop, but they had a bunch of great rare punk 7”s for sale when I visited. I had to spring for one record, so I got my og Electric Deads at that shop. I had to buy something Danish, right?
3. Best record score. As far as collecting goes, 2022 really wasn’t my biggest year for scoring crazy rare or expensive records. Seriously! Of course, I grabbed a few records here and there, but I tried to watch my spending with all the traveling I did this year. I did manage one pretty big score. A special version of a record I wanted so badly that finally actually getting my hands on one… let’s just say it quelled my need to constantly hunt for records for quite a while. Most of my friends know I love Poison Idea. I may consider them my favorite band on any given day. This year, after many years of hunting, I finally locked down an original Portland Edition of Kings of Punk with all the posters, inserts, sticker, etc. A holy grail for me! Funny enough, 2022 also ended up being the year the Portland Edition was reissued with faithful reproductions of all the posters and everything. Who knew? While a copy with repro- posters probably would’ve satiated my hunger temporarily, I got the real deal on Pusmort, so I’m happy.
4. Favorite live band. Man, I don’t think I can narrow it down to just one. I saw so many great bands play this year. Seeing Warthog destroy crowds several nights in a row was pretty amazing. Uzi from Bogota was so killer. I got to see Electric Chair in Copenhagen AND New York, always a pleasure. Both Rat Cage and Stray Bullet annihilated at K-Town. Speaking of which, The Annihilated in Sheffield was raging. The whole gig at the new Lughole in Sheffield was a highlight of the year. Seeing Golpe like 10 times in a row (with Daniel on guitar!) touring with Scarecrow was awesome. Indre Krig in Copenhagen. I got to see Vidro twice, and they were totally killer. SHIT played the best set I’ve ever seen them play when I was in Toronto. They covered Crucifix and Blitz (mwah, chef’s kiss). I could go on and on, but I’ll leave it there.
5. Public Acid / Warthog. This trip was so fucking great. My first time in Europe! It was only 4 shows. Public Acid and Warthog played together at 3 of them, one show in Amsterdam and 2 shows in Germany, and then we made our way to K-town. A couple of these gigs were the best shows I’ve ever played. Even so, looking back the main thing I remember is just hanging out in the van and goofing off with everybody. At first, I definitely felt a little shy on the trip. But within a day or 2 I was having a blast. Those Warthog dudes are some of the funniest motherfuckers out there. I was laughing the whole time. Hope me and my dudes grab an Aperol Spritz and “do one” by a river real soon. Acid-Hog forever.
6. Scarecrow euro tour. What an adventure. My first full European tour, which is something I’ve always wanted to do playing in hardcore punk bands all these years. So many places, so many cool people. There’s so many details I could get into, but it would be a whole other full-length write-up. With the exception of breaking down in France and being stuck there for a few days, it was a life-affirming experience.
7. New band. My buddy Eric moved back to NC this year. Before too long, Meat House started. We recruited Alex who plays drums in Mutant Strain, and we got Keith who sang in White Stains to do vocals. I play bass, which is a nice change of pace from my other bands. I’m really excited about this band. We recorded in October, so hopefully we’ll have something coming out this year. Hell yeah!
8. Bunker Punks stuff. Me n’ Usman’s label put out 2 releases this year: The 2nd 7” by our band Scarecrow and a 7” by our other project Fatal. We’re stoked on how they both turned out. We’ve got some exciting plans for 2023. More news on all that coming soon!
9. New Year’s weekend. I’d never been to Canada before. Public Acid played a “SHITmas” showcase in association with Not Dead Yet. That ruled. Also, our show in Cleveland was absolutely amazing. You gotta check out Prototype Collective, it was the first show at this new spot and Cleveland is lucky to have it. But then, who would’ve thought I’d spend New Year’s Eve in Montreal? We were all wasted and went to get poutine at 4am. Pretty rad. Then, when trying to re-enter the country I got harassed at the border because apparently there’s a murderous criminal who has my same name? That was pretty wild. Then our show in Boston on New Year’s Day was killer. The show was over by 10pm, and 4 of 5 Acidz drove straight through the night back to Richmond. Woohoo!
10. Seeing old friends and making new ones. I don’t wanna get too mushy right at the end here, but one of the best things about this year was all the people I encountered. I mean, the last couple years before 2022, I felt lucky to get to see anyone at all. I don’t mean to sound cheesy, but one of the amazing things about all this punk nonsense is that it brings you to places you’ve never been and people you barely know are waiting with open arms and hospitality. Some of these people I got to see more than once in a single year. I feel so lucky. Some folks I only spent a little bit of time with, but now I feel like we’ll be friends for life. I was happy to see Jim and Amy from Philly several times this year. Richard and Lia in Cleveland. Christina hosting Public Acid and Scarecrow while we were in Copenhagen. Going to Sweden and having Mattis from Dissekerad just hop in the van and tag along on tour for a few days. Meeting Jocke from D-Takt and Poffen while we were in Uppsala. All the dudes in Golpe. Bry and Crawford in Sheffield. Paco and Tom Ellis. Nils and Monika carting around Warthog and Public Acid. Scarecrow’s tour driver Liese <3. I could go on and on. Puts a smile on my face thinking about everybody.

Alright all ya crazy punk-ass mofos, that’s all I’ve got. Here’s hoping 2023 is another good one. As always, thanks for reading, and being patient in indulging me and my incoherent ramblings.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

How’s everyone doing? Lately, I’ve been feeling alright. I go through bouts where my spirits are up and down, but for whatever reason maybe 2023 is off to a good start. Last week’s shows that Scarecrow played along with Flower and Destruct were really great. I’m not sure if any of them would be reading this or are even aware of Sorry State, but there was a whole new crop of kids that came to the show at The Fruit here in NC. Tall, skinny teenage dudes with foot-tall mohicans. I love to see it. I was them once. I loved street punk and bands like A Global Threat (honestly, I still like AGT haha). Gives me hope that more younger people will start coming out to punk gigs in town. Maybe they’ll even start a killer band! Who knows?

Speaking of it now being 2023, we’re almost 3 weeks into the year and Sorry State is finally talking about “year-end lists” for 2022. It’s so hard for me to pick favorites. Shit, it’s hard enough to even remember what records came out in the last year. A record that I’ve seen appear on many people’s “Best of 2022” lists is the latest LP from Long Knife, Curb Stomp Earth. And I would agree! I definitely spun that record a lot this year.

Probably planned to coincide with the release of their new LP, Black Water just reissued the first 2 LPs by Long Knife. With all the people of the internets hyping Curb Stomp Earth, I wonder how many people are familiar with their earlier material. I will admit that it’s been many years since I’ve revisited those records. I bought both of them when they came out. I was thinking back, and I remember I bought Wilderness around the time my old band Mercy Killings played with Long Knife. If I remember correctly, I think we played their shows in NC and in Richmond on that tour. Maybe I’m wrong about that, but Richmond for sure. I had to check back and see when Wilderness came out, and I was shocked to see that it came out in 2013. 10 YEARS AGO! I was trippin’ on that. I had a brief moment of feeling like an old man and that I’ve been doing this punk shit for too long. But I then I threw on this LP and that feeling subsided pretty quickly haha.

This first LP holds up super well. Before I’d heard Long Knife back those many years ago, they were billed to me as, “Dude, they sound like Poison Idea.” Which, sure, I get it. They’re from Portland. They got those riffs. And yeah, the singer Colin’s snarling vocals do kinda recall Jerry A. But I think simply calling them a Poison Idea rip off is selling them short. Clear influence or not, I think Long Knife has their own stamp with the way they write songs. I would say when comparing it to Curb Stomp Earth, the first record is definitely less dense and ambitious with the arrangements and whacky instrumentation. Wilderness is obviously a more straight ahead hardcore record. That said, it’s clear within just a couple minutes that these dudes are seasoned and can really play. The record starts off a bit slow, with this pounding intro heavy on the toms on the drums. Then the first song “Artificial Heart Recall” is like this frantic, octane-driven mid-paced song. But then a song like “Ghost in the Hall” really stands out, kicking off with this sort of moody, minor chord style riff and sing-along chorus. It really caught me off guard. But I remember even back in the day when I first got this record, I was totally just blown away by the B-side. The one-two punch of “Reptile Smile” into “Back To Blackout” is like hardcore mastery to me. The B-side is just heater after heater. The last track “Move It Creep” comes in with this drum intro that has a kinda like phaser or flange effect. So really, even on the first record, they were experimenting with some cool ideas in the production. There’s like blazing harmonized guitar leads, ripping bass fills… some good musicianship sneaks its way into Long Knife’s songwriting. My only complaint about this record is that it feels short. It’s basically 9 songs played on a 45 RPM 12”, but it flies right by. As I’m writing this, I flipped the disc like 6 times. I guess it’s clear that I still like it!

So yeah, I’ve been gushing about Wilderness the whole time, but Long Knife’s 2nd 12”, Meditations on Self Destruction, is also back in print. Sorry State just stocked a bunch of copies of each record. So, if you missed out on these earlier releases in the Long Knife catalog, make sure you remedy that ASAP.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Even after getting back from my trip a couple weeks ago with Public Acid, it already feels like life is getting busy here at home again. As I’m writing this, I’m simultaneously gearing up for a gig happening in NC tonight. Tonight (which is Wednesday) Scarecrow is playing with Flower from NYC, along with our buddies in Destruct and a brand new NC band called Overgrown Throne. Should be a sick gig. Tomorrow night (Thursday) we’re also playing Flower’s show in Richmond. So where is there time to sit down and wax poetic about punk records? But when duty calls to bang out incoherent ramblings for our weekly newsletter, I’m up for the task!

I feel like I gotta talk about this Vidro record. Vidro is based out of Stockholm, Sweden, but a few of the members are transplants from USA and Brazil. The band’s latest LP Glöd came out in Europe in the earlier half of 2022, but the States are now blessed with a fresh vinyl pressing courtesy of Beach Impediment Records. I was lucky enough to see Vidro live a couple times this summer in a few of my ventures overseas. The first time I saw them was in June at the K-Town fest in Copenhagen when I was there with Public Acid and Warthog. I can’t remember if they played Friday or Saturday, but they played later on the bill and at the time I was more or less unfamiliar with them. The room at Ungdomshuset was PACKED with sweaty punks. As Vidro began to play, the stage was dimly lit and these 4 figures on stage were shrouded in a cloud of mystery. I just remember standing toward the back of the venue and thinking how powerful they sounded. It was intense. Maybe even a little scary. But then later on that night, I was chatting with Tadzio from Golpe over by the merch tables. It somehow came up in our conversation that Staffan, who plays drums in Vidro, also played in Kurt I Kuvös and an incarnation of Headcleaners. Now, me being the Swedish punk nerd that I am, I totally flipped out when I learned this information. Staffan came over to us at some point when we were talking, and I proceeded to punish him for a few minutes about his bands of yesteryear. He was super friendly.

THEN, fast-forward to a month-or-so later when I was in Germany on Scarecrow tour… In Hamburg, Scarecrow ended up playing Vidro’s last gig of their tour. This time, instead of appearing dark and mysterious on a big stage, I got to see Vidro perform in a more intimate and exposed environment. All the bands that night played on the floor of this squat in Hamburg (which I can’t remember the name of). Vidro delivered a powerful performance once again, but intense and convicted as they are, I remember the energy in the room being more fun and lighthearted. But people in the crow did go the fuck off. It was killer. At the end of the night, Scarecrow and Vidro hung out outside by our respective tour vehicles, and we all chatted for a while. They all seemed like super cool people.

And even after all of this, I STILL hadn’t heard Vidro’s new LP yet. Now, having listened to it many times, it’s safe to say that it’s killer. I think Vidro’s sound really stands out. They’re something special, like a breath of fresh smoke. I find Vidro to be pretty unique in the landscape of current punk and hardcore. Lucas the guitar player’s sound is blaring on this record. And I’m not sure if they have chorus on them or what, but the guitars have this wobbly, dissonant, kinda other-worldy effect on them. While the riffs come through clearly, the wash of noise underneath gives Vidro’s sound this eerie and cloudy atmosphere. Almost kinda droney in a way. That said, Lucas and the bass player Melody weave through these kinda slithering riffs that are heavy and nasty sounding, but also incredibly catchy. Like wobbly, slithering ear worms. While I’d certainly say that Vidro is a hardcore band, I would also say they play at this pounding, heavy mid-paced tempo more often than they play ripping fast. Staffan plays the drums with this heavy-handed, straight-down-the-middle kind of attack… almost kinda like 4-on-the-floor but if it were hardcore drumming! No wonder it’s so dancy. Then the singer Vendela just delivers the vocals with a powerful, commanding presence, barked and chanted with such intensity. I remember watching her just kinda owning her space and staring down the crowd while Vidro played in Hamburg. I probably tried to avoid eye contact haha. This record sounds explosive. You can really hear the dynamics and energy in the room. It feels as exciting and has a total vibe as if you were in the room with Vidro while they’re playing. You can taste the blood, you can feel the sweat, you can smell the crusty armpits.

So yeah, check out this record if you haven’t yet. I heard through the grapevine that Vidro might be coming to tour USA in 2023. Look forward to that.

Alright you freaxxx, that’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s a New Year! Exciting, right? At least I know it’s already been off to a good start for me. I just returned from my trip with Public Acid. We played 4 shows, all with exceedingly long drives from one location to the next. But all the shows were so good that it was worth it. We started off in Cleveland. We played the very first gig hosted in this brand new warehouse space that is being run by friends of ours. It was killer. Yambag and Sorry State alumni Woodstock 99 also played. Then we were off to Toronto. My first time ever in Canada! The show was basically a Not Dead Yet offshoot. We played with our friends in Poison Ruin, and SHIT closed out the show and totally tore the roof off the place. Then we spent New Year’s Eve in Montreal. Played once again with No Fucker. Public Acid got playing after some technical difficulties, and the clock struck midnight while we were still in the middle of playing. So there were no big cheers to “Happy New Year” or anything, but the bar did have free champagne for us, which was nice.

Then our last show was in Boston. This was my first experience playing in a proper VFW hall. I guess technically they called it a “legion hall.” To be honest, I don’t really know what that means. There was a small bar in the middle of the hall where a bunch of old men were hanging out drinking Budweiser. Probably just scowling at all the punks filling up the place. The bartenders were super friendly, but there was a still a part of me that was thinking these people do NOT want us here haha. In the big open room where all the bands played, a giant American eagle sculpture towered above the drum set. Pretty funny.

By the time we arrived, we only caught a few songs of that band Intensive Care Unit. Then, The Massacred played. It was the record release show for their new EP Post-Mortem. To me, it always seems like Boston bands have a high bar for sound, presentation and the way they play. Tight as FUCK. I was watching the guitar player’s picking hand, and there was no triplet or fast picking played outta time. Military style. The same goes for this 7”. You can hear how well-executed it is. The gruff, barking vocals are commanding and the riffs are super catchy. It seems like they’re going for kind of a UK82 style, but there’s an element of how the band puts it together that still undeniably US hardcore. But even the sleeve looks like it could a release on Riot City or something… outside glue tabs, thumb cut, and all that. The stamped dust sleeve is also a nice touch. Beautiful packaging. Sorry State already had copies in stock by the time we got to Boston and played this show. Definitely make sure all you punks grab a copy from us.

Savageheads also played and were great, as always. The show was over by 10pm, and we decided to break up the drive so that we didn’t need to drive straight to Richmond from Boston in one drive (and in my case, then head to North Carolina after that). We hopped in the van and discussed our options. We talked about possibly staying in Philly on the way home. I dozed off in the van expecting to take a shift driving if someone got too sleepy. I woke up who knows how much later in a McDonald’s parking lot. One of the dudes in the band said, “Guess what? We’re in Virginia.” Without knowing it, I found myself in Richmond at 8am. What a wild ride.

I feel like less than a week into 2023, we’re already getting some fresh bangers. Can’t wait to see what other killer punk releases this year yields. Speaking of which, all you Sorry Staters make sure you pre-order that Sirkka 7”. It’s one of my favorite releases we’ve put out in quite a while. Don’t sleep on it!!

That’s all I’ve got I suppose. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

The weather is nasty as hell today as Dom and I are standing behind the counter at the store trying to bang out some words for y’all to digest. Funny enough, we’ve been super busy early on today at the store, which is a nice shift from last couple weeks. I guess there’s not much to do in Raleigh on a rainy day besides shop for records. The holiday season usually yields a surge of people coming in looking for Elton John and shit like that, so maybe this last week or so we will be slammed.

So, I’ve got something different this time around. Rather than talking about a record we’re stocking here at Sorry State, I’m gonna talk about my indulgence in silly internet entertainment. I spend a lot of my downtime watching YouTube videos. Like, more than I’d like to admit. One new trend I’ve noticed that seems to be a total product of what you can do with technology these days is people remixing or reworking classic records. That sounds kinda vague, but does anyone know what I’m talking about?

I’ll try to get into this in a roundabout way. Has anyone heard the new Metallica song? It’s called “Lux Æterna,” and it’s admittedly not the greatest thing ever. I heard one person review the song and refer to the main riff in the song as a “boomer riff,” which I found funny for some reason. But honestly, I love the first 4 Metallica records. And knowing how awful their recorded output was in the 90s and onward, I always set a pretty low bar for expectations when a new Metallica track comes out. And with this new song, I didn’t love it, but I don’t exactly hate it. It’s just kinda phoned-in, I think. I bet it’s hard to make aggressive music when you’re sleeping on silk sheets. I immediately recognized the references to “Overkill” by Motorhead and Diamond Head, so at least it doesn’t sound like St. Anger or something.

But here’s the thing. Has anyone heard these things where people re-record band’s songs with tones to sound like they’re on a different record? Like for example, “What if ‘Enter Sandman’ was on Master of Puppets?” I’m not joking, people really make videos like this. To my knowledge, it seems like what these people do is totally reconstruct the songs from the ground up and re-record the performances themselves. Which is NUTS. Recording technology has come such a long way that I guess you can download a profile of a guitar tone that is pre-made and that sounds pretty damn accurate to the tone on the record. And I guess you can do that with drum sounds too. So what I assume happens is these dudes program a drum track with some sort of program like EZ drummer, then plug their guitar directly into an interface and use a plug-in to nail album-appropriate guitar sounds, and THEN take the vocal track from the original record and chop it up to fit their reworked track. Sorry, that’s a lot… You following what I’m saying? I gotta say, lots of YouTubers do this kinda thing, and the quality of people nailing the sound and character of different Metallica albums really varies. But this one I stumbled across recently, this YouTuber StateOfMercury took “Lux Æterna” and totally re-did the song so that it sounds as if it were on Kill ‘Em All. Now, James Hetfield’s vocals on this new song would probably sound out of place on Kill ‘Em All these days, so this dude got someone to do his best young Hetfield impression. It’s also interesting, because StateOfMercury in his reimaginings doesn’t necessarily replicate the riffs exactly like the original. He sort of alters them to sound more like something the band would write during the era which he’s trying to replicate. I find it super clever.

Anyway, this is all incredibly nerdy, but I find it pretty interesting. He has several videos where he totally reimagines Metallica songs as if they were on different albums. New songs on old albums, but also old songs on newer albums. It’s wild. And funny enough, “Lux Æterna” being redone as if it were done by a young and hungry early Metallica almost fools me into thinking it’s a rad song. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qONdZg95Vi8

I guess this is kind of a weird write-up for the newsletter, but I thought it’d be fun to talk about. That’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading. Happy Holidays!

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s so funny that Daniel and I both wrote about the Stains last week. It was definitely kind of a face-palm moment for me. Especially because Daniel’s assessment of the hysteria surrounding the reissue was constructed much more eloquently than my usual sub-level-IQ ramblings.

This week, I think I’ve got something a little different. I’m even gonna talk about some Sorry State releases of years past! Sorry State has a work chat which we sometimes use for the sole purposes of bullshitting about music and turning each other onto new records. Former SSR employee, buddy, and all-around legend Seth still chimes in on our thread every once in a while. Recently, Seth brought up the UX Vileheads 7”, which admittedly I hadn’t listened to in yeeeears. I dug my copy out of my 7” bins and threw that sucker on and MAN, I forgot how good that record is! Listening to the record though, I can safely say that not only has it aged well, but it’s amazing. This made me feel… well, not nostalgic exactly, but listening to UX Vileheads made me want to revisit some other records I hadn’t listened to in a while. I just got a lil flutter in my stomach remembering being a teenager and loving hardcore circa 2007 or whenever it was.

I think about this all the time, but there was really something special going on with hardcore in the Scandinavian region during the early-to-mid 2000’s. I still listen to those Regulations records on the regular. And when I talk with friends of mine, it seems like Amde Petersen’s Arme has reached legendary status. But when I was breaking out my old 7”s the other day, I had forgotten how much I love those Instängd records. I listened to all 3 of them in a row the other day and was just raging in my living room. Funny enough, I’m pretty sure the band featured one of the dudes from Refused. But I remember Daniel telling me that conceptually, the band was formed with each member purposefully playing an instrument they’d never played—or at least playing the instrument they were least proficient at. And you can totally tell. Those records sound so sloppy, urgent and raw in the best possible way. I dunno man, I think about this a lot. Sometimes when punk bands are too good at their instruments, it reads as more stiff than it does exciting. The way those Instängd records sound is so intense, in part because it feels so primitive and like the band might fall apart at any second. It’s so awesome. But I think the main aspect the band did have going for them is they wrote really cool songs. Simple, but also fresh and with songwriting ideas that catch you off guard at times. On their first 7” Mitt Svar På Ingenting (released on Sorry State Records in 2007 😎), the first song “Vansinne” opens guns-a-blazing with this kinda nasty, hap-hazard guitar lead. And while I love the first 7” so much, I will say my favorite is probably the 2nd EP, Konkret Och Brutal. The opening riff on the title track just sounds like classic hardcore, but still played with that explosive, but cavemanish ferociousness. So damn catchy, too. I think all 3 of the bands 7”s are like modern classics.

You can still find these records used out in the wild for just a few bucks. To me that’s a more-than-worthy investment. I’ll probably be spending my weekend drinking beer and revisiting more Swedish punk of yesteryear and totally loving it. Hope you take some pride in your favorite dollar-bin 7”s this week as well. Who knows? Maybe one day those records will be hard to find.

Anyway, that’s really all I’ve got to say. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Wow, is this my first newsletter back since I went to London? Kinda wild. That trip already feels like it happened a while ago. I’m already back in the swing of things here at the good ol’ SSR. I had such a blast with my Acid in London, not to mention all the cool people I got to hang out with during Damage Is Done fest. Ola did such a great a job with the fest and I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend a long weekend in London. Hot groups tearin’ it up, 2 of the best record stores I’ve ever visited in my life, oh and of course a crew of people taking mushrooms and pounding Buckfast in a park at 4am. Good times.

So now on to talking about my so-called staff pick. It might be low-hanging fruit, but I’m gonna talk about the Stains reissue. Should “reissue” be in finger quotes? When Daniel told me, much to his surprise as well, that Sorry State would be stocking a brand spankin’ new version of the legendary 1983 debut by the LA Stains, I thought to myself: “FINALLY.” The Stains LP has gained a lot of mystique you might say, in part because it’s one of the major early SST releases that has never been back in print since the 80s. Criminal, if you ask me, because the record is GOOD. Top shelf in my book. I threw on my copy again recently, inspired by the excitement surrounding this long-awaited reissue. Hate to use this turn of phrase, but this is another one of those greatly underappreciated hardcore records. Not unlike many SST releases, in-house engineer Spot worked on the Stains record – and you can tell. You can hear that dirgey, Black Flag-esque production in the guitar sound. But compared to other bands on SST, The Stains were just meaner, grittier, more frantic, more powerful, more unhinged. And why don’t more people feel this way? I would have to guess it’s because the record hasn’t been maintained in the historical consciousness of punk.

Almost like an accidentally well-kept secret of 80s LA hardcore, I think for a long time people weren’t really familiar with the record. I’ve heard a lot of stories from dudes a few years older than me who said you’d come across original copies used for like $20. Then one day, it cost more like $100, and in the post-pandemic record fiend economy, people are trying to sell the record for insane prices. But with no announcement, no advertisement, no warning, suddenly distro copies are available? Did SST finally cave and make this thing happen? Sorry State tried to get as many copies as we could, but ended up only being able to stock a handful. Of course, they sold out instantaneously. I could have called it ahead of time, but depending on how many copies SST produced, naturally there were not nearly enough copies available to satisfy the demand. Weirdly, it’s starting to feel like the reissue is becoming instantly hard to find, much like what happened with the original record. Which would really suck.

But that’s when the conspiracies started… If you haven’t been following along, let me fill you in: First thing I saw was people on the internet not even believing the reissue was real. Buuuut, obviously it is. People are buying them. I saw Sorry State’s copies with my own 2 eyes haha. The next thing was that people were saying these copies are actually bootlegs. Which is silly. They came from SST with their other titles, and if Greg Ginn was stocking a recently produced bootleg, then that would be totally hilarious. Then I started seeing several people purporting the idea that these Stains records that popped up out of the ether are not even reissues at all. Rather, maybe they are actually well-preserved deadstock copies that have been sitting in SST warehouses since the 80s. I could see where someone could get this impression. Apparently, the matrix is exactly the same as the original and the jacket layout is pretty convincing. On the internet, a bunch of people have been like, “It even still says $6.98 on the spine.” Which like, yeah cool, I guess. I dunno, I’m under the impression SST just used the same plates to press not nearly enough copies, and then reproduced the exact same jacket layout out of laziness. When I compare it to my 80s copy, the new jacket just seems too glossy and flimsy anyways. As I’m writing this I don’t have my copy in front of me to double check, but I can’t remember if mine’s a tip-on sleeve, but it definitely feels heavier. But then maybe the bigger ring indentation pressing of the first press is different from the 1987 pressing… Whatever, nerd shit. I have no idea. Maybe I’m wrong and these totally are 1987 deadstock copies.

Anyway, from afar, I’ve found the online frenzy surrounding this “reissue” (yep, finger quotes) wildly entertaining. Who knows? Maybe Lord Ginn will emerge from the shadows and illuminate us all with answers to this mystery. Until then, I really just fuckin’ hope that people who have been wanting this record for a long time (and for a reasonable price) can finally get their hands on it. That’s the point, right?

Anyway, that’s enough rambling from me for one week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Don’t you find it funny when you discover unexpected things about yourself? I don’t talk about it too much here in our newsletter, but I do appreciate a bangin’ 60s psych tune from time to time. Whether it’s “Send Me A Postcard” by Shocking Blue or SF Sorrow-era Pretty Things, I do have a soft spot for this era of rock’n’roll. Another band who I’ve discovered has a few tunes that I think are bangers is Nazz. Whenever used Nazz records roll through Sorry State, we never price them super high and I’m not sure how well appreciated they are in the psychedelic rock community. But a song like “Forget All About It,” the opening track from Nazz’s 2nd LP, is just a total gem to my ears.

So, the thing about Nazz is the band featured a young Todd Rundgren. Rundgren’s solo stuff has never really grabbed my attention. Even with me digging into some Nazz stuff, I always assumed Rundgren’s solo stuff was more aligned with like proggy, flute-laden adult contemporary. Like a more hip Michael McDonald or something. Even with Greg Graffin from Bad Religion name-checking him as a favorite artist, I still never cared to give Rundgren the time of day. That said, at one point the dude must’ve been pretty damn popular because we get tons of used Todd Rundgren records from people’s collections constantly. So many, in fact, that we have a dedicated Todd Rundgren tab in our used classic rock section. When I’m filing records, I still give the occasional eye-roll as I flip past Rundgren’s thickly beefed out section, collecting months of dust as they don’t sell too often.

Now here’s where it gets interesting: the other day I was listening to a podcast about Big Star. Yes, I know. I’m one of those dudes. I can’t help it. Big Star’s obscure, sweet melodies get me in the feels like many-a cliché record nerd. Anyway, in the podcast, the hosts are discussing the making of Big Star’s 2nd album, Radio City. This album, of course, sees the absence of Big Star forming member Chris Bell, and has Alex Chilton taking over a grand majority of the songwriting and vocal performances. The hosts of the podcast were talking about Chilton’s influences and mentioned that at the time Radio City was being recorded, Chilton was super into Todd Rundgren. They go on to say that some of Rundgren’s early solo material was a glowing example and highly influential on what would later be described as “jangle” or “power pop”… to which I thought to myself, “Uh, seriously??” They played a short clip of a Todd Rundgren song I had never heard before... So, here’s me, sitting listening to this podcast, hearing this clip of an artist who I had rolled my eyes at for years and I think… “OH NO, do I actually LIKE Todd Rundgren??” Bahahahahahaha!!

The clip of the Rundgren song that played is called “Couldn’t I Just Tell You”. I went and looked up the song on YouTube and immediately just loved it. When I hear this song, to me it’s totally obvious how it would have been influential on Chilton’s songwriting. Lush, jangly guitars, hooky melodies, a sense of melancholy underneath the surface. It’s all there. Almost even kinda reminds of the good moments of Badfinger and bands in that vein. This track is from Rundgren’s 2nd solo record, Something / Anything?, which is a double album. Have I dived into the rest of songs on this 25-song album? HEELLLL no hahaha. Maybe I’ll give it a shot. I wouldn’t be surprised if I don’t like nearly as many songs as “Couldn’t I Just Tell You,” but hey, who woulda thought? From what I hear, a huge, expanded box set version of Something / Anything? Is coming out for the Black Friday Record Store Day drop in a couple weeks. Just in time to ruin my life. Will I actually end up taking one home with me? Probably not. Maybe I can get “Couldn’t I Just Tell You” on a single or something haha.

Before I get crucified for writing this, if any of you readers like a good melody and haven’t heard this song before, humor me and give it a shot. Even if you never listen to any other Rundgren song ever after that.

That’s all the nerding out I’ve got for ya this week. As always, thanks for reading.

Y’all probably won’t hear from me next week because I’ll be outta town gigging with Public Acid. But ‘til next time,

-Jeff