Skip to content
Latest from these SoCal punks playing raw and catchy hardcore in that classic OC style.
Our take: This is the second tape we’ve carried from Orange County’s Socal’s Parishioners, and it picks up where the last one left off with more classic-sounding OC-style punk tunes. What I like about SoCal’s Parishioners is how they’re able to craft raw and hooky songs without sounding like either a hardcore band or a pop-punk band. Instead, they nail the sound of bands like the Simpletones, early Social Distortion, Agent Orange, China White… bands that were still writing pop songs, but infused with a thuggish swagger that would serve you well hanging out at a locals-only spot in a run-down SoCal beach town (I’m guessing… I grew up on a farm in rural Virginia). They build all the songs around big vocal hooks, but I’m partial to the slower track “Bikini Atoll” that ends the tape. After two tapes, I think SoCal’s Parishioners have proven their mettle, so let’s hope the next thing we hear from this band is on vinyl.
Our take: This is the second tape we’ve carried from Orange County’s Socal’s Parishioners, and it picks up where the last one left off with more classic-sounding OC-style punk tunes. What I like about SoCal’s Parishioners is how they’re able to craft raw and hooky songs without sounding like either a hardcore band or a pop-punk band. Instead, they nail the sound of bands like the Simpletones, early Social Distortion, Agent Orange, China White… bands that were still writing pop songs, but infused with a thuggish swagger that would serve you well hanging out at a locals-only spot in a run-down SoCal beach town (I’m guessing… I grew up on a farm in rural Virginia). They build all the songs around big vocal hooks, but I’m partial to the slower track “Bikini Atoll” that ends the tape. After two tapes, I think SoCal’s Parishioners have proven their mettle, so let’s hope the next thing we hear from this band is on vinyl.