Dead Dog

This Will Be Our Summer has released a re-press of Dead Dog’s 2008 self-titled album! You can order on vinyl or CD. Both include bonus tracks, all the original artwork, and “cat trading cards.” Um, this rules! I love the Dead Dog s/t album. It’s a great one so go ahead and download here if you haven’t heard it. Then you can listen while you’re waiting for your physical copy to arrive in the mail.

It’s catchy pop punk from Athens, Ga with tons of hooks and distorted female vocals. They’ve also released a second album and an EP and they’re still touring around! Head to their website or facebook page for upcoming dates and more info on later releases. Rumor has it they’re booking a fall tour right now that should look something like this:

Sept 24 – Athens
Sept 25 – Asheville**
Sept 26 – Harrisonburg*
Sept 27 – Richmond*
Sept 28 – Philly*
Sept 29 – Brooklyn*
Sept 30 – Long Island*
Oct 1 – Boston*
Oct 2 – Worcester*
Oct 3 – East Hampton/Brattleboro*
Oct 4 – Portland*
Oct 5 – Albany*
Oct 6 – Buffalo*
Oct 7 – Pittsburgh*
Oct 8 – Columbus**
Oct 9 – Cincinnati**
Oct 10 – Bloomington/or/Lexington*
Oct 11 – Knoxville**
Oct 12 – Chattanooga*
Oct 13 – Cleveland, MS**

* = contacted/in process of being booked.
** = booked.

Palmkite

Pretty much every time I listen to Palmkite I get overwhelmed by the injustice of their obscurity. They came together in 2009 and released a fantastic demo before (geographically) splitting up to attend four different colleges. The Sound of Snowfall EP was their next release in 2011 and definitely lives up to the earlier work. Their music is melodic American Football-esque emo, but with a heartfelt and hopeful kick. These records are warm, memorable, and can really hold your attention.

Maybe start with “Outlaws With Style…” (there’s a chance this is temporary, we’re not fucking done until we’re dead and buried) or if you’re in the mood for something painfully cute, “Remember the Dinosaur” (sitting on the bed with you is no way to get work done, I haven’t read a single page this hour.) Both are from The Sound of Snowfall, available for free download on their bandcamp. I only WISH there was some way to buy their merch, but they’re unsigned and have become more and more aloof since their first and only tour supporting the 2011 EP.

CHOKE UP

When my friend Emily asked me to go with her to see “the best band ever: Choke Up,” I was skeptical. But, being a fan of exaggeration, I agreed to go. She warned me not to listen to their recordings because they misrepresent Choke Up as being something less than incredible. Of course I listened to their bandcamp anyway before the show and was pretty underwhelmed, but it seemed like generic emo so the show would still be fun. As it turns out though, GUYS THIS BAND IS THE BEST BAND EVER. Okay I don’t really know if that’s true, but I was really convinced that it was from the beginning of their show to the end of the night. Catch them on tour anywhere and everywhere.

CURRENT TOUR:

8/11 Gainesville, FL @Display Art Gallery
8/12 Tallahassee, FL @The Hidden Hand
8/13 Birmingham, AL TBA
8/14 Knoxville, TN @The Birdhouse
8/15 Owensboro, KY @Omega Street
8/17 St. Louis, MO @The Fubar Lounge
8/18 Chicago, IL @TBA
8/19 Cleveland, OH @Dag House
8/20 OH, MI TBA
8/21 Ohio TBA
8/22 Allentown, PA @Isrgnt
8/23 Philadelphia, PA @The Cracker Factory
8/24 Brooklyn, NY @Suburbia
8/25 Providence, RI @TBA
8/26 Boston, MA @WWTA

For more dates *like* them on Facebook/ChokeUpMa !

Connor Healey – Working Title EP

So this is a little EP put out by a guy named Connor Healey. You can find him here, and download the album here.

He has some past albums. I only listened to a few songs off them but they seemed more grungey, which isn’t really my style – check them out if that’s your thing.

—

Healey is not yet a great musician, but I think he has potential. He has a great ear for song structure, undeniably. The lyrics are highly hit and miss – “Eddy” starts out with boring standard “this song is for a girl who will never know it’s for her” fare, but he hits some high points with lines like “But my nervous system’s anxious, I can’t help but feel this way… if I could only breathe I would paint the stars down here.”

I guess I should take a step back here and say some words about the music. This is folk-punk. The subject matter is personal although not without wit and humor. It’s entirely him and an acoustic guitar. He plays said guitar quite well. He sings confidently.

He over stretches his range sometime. He can’t really hit some of the notes he goes for and maintain any force. Basically, he’s undeveloped as a musician. He has some trimming to do – some songs go on too long, some of it delves into juvenelia – he has a lot of potential. I hope he sees it through.

Peeple Watching Condones Murder, Parasol Kills It

So I went to a show last night. The first band, Peeple Watching, were doing a great job playing some punk/hardcore music, but then their drummer told a story about a woman who got assaulted for being some kind of minority and killed her attacker. He then proceeded to encourage us to cheer for her.

…

Delay played next. Delay rules! They told us to search for “delay internet wam!” to find them online. That, um, doesn’t work, but here’s their bandcamp. I can tell you right now that Plain Language is worth a download.

Finally, Parasol played! They haven’t seen each other for like a month or something. They actually ended “Firework” by bombing the ending and cracking up, just like in the recording! It was a lot of fun – they played a lot of really great songs, and I encourage you to check them out. “Crush Season” is a really fantastic EP, more in the vein of power pop than anything else. We’re big fans of “Fourth of July” and “At Bay” around here.

As an added bonus, the Troubling Kids saw Lily from Parasol performing as Dessert First a few weeks ago, and they got it on video! It’s stripped down and acoustic, but it’s lovely. She plays some Parasol songs, too! If you’re interested in that kind of thing, here it is:

Dinner, 1933

Dinner, 1933’s self-titled EP was recorded by Tom Reno in 1998 and 300 7”s were pressed and decorated with creepy found family photos. My copy has some old pics of a baby’s baptism and the phrase “a kid who tells on another kid is a dead kid” typed up and stapled on. I’m posting a download of side A of this record because it’s totally crazy and great. I’m not posting side B because it’s sorta crazy and bad. But side A rules. It’s like a band trying to be Orchid and Pavement at the same time.

DOWNLOAD HERE