C'mon and Cheer Me Up!

From pop punk heavyweights such as Dear Landlord, The Copyrights, and Mixtapes to lesser known acts like Weekend Dads, City Mouse, and Be My Doppelganger, “The Thing That Ate Larry Livermore” contains sixteen acts from the modern punk, pop punk, and indie circles. Livermore has stated that the way that he chose the acts for this project was based on the same criteria that he used when deciding what bands to sign to Lookout Records, implying that “The Thing That Ate Larry Livermore” is essentially what the label’s roster would look like today (he has more or less confirmed this in a recent interview).

You can read the full review here.

Beside Myself play a melodic brand of punk rock comparable to popular (relatively) punk acts like Jawbreaker, Dead to Me, and the electric side of Brian Moss’ countless projects. Here’s to You, the new album by Beside Myself, is filled with catchy anthems and sing-along choruses which should be appealing to any jaded punk rocker. For anyone who would prefer spending a night out on the porch with PBR and a pack of smokes rather than going to a show, this might be the album for you.

Read the full review here.

RYIL: Jawbreaker, Dead to Me, Brian Moss (The Wunder Years, Hanalei, Great Apes, etc)

Let’s clear some things up before getting to the review. There appear to be at least two bands named Dogjaw. This review is about the three piece punk band called Dogjaw from West Virginia, whose debut album is on Solidarity Recordings. They should not be confused with the Dogjaw from Washington, who have just released an album on Rumbletowne Records. If you ask me, I think it’s kind of funny that two bands with the same name would release new albums so close to each other. Perhaps the two bands should get together and see if either wants to spell their name differently, or just outright change it. Or maybe they’re cool with co-existing peacefully. Anyway, now that it’s been cleared up, on to the review!

If the West Virginian Dogjaw’s Facebook page is to be believed, their influences include Dead to Me and Cobra Skulls. If the music on their debut album, Pilot, is any indication, then their Facebook page should be believed. Blending a love for the post-2000 Fat Wreck sound with a crooning vocal style, Dogjaw has constructed a solid, and rather enjoyable, album for anyone who is a fan of melodic punk rock.

Read the full review here.

RIYL: Dead to Me, Cobra Skulls, Dead to Me, Banner Pilot, Dead to Me

No Such Noise! is a band that appears to think that it’s still 1998. The New Jersey six piece’s newest EP, Life Goes On, takes its musical cues from exactly where you’d think they do, winding up with a five song EP that melds ska and pop punk to create something that sounds an awful lot like Less Than Jake, if Less Than Jake was inspired less by the Descendents and ALL, and more by All Time Low and Fall Out Boy.

Read the full review here.

RIYL: Less Than Jake, All Time Low, We Are the Union