Review: Nathan Gray – Rebel Songs

Just when you thought all the great releases were done for the year, Nathan Gray (of BoySetsFire) is back with a great-sounding collection of punk rock tracks ready for your ears. Nathan Gray and The Iron Roses have released Rebel Songs today, and it features some pulsating songs filled with marksmanship passion and poise. The title track features Rise Against’s Tim McIlrath, and there really is so much great material to be found on Rebel Songs. When asked about the direction he went with on this record, Gray mentioned, “Well for one, it is wildly more vulnerable and nerve wracking to sing these lyrics as opposed to screaming them. There’s no place to hide the words. It’s no longer range induced. It is a very exposed feeling, but it is exactly what I needed, and what my music needed – to be stripped back down to its core, and put a focus on the message itself. In my own journey through healing, I started to understand that no one can influence change in the world without turning that inward to heal themselves first. As such, what we do in our own lives influences our political leanings and world view.” His improved songwriting pays major dividends as Gray has released yet another career-defining album in his discography.

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Merry Christmas to me. Apparently I’m going full @drewberinger and making my feed only records and shoes. (These reminded me so much Miles Morales that I had to grab them.)

Liner Notes (December 18th, 2021)

It was a relatively slow music week for the industry and in my life last week, but I did watch a bunch of holiday films and start working on my end-of-the-year list. As always, there’s a playlist of ten songs I enjoyed last week, and this week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

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2021 Holiday Gift Guide

Gift - 2021

For the past few years, I’ve put together a little gift guide in December full of things that I think make great gifts and are a lot of fun to give or receive for the holidays. This year it took me a little longer to get some time to write, and this week I’m on vacation, so, I finally found a minute to sit down and see what I could come up with. So, here we are, probably too late. Everything on the list is something I’ve used and enjoyed and recommend. I have recommendations posts for software, headphones, and miscellaneous stuff around the house, so the things on this list will be more focused on stuff not included in those posts and geared toward things I’ve come across in the past year or so and think would make good gifts.

I used my Amazon affiliate link when the product showed up there, which gives our website a slight percentage back if you make a purchase and therefore helps fund our continued existence.

If you’d like to get me a gift, becoming a supporting member or gifting another user a supporting membership for a year would mean the world to me. And, if you’re looking for something in just about any price range with a Chorus.fm or AbsolutePunk.net logo on it, check our merch shop.

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