Song Clip Fiasco (Encore Episode 122)

Jason Tate Apr 29, 2016

On this week’s episode of Encore we mourn the passing of Prince, discuss Beyoncé’s surprise album release and look how perfect the marketing behind this roll out seemed to be, and try and predict what the new Blink-182 song you’ve all heard would sound like three days early. We discuss Bayside’s new album, The Hotelier releasing a new song, and then tackle some listener questions. We discuss the “image” of bands, our favorite vinyl, how we read websites and why, and then debate if we can declare that emo has been “revived.”

Interview: Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton of Cardiknox

Jonathan Bautts Apr 27, 2016

Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton discuss the beginnings of Cardiknox, making their debut album Portrait, managing new transitions, and exploring personal avenues through music.

HARPS – “Burning Up” (Live Studio Video)

Jason Tate Apr 26, 2016

HARPS will be releasing a remastered version of their EP, Marvelous Cheer, on vinyl via Rocket Heart Records on May 19th. Today we’ve got an exclusive live studio video of one of my favorite songs on the EP, “Burning Up.” Head below to watch the video and if you like what you hear make sure to pre-order the album.

Noah Gundersen Live in Grand Rapids

Craig Manning Apr 26, 2016

Last Friday night I saw Noah Gundersen do something I’ve seen very few artists do: walk out onstage alone, with no backing band and no opening act, sit down in a chair, pick up an acoustic guitar, and start playing. He’d interact with the audience more—and make a surprising number of jokes—later in the show, but for now, he wanted to get right to the point: the music.

There’s something to be said for a concert with high production values. There’s something to be said for light shows and setlists where every moment has been meticulously planned — right down to the dialogue between songs. But there’s also something to be said for a show where an artist just comes out and acts like he’s playing songs in his living room. As someone who just made an entire album in his living room, that was something I appreciated about Noah’s show on Friday.

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Wrong – ‘Wrong’ (Album Premiere)

Drew Beringer Apr 26, 2016

Wrong will be releasing their massive self-titled debut album on April 29th through Relapse Records. Luckily, you don’t have to wait until then to stream all eleven aggressive, noisy tracks — you can stream the album right now below. Featuring former members of Kylesa and Torche, Wrong will crush you with their Helmet/Unsane heavy riffage. Check them out on their current tour with Nothing and Culture Abuse.

Moonlighting: The Get Up Kids

Adrian Villagomez Apr 25, 2016

By their nature, musicians are creative. Just because they find success doesn’t mean they don’t like to explore new genres or shake things up. Sometimes their new music doesn’t gel with their current band. Sometimes a band goes on a Ross and Rachel type of break, but the music has to keep flowing. Moonlighting is all about the side projects, the passion projects, the weird and wacky that branch out from the original act.

The Get Up Kids are your older brother’s emo. In their early years, the band members looked like they walked on stage immediately after bagging groceries or tutoring middle school kids. This was long before emo became associated with Hot Topic or bangs. Matt Pryor certainly has some growl to his vocals, but overall the band’s music is approachable, agreeable, heart-on-your-sleeve rock. This is music you wouldn’t be afraid to play in front of your mom. With a catalog featuring grainy distortion (“Coming Clean”), acoustic sing-alongs (“Campfire Kansas”), and new-wavey exploration (“Shatter Your Lungs”), it’s clear The Get Up Kids have never been worried about creating one type of music. The other projects from these members reflect that versatility.

Teaching a Brand New Fan to Fish (Encore Episode 121)

Jason Tate Apr 22, 2016

This week’s episode of Encore tackles a bunch of listener questions, things like: why would anyone defend The Story So Far kicking a fan? What were our favorite bands growing up and do we still listen to them? What services we use to discover new music? And why do I post about mainstream music these days? We also talk about Taylor Swift and Jimmy Eat World, Moose Blood signing with Hopeless Records, and Green Day, Blink-182, and Brand New.

For this week’s “Throwback Thursday” gallery I wanted to go back into the archives to see what I had stored on film. That’s when I found an old box of photos from Finch playing at Endfest on June 22nd, 2002. I’d been looking for this box for a very long time. It’s insane to think that it has been 5,053 days, or 13 years and 10 months, since these images were captured. But what’s even more crazy to me is that it was a short three months after What it is to Burn was released. Finch were just becoming the it band of the moment and I still remember the day I first heard that album. You can find the gallery below and I hope these bring back some memories of the days when Drive-Thru Records ruled the world.

Dave Gaslin Apr 21, 2016

Half Hearted Hero – “Same Old Same” (Song Premiere)

Drew Beringer Apr 21, 2016

Half Hearted Hero will be releasing their (very good) new LP, Isn’t Real, on May 27th via Animal Style Records. Today we are premiering one of my favorite songs from the album: “Same Old Same.” It contains an upbeat vibe that’ll make you want to roll down the windows and sing along while maintaining the edge that gets the band compared to peers like Polar Bear Club and Motion City Soundtrack.

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To Write Love on Her Arms 10th Anniversary Concert

Gregory Robson Apr 20, 2016

Ten years ago, 19-year-old Renee Yohe was just another addict struggling with her pain. As fate would have it, a journalist, Jamie Tworkowski, caught wind of her plight and offered his support. That encounter would eventually pave the way for the Florida-based nonprofit To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA). In a decade, the organization has offered help to nearly 200,000 people and raised more than $1 million towards counseling and professional solace for those battling depression, self-injury, suicide and more.

Earlier this month at Orlando’s House of Blues at Disney Springs, a sold-out crowd helped fete TWLOHA and its founder Jamie Tworkowski as part of its 10th anniversary Heavy and Light celebration. With a headlining set by Jon Foreman of Switchfoot and support from Arizona’s The Summer Set, Nashville’s Matt Wertz and Renee Yohe herself, the event proved to be a rousing success.

HARPS – “Rescue” (Live Studio Video)

Jason Tate Apr 19, 2016

HARPS will be releasing a remastered version of their EP, Marvelous Cheer, on vinyl via Rocket Heart Records on May 19th. Today we’ve got an exclusive live studio video of the band performing “Rescue.” Head below to watch the video and if you like what you hear make sure to pre-order the album.

Summer Scouts – “Vessel” (Video Premiere)

Jason Tate Apr 18, 2016

Today I’m excited to debut the new video from Summer Scouts for their song “Vessel.” The track comes from the band’s upcoming album, Furthest Reach, which is set for release on May 20th. The song deals with the loss of a parent and confronts the realities of how this changes the home. When describing the track, the band explained it as:

Family life and norms change dramatically after the death of a parent. The home itself takes a drastic shift in its overall aura, a shift that slowly continues for years after the death, forever losing its original feeling. While the family’s personalities experience alterations as well, the house itself holds the significant, glaring symbolism of this dark familial change. “Vessel” visits this feeling that no one in the family wants to face and confronts it in an emotional conversation between the singer (an affected family member) and the house.

I was drawn to the vocal harmonies and rhythm section immediately and would probably say this is a good fit for fans of PVRIS and Mayday Parade — it’s definitely pop-rock but with this atmospheric tinge.

Preparing for Record Store Day

Jason Tate Apr 15, 2016

This weekend is Record Store Day. A time for vinyl nerds to rejoice in a weekend dedicated to their passion, or wax poetic about how it was so much better before it got so popular. Thomas and I discuss this on the podcast this week, but, in preparation for the big day, I asked our friend William Angelos from Creep Records in Philadelphia to put together a write-up of the releases he’s most looking forward to and what to be on the lookout for as you make your way to your local shop.

No Guilt, Just Pleasure (Encore Episode 120)

Jason Tate Apr 15, 2016

This week’s episode of Encore looks at the first week of the website and how things are going so far, then we tackle a bunch of upcoming movies (Star Wars, Fantastic Beasts, Civil War) and give some thoughts on Batman v Superman. This leads to a little talk about comic books. Then we dive into this week’s main topics: Record Store Day, do we believe in “guilty pleasures” for art, our thoughts on buying albums when they’re on sale from a label, and if a bad album from a band can ruin future albums for us. We end by talking about if we’d leave our jobs for “The Ringer” and, of course, talk about Blink-182 finishing their new album.

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As I talked with Jason about the transition from AbsolutePunk to Chorus, I started thinking about the impact that website had on me over the years. I thought about all the shows I shot under that little heart banner. As I sat looking at a pile of boxes filled with old film and prints from the past, I realized how sad it would be if these only lived in the cardboard coffins and were never shared with the world. So, I’m going to be posting some pictures from of my favorite shows over the next few weeks.

I’m stealing the “throwback Thursday” moniker, because, why not? This week I’m excited to share some images I captured of The Used at the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, CO on April 12th, 2015.

Dave Gaslin Apr 14, 2016