I Love Your Lifestyle EP by I Love Your Lifestyle (2013)

Kind of Like: Algernon Cadwallader, foxing, Send Away Stranger

Genres: Indie, Emo, Pop Punk

Preview:

This EP from this Swedish band is pretty fantastic,  I've had the chorus to "Christopher Robin" stuck in my head all day.  It also sounds impeccably polished, and rightfully so because it is yet another product of Joe Reinhart from out of the infamous Head Room in Philadelphia.  Every time I feel like I should be growing tired of this kind of emo/twinkle crap, I always here a band like this that puts their own little tweak to the genre that gets me bopping back along to it.  Plus, these guys seem like they are nice cool guys that actually do lead fun lifestyles.

Listen Here:

worst.summer.ever by Del Paxton (2013)

Kind of Like: Braid, Weatherbox, American Football

Genres: Indie, Emo, Pop Punk

Preview:

These guys have been in a few other bands from upstate New York, but the one that I was familiar with was Month.  Month was a pretty good band, but I am liking these guys more.  Solid harmonies, strong fuzzy tones with some very American Football-esque clean parts, and great mixing/mastering overall to tie it all together.

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Brainless God by Direct Hit! (2013)

Kind of Like: The Dopamines, The Thermals, Mixtapes
Genres: Pop Punk, Punk
Preview:


Here's some smart but still catchy punk rock.  I have drifted away from bands like this, and it is really nice to get submersed back into the kind of stuff that I almost listened to exclusively for a period of time.  As far as punk rock concept albums go, this has to be the best one I have heard since The Lawrence Arms's The Greatest Story Ever Told.  That album is perhaps one of my favorites of all time, so that is a huge compliment to this new release.

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Forgettingism by Lions (2013)

Kind of Like: Damiera, Look Mexico, Pennines

Genres: Math Rock, Pop Punk, Indie, Post-hardcore

Preview:

So, I have a bit of time waiting for my NHL 14 - Early Access to download, and I just caught wind of these guys from Tennessee.  I have never really heard of them up until now, but they sound incredibly tight butthole.  Everything sounds nice and mixed/mastered well and there are some really great riffs going on that just makes me like them right off the bat.  Check these guys out!

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New Forest Floors by Rookie Town (2013)

Kind of Like: Living with Lions, Free Throw, Tiny Moving Parts

Genres: Pop punk, Emo, Post-hardcore
Buy: Driftwood Records
Preview: 

I have to hand it last.fm's "my mix" station; they know how to string together a great mix of favorites with bands I ought to be listening to.  The song "Valley Lily" popped up while I was studying, and I took a quick break to see what these guys were all about.  This band has a pretty great mix of all the genres listed.  With this being the debut album from these Washingtonians, it will be interesting to see what they come out with next.

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Sore Subjects EP by Best Practices (2013)

Kind of Like: Sirs, Dikembe, Weak Teeth
Genres: Punk, Indie, Pop Punk
Preview:


I saw Best Practices when they were just starting out.  Chris (Weak Teeth) helped set up a show in Providence when Peace Be Still came into town, and he got these guys to play.  Since then, Tiny Engines has put out a record of theirs and they just released this little diddy.  Getting a Sirs vibe in a really good way.

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Kids on the Run by Bummer (2012)

Kind of Like: Solids, Young Lungs, Campaign
Genres:Punk, Pop Punk, Grunge, Indie, Garage Rock
Preview:


This reminds me so much of Solids, who also happen to be from Montreal like this band.  I would have to say these guys are a bit more raw than Solids, and have less of a poppy feel (more yelling, less singing).  A lot of their artwork is done by Jonathan Robert. I have been browsing his stuff and I really like this guy's style.  I also really like this band's style.  Seacrest, out.

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Bath Salts EP by Month (2012)

Kind of Like: Dikembe, Daytrader, Joyce Manor
Genres: Emo, Punk, Pop Punk
Preview:

From what I hear, Cleveland is becoming quite a burgeoning scene for the kind of music featured on this and many other blogs.  Not much noodles/twinkles to be found here, just visceral, powerful emo/pop punk.  If you like this album, they have another that came out earlier this year that is also up for free download.

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Sirs by Sirs (2012)

Kind of Like: 1994!, Chalk Talk, Coping
Genres: Punk, Pop Punk, Emo, Post-hardcore, Rock
Buy: Topshelf
Preview: 


Jose from Peace Be Still is in town for work.  When I picked him up to go catch Tycho, he asked me if I had heard the new Sirs yet.  Unfortunately, I hadn't.  He also told me they might be planning some kind of Canadien tour with them. Anyways, this morning I saw posts about it on facebook that reminded me to check this out.

Biblical cattle, this shit is good.  It's been a minute since something hit me like this right off the bat.  I had listened to these guys before with their split with Chalk Talk, so I knew what I was getting into.  They really have outdone themselves with this debut full length though; it's fresh, fast, powerful, catchy and many other adjectives.  I am going to order this right now.

Listen Here:

Broad Shoulders by Dikembe (2012)

Kind of Like: Wavelets, By Surprise, Dowsing
Genres: Emo, Punk, Pop Punk
Preorder: Tiny Engines
Preview:

There isn't much more I could say about Dikembe that I haven't already said. These guys put on one of my favorite sets at Fest, and we also interviewed them afterwards. One day that interview will see the light of day. That was back when I was doing the zine thing and wanted interviews for that.

 Their EP last year floored just about everybody on the interwebs, and Tiny Engines was smart to get these guys on board. A year after their inception, here is their debut LP, and it is as good as it is hot outside. It is so damn hot outside.

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Sucker/Mommy 7" by California X (2012)

Kind of Like: Solids, The Sidekicks, Sonic Youth

Genres: Garage Rock, Indie, Pop Punk

Buy: Damage Mailorder

Preview:

These guys opened up the show at Babetown.  This didn't strike me when listening to them live, but now that I am listening to these songs, they remind me a ton of Solids.  These two songs are really fun and strong.  As far as I can tell, this is the first offering from these guys.  They seem to be fairly new, but they are already starting to get some buzz, even overseas.

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Chalk Talk "You're In" (2012)

Tonight, Chalk Talk will be debuting a song from their upcoming 12" EP, Bad Influences.  This album is being released by Chalk Talk's label Sex Cave Records, Rough Book Records (UK), and yours truly, Sometimes I Get Drunk Records.  The song is the first track off the album, "You're In".  It should should be up on their bandcamp in the next hour or so.  Preorders will be done through Sex Cave Records, but we will eventually have them in stock over at our website.  More information soon, but until then check out the new song tonight! I have listened to this album over and over again since the I got ahold of the digital masters!

Solids- S/T 7" (2011)

Kind of Like: Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, Cheap Girls
Genres: Garage Rock, Grunge, Indie, Pop Punk
Buy: Machette Records
Preview:


Got the chance to see this Montreal-based band in their hometown during Pouzza Fest.  They played pretty late; after midnight.  So, I caught most of their set and then afterwards joined the people flooding the streets in protest over tuition raises.  I had no informed opinion on the manner, but I wanted to capture as much as I could of it.

This band's set was sick.  From what I can remember the lights were out except for one bright lamp hanging from the ceiling that shone in one direction.  It hung just in front of the band so as the crowd flowed/surged back and forth towards the stage it was knocked and spun around as the band ripped their music.  It was a smaller venue called L'absynthe.  It had a really good vibe to it, and they had their own variety of beers they brewed themselves there.

Like I said, these guys were really awesome, and if you are from the states, you won't have to wait too long to see them.  Especially if you are going to Fest 11 in Gainesville, hint hint.

Listen Here:

StreamPad: Solids - "Blown Out"

Dream Journal by Living Room (2012)

Kind of Like: Ma Jolie, Signals Midwest, Junior Battles
Genres: Punk, Pop Punk, Emo
Preview:


Stumbled on this album while browsing through bandcamp.  Bandcamp is great for browsing through genres as long as you don't mind going through a ton of shitty music to find the good stuff.  These guys are from New York and from the looks of the videos from summer of 2011, it seems this album has been in the works for some time.

Taken with Instagram?

The cabin above is where the album was recorded, and to me that seems like an awesome place to hunker down and get the creative juices flowing.  This album is pretty solid and I look forward to hearing from more of them in the future.

Listen Here:

StreamPad: Living Room - "Blue Stars"

Tyrannosaurus Rules - Tyrannosaurus Rules EP [2012]

I saw this poster on Tumblr the other day. Not sure if it's for an actual movie or what, but this band's name made me think of it.

For Fans Of: Beach Fossils, Death Cab For Cutie, Brand New

Genres: Indie, Emo, Power Pop

Spotify: Facebook

Preview: 

Tyrannosaurus Rules is a four-piece emo/indie band from Australia. After some indecision about their name ("Violet Smile" was the alternative name - I think the one they went with is much better), this EP is finally live. I would describe their sound as a mixture of early Death Cab For Cutie (We Have The Facts, You Can Play These Songs With Chords) and early Brand New, but a little more toned down. This is only a debut, but it's a solid one, and I'm looking forward to hearing more form them in the near future!

Streampad: Tyrannosaurus Rules - What You Hate About Me

Fistfuls of Sand by The State Lottery 7" (2012)

Kind of Like: Titus Andronicus, Restorations, The Sidekicks, Kite Party
Genres: Indie, Punk, Folk, Pop Punk, Rock
Buy: Salinas Records or Answer Key Records
Preview: 

These two new songs from the State Lottery shows them trying their take at having "walls of sound".  Instead of being mainly a punk/pop punk band, these songs have a ton of folk/indieness to them that I really enjoy.  It makes me wonder if they are working on a full length/ep, and if so, is this the direction it will be going in?  At reminds me a bit of Kite Party's Baseball Season, which is not bad at all seeing as how that was one of my favorite albums last year which I still spin quite a bit still.

This was recorded in Detroit at Roshambo Records, which is also where The Summer Pledge did some of their recording for their latest full length we featured on here a week or so ago.

This was featured on IfYouMakeIt.com, which is a great resource for finding new music and is also run by people from The State Lottery.

Listen Here:

StreamPad: The State Lottery - "Fistfuls of Sand"

Forget Shit and Move On by the Greek Favourites (2012)

Kind of Like: Glocca Morra, 1994!, Ape Up!
Genres: Punk, Pop Punk, Fistfuck
Buy: Bigcartel (EP isn't for sale yet)
Preview: 

The Greek Favourites/Glocca Morra split Songs in the Key of Ayyyyyyy, has been one of my favourite splits.  Glocca Morra put out a new album last year, and it seems like Greek Favourites is poised to release more material this year including this gem.  The songs are mixed/produced considerably better than songs on the split (at least on the version I have).  I really hope you at least try to listen to the songs in full before dismissing them because there are some parts that are near the end of these songs that I am especially fond of (Especially "My Garage, My Rules") .  But nothing is wrong with the beginning of the songs, so I shouldn't even worry about that.

Listen Here:

yummy.

StreamPad: The Greek Favourites - "My Garage, My Rules"

...Compared to Giants by Ma Jolie (2012)

Pablo Picasso.  "Ma Jolie" (Woman with a Zither or Guitar) Paris, winter 1911-1912.

Kind of Like: Spraynard, Joyce Manor, Junior Battles
Genres: Pop Punk, Punk
Preview: 

The demo that we featured of this band is now OBSOLETE.  It has been removed from their bandcamp.  Why?  Because they released this full length that features all three songs that were on the demo except with different names and are recorded/mixed/mastered better than they were before!  I guess you could say this full length is getting me to full length. HA!

Puns aside, these guys are criminally underrated and haven't been given the attention they deserve.  We got some solid pop punk goodness right here, folks.  They put on a great live set as well, which is good news for you Fest 11 future attendees because these guys will be playing there!  Why did Fest need to start in 2001 instead of 2000?  I keep wanting Fest 11 to be Fest 12 because it is in 2012, not 2011.  Captain hindsight!

Listen Here:

StreamPad: Ma Jolie - "No, Pennsylvania is the Reason"

Horse Thieves and Other Villains - Manifest Destiny [2012]

For Fans Of: Against Me!, Murder by Death, The Front Bottoms

Genres: Pop Punk, Acoustic, Folk

Spotify: Facebook

Preview:

If you've ever wondered what it would sound like if you mixed Murder by Death with Against Me!, Horse Thieves and Other Villains is the band for you. They're from Pennsylvania, and this is their newest album, and that's pretty much all I could find out about them. Oh and they like to get drunk sometimes too. [Haha]

Hint: Click "Buy Now" and enter "0" for the free download.

The Front Bottoms - The Front Bottoms [2011]

For Fans Of: Spraynard, Dowsing, The Weakerthans

Genres: Pop Punk, Acoustic-Punk, Folk

Spotify: Yes

Preview:

My sister saw these guys open for Say Anything the other night, and she's been bugging me to put them on the site ever since. The Front Bottoms are a two-piece band based out of New Jersey. First thing I said to her when she turned them on: "I hate that guy's voice". Yes, it's a bit hard to get used to, but sometimes what I initially thought to be "terrible" vocals actually turn out to be some of my favorite voices to listen to over and over again. That will probably be the case for this group as well; they're super catchy and you'll be singing along to this at top volume for sure. All the songs are basically about that trio we all know and love: hanging out, drinking, and girls. Who wouldn't wanna listen to that?

Streampad: The Front Bottoms - Flashlight

Hint: The ending of this song is the best part :]