This isn’t a scientific estimate, but it seems that about 90% or so of news stories about social media are negative. One could very easily conclude that it is a cluster-something for misinformation, extremism and just plain a-hole-ery, and of late, a high stakes soap opera in which users wish for double knockout in a cage match between unpopular billionaire CEOs of the top two major platforms.   Against that backdrop, sometimes it’s easy to overlook that social media isn’t always the digital cesspool some make it out to be. People do stay in touch, friendships are formed and, most import ..read more

There’s no questioning that Ryan Hamilton is adept at serving up the musical feast, but this year, he’s proving he can also dish one out in bite-sized morsels, too . For those not familiar, Hamilton’s brand of power pop rates high on the melodic scale, often with a good healthy dose of Americana stirred in. As worthwhile as that mix is all by itself, Hamilton’s songwriting is what really makes the music pop. Hamilton’s observational insights, a heaping dose of poetic language and a dash of self-deprecation has garnered much praise for his craft. Recording on Little Steven Van Zandt’s Wick ..read more

Back when we began this humble little blog some years ago, we could barely get anyone to pay attention to us. Very few artists would talk to us, nobody read the blog, and we were just one speck of billions wafting through the reaches of the internet. But, we hung in there, we kept doing what we do, and over time, we’ve made a few people take notice. Mind you, we’re not ready to label ourselves “influencers” or anything like that, nor is that at all what we’re after. Mission number one has always been, and remains, to feature music we find that we think is very cool, give more information abo ..read more

A big decision for many rock and roll bands is to decide just what the right sound should be for their records, but for Reptilians From Andromeda, it really wasn’t a hard thing to figure out. Sweating it out in the underground music scenes of Istanbul and points beyond, Reptilians From Andromeda have forged a vibrant sound very much in the spirit of Iggy Pop and The Sex Pistols, with echoes of everyone from Elvis Presley to The Ramones. The group thrashes in trademark garage-punk manner, yet is well balanced with an earthiness that translates well across continents and time zones. The band ..read more

Normally, the music we celebrate here on Garagerocktopia is upbeat, happy and by design, not exactly high art. But every so often, we do feature bands and artists that probe a little deeper and sometimes hit the darker crevices of humanity. The Gentle Scars do the latter, do so very well, but still rock like crazy. The band has released its latest album, Songs for the Loveless (Detour Records), a collection that has a wide sonic range, from rousing classic rock, to quasi-goth to touches of country and blues, and lots of songs are hard to categorize even after listening to them several times ..read more

You might think a band with a hard-to-pigeonhole style, one that’s far enough away from a major city to escape media attention but still close enough to compete with its bands for gigs, and especially a band that sticks to its guns on doing things its own way might find it tough to survive for very long. But not every band is The BellRays, and they’ve done far more than survive. Powered by the brawny but soulful voice of Lisa Kekaula alongside Bob Vennum’s blistering yet tasteful guitar, the band continues its three-decades-and-counting musical run in which it has generated almost a dozen al ..read more

The Shadows of Knight is a name that, if you have even the most passing interest in garage rock, is very familiar. Having cut many energetic, hook-laden tunes in the ‘60s, it’s no mystery why, 50 years after a group of high school kids started making it, the band’s music continues to be loved. Bandleader and singer Jimy Sohns has fronted some permutation of the band, with an occasional interruption, since 1964, and makes it clear that rock and roll is his life. “Music is what I love,” confirmed Sohns, talking to Garagerocktopia by telephone from his home near Chicago. “It’s also all I know ..read more

We’re early into another year, and we’re happy, once again, to be telling you about another new album from one of Oslo’s finest, The Dogs. The band resolved some years ago to release a new album at the beginning of each year, on which, since 2012, they’ve made good. What’s even more impressive is that many bands wouldn’t sweat putting out albums that rehashed the last, as long as product got to market. And, with a dedicated fan base that seems to grow ever more popular both in their native Norway and beyond, The Dogs could easily get away with that. But, like the true rock and roll road war ..read more

We are very pleased to announce we have posted the first-ever episode online of Garagerocktopia Radio! The plan had long been to establish a presence in an online radio platform. We'll be honest -- just like you and everybody else who enjoys the music we write about, plays the music we write about and produces, markets, distributes, etc., we work for a living, too. And thanks to the Corona Virus, right now we're not working right now... This is not the first appearance of Garagerocktopia Radio. KUCR (88.3 fm) in Riverside, CA, has been kind enough to let us make the terrestrial radio versio ..read more

An unending pleasure of this blog is finding the music that, in our humble opinions, deserves far more attention than what it seems to be getting at the moment. But, thanks to social media, and just a bit of hustle, bands can get the word out about the great music they make, and such is the case with The Unswept. The band’s new release, Minor Blemishes, completely underlies its title by offering up a splendid 12 songs of Power Pop with nary an irregularity or flub, not even insignificant ones. What it does offer is strongly Mersey-ish melodies and harmonies, with maybe just a dash of Madch ..read more