Release: Heaven :x: Hell Band: Sum 41 Label: Rise Records Score: 7/10 *artist* Sum 41 Sum 41 on Spotify review by Ricky Frankel Seeing as how ‘Heaven :x: Hell’ is Sum 41’s farewell double-album, I feel the need to express my utter appreciation for the band and my Sum 41 journey first. Sum 41 has always been a special band because they were an entry point into punk rock for me. One of my dear friends gave me a copy of ‘All Killer No Filler’ when I was nine or ten years old and I was hooked. I remember watching the music videos for “In Too Deep,” “Fat Lip,” and “Motivation” constantly during t ..read more

review by Ricky Frankel Release: Bloodstains Band: Bloodstains Label: Self-Released Score: 8/10 Bandcamp For decades now the Southern California hardcore scene has produced some stellar bands be it the Adolescents, Circle Jerks, Black Flag, and many more. The SoCal scene is still very vibrant. One of the contemporary bands that is taking the mantel of the next generation of Southern California hardcore is Orange County’s Bloodstains. The scene really started to take notice of the band last year with the release of their ‘Anti-Social’ 7-inch. This year though Bloodstains have released their fi ..read more

review by Ricky Frankel Release: Saviors Band: Green Day Label: Reprise Records Score: 7/10 Official Green Day Store Bandcamp For decades now Green Day has been an entry point band for millions of people to get introduced to punk rock. All of their 90s discography is pretty untouchable. Even ‘Warning,’ I would argue, has aged quite well despite it not performing on the charts when it was originally released in 2000. And while some may find this take a bit spicy, I think that 2004’s ‘America Idiot’ has cemented itself as a major punk rock achievement. But coming from a fan of Green Day for 20 ..read more

Great news for the plethora of music fans needing something new, yet also familiar, in their lives…. Strung Out has a new album! Dead Rebellion drops April 5, 2024 on Fat Wreck Chords. The band has released a single already, Cages, which you can check out on YouTube or stream on Spotify. Tour dates are lined up for this year, so it’s exciting that they’ll have new material to play among their long list of releases! Vocalist Jason Cruz said this about the album and new single: “Dead Rebellion is a love letter to our fans, and the product of a 34-year negotiation with ourselves and the wo ..read more

BEST OF 2023 by Ricky Frankel It’s list season! My favorite time of year. And this is a special one because this is my tenth published best of the year list! 2023 was pretty unique in terms of new punk releases. There was a ton a great music that came out, but in the latter half we had this mini pop punk revival where Blink-182 released their best album in literally 20 years, Sum 41 released a fantastic single for their upcoming double album, and Green Day released two great singles. While I have always given their new material a chance, I haven’t been stoked for a new Green Day album since ..read more

review by Ricky Frankel Release: Endless Band: Clowns Label: Fat Wreck Chords/Damaged Record Co. Score: 8/10 Bandcamp Endless Four years after the release of their Fat Wreck Chords debut, ‘Nature/Nurture,’ Clowns have finally graced the punk scene with their latest effort, ‘Endless.’ In between the release of the two albums though, the band put out the ‘Does It Matter?/Sarah’ 7-inch, which at the time may have given fans a clue as to where they were going to take their sound post-‘Nature/Nurture.’ While the 2019 full-length was quite dark both lyrically and sonically, the two songs on that 7 ..read more

Evan DuPellDamage Controlreleased September 15, 2023 Bandcamp review by Max Payton “Damage Control” by Evan DuPell is a newly released punk/alternative rock album lyrically taking on socially charged topics by threatening pedophiles and cowards selling guns killing children, hypocritical elements of religion, useless plastic surgery changing only the outside, and a satirical look at relationship fights. A prolific songwriter, this is Evan’s 4th studio album in just 5 years. All songs are written, performed and produced by Evan. “Damage Control” takes a musically sharp pivot back to Evan’s mus ..read more

photo by Corlene Machine Mercy Music has some new singles out, so I wanted to reach out and ask the band a few questions. Be sure to check out their new music videos linked at the bottom! PWV: Give me a quick synopsis of the overall theme of the latest album. MM: I’d say this album is about your life falling apart/coming to terms with your greatest fears, growing from those experiences, and hopefully using them to become a better person. PWV: Bill Stephenson produced the album; what is your favorite work by him? That’s really tough to narrow down. The top three for me currently would be Exi ..read more

review by Ricky Frankel Release: Only Constant Band: GEL Label: Convulse Records Score: 8/10 BandCamp Convulse Records Every once in a while the hardcore scene gets shaken up by one release that gets everyone talking. A very obvious example of this is when Ceremony released their 2010 album Rohnert Park. Today that record is considered a modern hardcore classic. This year It looks like it’s New Jersey’s GEL that really has the scene talking. After being a band for five or so years and having a handful of EP’s under their belt, the group have released their first full-length, Only Constant ..read more

The Offspring recently announced a very special, limited edition 15th anniversary reissue of their record, Rose and Fall, Rage and Grace.  June 16, Round Hill Records/UMe will release this for the first time in vinyl in many years. This special edition will feature a bonus 45 with two new live tracks recorded at Hellfest in 2022, re-imagined artwork on the cover, and art lithos for each song. There will also be a digital version of the record that will be released along with new animated artwork for streaming services. PRE-ORDER NOW “We are pumped to be putting out the 15th-anniversary ..read more