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2015: Year End Review by Bobby Gorman
ThePunkSite.com’s Best Of 2015
It’s that time of year again where we sit back, eat food, drink beer and reminisce about the past year’s best and worst, highlights and lowlights. The albums that forced us to sing our hearts out, the shows that struck a chord and the moments reverberated through our collected consciousnesses. We here at ThePunkSite.com, like everyone does this time of year, and looked back at our listening habits for the past 365 days and determined these the albums that truly left an impact with us.
Without further ado, select a contributor and see their year in review for 2015:
Bobby Gorman | Cole Faulkner | Steven Farkas | Dustin Blumhagen | Tom Liveyns
2015: Year End Review by Bobby Gorman
Here we are again. The tail end of December and that means it’s time for me to look back at the past year and pick out my favourite songs, albums, moments, and what have you from the past twelve months. As always, this time of year serves as a useful reminder of what came and went, what you missed and those albums that you loved but may have fallen to the wayside from when it was first released in January.
Nevertheless, it’s great to start looking back and seeing what the punk scene provided for us. There’s some gems you knew you loved that get the chance to be played over and over again and then there’s the odd few that you fall in love with then and there. As mentioned, it also helps point out to albums that you may have previously missed. Seriously, I had no idea The Hextalls or Darkbuster released new material this year, but now that I know – I’ve listened to both albums more than a dozen times.
2015 was a busy year, even with taking a two month holiday. Sadly, I also listened to less music than ever before but those albums that battled through to make it to my ear canals – well, there’s a reason they made it that far.
So without further ado, here’s my look back at the best releases of 2015.
Top 10 Albums Of The Year
These ten albums should really be listed in alphabetical order as there’s no reason to place one above the other. Each and every record has hit me in one way or another and should all be listened to for a unique reason. I mean, I could easily switched Jeff Rosenstock and Penske Files around and the list would still feel properly ordered; but alas, a top ten needs to be numbered – so here we go.
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If you like The Fest, you’ll like Red City Radio. If you don’t like The Fest, Red City Radio won’t be for you. On their third full length, the band has truly found themselves (it makes sense that this is what they decided to be their Self-Titled album). It’s a hold over until the new Nothington album, but that doesn’t mean it’s a knockoff. Distorted guitars, tension that ebbs and flows, and raspy vocals – Red City Radio never gets boring. Must Listen: Whatch’a Got?, Two Out of Three Ain’t Rad, I Should Have Known |
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Not Sorry starts off with an acapella greeting of “Hello!” before blasting into Nightmare and right away, you know Bad Cop/Bad Cop are set to deliver something memorable with their debut album. Produced by Fat Mike, the album is your quintessential Fat Wreck sound, a throw back to the likes of The Fight or Civet but with a bouncy, upbeat pop-punk delivery. Harmonies that get ingrained without you even realizing it, Not Sorry is unapologetically catchy and they carry that attitude into their live show too. Must Listen: Like Seriously, Nightmare, Sugarcane |
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Allow me to commit the greatest sin in the punk world: I don’t like Bomb The Music Industry!. I love their ideas, I love what Rosenstock has done with Quote UnQuote Records, I’ve seen them live and I have a few of their albums. But that band means nothing to me. His first attempt at a proper solo album (with many members from Bomb serving as backing band), is finally an album where I see the genius that is Jeff Rosenstock. The album is frenzied, chaotic, loud and soft, harsh and harmonious, comical and serious, fun yet moving. Maybe I’ll have to give Bomb another chance. Must Listen: Beers Alone Again, Darkness Records, Nausea |
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To this date, Millencolin are one of three bands that I want to see live that I haven’t. Pennybridge Pioneers will forever be one of the best albums of all time in my mind and serves as a perfect example of skate pop-punk. Sadly, their last few albums lacked a certain attraction and were, simply, forgettable. Trew Brew, however, is not. Trew Brew is a return to form for the Swedish quartet. Perfectly polished, raucous sing-alongs, slick guitar work and harmonies up the wazoo. This is punk. Pop-punk. Skate punk. The diary definition of EpiFat sound – whatever you wanna call it, Trew Brew serves as a shot of nostalgia transporting you back to when you first heard Millencolin and man, nothing gets better than that. Must Listen: Trew Brew, Egocentric Man, Mr. Fake Believe |
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Home Street Home deserves to be in a category of all its own. Serving as a sound track for a Broadway musical still in development, Fat Mike called on Tony Award winner Jeff Marx to craft 18 songs detailing the tale of a run-away who finds way to survive in the seedy underbelly of street-life. There’s definitely a NOFX vibe to it (they even cover The Agony of Victory), but Marx brings the more theatrical flair to it. Add in the fact that you have guest vocals from the likes of Frank Turner, Matt Skiba, Tony Sly, Bad Cop‘s Stacey Dee, and Dance Hall Crashers’ Karina Denike alongside musicians from Descendents, Lagwagon, Old Man Markley, Mad Caddies, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, The Aggrolites, The Living End, The Real McKenzies, and RKL – Home Street Home is truly a musical of punk rock royalty. Must Listen: High Achievers, Monsters, Safe Words, Another Bad Decision |
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Burlington, ON’s three piece The Penske Files are more than just the Seinfeld reference that borne its name. They’re a raw pop-punk band that merges Junior Battles with Captain We’re Sinking. It’s like Bombs Over Providence are back playing underground dive bars again, but added in the occasional harmonica or if The Blacklist Royals gave up their Tennessee background. Must Listen: Damned, Old Dogs, Dead Letters |
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Despite the seemingly comfortable dog, lazily laying asleep on the couch on the cover of the album, Mable is anything but cozy. It’s unrelenting, passionate and sincere. Emotional pop-punk that tears at your heart strings while inspiring you to throw your first up in the air with them. A fast paced, boisterous concoction of pop-punk, with gruff vocals neatly buried in the mix, right on the verge of overwhelming everything but muddled enough to just soak in as well. Nihilistic lyrics of self-reflection, introspection and the desire to find solace in the arms of friends and strangers. The songs are passionate connections of fleeting emotions that nearly pummels you into submission – and that’s a good thing. Must Listen: Medicine, Applebee’s Bar, Lost Boys |
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I’ll be honest, I thought American Spring came out last year but when I realized this came out in May, I knew it would make it into my list. It would make it on the strength of Bradenburg Gate in and of itself, but there’s more to it than that. For a band that’s been going for twenty odd years, Anti-Flag knows what works and what doesn’t and they solidify that on American Spring. Unapologetically anthemic, the band has upped the chorus filled anthems and limited their experimentations that hindered the likes of The Bright Lights of America. It’s a polished Anti-Flag, still political, still fierce, a tad cleaner, and much more competent musicianship. It’s an Anti-Flag album for Anti-Flag fans. Must Listen: Bradenburg Gate, Song For Your Enemy, Without End |
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The first time I saw Success, they were opening for Direct Hit at The Beat Kitchen in Chicago and I instantly bought all their albums. Radio Recovery just happens to be the latest effort and I can`t stop replaying it. Songs about growing up, finding yourself and the love of punk, Success are like Bouncing Souls for the modern times but with a West Coast flair. Rev has a distinct vocal style that is somehow new and instantly familiar all at once, and I can`t wait to see what else they come out with over the coming years. Must Listen: Nowhere Kids, Revolution Schmevolution, Lives That We Deserve |
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This is an album that needs to be experienced live to truly appreciate but when it hits you, it gives you shivers right through your core. The album is ten love songs to the freaks, outcasts and the punks; detailing the joys of living life the way you want, with your friends and the unrelenting freeing sensation of music in a world where you feel out of place. Sonically, it`s like Jawbreaker meets The Replacements. It`s distorted and visceral, low-fi but technically profound – all without a care in the world. Most importantly, this album is honest in its most simplistic form. There’s an almost animalistic connectivity to it that anybody who has ever sang arm in arm with a stranger in a dingy dive bar will relate to. After all, “The night is alive, it’s loud, and I’m drunk.” Must Listen: Too Late To Die Young, Noisy Heaven, I Break Guitars |
Honorable Mentions (In Alphabetical Order)
Briggs – 2015 EP – Self Released
Direct Hit – More of the Same – Red Scare Industries
Fire Next Time – Cold Hands – STOMP Records
Good Riddance – Peace In our Times – Fat Wreck Chords
Great Apes – Grey Tapes – Say10 Records
Max Levine Ensemble – Backlash, Baby – Rumbletowne Records & Lame-O Records
Strung Out – Transmission.Alpha.Delta – Fat Wreck Chords
Timeshares – Already Dead – SideOneDummy Records
Wolf Face/ Teen-Agers – Split – Say 10 Records
Worriers – Imaginary Life – Don Giovanni Records
Youth Decay – The Party’s Over – New Damage Records
Best Live Show
Andrew WK – Fest – Nov. 1st, 2015 – Gainesville, Florida
Words cannot describe how divine this performance was. It was almost an out of body experience unparalleled to anything I’ve ever felt. Party Rocker Andrew WK headlined the main stage at The Fest on the final night and I had every intention of watching 15minutes and running to go catch High Dive and Rational Anthem, but that idea flew out the window immediately.
Andrew WK, with a band full of Floridian musicians, played the landmark I Get Wet in its entirety with a few new songs like You Will Remember Tonight and everything worked together to make the night perfect. The weather was pristine. The sound top notch. The crowd was alive and electric (excluding the one guy who actually party till he puked in the last song). He changed I Love New York City to I Love Florida and finally hearing She Is Beautiful live after he skipped it the past few times I`ve seen him was surreal.
I stumbled to my next show barely able to walk, drenched in sweat, shaking in sheer ecstasy. I felt alive, and happy and no show since Rancid back to back in 2013 has left me with such elation and I imagine it`ll be several years before I hit that plateau again.
Runner Ups:
Beach Slang – Nov. 10, 2015 – Cobalt, Vancouver BC
Anti-Flag – March 13, 2015 – Venue – Vancouver, BC
Bobby Gorman is Founder and Editor of ThePunkSite.com
