Various Artists – Dave Parasite Presents: Pop-Punk’s Not Dead

Pop-punk gets a lot of flack these days thanks to the major explosion of radio-friendly pop-punk bands like Sum41 and Blink182 in the early 2000’s; but there’s so much more to the genre than just that and I think Dave Parasite describes it best in the booklet for Pop-Punk’s Not Dead. As he describes the various types of punkers he says “Then there are the geeks – those hopelessly single guys and gals who revel in listening to other guys and gals sing catchy songs about being hopelessly single.” I am one of those geeks, and while I do love Blink182 and Sum41, I know that there’s much more than to the pop-punk genre than those acts. Pop-Punk’s Not Dead is the perfect example of that.

With thirty, upbeat, bouncy, catchy, and raw pop-punk tunes on here, Pop-Punk’s Not Dead shows exactly what the pop-punk genre can do and exactly why it will never die. With already well established bands like The Queers, The Parasites and River City High and some up and coming acts like The Ergs, Teenage Bottlerocket and Squirtgun, this CD is bound to introduce you to a few new acts. Plus,Go-Kart didn’t stop at pop-punk bands from the States as they have acts from Germany (Sonic Dolls), Japan (The Wimpy’s), the Netherlands (The Travoltas), Belgium (Janez Detd) and even the Cayman Islands (Suckerbox). So not only are you getting a kickass compilation of pop-punk tunes, but you’re also getting a look into acts from all across the world.

Oddly enough though, that’s not the biggest attraction of the CD. The best thing about this CD isn’t even how addictive the songs are. No, the highlight of the CD is that no matter how many times you listen to it, more and more songs start sticking out. The first time you’re blown away by acts like The Ergs, River City High, The Queers and Bambix. The next time you start to hear other songs that blow those guys out of the water, like The Unlovables and Boris The Sprinkler. The time after you’re awe-struck by The Last Chucks, Janez Dedt, and The Steinways. The songs grow on you, the album grows on you, and pop-punk lives on.

For every single punk rock geek out there who loves the pop-punk genre, this compilation’s for you. It’s raw pop-punk from the mid-ninties but for today’s generations. Two-minute, unpolished love songs. The music is great. The artists are awesome. There’s thirty songs. The artwork’s done by Mitch Clem, and a portion of the process from the CD go to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. If you’re a pop-punk fan you’d be stupid not to buy it.