Reset the ride

Good morning Wednesday war hogs, and welcome to today's Wednesdays With Andrew. Happy you could tune in once again to pay homage to my sordid little tryst with punk rock. We've had yet another whirlwind week, so you owe it to yourselves to take a moment and enjoy some good tunes, both new and old. From Descendents to PUP, St. Vincent to Fucked Up, Government Issue, Direct Hit! and all the way to Foals, we got you covered. So, put your legs up, crack open a can of your favorite beverage, and let the sonic waves do their thang. ENJOY.

PS - anyone catch that Lady Gaga souper bewl performance? She was pretty fucking awesome




Annnd the web player.

We open today's playlist with our friends from beyond the northern border, PUP, and their hit track DVP. Off their 2016 release The Dream Is Over, which signaled a more polished sound than their previous work, DVP shows that PUP hasn't lost that frenetic energy and immediately ear-catching quality that propelled them into stardom in the first place. Alongside other young acts like FIDLAR and Slothrust, these guys are up there in my favorite new(ish) bands.

Our next track , Simple Song is courtesy of melodic hardcore band Avail. Although these ruffians call Richmond home and center a lot of their lyrics on their beloved city, Northern VA does have a tenuous claim on them...the dudes all met and formed the band up in Reston. Avail has been defunct since the mid aughts (sp?), but all the members are still very active in the scene, playing in various bands in Richmond and beyond.

Smile constitutes 1/21 of the (deluxe edition) of Descendents' latest album, Hypercaffium Spazzinate, but it fills up a seemingly larger space than that.  Gooey and poppy, it's like they haven't skipped a beat in the 12 year gap since their last album. Indeed, the thoughtful melodies and unexpected twists and turns of Smile remind me a lot of 2004's Cool To Be You. By the way, does anyone (*cough cough, Tessie) know the chemical symbol for Hypercaffium Spazzinate??

Well, since we're already playing sugary sweet songs from pop punk icons, we may as well include something from Direct Hit!'s latest project.  Was It The Acid? is a catchy tune off the Milwaukee-based outfit's 2016 full-length, Wasted Mind. Although it's pretty fucking pop-driven, they do manage to keep a bit of edge throughout the album. Was it drugs...or is that a glockenspiel?

I was hanging out with good friend Mike D (of Midwestern Housewives fame) in Philadelphia this past weekend, and he showed me Ink and Dagger. I can definitely see where he says that these guys were a big influence on Dan Yemin projects, like Paint It Black or Open City. This song is off the Drive This Seven Inch Wooden Stake Through My Philadelphia Heart EP...oh god, these guys are so fucking Philly. Lovin' what I've heard so far, and so I wanted to share Full Circle with you guys.

Up next is an awesome track from Oxford-based Foals' debut album, Antidotes. Heavy Water displays the maturity of sound and complex rhythms that are key components for these British indie rockers. Have you listened to their latest release?! These guys just seem to get better and better, and their style seems to get more complex as they release new stuff. Although I hear some Muse influences, Foals have really created their own unique sound.

Undeclinable was a pop punk band from the Netherlands that I haven't listened to in FOREVER. I was initially introduced to these dutch masters back in high school, when they opened for Voodoo Glow Skulls on one of their European tours. Although Undeclinable never cracked the American market, they were quite big in Europe in the 90s and early 2000s.  Very glad to see Spotify has a healthy collection of their work: go check 'em out!

Bicycles for Afghanistan is a punchy little tune from Long Island melodic hardcore crew Crime in Stereo. While heavy-hitting and aggressive, this track also retains a very raw, permeating emotion throughout. They were fetch enough to catch the ear of Offspring's Dexter Holland, who signed Crime in Stereo onto his Nitro Records label. 

Religious Ripoff, a raucous call to arms against faux-vangelism, comes off Government Issue's 1981 debut EP, Legless Bull. This signifies a time when the band was playing straight-up DC hardcore...on later projects, they began experimenting with different sounds, influenced by heavy metal and psychedelic rock.

Super pumped to close out the playlist with fascinating lady St. Vincent, née Annie Clark. Off her 4th studio album, Prince Johnny is a mesmerizing and hazy song, and highlights St. Vincent's eclectic tastes and writing style. If you get a chance to catch her live, do it...it's an incredible performance, and she shreds a guitar like nothing you've ever seen. 


OK folks, that's a wrap. Hope you enjoyed the playlist, and thanks for tuning in. As always, if you're a band/label/stalker/shapeshifter/otherwise interesting person, hit me up. Follow us on facebook! Til next week brothers and sisters.