The time is nigh...to fuck shit up

Hey guys, welcome welcome welcome to the latest episode of Wednesdays With Andrew. Alexa rank update -  we have dropped a bit, now we're at 11,033,934! The lower the number, the more people are visiting the site. So yeah guys, good work on chipping away at this pedestal of obstruction we're sitting on.

Big news. My wife successfully completed her PhD program yesterday...so you may now refer to me as Mr. Dr. Wednesdays With Andrew. Very exciting stuff, congrats Tessie! 

Oh I guess also news worthy..the pedophile didn't win in Alabama, so that's good. he lost by a verrrrrryyyyy small margin - a little more concerning. but hey we take what we can get here in amurica!

This week we have a ton of great songs for your ear drums, including tunes from NOFX, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Tsunami Bomb, SWMRS and much more. Go listen below!




Liner notes:

Tracklist

• 1Koino Mega Loverby MAXIMUM THE HORMONE
• 2Palm Treesby SWMRS
• 3Take the Reinsby Tsunami Bomb
• 470s 80sby Nightmares on Wax
• 5Face the Clockby Falling Sickness
• 6Robot Stopby King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
• 7Hotdog in a Hallwayby NOFX
• 8The Mixerby The Modern Lovers

If the sound of my voice gives you tinnitus, and you only want the 'Wednesdays With' and none of the 'Andrew', go listen to the playlist here.

Hungry? Go eat some balut!

See what the crazed minds of Tsunami Bomb are plotting, check on tour dates, and say 'hey' here: www.tsunamibomb.net

Here's a smattering of my 'faces in food' collection, in collage form. You're welcome.




Danzig hiding in borscht. Yaaassss.

Off with his head, man

Happy diez de mayo, culeros, and welcome to another #WWA playlist! Boy, do we have songs! Good songs? Yea, sure! This week features classics from bands like Screeching Weasel, The Clash, Germs, El Ten Eleven, Millencollin and more.

While you're listening to the playlist, do me (and you, and everyone except Verizon really..) a favor and let the FCC know you support the concept of Net Neutrality, backed by title ii oversight of ISPs. Simply go to www.gofccyourself.com (thanks Jonny O!), hit the 'express' button and leave a comment. Also let your senators and congressperson know you're not down with this shit. It will take you under 2 minutes and could help ensure your future internet experience doesn't look like this:

Alright with that, music time.



Annnd here's the web player link for all you browser shnecks.


We'll kick off the week's shitskrieg of a playlist with those skankin' and rockin' Swedes of Millencollin. No Cigar is the first track off of their 4th studio album, Pennybridge Pioneers, which marked a time where skate and pop punk was getting a makeover and making big commercial waves. Indeed, No Cigar was featured on the soundtrack of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2....fittingly, the name Millencollin is derived from a skateboard trick the guys dick around with, the 'melancholy'.

The Clash's English Civil War is a glossy and fucking awesome derivative of the famous American Civil War song, When Johnny Comes Marching Home. A single off their 2nd full-length, Give 'Em Enough Rope, Joe (brilliant) Strummer (of guitars) wrote this track to denounce the state of affairs in English politics, with the rise of the British National Front and disagreements around the direction of that great little island nation.  Give 'Em Enough Rope is one of my favorite Clash albums; this one also features 'Julie's Been Working For the Drug Squad' and 'Tommy Gun'.

Hot Cakes is a dope little tune from Los Angeles art rock duo El Ten Eleven. Purely instrumental, these guys specialize in crafting layered works, featuring heavy doubleneck guitar and oppressive bass tones, with a lot of emphasis on looping around a leitmotif. Let's boogie.

Cool Kids is a sugary pop anthem off of Screeching Weasel's Bark Like a Dog album, which is essentially a compendium of how to make a commercially and critically successful punk rock record. This marked Ben Weasel and co.'s first collaboration with Fat Wreck. I am also throwing on Baby Fat's Got a Girlfriend, which is off the first half of their (apparent) 2-part punk rock opera, Baby Fat: Act 1. Still waiting on the follow up from that 2015, 27-song (!) release.

Communist Eyes is the second track off old school punk rockers Germs' only album, GI. Released in 1979, and produced by godmother of punk Joan Jett, GI is oft cited as one of the earliest and most influential hardcore albums to come out during that era of LA punk. Singer Darby Crash, who formed the band with guitarist Pat Smear, is often credited with setting the Germs apart with eclectic and impressionist-styled lyrical content.

In the early 80s, on the heels of the Germs' success, came a wave of punk and hardcore bands out of the suburbs of Orange County. Bands like Social Distortion, Agent Orange, Legal Weapon...and these guys, the Adolescents. Unlike about 95% of punk rock songs ever written (with some notable exceptions, cough cough The Decline), this track clocks in at over 5 minutes, which pretty much makes it a punk rock chef-d'œu·vre.

OK, it may be a good time to pump the brakes a bit and get into something a bit more soothing. Easy Star All-Stars' cover of Paranoid Android should do the trick. Off their 2006 OK Computer tribute album, Radiodread, this is a brilliant reggae version of an already beautiful song. Besides the addition of horns, which provides a more hopeful sound to somewhat dark subject material, and a few lyrics changes ('Jah loves his children..'), Easy Star keeps most of the original feeling intact.

Melodic punk anthem Spine is served up courtesy those hooligan motherfuckers of DC's Curse Words. Playing a flavor of fast, pop-first punk, with plenty of sing-along chorus and cheeky half-time breakdowns, these guys are reminiscent of acts like PUP, The Dopamines and the Flatliners. If you're local, go check these assholes out tomorrow night at Clarendon Grill.

We end today's playlist like we began, with a rocking tune written by a band of Swedish skaters. Black City is the title track for Division of Laura Lee's  2002 album, which was released through Burning Heart and Epitaph. Self-described as a "musical tornado" from Gothenburg, Division of LL writes (seemingly) simple and hard hitting fuzzpop, while evoking a complex timbre in their compositions.


Alright, Spicey out. Thanks for listening and be sure to tune in next week for some more punk rock lovin'

Manufactured phonies

Happy mid-week, Wednesday warriors, and welcome to another fun-filled adventure of punk music, rehashed gifs and a lesson in twisting and corrupting our most beautiful English language. This week we have a real doozy of a playlist, featuring awesome tracks from bands like X, The Menzingers, Blur, RVIVR, Brody Dalle and more. Without further ado, let's burn this barn down. 



And here's the web player link for all you porkies

We kick off the week with a blistering track from Cascadian rockers, RVIVR. Known for their work ethic (they tour a shit ton) and raucous live performances, RVIVR has quickly become a household name for old and young punk fans alike. Wrong Way/One Way is off their 2nd full length, The Beauty Between. For all my D. Columbian brethren, mark your calendars: they're playing Comet Ping Pong on May 24.

Brody Dalle, with all of her glorious idiosyncrasies and 
resolute grittiness, is one of my a) favorite Aussies and b) favorite punk rock ladies. Formerly of Distillers and Spinnerette fame, my main girl Brody debuted her solo work in 2014 with the album Diploid Love. Underworld is the 2nd track off this record, channeling all the energy and drive from her previous work, while exploring new themes and sounds (including a dope ass horn section and cool little Spanish guitar outro). 

Up next is a pop punk anthem from widely acclaimed group The Menzingers. Second only to Michael Scott in the category of "Best Things to Come Out of Scranton, PA", The Menzingers have been playing raw, fun punk rock since 2006. Good Things is off their third studio album, released in 2012 on the Epitaph label. Undeterred by the chaos that is slowly engulfing our world, these guys are about to set off on a month-long tour of Europe and Asia to promote their latest album. Godspeed, gents!

Dirty Fences is a hard rockin', punk slingin' outfit out of NYC. Although you can hear some of that 70s Ramones influence in their work, they meticulously blend in their own garage guitar sounds, unique harmonies, and fun arrangements. All I Want is off Too High To Kross, their 2013 full-length.

Ghost Ship is off London group Blur's long-awaited, latest album. Unveiled in 2015, The Magic Whip (which is Blur's 8th studio album) was their first release since Think Tank in 2003. Fans weren't disappointed, and for the most part critics raved that it was a triumphant comeback from Damon Albarn and the gang. Hey, since we're already listening to Blur, I'm gonna throw in a little extra...one of my favorite songs by them, We've Got A File On You.

We're Desperate is a boiling composition and plea-to-action from LA's first wave punk band X. For me, like many other kids growing up listening to punk in the 90s, We're Desperate was one of the first exposures to X that I had, thanks to the reissue version that lead lady Exene Cervenka did with Pennywise. Although that cover doesn't stray at all from the original arrangement, it doesn't quite capture the raw emotion, and feeling of despair, that the original exudes.

DC's own Dot Dash is no newcomer to the WWA rotation, and they have plenty of material to add to the mix. Dumb Entertainment is the first track off their latest record, Searchlights. For all my local listeners, these guys are frequent fixtures in the usual suspects; Black Cat, Songbyrd, DC9, Rock N Roll Hotel...go check 'em out when you can!

She's Like Heroin to Me, courtesy of LA cowpunk band The Gun Club, was featured on their debut  album, Fire of Love, released through Ruby Records in 1981.  With that rumblin' train backbeat, country giiiiitar twang, and blues/rockabilly lyrical style, the song exmplifies the advent of the psychobilly genre that gained so much steam throughout the 80s. The Gun Club came to a sad end when band leader Jeffrey Lee Pierce passed away in 1996.

We're gonna close out the week with a shimmering track from Hot Snakes, a post-hardcore band that emanated from the primordial ooze under a hot and unforgiving SoCal sun. The band was formed and led by John Reis, previously of Rockets from the Crypt, and his old bandmate from Drive Like Jehu and Pitchfork, Rick Froberg. Plenty for All was the last track on Hot Snakes' third and final album, Audit in Progress, which was released through Reis' label, Swami Records.


Alright I think that's it for today. As always, send over song requests, critical feedback, threats, etc. Oh and if you're in a band, send me t-shirts. I started this blog for the free shirts...where are the free shirts. I am a male, slim medium. THANKS

Forget longevity, we’re just trying to get by

Good morning Wednesday warriors, and welcome to another episode of Wednesdays With Andrew. Boy, do I have some treats in store for you...just get into my nondescript white van and see! From the Misfits to Primus, from Swingin' Utters to PUP, from Jawbox to Dead Kennedys...we got you covered. So pour yourself a sippie cup of your favorite brew, turn the volume up to 11, and let's have some fun.


Here is the link to the web player: https://play.spotify.com/user/agood1no/playlist/5xAXLioZBUI1AXrJgSLcJX

And here are some knowledge knuggets and brain farts pertaining to this week's selection (to read along with the playlist, duh):

Post-Danzig Misfits is good too! Although Helena doesn't feature lead creep bag Glenn Danzig, this song is a rollicking fun time. This is off Famous Monsters, the second full length to feature new vocalist Michale Graves.

Hunx & His Punx provide the much needed bubblegum punk component to this week's playlist. You Think You're Tough is off their 2013 release, aptly titled Street Punk. In addition to his musical endeavors, Hunx (née Seth Bogart) owns and manages his own clothing line, Wacky Wacko, and used to run a hair salon in Oakland.

Bob's Party Time Lounge is a strange party dirge from the inexhaustibly creative mind of Les Claypool and his Prime Ass band. This track is off their 1997 Brown Album; although this album represents, to me, a dark period in Primus' career, where they weren't playing with one of the greatest drummers of all time (Tim Alexander), it's still one of their weirdest and most aggressive to date. DID YOU KNOW - beyond just being an incredible songwriter, dope bass player, producer, author, filmographer and all around eccentric dude, Les Claypool also makes and sells his own wine.  You can buy bottles with Primus-ish names like Purple Pachyderm and Pink Platypus from Claypool Cellars.

Swingin' Utters have been playing loud, twangy street punk since the early 80s, and were one of the Bay Area bands to frequent Gilman during the heyday (weird...i always thought it was spelled Hay Day) of 90s punk renaissance. This was the title track for the Utters' 4th full-length record, and you may also recall hearing it on the Tony Hawk 2 soundtrack.

Phantoms is a spooky surf tune from San Diego band Mrs. Magician. If you dig this track, you'll probably also enjoy their latest single, You'll Fall in Love, which just dropped a few weeks ago. Go look it up and support them here!

Aahhh man, I couldn't even go one week without throwing in a cover. This time, I'm including Turning Japanese, originally written by one-hit wonder The Vapors, skankified and re-recorded by no-hit wonders Skankin' Pickle.  According to the song's author, and contrary to popular belief, this song is NOT about masturbation. Though Kirsten Dunst also did a music video cover of the song..SPLOOSH

Nazi punks, fuck off! 'Nuff said.

Say 'Yurf Rendenmein' out loud. See, it's not German! This song was off AFI's debut album, when their style favored more Reservoir Dogs and less South Park goth kid.

Canadian punk band PUP has been making waves since forming in 2013, building a grassroots following and garnering critical success. Reservoir was the first single off their debut album, originally released through Royal Mountain Records and with some financial support from the government of Canada...holy crap, that sentence is so fucking Canadian I want to hug someone.

I know that I play a lot of weird shit on these weekly playlists, but Isolate by Bender may be the most random song to date that I've featured. Following in the grand tradition of mediocrity that Milwaukee boasts (Pabst Blue Ribbon anyone?), Bender is just pretty OK.

I'll close out today's session with Mirrorful, a soulful piece of emo work written and performed by DC natives Jawbox. Jawbox was founded in the late 80s by J Robbins, after the demise of his old band Government Issue, one of the District's longest-standing punk fixtures.

I don't wanna hear it

Howdy there creeps, and welcome to this week's episode of Wednesdays With Andrew. First off...you'll probably notice that the format for these blog posts are changing slightly. As always, I'll continue to focus first and foremost on the selection of songs for the weekly playlist which will continue to drop, like cockwork, every Wednesday morning. I will include some notes around the music here and there, but won't do the full write ups that I've done in the past.

In addition, I'll start focusing more on doing reviews and write-ups for upcoming and recently released albums, and feature those on days that don't start with 'W'. So, if you're a punk band, or you know a punk band, or you know someone who knows a punk band, send me that shit and I'll write pleasant things about your music!

Alright, finally, to the music. This playlist has some fun little tunes, including a couple awesome covers. If you're into the 90s, we got you more than covered. And if you're not into the 90s, don't worry, we got some good stuff for you too.



Annnnd the web player link: https://play.spotify.com/user/agood1no/playlist/2DFLq68ikGIT4LRqe5DqXg

Some interesting tidbits from this week's selection:

The Meteors, opening this playlist with their spooky rendition of the classic by Sam Sham and The Pharoahs, are the first band to self-identify as psychobilly. I wonder how their parents took it...

Ten Foot Pole's song My Wall, from their sophomore album Rev, was also included on the first installment of Epitaph's famously curated Punk-O-Rama compilation series, released in 1994. My Wall was also my first taste of Ten Foot Pole, and I have been listening to them non-stop ever since.

The Night Marchers are a stoner/sludge rock outfit of the highest caliber, hailing from San Diego. You probably recognize the primal, vicious vox of lead man John Reis, who has been in a ton of bands, including Rocket from the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes. 

DAMN YOU TO HELL, 2016!! Another celebrity casualty of the Year-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named, Alan Vega was an artist, vocalist, weirdo extraodinaire, and half of the electro-punk duo known as Suicide. 

Shit, Kid Dynamite's cover of this classic tune by Minor Threat is fucking great. Everything Kid Dynamite does is great. Go listen to Kid Dynamite after this.

Swedish skate punk bands from the 90s are just the bee's knees. That's why we have two this week! Bonus points if you can point out both (hint: the band names rhyme with Frillencollin and Blow Gun rat Ball)

Hmmm why does this band Great Collapse sound so much like Richmond melodic hardcore gods Strike Anywhere? Possibly because this is Strike Anywhere frontman Thomas Barnett's latest project. Dooooooiiiiiii!

Cock Sparrer, the epitome of 70s working class street punk, derived their name from 'Cock Sparrow,' which is a Cockney term of endearment used between friends and family.

H2O is a great melodic hardcore band from New York! But DID YOU KNOW...it is also the chemical formation for mint chocolate chip ice cream?