Because I (not so) secretly yearn to be 18 years old, my soundtrack
for the summer is as loud, fast, and posi as possible. I’m listening to
a lot of older stuff like Smoke or Fire, Latterman, and
Screeching Weasel, and to keep things up-to-date, I’ve also
thrown the new Shook Ones record, The Unquotable
A.M.H., into the playlist. You know, to see how it stands up to
some of the classics.
Clocking in at just 30 minutes, Unquotable is their best
record yet—it gives some of their forefathers a run for their
money (Lifetime, I’m looking at you) and proves that pop punk is
still alive and kicking a double bass drum… and not just because
Blink-182 are back.
The Unquotable A.M.H. starts with someone (producer Jackson
Long, perhaps?) saying, “Just make some sound.” The band blasts into
the first track, “Middle Name: Justice,” wherein layers of harmonizing
whoas are broken up by a simple, bright guitar riff reminiscent
of Screeching Weasel’s instrumental “Talk to Me Summer.” It’s the
perfect track to set the tone for the impending melodic-hardcore
attack.
Personal favorites: “Equal Opportunity Insults” (the most aggressive
track on the album) and “Double Knot That” (the most emotional). “For
Collards” is the song to play (and ideally sing along to with your
friends) while driving around in the sun, if only for the way singer
Scott Freeman screams the opening line, “Independence day!”
While the record is near flawless, the new stuff sounded even better
live last week, when they played the American Legion Hall in West
Seattle. If you missed it, that’s okay—there’s still plenty of
summer left for you to get cozy with your own copy of the record.
Thurs July 30: Abe Vigoda, Talbot Tagora, Eric
Ostrowski, Telepathic Liberation Army at the Vera Project, 7:30 pm, $11
($10 w/ club card).
Fri July 31: Blitzen Trapper, Throw Me the Statue
at the Mural Amphitheatre, Seattle Center, 6 pm, free.
Fri July 31: Viaduct Benefit Show: Striking the
Nations, ZeroYear, Swinglow, Wake the Fallen, Winston Smith at Viaduct,
7 pm, $8.
Wed Aug 5: Kimya Dawson, Paleface, No One and the
Somebodies, Turbosleaze at the Vera Project, 7:30 pm, $10 ($9 w/ club
card).
