Is it plagiarism week here, or what?
Taking a cue from Bobbo at Down for Whatever, I’m a grown man and I listen to a whole lot of music that is, ostensibly, directed towards toddlers. For one, I absolutely adore pop-punk, and I’m not terribly discriminating about the type of pop-punk I listen to.
And sure, for credibility’s sake, I might say that I enjoy arty, tortured pop-punk like Jawbreaker. Or, perhaps, I enjoy classic pop-infused punk like, say, the Buzzcocks. Or glammy pop-punk like the New York Dolls. Or drunken-quasi-cerebral pop punk like Dillinger 4. Or snotty contemporary pop-punk like the Ergs. I really tend to enjoy pop-punk created by hardcore bands like Lifetime (or their contemporaries, such as Fireworks). And this is all true.
But I also enjoy true toddler music, as well: I’ll always give new New Found Glory - they of the iconic long-shorts - albums a shake or seven. I enjoy standard new-school pop-punk conventions: calling breakdowns with a celebratory ‘whoo!,’ slowing down choruses to half time, and stop-start verses.
Suffice to say, I’m not terribly picky about the pop-punk I listen to – it doesn’t need to be credible, or even good. I’m positive that pop-punk flicks on an instinctual Pavlovian fun-switch. So needless to say, I’m biased when I say that 2008 was a fantastic year for pop-punk.
While some might argue about semantics, I'm going to argue that all of the following albums contain a little pop and and a little punk rock. Los Campesinos! – who always sounded Buzzcocks-esque to me – released two excellent albums in Hold on Now Youngster and We Are Beautiful, We are Doomed. Johnny Foreigner – the subject of the maiden post of this blog – released Waited Up Until Light, which, in my humble opinion, was the noisiest, speediest piece of pop-punk virtuosity I’ve heard all year. Japanther released Scuffed up My Huffy, which is uber-noisy, but was probably the least noisy Japanther release to date. Dillinger 4 released the fairly weak Civil War, but fairly weak for Dillinger 4 equates to pretty good for most bands. The Nice Boys - featuring the only living member of the Exploding Hearts - put out a self-titled release, which isn't quite the Exploding Hearts, but it comes close enough. Vancougar released Canadian Tuxedo, which was a release that, by my estimates, was part Cub, part Go-Gos – which, coming from me, is a compliment of the highest order. Jay Reatard released a pop-garage singles collection with Matador Records, and probably wrote my favourite song of the year (‘Hammer, I Miss You’). And, of course, Times New Viking - who play tonight, with Deerhunter, at Lee's Palace in Toronto - released Rip it Off.
Now, I’ve recorded plenty (embarrassing) songs in the bathroom, hoping that the lo-fi charm would override my lack of songwriting talent. Times New Viking’s Rip it Off, however, pulls off lo-fi admirably - probably because they actually write good songs. Rip it Off sounds like it was recorded with blown-out tube amps in a kitchen; it’s also wildly exuberant, anthemic, and, well – incredible. It’s an album full of perfect pop songs, shouty boy-girl vocals, and somehow – no matter how quietly you’re playing the album – it always seems to be on full volume.
Now, I seriously, seriously hate describing music particularly. I’m never truly articulate enough to describe music without making comparisons, and comparisons are never quite descriptive enough (and are laughable when inaccurate). So, if you want an accurate portrayal of what Times New Viking sounds like, check the following videos:
Taking a cue from Bobbo at Down for Whatever, I’m a grown man and I listen to a whole lot of music that is, ostensibly, directed towards toddlers. For one, I absolutely adore pop-punk, and I’m not terribly discriminating about the type of pop-punk I listen to.
And sure, for credibility’s sake, I might say that I enjoy arty, tortured pop-punk like Jawbreaker. Or, perhaps, I enjoy classic pop-infused punk like, say, the Buzzcocks. Or glammy pop-punk like the New York Dolls. Or drunken-quasi-cerebral pop punk like Dillinger 4. Or snotty contemporary pop-punk like the Ergs. I really tend to enjoy pop-punk created by hardcore bands like Lifetime (or their contemporaries, such as Fireworks). And this is all true.
But I also enjoy true toddler music, as well: I’ll always give new New Found Glory - they of the iconic long-shorts - albums a shake or seven. I enjoy standard new-school pop-punk conventions: calling breakdowns with a celebratory ‘whoo!,’ slowing down choruses to half time, and stop-start verses.
Suffice to say, I’m not terribly picky about the pop-punk I listen to – it doesn’t need to be credible, or even good. I’m positive that pop-punk flicks on an instinctual Pavlovian fun-switch. So needless to say, I’m biased when I say that 2008 was a fantastic year for pop-punk.
While some might argue about semantics, I'm going to argue that all of the following albums contain a little pop and and a little punk rock. Los Campesinos! – who always sounded Buzzcocks-esque to me – released two excellent albums in Hold on Now Youngster and We Are Beautiful, We are Doomed. Johnny Foreigner – the subject of the maiden post of this blog – released Waited Up Until Light, which, in my humble opinion, was the noisiest, speediest piece of pop-punk virtuosity I’ve heard all year. Japanther released Scuffed up My Huffy, which is uber-noisy, but was probably the least noisy Japanther release to date. Dillinger 4 released the fairly weak Civil War, but fairly weak for Dillinger 4 equates to pretty good for most bands. The Nice Boys - featuring the only living member of the Exploding Hearts - put out a self-titled release, which isn't quite the Exploding Hearts, but it comes close enough. Vancougar released Canadian Tuxedo, which was a release that, by my estimates, was part Cub, part Go-Gos – which, coming from me, is a compliment of the highest order. Jay Reatard released a pop-garage singles collection with Matador Records, and probably wrote my favourite song of the year (‘Hammer, I Miss You’). And, of course, Times New Viking - who play tonight, with Deerhunter, at Lee's Palace in Toronto - released Rip it Off.
Now, I’ve recorded plenty (embarrassing) songs in the bathroom, hoping that the lo-fi charm would override my lack of songwriting talent. Times New Viking’s Rip it Off, however, pulls off lo-fi admirably - probably because they actually write good songs. Rip it Off sounds like it was recorded with blown-out tube amps in a kitchen; it’s also wildly exuberant, anthemic, and, well – incredible. It’s an album full of perfect pop songs, shouty boy-girl vocals, and somehow – no matter how quietly you’re playing the album – it always seems to be on full volume.
Now, I seriously, seriously hate describing music particularly. I’m never truly articulate enough to describe music without making comparisons, and comparisons are never quite descriptive enough (and are laughable when inaccurate). So, if you want an accurate portrayal of what Times New Viking sounds like, check the following videos:
Times New Viking - My Head
Times New Viking - Thing with a Hook
Times New Viking - The End of All Things
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