Dying Scene

Chicago’s infamous DIY punk scene thrashes through the city constantly – unashamed of the grime, grit, and fire that lies woven within the community. So much of the greatest music of this scene is the young punks lit up with rage, societal nonconformity, & political unrest. This is my love letter to 3 of those bands. GLAD: THE COMMANDERS OF SHE-MALE DOUCHEBAG SLUDGE-VIOLENCE (@glad.violence) Rain Lopez, Liz Covalt, and MJ Ultra conduct the wizardry that is GLAD: the sh

Enervate is one of my favorite bands to come out of the Midwest in a while representing the exploding DIY scene in Milwaukee. All I have to say about this band is if you don’t know them you’re going to be stoked on them by the end of this article. I found Enervate initially because they were opening up for one of my favorite bands at the time, Buggin, at Schubas in Chicago. Like most hardcore lineups this one had five to six openers with Enervate’s set in the middle

Melodic Post Hardcore band, Topdown, has a new record coming out later this year on October 16 via Diverse Chorus and Sweet Cheetah Records. The Earth and All Its Pavement, is the second album from this Austin, Texas five piece. Below you can hear a preview of their song “Dissonance.” Per lead singer Grace, The ‘Dissonance’ is in not knowing how to love properly.“ Topdowntx · Dissonance If you like what you heard, Topdown has some shows coming up. Here are some date

Our friends at Mom’s Basement Records are always up to something, and their latest escapade is bringing you, the discerning pop-punk listener, the first-time vinyl release of the Beatnik Termites’ 2003 album Girl Crazy!. This reissue will be available on four color variants, limited to 100 copies each, and it comes housed in a sleeve with spiffed up new cover art. Feast your eyes upon the goods below! Originally released in 2003 and – until now – only available on CD,

The Iron Roses are one of the most politically outspoken punk bands today.  This is cemented with their newest album, Molotov Nights, where they leave no opinion suppressed and every opinion they do have is screamed from their gut.   “Molotov Nights” is an album that shares the same beliefs that punk bands have but don’t want to write, featuring multiple songs that address genocide (Dead Eyes), capitalism (All American), ICE (The Good News), the fetishizing of women (Body Count) and other top

During the COVID-19 pandemic, different people had different ways to deal with the increased amount of time they had on their hands. Throw a rock and you could find someone in the arts figuring out what their new project would be. For author J. Hunter Bennett, it became a way to clean out some old books. I would be pressed to think that he knew this endeavor would lead to his latest book, More Punk than the Public Library: The Adventures of a Little Free Punk Rock Bookstore. Here, Bennett descri

On 26 July 2026, DC’s legendary 9:30 Club was packed as Tomahawk took the stage for a sold-out stop on their “A Huge Waste of Your Time and Money” tour, celebrating their 25th anniversary as a band, with support from Melvins and Ni Maîtres, Anticipation was high as fans lined up hours before doors opened, eager to witness the Tomahawk’s long-awaited return and an unforgettable night of explosive performances. This was Tomahawk’s sixth show of their 22-date tour and amongs

Welcome to Four Records! Each episode, we feature one guest as they discuss the four records that helped shape them at four different times in their life. This week, our guest is Chachy Englund from the band, Round Eye. Round Eye recently released a single with a super cool video made in using Taishan shadow puppets. Chachy Englund’s Four Records: 0-10: Good Morning Vietnam Soundtrack Teenage: Green Goblin Project – Earth Must Be Destroyed Twenties: Minutemen –

This week we have the premiere from Louisville, KY’s Strange Birds. The band is comprised of Brandon Butler (Boys Life, Canyon, The Farewell Bend) on guitar and vocals, Ella Jean Lumpkins (Blue Collar Revenge Theory, Three Nails for a False Prophet) on drums, and Brian Meurer (The Muckrakers) on bass. While the music of Strange Birds may sound different than their previous bands, what is clear is solid songwriting and a top-notch performance. Today, Dying Scene has the premiere of their latest s

La Armada, the Chicago-based band with deep Dominican and Caribbean roots, dropped anchor in Miami for a stop on their Southeast USA Tour, which also included dates across Florida and Atlanta, Georgia. Known for what they describe as “heavy music from the Caribbean,” La Armada delivered an explosive set that seamlessly blends punk, hardcore, metal, and Afro-Caribbean influences rooted in their native Dominican Republic. Their distinctive sound continues to set them a

I’ve always been attracted to biographies, whether it’s someone I’m familiar with or not. A few years back, I read James Spooner’s High Desert and fell in love with a story about finding punk rock that felt similar to mine yet completely different. Disappointed that it was cut short before his move to New York City, I hoped that it wasn’t the end of Spooner sharing his punk rock past. Thankfully, it’s not, with the release of his comic and prose hybrid, It Sta

Creativity rarely follows a straight line. Whether you’re writing music, a book, or a comic, inspiration and frustration can hit at different times. Take comic book writer Justin Heggs. After writing the first issue of Death Metal Duck in 2007, he decided to quit writing and step away from comics completely. While his artist on the book, Cam Hayden, continued to level up his skill, it took Heggs about seven or eight years to jump back on the wagon and finish the book he had started. Together,

Back in the oh so distant days of 2019, The Distillers announced a tour with Death Valley Girls as their supporting act. Having grown up listening to The Distillers, I knew whichever band was to open for them would most certainly be a band I’d be down with.Unfortunately, most of that tour was canceled after The Distillers’ drummer, Andy Granelli, suffered injuries in a bike accident. I still remember that announcement like it was yesterday.. and although it was a mega bummer, I knew

The United Kingdom has a legacy of bands that push back on their government. From the earliest incarnations of bands like the Clash and the Sex Pistols to bands like Crass and the Subhumans, the pedigree is definitely there. The long-established The Mistakes from Poole, UK, carry that torch and dust off the trails blazed by these earlier bands. Their new album, Die Laughing, is evidence of that. Die Laughing opens with the song “Battle,” with a riffy intro that signals back to Eas

Located about a half-dozen miles from downtown Boston proper, on the literal banks of the historic Mystic River, lies Deep Cuts. It’s a venue that’s carved itself a niche as a destination spot over the last three years; the brick walls and tin ceiling of the live music room and adjoining pinball arcade and sandwich counter/record shop project a no-frills spot that’s been all but gentrified out of the city itself, particularly since Covid. And selfishly, as a long-time resident of Boston’s northe

Welcome to Four Records! Each episode, we feature one guest as they discuss the four records that helped shape them at four different times in their life. This week, our guest is Todd Smailes from the bands Suburban Life and formerly Gentlemen Prefer Blood. In 2024, Suburban Life put out their debut EP, Sympathy Tracks.  Todd Smailes’s Four Records: 0-10: Beach Boys- Pet Sounds Teenage: Guns N’ Roses – Appetite For Destruction  Twenties: The Weakerthans

Throughout the Warped Tour’s decades-long existence, it has seen its fair share of bands. Assuming that number is in the thousands, there must be an equal number of distinct stories of being on the tour throughout the older traveling circus version of the past and the more uniform music festival version we have now. This year, we decided to speak to some Warped Tour rookies and veterans to hear about their experiences on punk rock’s most enduring festival and how it’s affected

After 14 years, Marshall has released a new signature amp, this time in collaboration with Green Day‘s Billie Joe Armstrong. The 1959BJA artist signature amplifier was crafted to replicate Billie Joe’s signature raw, crunchy sound, inspired specifically by Green Day’s Dookie era. On Monday, July 20th, Marshall and Billie Joe Armstrong celebrated the launch by hosting a free promotional show at The Roxy in West Hollywood. Billie Joe Armstrong formed The Coverups in 2018 with

The Vans Warped Tour may not be the punk rock indicator that summer has arrived, but it’s back, and it’s evolving. After celebrating its 30th anniversary with three dates last year, this new iteration is going international for the first time by expanding to shows in Mexico and Canada. Last year’s Long Beach stop seemed to be full of the same complaints that most festivals get, but it’s nice to see that there’s still interest. For as much as we loved the machine that Warped Tour was,

Hunx & His Punx have hit the road again! Fronted by Seth Bogart (formerly of Gravy Train!!!!) alongside Shannon Shaw of Shannon and the Clams, the California based group has built a heavy reputation for mastering the perfect blend of bubblegum punk, glam, garage rock, and camp all into one perfect, lil’, leather package. After taking a hiatus from the band, Hunx and His Punx reunited in 2019 and returned with their first new full length album in over a decade, Walk Out on This World, r