Turn On The Shuffle, It’s Friday

Every Friday I’ll simply hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and post the first 5 songs that play up here with a little commentary on each song.  Just something extra for the waning hours before the weekend.

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes – “One Tin Soldier” from the album Have A Ball
It’s always fun to put on a Gimmes record and have a quick listen so I love getting them in my shuffle.  Although, Have A Ball is probably my least favorite of their records, after Blow In The Wind, but still this is a solid track and again, there’s really never a bad time to listen to the Gimmes.

Flogging Molly – “The Wrong Company” from the album Within A Mile of Home
This is a bad example of a Flogging Molly song as it’s only 37 seconds long.  It showcases his voice nicely, and reaffirms the notion that Molly, like their counterparts in Dropkick Murphys (my personal choice), can dip into traditional waters as well as original punk tunes.

We Are The Union – “What We Have Here is A Failure To Communicate” from the album Great Leaps Forward
I absolutely love WATU, and you’ll find that out very quickly by either listening to the show or poking around this site.  Just a great combination of ska, punk and hardcore, these guys have a huge potential to break out soon.  Great Leaps is also a phenomenal record that should be picked up by any fan of ska or punk.

The Casualties – “Under Attack” from the Warped Tour 2006 Compilation
When I was in my super “punk” phase (i.e. wearing studs and judging the shit out of other genres) I was really into these guys.  Now, I take them for what they are: a nice throwback to simpler hardcore punk bands and records.  They never make any mindblowing music, but are good for a scream or two on a long drive.  They’re also super-intense live.

The Soviettes – “¡Paranoia! Cha-Cha-Cha” from the compilation Rock Against Bush Vol. 1
There was a time, right around the early 00’s where I really thought The Soviettes were going to be pretty big after the release ofLPIII on Fat, yet nothing came of it.  This song appears on LPIII, as well as this comp and that’s why I mentioned it.  They’re a band that should have gained popularity, but never really took off; a shame really.

We Are The Union Record Update

So friends of the show We Are The Union have set a release date for their upcoming record, Great Leaps Forward, and that date will be April 13.  For readers/fans of the show WATU is, of course, the band I interviewed at last year’s FEST in Gainesville.  For that interview, complete with a discussion of the album’s sound and artwork, go here.  As for the record itself, you can pre-order it on sites like Interpunk, but I would personally recommend Paper + Plastik’s webstore because they have some kick ass bundle packages for not much money.

We Are The Union Interview

“Anyway, they are terrific and I’m really looking forward to both talking to them and to seeing them live for the first time on Saturday. The interview will be posted shortly after it’s conducted.”

Yea, that was  what I said on the 28th of October, but nonetheless I successfully put off transcribing this interview until this past week.  I’m getting back into the swing of things at school and figured this would be  a good thing to kick off the semester with.  Just for a recap, I did this interview while I was in Gainesville for the FEST, in the alley behind the Venue in Gainesville actually, and played it on the show the following week.  It’s an interview with the entire band, consisting of Reed (Guitar and Lead Vocals), Brandon (Bass), Matt (Trombone and Vocals), Jim (Drums), and Ricky (Guitar).  So here it finally is, in print form, after the jump.  Enjoy.

The Fest and Interviews

Hello fine listeners/viewers!  This coming weekend I will be venturing down to Gainesville, Florida for my first crack at the annual punk extravaganza known as The Fest!  In between seeing great established bands like Less Than Jake and Dillinger Four, I’ll be doing my best to find some great new acts to spin on the show and introduce to you fine folks.  But, also whole I’m down there, I’m going to attempt to get a few interviews as well, with one already lined up with We Are The Union.  I’ll have my computer down there so hopefully I can do a few posts while shit goes down as well.
So here’s to hoping you have a great weekend, and just in case you’re unaware, here’s a bit more on We Are The Union after the jump.