Those Were Happy Bells!

Over yesterday and today I went through another re-read of many past entries on this blog and was immediately stricken by how different I can be while still remaining roughly the same person. Every time I read any post on this blog it immediately takes me back to the time in my life when I wrote it, which is pretty cool. More and more this thing is becoming a time capsule for my life and I kinda like that.

As I was reading through yesterday, I realized that there is one part that shows how dated this is more than anything else and that is the links sidebar. Many of the links are bands who are broken up, blogs that are now neglected, or.....well actually everything fits pretty nicely into those two categories. I'm to clean up that area in a little bit but figured it would be great to call attention to it.

"Beat Noir Are Sexy Motherfuckers"
This one is probably funniest because it is the band that I am currently in. I added that link (obviously) before I joined. I would like to state for the record that Colin, Duff and Mark are all sexy motherfuckers.

"Bomb The Music Industry!"
Still one of my favourite parts of being alive, but have stopped making music. If this was two years ago I would have written a very lengthy piece describing the bands importance to me, but now I barely write in this thing at all and the "break-up" happened long enough ago that writing about it now would seem stupid. Kind of shows how much my attitude about talking about music has changed in the last little while. Fortunately for me there is no shortage of posts about how much that band means to me on here.

"Brenden Kelly"
First and foremost, I misspelled his name and only just noticed that. I used to read his blog every day and definitely tried to emulate his style of writing a lot during part of this blog. Except now that's a link to a blog that hasn't been updated in two years since it moved urls.

"Chef Blog!"
This was a blog that my friend used to document his experiences while attending chef school and honing his practices. Now it takes you over to his tumblr.

"Dino Comix"
One of the few links that is still active! Dinosaur Comics remains amazing and is definitely my favourite web-comic ever (sorry Mitch Clem). I strongly urge you to get into it.

"Fireworks"
I like the band Fireworks. Back when I put the links up on the side there weren't many bands that updated blogs regularly and Fireworks was one of them.

"Fuck Yeah Sharks"
This was the original "Fuck Yeah" blog on tumblr, which has since become a huge trend. Also, this blog really made laugh during its hayday. It hasn't been updated in forever and is pretty much done, like many of the other links.

"Lemuria"
Another link that magically still works. Also, shouts out to Lemuria for sticking with blogger after all these years. Like me!

"Make Do And Mend"
I was pretty into Bodies of Water. I don't listen to this band much anymore.

"My Tumblr (I barely use it)"
The funny part of this is that I used to be kind of opposed to tumblr a few years ago and wanted to show that I wasn't that into it. I'm pretty into it now.

"Nic Cage As Everyone"
This blog (while being a one-trick pony) is pretty hilarious. It more or less done though.

"Nick "Eazy" East"
The blog of my wonderful friend Nicholas East. It also hasn't been updated in forever and seems to be done.

"On My Scraper Bike"
This was a mixtape blog that I started with my friends Ken and Tanner. We were really excited about it when we first started it, but fell off it pretty much right away. Fuckin' way she goes, right?

"Paper And Plastick Rekerds"
I thought Paper And Plastick was the best label in the world for a while. Then a lot of bands left their roster, rumours of bands not getting everything they were promised and some records I ordered never came. They did make a lot of cool records though!

"SNAKECHARMA"
While their blogger isn't active anymore, they are still trucking over on tumblr. They are some great buds and make even greater tunes. Get heavy bruh.

"Bad New Bad Blog"
This was my brother's blog for a while. It has fallen by the wayside since then.

"We Are The Union"
I loved the hell out of this band, but unfortunately they broke up earlier this year. Feels bad man.

I guess something cool that I've realized because of this is that this blog has outlasted most other things people start on the internet.

Go me, I guess.

I, Musical Genius

I swear I have posts with some actual content to them in progress right now. Hold tight all 0 of you who remember that this blog actually exists.

In the meantime, here's a video of one of the bests nights of my life. And hey, on top of that it's the song that this blog is named after. If you keep an eye for a kid in a white and blue baseball tee on the stage-left side of the crowd, that's me.




ASOB's music always takes me back to a time in my life when I was bummed about some things, but everything was still easy to deal with. Three Cheers For Disappointment is a big part of why I'm the person I am today. I still can't hear "Nowhere" without having my fist clenched and screaming "It's gonna rain tonight, but it's gotta stop eventually. Let's anticipate the sun and warmth and raise our fists and say "Everything is always falling apart but I can't."".

They make me so happy

279 Cole Road

I like to think that I am not a very vain person, but that is just not true at all. I'm aware that I neglect this blog far more than I should. I used to write in it more and really found a way to properly express myself through writing for a little while, but I just don't have that type of motivation for it anymore and I have no explanation for that. It's not that I don't want to write anymore because I absolutely do, it's just that whereas I used to sit down with an empty screen and ooze out an entire passably coherent entry, now I cannot. I can't explain it. But then again I'm doing that right now, aren't I. Fuck bruh, I'm so meta it hurts.

Anyway, I'm sure you are wondering where the hell that non-sequitur paragraph came from, so I'll indulge you. Whenever I do log back onto this blog to write an entry there is a 0% chance that I don't read back through a ton of my entries. It happens without  fail every time. SEE THAT IS WHAT THE FIRST SENTENCE REGARDING ME BEING VAIN HAS TO DO WITH THIS!

Okay, so here's the rub: While there are many entries that I am still very proud of, there are a ton of older ones that are THE MOST EMBARRASSING. Like most people my first inclination would be to delete these posts because the first thought into my head is "Dammit Tim, is there actually a single person in the world who wants to read about how much you liked Bayside 4 years ago?".But shortly after that I consider the following question: What is going to give me more peace of mind; deleting old posts and maybe making it seem like I never had an awkward and uninformed stage of my life or leaving all the old posts up for everyone to see and not acting like I'm too cool to admit I've had some bad moments? The answer to this is always the latter.

So while there are certainly some heinous posts in the nether-regions of this blog, it makes me feel better to say "Yeah, so what?" and leave them there. I guess it's the same as when some people delete really old pictures of themselves on Facebook so they won't be seen. I think it's pretty uncool to be embarrassed about the person you used to be and it's a good idea to try and accept it.

But my life is generally a mess anyways, so what do I know?

Also, please stay away from old posts lololololololololololololol.

Miss You

This is an all-too-familiar situation. I sit on the edge of my couch with my legs shoulder width apart. I place my elbows on my knees and lean forward, supporting my chin with my upturned palms. In front of me my computer stares back at me, the blinking text pointer on the blank page mocks me and my inability to produce anything.

I’ve come to this computer with a specific purpose. In two days I’m meeting with friends from my summer job and it will be the first time we’ve seen each other in about 4 months. Among these friends is a girl who I grew very fond of over the course of the summer. She is about two inches shorter than me and had blond hair that falls just past her shoulders. She has perfect white teeth that radiate when she smiles. Oh lord, her smile; as soon as she opens her mouth, everyone gravitates around her. Alex has a smile that I would call contagious; as soon as she grins that happy feeling spreads to everyone around her.

Complementing her impeccable smile are a pair clear, bright and beautiful blue eyes. Every time our eyes met I could feel my body get a little weak, being in the presence of something so beautiful, almost like I wasn’t worthy to see them. The only part I regretted about working with her was that it was the summer and her sunglasses hid those godly irises. If I had been able to be around them every day I would have been the luckiest boy in Toronto.

She had a svelte, athletic figure which was due to playing competitive hockey as a teenager. Despite playing such a rough and physically taxing sport she retained a definite femininity to her form, whereas many female hockey players become much more muscular.

Her personality matched her smile and eyes. It radiated out from her and drew people in around her. She would always be found speaking to a crowd of people, simply because people like being around her so much. Sometimes it would piss me off, as I would much rather have preferred to hang just the two of us, but then she’d shoot me a quick sly glance and I would just melt. All it took was a look out of the side of her eye and I knew that she preferred it was just the two of us.  She’s very quick-witted and was usually the first to pick up on my jokes, giving me a coy smile-frown combination that is absolutely adorable. Whereas most people that summer thought I was weird because they didn’t know what I was talking about, she for some reason found my lame sense of humour endearing.

We were definitely a great match personality-wise but came from pretty different cliques. It was kind of Outsiders-esque, as we were from opposite sides of town and also from different tax-bracket. She came from the west side of the city and had fairly well-off parents. Not that they were incredibly wealthy, but they weren’t exactly hurting for money. Whereas many of the girls who came from this area were snobby and conceited, Alex was just the opposite. She was very down to earth and tried to change the subject whenever anybody asked how her parents did.

That was really what I liked most about her; she was different. Someone as pretty and successful as her had no business talking to me. She could have easily been dating a hockey player or some tall, blond job with a blemish-free face. This is why I was so confused.

I came from the east side of Toronto, called Scarborough. It is known as having one of the city’s highest crime rates, being mostly residential and a place that one would avoid unless they lived there. My family weren’t poor but we definitely weren’t well-off either. Both my parents have continued working well into their lives, even now as they start to push 60, well after most people retire. While we have enough to get by, we don’t have very much left over.

Another difference was that I was a punk kid and the only one at our job. I stuck out. Standing next to each other, we were quite the contrast. She was tanned, thin and blond with a wide toothy grin. I was scrawny with long hair and usually sporting cut-off jean shorts with a cut-up shirt to match. How we became so close, I will never know.

But it happened.

Like I said before, I came here with a specific purpose. Though we’ve made a small effort to keep in touch, our relationship is a shadow of what it used to be. Casually texting each other a few times over a semester pale in comparison to relying on each other all summer to get through the day.

So I’ve come here to figure out a way to make Alex fall in love with me, with two days to do so. And to be honest, I’m totally at a loss at what to do.

No, I know what to do. I need to tell her how much she means. However, that terrifies me, so I need to find another way to do it.

The Hotel Year- It Never Goes Out

This album is really good. It is also free. I think it'd be a great idea for you to download it:

http://thehotelyear.bandcamp.com/

West Hill Pool

I was reading my old ska songs I wrote about you in eleventh grade and noticing how much I loved you and how much I haven't changed. Because back then I was just a naive kid who was wide-eyed and falling hard and now I'm doing at least a little better but still haven't quite figured out my part.

I still try my best to please those who I care about because nothing makes me happier than a smile back.

I still glance at photos of you, at least every now and then. We haven't spoken in about six years and look how well-off we've been. It's true, that shit was quite a mess and things couldn't have gone any wrong, but I can't pretend that I don't occasionally dream about the different ways it could have gone.

5:00 To Toronto, Stops At Sportsworld and Guelph

Since I've been going through some writing I've done over the last 4 years or so, I'm going to post a bunch of it here. A lot of it feels extremely personal and open to me, though I'm sure it comes after as pretty veiled to everyone else. Here's one I wrote on a Greyound trip this past year:

I've always been kind of in love with bus trips. As I moved into the later phase of my adolescence I started to act more independently and as a result would travel more. I still remember the first one I took:

I was particularly sweet on a girl at the time and she recommended coming to her neck of the woods for a show. I had a job that summer and suddenly the funds required for bus trips were available. This trip would be the first time we'd even meet in person and I'll always remember the feeling of anticipation I carried while gazing out at what my 17 year-old, city-raised self saw as the rural outback of Ontario. One of my favourite ska records played in the background and it will always be a scene that sticks out in my mind.

After high school I moved away to attend university and as a result bus trips became much more frequent. I would often be travelling alone to see some band play at some place and the time was spent on my own with my collection of music. What was initially scary and new became familiar and comforting. The hour and a half or so time-frame provided me to be alone with my thoughts and feelings at a time when I was rarely alone where I lived.

If I look back and make a mental collage of my bus trips, it quickly becomes a linear history of my young adult life and beautifully illustrates my evolution as a person. From a homesick college freshman, an adolescent ska kid, scared of this surroundings listening to Bomb the Music Industry! to a lovelorn hardcore fan, still sour about his last girlfriend and finally arriving to my mid-twenties, looking forward to an hour of Owen accompanying me along the Lakeshore.

So all this leads to my present situation; again riding the bus to the city and remembering her. Her light hair and toothy smile still sticks out in my mind and the way I thought out smiles complimented each other always seems to work its way into the back of my mind somehow. I've tried for a year or so to convince myself that she wasn't so much of a big deal and that our time together was insignificant, but that's just not true and this trip is what convinced me of that.

So there you go Sweetheart, you're in that collage. And if my mind has taught me anything, you're stuck there. My romantic longing for two young-ins tied together by their shitty job has finally crossed with the intense pride I for some reason take in moving all over the lower half of my province.

And oh boy, that feeling is a little overwhelming.

Our Last Song

One year I had a whole bunch of terrible short relationships and was feeling pretty crummy about all of them. I write songs constantly, but thought that trying to vent about all of them in prose would help matters. So that year I tried to write a book where the protagonist was a sort of fictionalized version of myself and the girl I became involved with was a conglomeration of all my (evil) exes into one person, despite having not very much writing experience aside from this blog and never trying anything long-form before (Though everyone's gotta start somewhere, right?). I think I put more effort into than most people assumed I would, but didn't even come close to finishing even a third of it. I still have it saved on my computer and have decided to put one of the chapters that was done up here because I haven't posted anything on here in quite a while. So here it goes:

I’ve realized that when I meet somebody for the first time, I am totally fine with introducing myself and playing my cards right so that I come off as “cool”. However, the tables are completely turned when I meet somebody for the first time, but they are already expecting me. I get nervous. Do I have a reputation to live up to? Obviously someone has deemed important enough to be introduced to this person, so I have to bring my “A” game. But then what if I come off as cocky? I’m not cocky. Am I? No, I’m totally not cocky.

This explains why I am shitting my pants in terror on my way to meet Emily’s parents.

I mean it has only been two and a half months, but we’re going to a party out near her anyways. And she has to drop some stuff off. And her parents will be there when she is dropping those things off. So I guess I am stuck.

Do they know who I am? Did she say “Oh my friend Roger is coming”? Or has she mentioned me as her new “item” or even “boyfriend” to her mom? Or maybe her Dad? Holy fuck.

“I’m nervous.”

I need to be careful and not get too annoying on the trip and piss her off.

“Oh, don’t worry. It’s no big deal.”

It totally is a big deal.

“Ok.”

“We’ll only be there for like, a second. Don’t worry.”

“Alright.” I give her a smile. Because she calms me down. And she’s great.

Naturally as we drive around I gaze out the window since St. Catherines is new territory for me. Then all of a sudden we are pulling into a drive way. Thank science I have a flannel shirt on, because the sweat stains on my t-shirt under my armpits must be huge right now.  I shyly stand behind Em as she opens the door to her home.

Fuck.

“Hellllloooo?” We’re walking through her front hall.

“We’re in the living room Emily.” Her mom kind of half sings that sentence. I take off my hat but can’t think of a place to put it. If I leave around it’ll seem dumb, if I keep it on I seem like an asshole. I should have left it in the car.

“Hey Mom!” Em gives her a hug. I stand awkwardly in the doorway waiting to be introduced. Her parents are sitting together on the couch. The Jays are playing the Indians and the game is on mute. This is good. They have a record playing. They still play/maybe collect vinyl! This is good. It’s some band from the 70’s but I can’t quite place it. Foghat? Bad Company? Jackson Browne? So far we have two things in common.

“This is Roger.” She points to me. I shake hands with both and give them both a “Nice to meet you.”

“We’ve heard a lot about you Roger” Is what her dad responds with. This phrase is so cliché, but is what he’s saying a good thing. Is he a man-eating husband who protects his daughter? Fuck. I return an awkward smile and a shoulder shrug because I’m so shy.

“Em, your boots are upstairs. You should also grab your parka; it’s going to get really cold soon.”

“Mmkay, let’s go.”

She’s leaving me alone down here?!?! Oh fuck. Ohfuckohfuckohfuck. I’m probably going to die. He is going to jump off the couch and stick his hands right through my body and yank out my kidneys because I’ve had sex with his daughter. Oh fuck.

Em and her mom leave to go upstairs to gather all her shit. I’m panicking inside. I look at the TV. Jose Molina just struck out.

“Ah, he’s been having a tough time at the plate this year.”

See Dad! I like sports!

“Yea, though I guess they didn’t sign him for his bat.”

Touché.

“Do you think they’ll keep him around next year?”

“We’ll see I guess”

“I figure Buck will leave and we’ll keep Molina around to show Arencibia the ropes”

“Yea, he is still rough defensively. I guess we’ll see what happens.” I try to say this with an air of perpetual disappointment in the team. So it feels like I’m really saying “Well, here comes another season of rebuilding.”

He laughs. This visit is officially a victory. Got to appreciate the small things, right?

Around this point the song on the record player ends and the next one begins. As soon as the thumping bass line begins, I knew I should have recognized the band. Instantly a smug little grin spreads across my face. I try to hide it so her Dad won’t think I’m some kind of smart-ass or worse, some socially awkward weirdo.

I hear some walking upstairs, which I assume means that Em and her Mom are coming back downstairs. I’m relieved because I won’t have to awkwardly sit and act like I’m so enthralled by the Toronto Blue Jays that I can’t look away from the TV.

I was right and can hear the two talking as they approach the living room. I keep glancing over to the doorway because I want to be able to catch Em’s reaction when she enters the room and hears the song. I’m hoping that her father isn’t catching how much my pupils have been darting back and forth. If he did he would definitely know that I’m nervous about meeting him and probably think I was just counting down the moments until the girls got back to the room. I don’t want this to happen. Especially because it’s completely true.

As they enter the room, her mom hums the words and kind of half-dances skips over to the couch and sits down next to her husband. This is good. It probably means that she’s a “young at heart” type of adult. My guess is that she’s well into her forties, but she still enjoys the things from her youth. I like that because it means it will be easier to get along with her. I shoot a quick glance over to Em and she’s already giving me an amazing little smile with an “Oh yeah, I noticed” look in her eyes. I do a status check on myself.

Heart: Melted.

Knees: Weak.

Palms: Sweaty and cold.

Chest: Light as a feather.

This is why I’m so infatuated with this young woman. Even in a situation where my anxieties and nervousness are really getting  the best of me and internally I’m pulling out my hair and freaking out, she remedy all of this instantly with only a look and a smile.

We took off shortly after this and I think the trip was a success. Her Dad didn’t seem cold and her Mom seemed really nice and easy to get along with. Now all I have to do is impress her friends at a party tonight and I’m in the clear.

Things are looking up.

Vacation Was Better Than Any Album That Came Out This Year

Well, it's that time of year again. I'm sure all of you are clamoring over each other to try to get to my blog and be the first to read my "Year-End" music bullshit. Once again I decided to forgo ranking each album because, like I said last year, I found it to be an exercise in futility trying to decide where albums that I loved more or less equally should be ranked near the top of the list. So fuck it! A lot of rambling and then I decide what number 1 should be because let's get real, that's the only that matters.

The Sidekicks- Awkward Breeds

The Sidekicks are another one of those bands I should have gotten into a long time ago. I knew that Punknews had named them the "album of the year" a few years ago but, as is usually the case, I just never got around to checking them out. Then I saw them open for Bomb The Music Industry! in 2011 and was absolutely floored by their performance. Seriously, they are easily one of the five best live bands on the planet, no question and no room for discussion. Weight of Air was really my jam, so while I was really stoked for them to put out new material, I was also apprehensive as I was almost positive that it would live up to their previous release. But of course I was being a jackass and forgot this vital piece of information: THE SIDEKICKS ARE ONE OF THE BEST BANDS IN THE WORLD. This album is fucking great. It's rockier and little less groovy than Weight of Air (in my opinion), but I like that the band is moving towards a little more of a power-pop direction (in the Weezer sense of the term "power-pop"). The vocals are amazing because Steve is uncannily good at singing, there's some great guitar stuff, the basslines aren't over-the-top but fit the songs great and their drummer just pounds the shit out of his kit. Great job all around on this release, it really shows on of the most interesting, nicest and talented bands around at the top of their game. Let's smoke weed together one day guys.

Cheap Girls- Giant Orange
Some of my friends weren't as into this release as My Roaring 20's because this album didn't vary tracks enough and they thought it kind of ran together. I wholeheartedly disagree. While it's obvious there isn't as much change between tracks, I really like that the album is just front-to-back poppy alt-rock songs that get stuck in your head for days. The album totally has a bunch of Cheap Girls' best tracks, because if you deny the awesomeness of "Mercy Go-Round", "Gone All Summer" or "Ruby", then you wrong son.

Gaslight Anthem- Handwritten
I like Gaslight Anthem, but not as much as most people like Gaslight Anthem. I always thought they would be amazing as a rough, punky rock-pop band, which is I guess what they did on this album. Sounds great to me. "45" is the best Gaslight song, shouts out to my haters.

Title Fight- Floral Green
For some reason a lot of people I know lump in Title Fight with Four Year Strong/Story So Far/etc even though they sound absolutely nothing like that. I also think that are a victim of the hype machine and people really want to not like them only because of how excited people get about their music. They are all dummys because Title Fight is basically the best 90's emo band right now. Shed was a huge step forward for them and Floral Green is an even bigger one. I was skeptical about them putting out another album so fast (as usual) but that skepticism was entirely unwarranted (as usual). The band is getting way better at writing cohesive songs and is gettin' real good at melody. Get sad fuckers.

Mindset- Leave No Doubt.i.
I guess it's kind of weird considering how often I indulge in things, but straightedge Youth Crew hardcore is my favourite type of hardcore. While I appreciate when bands really try to expand their boundaries and add new elements to a genre that can became real stale real quick when not done right, there's still nothing that gets me going like some fast, simple, pseudo-metaly riffs and shout. Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme SHELTER.
PUMP IT.

Less Than Jake- Greetings and Salutations

The thing about Less Than Jake is that they are my favourite band, so it's hard for me to not like anything they do. I mean, I even listen to In With The Crowd with some regularity for Christ's sake. So even when they are compiling two EPS, adding two songs and calling it an album and the songs all kind of sound like the most generic LTJ material and the album as a whole is pretty close to the bottom of my Less Than Jake discography, I still have to love it because there's nothing I can do about it. Holy fuck do I love me some Less Than Jake bruh.

And honestly, there's no band that brings a smile to my face as often as LTJ does. That's why I lub 'em so much. They'll be my faves foreva!

Hostage Calm- Please Remain Calm
Like I said for the Mindset album, Youth Crew worship (or just Youth Crew in general) is my favourite type of hardcore, so I obvi loved Lens a whole lot. And while I loved gettin' mah breakdown on their old stuff, I really liked how crazy and innovative and fresh their self-titled album was. Since they went in such a different direction for their second record, I was eager to see how they would change for this one and the description of "", I got really excited because I love John Hughes movies and that sounded to me like Hostage Calm was trying to write their version of an 80's John Hughes movie. So that was the attitude I went into the album with . Worked for me. I think it's a really great sounding pop record and the choruses are way too catchy to care about anything.
Stream. It's also only 5 bones.

Such Gold- Misadventures
Such Gold are another band who I think gets lumped in with the wrong crowd. While the first EP was for sure a pop-punk/hardcoreish effort, I thought the second one sounded like a poppier/more melodic Snapcase in the best way (RIFFS). I was really stoked for this one because of how much I jammed Pedestals and was pretty satisfied. It's a lot faster and shreddier than their previous album and I'm cool with that. They're a great band who tours a lot and works hard and deserves everything they get.

The Nix86- Evil Empurr
The thing about the 90's most people don't realize is that along with the amazingly shitty parts of the ska explosion in the 90s (Sublime, pretty much all No Doubt after Tragic Kingdom, Save Ferris) a lot of really good independent were around but didn't get noticed, like The Hippos or The Impossibles. An area that was especially rich with these types of bands was Long Island. That scene has carried on for a long time (I was astonished at how awesome the crowd was when I saw a ska show in New York last year) and produced a lot of awesome bands who would always blow me away when they toured to Canada. They were always older and cooler and played better-written songs than pretty much every Toronto band (At least we had the Makeshift Heroes). The Nix86 is comprised of members from those bands and sounds like those bands. For people who feel nostalgia towards poppy ska-punk and are far above their h8erz to still listen to it, this album is a must. Easily one of the best ska bands making music right now.
Stream dat. Also only 5 bux.

Municipal Waste- The Fatal Feast

By this point you know what you are getting from the Waste as they're a crossover band that's put out five records. That's not to say this is a bad thing though, as The Fatal Feast is probably the best that the band has ever sounded. They moved away a little from hardcore/thrash crossover and a lot more towards straight-up 80's style thrash metal, but they do the style extremely well so there's nothing wrong with that. There's plenty of A+ Megadeth-style chug riffs and much more shredding than previous albums. Basically, it sounds like each member sat down and practiced playing Peace Sells... songs a whole bunch. Less songs about drinking and smoking weed, more about eating each other while in space. They're the best thrash band around right now. Into it bruh.

John K. Sampson- Provincial
If you are in a band you need to have a level of self-confidence in order to play your songs and show them to people. You need to think your songs are good enough that people who you don't know will enjoy them. You need to have enough self-confidence to record your ideas when you come up with them. Keeping all this in mind, you are not better at writing songs than John K Samson. He's kind of the bench mark. I could say something about this record, but if you really have no idea what it could sound like you are either stupid or extremely stupid for not listening to The Weakerthans. A whole whack of heartfelt stories about life in The Prairies. Getcha cry on dawg.
Feel all the feels.

Ma Jolie- ...Compared To Giants
Ma Jolie is kind of rough, but also poppy in the same way that Iron Chic or Samiam are. They are real good and I think going to be the next big thing on the ol' 'org. Great album, "Era and the Metric System" is especially my jam.

FREE TUNES.

3. Classics of Love- Classics Of Love
When I was first getting into punk, one of the first bands I got into was Rancid. While I was listening to Rancid my brother said I should listen to their older band Operation Ivy and showed me a few songs. I instantly realized how much better Op Ivy were than Rancid and how awesome the band was and they immediately entered regular rotation in my discman and haven't left since. They really are one of my favourite bands. Keeping this in mind, think about how happy a record of Jesse Michaels singing fast 80's hardcore (WITH TWO SKA SONGS) would make me. That is exactly how I feel. I lagged a little bit on getting into this (like a week bruh), but as soon as I heard the first track my jaw dropped. The sound of Jesse yelping socio-political lyrics over blisteringly fast hardcore-punk makes me feel more fuzzy than you can imagine. I can tell that this one is going to be something that I'll be going back to a bunch for years.

2. The Menzingers- On The Impossible Past

I'll admit that I was a little late to the party on The Menzingers. Most of my punk friends were head over heels for them after the release of Chamberlain Waits, but I held off on listening to that because I am dumb and sometimes it takes me forever to get around to things. Then I saw them live and they absolutely slayed and that made me listen to their tunes with a fresh perspective and I began to love them. I was pretty eager to hear On The Impossible Past after "The Obituaries" and "Gates" were released to hype it up. The worst thing that can happen with an album is that the best few songs off of it get released as teasers and then the rest of it seems drab. However that's not a problem here as the entire thing is amazing. The Menzingers are really maturing in their sound and starting incorporate more pop/rock elements, which I am totally for. The quality of the songwriting has also been dramatically stepped up on this effort, with both Greg and Tom hitting it out of the park on every song. While I wouldn't call this a concept album, there's enough of a central idea that it helps to make it more cohesive and adds to the experience of listening to it. The whole thing is sad in the best way and makes me want to yell along to every word. This probably would have been my album of the year if it wasn't for...

1. Jeff Rosenstock- I Look Like Shit
Pretty much as soon as I heard that a new Jeff Rosenstock album came out I knew that it would be my album of the year before I even heard it. I guessed right! I've touched on this album already, so no need to review. Get on Jeff's level, world.
IT'S FREE TOO

EPs

Shook Ones- Merriweather Post Pavillion
Shook Ones are a band that need to come back to playing full-time more than pretty much anyone else. They're really good. So while I can't see them live or anything, I guess that this EP is a decent substitute for the time being. They haven't missed a beat. I think the title track might be the song of the year.
M'ÉCOUTEZ S'IL VOUS PLAIT.

Topanga- Oceans
Let's get this out of the way real quick: Yes, their name is a great reference to a great TV show. That's for sure going to be the first thing most people remark about them, but they also have the tunes to keep you there after coming for their name. Topanga play poppy indie rock music and play it real well. It's way to catchy to hate it. I always bounce around while listening to this.
FREEFREEFREE

Snake Charmer- Demo
Think about what the heaviest band you know is. They are not as heavy as Snake Charmer. Not even close.

RAGEWITME

When Morning Comes I'm Just A Fool Who Repeats His Mistakes

Since it's almost that time of year again I figured that I would throw up a post that had all of my thoughts on Christmas.

This post is going to seem hilarious and jaded and hypocritical because a few years ago I wrote a post for this blog about how much I enjoyed Christmas and how it brings out the best in people. Since then I've completely changed my outlook on it. It's not that I don't enjoy Christmas, it's just that I'm indifferent to it. I still get to drink with some cousins I don't get to see enough and eat what is probably the best meal of the year, but it's just one day.

Obviously the reason most people go bananas for X-Mas is because they receive gifts. You can't really knock people for this, I mean who doesn't like receiving gifts. They're tokens of appreciation and usually things that you will really enjoy. What goes along with this is that most people also enjoy giving gifts because you get a great feeling when someone who you care about becomes happy as a result of something you've done. It's all pretty simple.

So while giving and receiving gifts is great, get over it. Haha. I guess that's all I really have to say about it. I mean does anyone really care that much? Be a nice and good person and do things for people the rest of the year instead of just late December?

What an anti-climax!

Nah, just kidding. Christmas is alright but people get way too worked up about it.

Later, gonna nurse this hangover and watch a trillion episodes of Farscape.