Category Archives: Epitaph

Don’t Want to Have to Call You up From a Pay Phone

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This is supposed to be a post about Set Your Goals, the sixpiece “post-hardcore” or “hardcore infused with pop” band from San Francisco. The band formed in 2004 and was fortunate enough to go on tour with The Warriors based off an EP they had recorded. They ended up signing with The Warriors’ label, Eulogy, and followed up the re-release of their EP with their first studio album, Mutiny! in 2006.

I thought Mutiny! was a decent freshman effort. Someone else must have thought so, too, because they went on tour with Anti-Flag and Alexisonfire the following year. Then in 2008, Set Your Goals played the entire summer on Warped Tour and got a contract on Epitaph Records in early 2009.

Influences such as this should make a dent on a punk band.

But This Will Be The Death of Us, released in July of this year, seems to take a step backwards. There is so much life and energy in Mutiny! that you would think could have been harnessed into excellent, mind-melting guitar riffs and stronger-than-ever lyrics, but it didn’t. I don’t know what happened. Instead, this album is full of lay-it-on-too-thick double bass and lay-it-on-too-cheesy rebellious rants you might hear from a fledgling teenage punk band, but not a bunch of guys in their late 20’s who have been around absolute legends in the punk industry.

[Download Set Your Goals – Summer Jam]

These sugary, anthem-y chants in This Will Be The Death of Us reminded me of another band: Hawk Nelson. This is an energetic punk band from Canada which has been around since 2004. They also happen to be a Christian band, which obviously precludes them from ever being invited to tour along with Alexisonfire or most of the other punk godfathers.

Somehow, though, the boys in Hawk Nelson have managed to polish their craft with every album they put out. They don’t get played on mainstream radio, although they did appear on a major motion picture and did get nominated for a Grammy. They don’t get invited to go on tour with anyone but other Christian bands or Christian festivals.

[Download Hawk Nelson – Long and Lonely Road]

But put almost any of Hawk Nelson’s singles up against any track on This Will Be The Death of Us and the only difference you will hear is a better execution by the Canadian boys. I ask what is the point of putting Set Your Goals on Epitaph at all. Compare “Let’s Dance” from Hawk Nelson and “Look Closer” from Set Your Goals.

[Download Hawk Nelson – Let’s Dance]

[Download Set Your Goals – Look Closer]

That’s how this post which was supposed to be about Set Your Goals becomes a post about Hawk Nelson. Would you like to hear some music that actually makes you get up and jump? Are you really going to overlook a decent band because they are Christian?

Check out some Hawk Nelson. They have a fourth studio album on its way next month, but below you can get the mp3 off the new release.

Baby Baby Baby! It’s Always Baby Baby Baby!

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New Found Glory kicks off an enormous tour today with a show in Brisbane, Australia. In the coming months they will blow through Australia, Japan, coast to coast in America, Canada, keep the eastward momentum going throughout Europe, and wrap it up in Germany by June. Amazing. And I know they are going to kick ass and have the time of their lives on this insane trek. I may have to jump over to the L.A. area to catch a show in March.

These boys are batshit bonkers. I love them to death. They’ve been churning out pure skinny kid punk rock (that’s a genre I may have just made up. I’m not saying the NFG fellas are all skinny kids) for more than ten years. Two of my favorite albums from NFG are covers from movie soundtracks. In 2000 they released From The Screen To Your Stereo with adorable, fun, sped-up tracks like “The Neverending Story” and “Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough”, and this gem which catches my breath every time. There exists a video of them playing this acoustic which I’ve never been able to properly copy. It’s just beautiful though:

[New Found Glory – The Glory of Love]

This was such a great idea that they reprised it in 2007 with From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II with all kinds of greats, but again, it just melts my heart to hear this Cash cover. Listen all the way to the end for your special treat:

[New Found Glory – It Ain’t Me Babe]

NFG loves to use the interwebs and video cams to have fun. Currently on their myspace site you can get involved in their latest: NFG: A Game By New Found Glory where you can use the band members as your fighters, to promote the album, Not Without a Fight. Over the years they’ve done podcasts, crazy music videos, and other silly shit that reminds us all not to take ourselves too seriously. Check out the promo video and notice the big man himself, Brett G of Epitaph (slash Bad Religion), narrating. By the way, if my lame attempt to manipulate html (I’m not a code monkey, I only sleep with one)is successful, you can pre-order the new album to the right:

NFG Press Conference

Speaking of not taking yourself too seriously, I think this was maybe what happened when they recorded the album Coming Home. I still have mad love for them. I still sang along to the sappy songs on that album. But it honestly sounded like it was recorded specifically in hopes of getting radio play (oh no! Am I dissing radio AGAIN?!) Don’t let that turn you off. It was clean and well-performed, but I don’t think it really represented their sound and their shtick well.

Catch their show as they come blazing across the globe. And pick up any albums you may have missed along the way below: