Barpinson - Population

Well here's something I think you all will like! Barpinson is the solo project from Prabu Pramayougha, whom you might know from Indonesian pop-punk greats Saturday Night Karaoke. Population is the name of the debut EP. If you just glanced at the cover art, you might not have any idea what kind of music awaits you when you push play. No, this is not an emo record at all. It's classic power pop with just a touch of '90s pop-punk and alt rock influence. On this EP, Prabu really shows his love for Stiff Records and late '70s/early '80s new wave/power pop in general (he even covers "Foreign Girls" by The Tours). 

What I appreciate about these songs is that they go a little deeper lyrically than power pop songs typically do. "Freaky Adoration" reflects on why so many people spend so much time attacking and demonizing people they don't even know. "Don't you think it's kinda odd to hate someone a lot?" is a perfect lyric that really hits the nail on the head. In the most thoughtful way, Prabu asks all the hate-mongers out there to reflect on their choices....and to get a life! "Dance Off!", driven by the refrain "Baby, baby, baby, keep on dancing," is pretty self-explanatory. Inspired by the research of psychologist Dr. Clare Mehta's, "Mid 30s" finds Prabu reflecting on his own experiences navigating "established adulthood." Again, this is heady stuff for a power pop song, but the music and lyrics never feel disjointed. 

All in all, Barpinson's debut EP is a highly promising effort that ought to please fans of both power pop and pop-punk. It shows a slightly different side of Prabu Pramayougha — reflecting both his musical and personal growth in recent years. I myself have aged past that "rush hour of life," but I can sure remember being there like it was just yesterday. I really dig this record and hope this is not the last we hear from Barpinson!

-L.R.

https://barpinson.bandcamp.com/album/population
https://www.tiktok.com/@barpinson

The Kung Fu Monkeys - Surfer en France!

What a glorious thing it is to have another surprise holiday single from The Kung Fu Monkeys magically appear just when the world needed it the most! There are not many things that could make 2025 feel like an encouraging year for Planet Earth, but this is certainly one of them. For this release, James Cahill and co. are Les Kung Fu Monkeys, and "Surfer en France!" is sung entirely in French. Clocking in at one minute, 47 seconds, this particular single has a bit of a KFM throwback feel to it — right down to the jaunty surf-pop vibes and Dyna Moe cover art. I'm pretty sure as I stepped outside the other morning, the faint echoes of celebration I heard in the distance were the collective gleeful exclamations of every late '90s/early 2000s pop-punk kid discovering that this song now exists. And of course it's an earworm of epic proportions. The song's bridge, an homage to Bobby "Boris" Pickett, cleverly suggests that this is something more than just a happy-go-lucky surf rocker (assuming my understanding of French isn't way off-base). 

It was never bearable to go through life referring to The Kung Fu Monkeys in the past tense. And now that I have it on good authority that the band has a bunch of songs written that may indeed be recorded one way or another in the very near future, it's somehow easier to feel just a little more optimistic about everything under the sun. Avec une hache, faisons une haché des monstres!

-L.R.

https://thekungfumonkeys.bandcamp.com/album/surfer-en-france

The Control Freaks - TV Generation

Here's what you were waiting for, kids! Back with their fourth album, The Control Freaks do what The Control Freaks do best. I couldn't quite put my finger on why I enjoy this band so much until Greg Lowery himself described the music he writes as "fast, catchy, stupid punk rock." YES! That's it! TV Generation, out today on Sweet Time Records, is 12 tracks of fast, catchy, stupid punk rock done to perfection. To me, there's nothing harder to do in music than write simple songs. So the genius of Greg Lowery should not go unappreciated. If you liked the first three Control Freaks album, you are sure to like this one as well. And if you didn't like the first three Control Freaks albums, there's almost no way you're reading this right now. 

It has occurred to me that today's punk rock scene would be far better off if there were more bands out there still ripping off Greg Lowery. But in the absence of that, at least we can count on Greg Lowery to still sound like Greg Lowery. For TV Generation, the band lineup has changed. Amy Munoz returns on rhythm guitar and vocals. Matt K. Shrugg (Zodiac Killers, Losin' Streaks) is on lead guitar. New drummer totally Mike kills it, but you might not want to get too attached to him since he has already left the band. As for the album, you know what to expect. Every song clocks in somewhere around two minutes, and there's no messing around with a winning formula. This is fun and brilliantly dumb three-chord punk rock with a fuck-you attitude and songs that will have you bobbing your head and singing along. With the opening 1-2 punch of "Burn It Down" and "TV Generation," you are quickly assured that the G.O.A.T.'s magic touch remains fully in tact. No aspirations of modernization or maturity are apparent. Songs like "Pathetic," "Panic Attack," "Please Don't Hate Me," and "You're So Revolting" live up to their promising titles. 

Leave it to Sweet Time Records, which has become THE label for primo garage punk in the 2020s, to have the good sense to put out this record. Is this the best Control Freaks album yet? Well I certainly won't say that it's not! The first 100 copies are on neon green vinyl. And in case you've been living in a cave since 2017 and don't own any of The Control Freaks' albums, you can get all four in a very limited edition box set for just 80 bucks. Now that's a deal and a steal!

-L.R.

https://thecontrolfreaks.bandcamp.com/album/tv-generation
https://sweettime.bandcamp.com/album/tv-generation
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKDbanNA-ciqeDB2rbDkgpA
https://www.facebook.com/ControlFreaksSF/
https://www.instagram.com/controlfreaksband/
https://www.facebook.com/sweettimebooking/

Matthew Julian - The Wayside (songs that fell)

For the first time since 2023, Matt Julian from The Speedways has chosen to share some of his private demo recordings with the world. As many songwriters do, Julian keeps a folder of rough or unfinished demos of songs that were never properly recorded and perhaps never will be. As a creative person, you sometimes have to explore all your idea ideas and see what works and what doesn't. The Wayside (songs that fell) is the title of Julian's latest collection of demos. These are songs that literally fell by the wayside. While these recordings were never intended for outside ears, there must have been something promising in each track that compelled Julian to let the world hear them. As a massive Speedways fan, I really enjoy hearing demo recordings of songs that didn't quite become Speedways songs but probably could have. Four of these songs were written this year, and one ("Best Friend") has been around forever. It might be fun to guess which of these songs (if any) got the closest to being properly recorded. I'm quite fond of "A Leg to Stand On," which is jangly and rainy-day melancholy in that distinctive Matt Speedway manner. I hear a little Buddy Holly shining through in "She Likes to Dance." With a proper recording budget and full band, "Nothing I Understand" could almost be a Def Leppard power ballad. "Bodies of Lovers" finds Julian in rare form lyrically. And certainly there has to be a reason why "Best Friend" has been rescued from the dustbin of history. 

The next Speedways LP has been written and should be completed at some point next year. By the time it's released, we will have waited nearly four years in between albums. So we've got something big to look forward to in 2026. In the meantime, The Wayside is well-worth £3 and 12 minutes of your time.  "____ is so talented that they piss away better songs than most people will ever write" is the joke we sometimes make about certain songwriters. Perhaps that's no joke at all.

-L.R.

https://mattspeedway.bandcamp.com/album/the-wayside

Perfect Buzz - Happy Trails

From Portland, Oregon — one of the greatest music scenes in the universe — we are now introduced to the aptly named Perfect Buzz. Perfect Buzz are Petey, Luke, and Wes. Petey was in Pure Country Gold and the Suicide Notes, so the pedigree is undeniable. With Perfect Buzz, he has crafted a unique sound that fits nicely into the Pacific Midwest garage rock lane but also incorporates elements of first wave punk, power pop, post-punk, and the louder side of '90s alt-rock. Happy Trails, the trio's new EP, ought to appeal to readers of this publication without necessarily sounding like other bands I review. These tunes definitely put the rock in indie rock with heavy guitars, slamming drums, and aggressive but melodic vocals. Whatever's in the air in the Pacific Northwest is deeply embedded in this band's musical DNA. "Mess Around" and "You're Wrong" open this record with a formidable 1-2 punch of sonic thunder. "Here Come the Cowgirls" is excellent tuneful garage rock. The post-punk influence is more apparent on "Gonna Make You Sweat," but the song still rocks hard enough to peel the paint off the walls. In a good way, my reaction to hearing any of these songs would be, "Did this come out in 1993?" This is super-cool stuff that's well worth a listen. A physical release on 10-inch vinyl is coming early in the new year!

-L.R.

https://perfectbuzz.bandcamp.com/album/happy-trails
https://open.spotify.com/album/4WzOtcuwTH3BFYE5VPxAA9
https://www.instagram.com/perfectbuzzzz/

The Lemon Drop Gang - "My Mind's Got a Mind of its Own!" b/w "Wine Song"

There's nothing I like more than a nice surprise, and a brand-new single from the mighty Lemon Drop Gang seemingly released out of the blue on the one-and-only Rum Bar Records certainly qualifies as such! Since I've been so willing to die on the hill of The Lemon Drop Gang being perhaps the best band on the entire Rum Bar roster, I had to hope that Steph, Johnny, and friends weren't going to take a musical left turn and suddenly start sounding like Blues Traveler or something. So I'm thrilled to report that the new single, "My Mind's Got a Mind of its Own!" b/w "Wine Song" (or Mind and Wine for short) is 100% vintage Lemon Drop Gang. The band remains in its signature lane of punk-influenced, endearingly odd desert garage pop for hopeless romantics or the just plain hopeless. And as you'd expect from a band that has concentrated on releasing music in the singles format, the quality of the songs is as stellar as ever. 

"My Mind's Got a Mind of its Own!" is one of the band's most wildly rocking tunes: think early Kinks meets class of 1966 American garage rock with a pinch of that Lemon Drop Gang secret sauce. Who can't relate to the sentiment of this song? Sometimes we think we're controlling our brains, but really our brains are controlling us. Is this the stuff of science fiction or just an honest reflection of the human condition? You be the judge! This is an A-1, five-star Steph O'Halloran vocal performance as she manages to pull us all into the depths of madness. And the band is right there with her, kicking up a righteous racket that will have you dancing all the way to the edge and beyond. What an absolute stomper this song is! On the virtual B-side, "Wine Song" infuses the band's deliciously dark pop sound with old school music hall vibes. This is the band's most sincere love ballad to date — an ode to a glorious, venerable beverage and its numerous magical powers. Remember when singles were always two songs? The Lemon Drop Gang still abides by that. Remember when B-sides were usually filler? The Lemon Drop Gang does not subscribe to such nonsense. If they're going to go to the trouble to release a single, you better be emotionally prepared for two hits! 

By my count, Mind and Wine is The Lemon Drop Gang's fifth single in the last three years, and the band's hot streak remains very much in tact. With this latest offering, the band is kicking on all cylinders, and both tracks are out of this world. To say I'm not disappointed would be an understatement. I was expecting a ten out of ten, and they found a way to take it to eleven. If a better way to spend $2 exists, I sure haven't heard of it!

-L.R.

https://rumbarrecords.bandcamp.com/album/mind-and-wine
https://www.facebook.com/lemondropgang/
https://www.facebook.com/RumBarRecords/
https://www.instagram.com/rumbarrecords/

Dimmicks - self-titled EP

Dimmicks from Toulouse, France are here with a debut release that practically defines perfect pop-punk music. There's little else that needs to be said about this EP. This is the way this type of music ought to be played. These songs are catchy as hell yet hit plenty hard, and they're the epitome of high-spirited sing-along fun. If three-chord tunes chock full of peppy harmonies, cool pop culture references (these folks really like Quentin Tarantino movies!), stick-in-your-head melodies, and super-tasty guitar hooks sound like your cup of tea, Dimmicks are absolutely the band for you. I just love this band's energy, and all six of these tracks are stone-cold earworms. Anyone looking for some infectious pop-punk that totally rocks will want to turn their attention to southern France!

-L.R.

https://dimmicks.bandcamp.com/album/dimmicks
https://open.spotify.com/album/67yemEvDyhZDBcxXg9G4wK
https://www.facebook.com/thedimmicks
https://www.instagram.com/thedimmicks/#