Italian Subs 101

Tomorrow begins that most wonderful time of the year – football season. For the next 23 weekends, all activities in the Rutledge household will be arranged around the television gridiron schedule. And since the Marzen (a.k.a. Oktoberfest) beer season generally begins around the same time, the arrival of September is always a doubly glorious occasion in my life. One ritual of ours is to consume Italian subs on game day (i.e., when Notre Dame plays). I’ve found that you can get a sub almost anywhere, but a genuine first-rate Italian sub is hard to come by. I, for one, think everything on the menu at Subway is gross. Luckily there’s a local establishment called The Deli of Italy that claims to sell “the best sandwiches in York”. Of course they’re making a truthful claim (it’s not like there’s much competition in that department!). Better yet, they are one of the few shops in the entire state that can properly make an Italian sub. A first-rate Italian sub has begun to rival the Philly cheesesteak for the title of most popular sandwich in our home. And since most people’s idea of an Italian sub is to just stuff some salami and ham into a roll, I will now summarize the key components to this heavyweight of the sandwich world:

The Roll

As is the case with a cheesesteak, a quality roll is crucial to the success of an Italian sub. Preferably, your roll is of the Italian style, slightly crunchy, and fresh-baked. A foot-long hot dog roll will not do.

The Meats

There’s nothing wrong with your basic deli ham. But for maximum flavor I prefer Italian cured pork cuts (Capocollo, Prosciutto) and bolongas (Soppressata, Mortadella) in tandem with Genoa or Sicilian salami. Some of these cold cuts may seem “chewier”, but from a taste standpoint they’re spicier, smokier, and far tastier than run-of-the-mill lunchmeat. As is the case with my beer-drinking habits, I have expensive tastes when it comes to cold cuts. I’ll think nothing of dropping nine bucks on a 12-inch Italian sub made with top-of-the-line imported meats. It’s worth it.

The Cheeses

Provolone is king, and fresh mozzarella is flat-out to die for. Come on: who puts American cheese on an Italian sub?

The Toppings

Start with your traditional hoagie toppings: lettuce, tomatoes, onions. Then pile on hot peppers. The topper should be a spicy, oil-and-vinegar based Italian dressing. Mmmm!

Our go-to Italian sub comes with Sicilian salami, capocollo, prosciutto, and fresh mozzarella. My wife likes to special-order hers, substituting mayo for the oil and provolone for the fresh mozzarella. She also skips the onions and hot peppers. I’m more of a traditionalist and love the zing of the peppers and oil. Either way, it’s the roll and the meats that really make the sandwich. I’ve not been able to replicate a Deli of Italy sub with store-bought ingredients, but I can at least mimic the spicy kick by using hoagie spread (a glorious mix of crushed red peppers and vinegar that’s popular on the East Coast) and Tallarico’s hot chip steak peppers. These two ingredients can give any ordinary sandwich that special “Philly” flavor. And while a Philly hoagie and an Italian sub are not necessarily the same thing (“Hoagie” in these parts is just regional slang for any sub), they’re at least close relatives. If you live in Maine, you probably think the Italian sub was invented there by Italian immigrants around the turn of the 20^th Century. But it’s just as likely that Philadelphia’s first versions of Italian subs, hoagies, were developed at the same time or even prior to it (in kind of the same way that The Ramones and Saints both “invented” punk rock in the early ‘70s without any knowledge of one another). The sub sandwich, like punk rock, has evolved somewhat over the decades. I like to think of the modern-day Italian sub as The Registrators' 16 Wires of hoagies – the best and most highly evolved! Seek one out and enjoy!

- L.R.

The Pegs KILL it!

Hey, folks! I got a good one for 'ya today! Up there with the all-time greats (The Crowd, Adolescents) and the best of their contemporary antecedents (Smogtown, Bonecrusher), The Pegs play classic surf-inflected Orange County hardcore. If you’re not yet familiar with this San Clemente five-piece, you’re missing out on one of the best current day punk bands. Together for a decade now, The Pegs have put out a bunch of seven-inches on world-renowned labels like Hostage and No Front Teeth Records. If you’re into streaming tunes on social networking sites like I am, there are some absolutely scorching Pegs songs playable on their ReverbNation and Myspace pages! “Livin’ at the Surf Motel”, “3 O’Clock Stop”, “Robot Romance”,  and “This Town” would not sound out of place on any compilation of O.C. punk classics - regardless of whether it was released in 1980, 2005, or any time in between. These dudes play it fast and furious, oozing attitude and coming hard with sing-along choruses and ripping guitar leads. Any way you slice it, this is just a great fucking band. Their sound is tight and powerful and ferocious like a pit bull - while exhibiting that knack for melody that seems to be hard-wired into every southern Californian’s DNA. Anyone who claims that today’s punk can’t possibly compare to “the old stuff” has obviously never heard The Pegs. Tune in. Play loud. Go nuts!

- L.R.

http://www.reverbnation.com/thepegs
http://www.myspace.com/thepegs

Crazy for the Crazy Squeeze!

Not since the Traveling Wilburys has there been a supergroup as universally anticipated as The Crazy Squeeze. If you were into the underground punk/rock n’ roll scene in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, you know who these guys are. You own their records. You bought them shots. You friended them on Myspace. And now they have joined forces to create a veritable justice league of punk rock! Where else but in Hollywood could Johnny Witmer (of The Stitches), Frankie Delmane (of Now Wave faves the Teenage Frames), Chris B. (of the Richmond Sluts), and Johnny Sleeper (of the Superbees) have come together to combine their prodigious & complementary talents for the betterment of the free world?! The Crazy Squeeze - now with Dat Ngo of the Shiteland Ponies in on bass - are everything you’d expect and then some. Combining vintage glam wham-bam (New York Dolls, Slade) with straight-up rockin’ punk, their sound is pure raunchy fun with hooks out the wazoo. You know: music for fucking! It’s just got that swagger. Of course Witmer is on fire on guitar, doing the Berry/Thunders thing like he was born for it (because, ya know, he was!). And with the criminally underrated songwriter Delmane involved, you know the songs are gonna be aces. If you like high-energy, sing-along rock n’ roll with ripping guitars and an irresistible backbeat, go straight to “Boys Are Gonna Be Here Soon” and “Out of My Head” and fall in love! Yes, sir! “All Lies” slows the tempo and brings a harder edge, but it proves to be equally great. With a full-length album due out soon, the Crazy Squeeze are poised to be the next big thing in punk rock n’ roll. If you enjoyed the Dolls, Joneses, Loose Lips, or any of these guys’ old bands, it’s time to get on board the Crazy Squeeze bandwagon. Pour yourself a hard drink and shake it!

- L.R.

http://www.myspace.com/thecrazysqueeze
http://www.facebook.com/thecrazysqueeze

Husker Du or The Replacements?

You had to know this one was coming. This one’s a stone cold classic in the annals of band battles. It’s a Twin Cities throwdown! And it’s hard! You’re talking about two of the greatest bands of all-time. You’re talking about two of the most influential acts ever on this punk/indie/alternative thing we’re all so crazy about. You’re talking about two bands that flat-out changed the world.

Let me say that I love, love, love, love, love, love The Replacements. In my list of all-time favorite bands of any genre, The Replacements come in at #4 or 5. But Husker Du is my #3. If I had to pick here (which is the whole point of the exercise!), I pick Husker Du without a moment of hesitation. Husker Du was my gateway band into the world of punk rock. “I Apologize” literally changed my world forever. I heard it, and it was as if this was the kind of music I’d been waiting for all my life. I loved buying all their tapes (yes, back then we listened to tapes!) and discovering the many phases of their much-too-brief career. The early hardcore punk stuff, the epic boundary-pushing of Zen Arcade, the classic melodic punk of New Day Rising, the more “adult” proto alt-rock of their Warner Brothers albums...I loved it all. The Replacements would come on my scene later, and no doubt that was a life-changing development in its own right. But a man never forgets his first love. It’s a cliché to say, “There will never be another band like that again”. But in the case of Husker Du, it’s the truth.

Now it’s your call. Who ya gonna take: Husker Du or The Replacements?

- L.R.

An important announcement...

I had, for a number of years, been fairly certain that “Search and Destroy” was the greatest rock n’ roll song ever recorded. But another song, “All Kinsda Girls” by the Real Kids, always seemed worthy of “co-greatest” consideration. I tried to avoid any drastic revisions of my list by just saying that “All Kinsda Girls” was the greatest pop song ever recorded. But the implication, then, was that “All Kindsa Girls” was somehow less “rock n’ roll” than “Search and Destroy”. And truthfully, “All Kindsa Girls” is as rock n’ roll as rock n’ roll gets. Some people call the Real Kids “power pop”. Others might call them “punk”. But I say they’re straight-up rock n’ roll. Publicly, I can no longer have my cake and eat it too. If “All Kindsa Girls” is really the greatest song ever, then it has to surpass “Search and Destroy” on my list of the greatest rock n’ roll songs of all-time. They can’t both be #1. Alright, then: let the record show that alterations have been made! This is a milestone moment for me! And if I’m going to tinker with my list, I might as well be 100 percent happy with it. On that note, The Dictators’ “Stay With Me” now holds the #2 position. “Search and Destroy” has been bumped to third. Position #4 goes to “Pill Box” by The Joneses. The fifth spot is up for grabs…

- L.R.

Don’t believe the hype

Dream team, my ass! My Eagles will be lucky to go 9-7 this season. Sure, they upgraded in the secondary. Sure, they’ve got weapons all over the field on offense. But they’ve got perhaps the worst linebacking corps in the NFL, a mediocre-at-best offensive line, and a star quarterback who never adjusted once defenses figured out how to stop him late last season. If Mike Vick plays a full season without sustaining a major injury, it will be a minor miracle. And if freaking Vince Young has to take over at quarterback for more than a couple games, forget about it! Season over. Seriously, if this team somehow wins the NFC East, I will publicly admit that Andy Reid is the greatest coach in the history of the franchise. Maybe I should anyway.

Elsewhere, here’s how I see it playing out:

The winner in the NFC East will be neither this year’s paper champion Eagles nor last year’s paper champion Cowboys. I like the Giants to take the division with a 10-6 record. The Packers and Falcons will cruise to division titles, and the NFC West will be a mess as always. The 49ers will play well for new coach Jim Harbaugh, but poor quarterback play will be the team’s undoing. The same fate awaits the Cards and Seahawks. In the end, St. Louis will be the default division winners at 9-7. Look for Sam Bradford to surpass 3500 yards passing and 25 touchdowns. Wildcards will be one surprise (Detroit) and one non-surprise (New Orleans). The Lions are probably still another year away from really breaking through, but I think they’ll slide into the playoffs at 9-7 (beating the Cowboys in a tiebreaker).

I forecast a very predictable year in the AFC, with the usual suspects dominating. New England, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and San Diego - perennial powers led by franchise quarterbacks – will be landslide division winners. Baltimore, a great all-around team stuck in the same division as the Steelers, will be a wildcard at 11-5. The obvious choice for the second wildcard is the Jets, and a lot of people are talking up the Texans. But I’m predicting a surprise renaissance for the Denver Broncos and new coach John Fox, who will go 9-7 and get the second wildcard spot. The Jets and Texans will both go 8-8. Also look for the Cleveland Browns to make a serious playoff push.

In the playoffs, the 13-3 Falcons will ride home field advantage all the way. The AFC games will be fiercely contested, with the Patriots the last team standing. The Pats will win the Super Bowl in a rout, giving Bill Belichick his fourth ring. The “Andrew Luck bowl” will be won by the 2-14 Bengals, although the Redskins and Bills will stay in the running to the end.

Take these insights to Vegas. If you win big, all I want for my cut is a four-pack of Founders Breakfast Stout.

- L.R.

Another Album of the Year Contender...

Believe it or not, this is the first time I’ve ever reviewed the Cute Lepers! I think the band had one 7” out at the time I put Now Wave to bed, and in the ensuing years they’ve done at least another six EPs and three full-length albums. That tells you how long I was out of the game! But it’s never too late to start championing a great band, and latest LP Adventure Time easily makes my album of the year short-list (current tour mates Something Fierce still lead that field, by the way!). Call me nuts, but I think I might like the Cute Lepers just a little bit more than The Briefs. It’s really close. Both of Steve E.’s bands faithfully cling to an unrepentant ’77 pogo punk M.O., but with the Cute Lepers the added new wave/power pop angle really suits my personal tastes. If you’re like me and treasure your Rezillos, Vapors, and Elvis Costello records just as much as your Gen X and Buzzcocks titles, this is an album you are sure to dig. I’ve read multiple reviews of Adventure Time that find fault with its lack of an “edge”, and that just makes me chuckle. This isn’t supposed to be a hardcore record. It’s the Cute Lepers, man! It’s supposed to be poppy! And it sure as hell isn’t supposed to be original! What it is, though, is high quality and infectious fun from the get-go. Put this album on, and you just have to smile (and jump around, too!). Steve E. and co. may be punk rock classicists, but they are not pale imitators. If they stick to the tried-and-true, it’s because they’re really freaking good at it! Catchy, up-tempo songs prevail a la the band’s previous two albums, so you might find this all a pointless re-hash if you’re the type of person who minds, uh, “stylistic stagnation”. But this is my blog – we celebrate stylistic stagnation! As far as I’m concerned, the Cute Lepers can make ten more albums just like this one if they continue to write songs this good. I dare you to deny that “All This Attention Is Killing Me” would fit in perfectly on any compilation of classic ’77 punk songs! And it’s not like there’s been zero progression from the last record. Saxophone and piano effectively add new wrinkles on nifty album opener “Tribute to Charlie”, and the infusion of girl group harmonies hits a high note on tracks like “Head Over Heels” and “She Liked Helter Skelter”. Adventure Time is pretty much an instant pogo party. There surely are individuals who question why such a thing should exist in the year 2011. Those people, thank God, do not read this blog.

- L.R.

http://www.reverbnation.com/thecutelepers