The False Positives - "Bye Bye Baby"

I previously identified The False Positives as a New York based band with a "Boston" type sound. Well now the band has established Boston as its home base, and singer/guitarist Dave Harrison finds himself reunited with Voodoo Dolls drummer Bruce Pierce! Harrison calls this the "new version of False Positives 2.0", and new single "Bye Bye Baby" finds the band continuing to live in the territory where garage rock, power pop, and straight-ahead rock and roll intersect. Produced and recorded by Pierce at American Bull Studios, this is the ninth False Positives single (and first to be recorded in Massachusetts). It's a catchy little breakup song that's a whole lot of fun to sing along with. Like all of The False Positives singles, it's available from all the usual streaming sites and is a name your price download from Bandcamp. Best believing!

-L.R.

https://thefalsepositives.bandcamp.com/track/bye-bye-baby
https://www.facebook.com/falsepositivesband
https://www.instagram.com/the_false_positives/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLwR91I_FN_UheJV1oZSU_Q

Beebe Gallini - "You Ain't Getting Nothin"

In addition to being one of the best garage rock bands going, Beebe Gallini is well-known for its ability to cover the hell out of a song. So of course you could expect this band to turn out a first-rate Christmas single! Teaming up with local legend Cindy Lawson, St. Paul's finest rock and roll outfit has gifted us with a double shot of holiday goodness on Rum Bar Records. Listening to the garage ripper "You Ain't Getting Nothin", you would never in a million years guess that this was a Goo Goo Dolls song. Miss Georgia Peach takes full ownership of the song with her usual powerhouse vocal, and simply put this tune freaking rocks! You would swear it was written decades ago! On the virtual flipside, the band is right in its element with a truly excellent rendition of the Stevie Wonder classic "What Christmas Means To Me" (featuring MGP and Lawson on co-lead vocals). The girl group and Motown vibes are strong and undeniable. Given my reluctance to overshare Christmas music this time of the year, I've adopted a standard where I'll only review holiday releases that are simply too good to ignore. This one sure falls into that category. Who am I kidding? Beebe Gallini could cover the Dallas Cowboys fight song, and I'd still be writing a rave review. This band never disappoints!

-L.R.

https://rumbarrecords.bandcamp.com/album/you-aint-getting-nothin-b-w-what-christmas-means-to-me
https://beebegallini.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/WeAreBeebeGallini/
http://beebegallini.com/
https://www.facebook.com/RumBarRecords

Pack Rat - Glad To Be Forgotten

Pack Rat is the one-man project of Pat McEachnie -- drummer for the late, great Corner Boys and current hardcore heavyweights Chain Whip. Like almost every other person in the world, he found himself with some downtime last year. So he bought a guitar and proceeded to write and record a full-length album all by himself. Out now on Drunken Sailor Records, Glad To Be Forgotten is not quite as "pop" as Corner Boys or as hardcore as Chain Whip. But it certainly shows the influence of both bands as McEachnie tears through 10 tracks of frantic, super-snotty punk rock accompanied by earsplitting low-budget synthesizers. For a first attempt at fronting a band (in this case, a one-man band!), this is a remarkably good effort that should appeal to fans of the Killed By Death aesthetic. Vocally, McEachnie sounds like he's on the cusp of madness on most of these tracks (Who wasn't in 2020?). Glad To Be Forgotten, which ought to have you shouting along in delight and/or pogoing around the house, is anything but forgettable. Vinyl won't ship until next month, but pre-orders are open now. Hop on it!

-L.R.

https://drunkensailorrecords.bandcamp.com/album/glad-to-be-forgotten-lp
https://www.facebook.com/DrunkenSailorRecords
https://packratpunk.bandcamp.com/album/glad-to-be-forgotten

Night Court - Nervous Birds! One

Having been a big fan of Jiffy Marx's recent solo single and all of his releases with Autogramm, I was intrigued to hear he had a new band going with his pal Dave Soul (Jiffy Marker) and Emilor (from Pet Blessings and the amazing Synchromantics). Well the debut album from Night Court is here, and it's freaking awesome! Out now on cassette tape on Debt Offensive Records and Snappy Little Numbers, Nervous Birds! One is just the first half of a duology. The Vancouver trio wrote and recorded 30 songs for Nervous Birds! and decided that 26 of them were keepers. And with 26 tracks being a little too many for one album, the songs were split into two separate releases. I'm glad there's more coming, because this album definitely falls into the "left me wanting more" category! I'm kind of at a loss on how to describe Night Court's sound. This is a unique band. I hear bits and pieces of late '70s/early '80s post-punk, '90s melodic punk, modern-day garage punk, and lo-fi indie rock. The songs are energetic and a little noisy, and they're also total earworms! All of these 13 tracks come in at well under two minutes, yet they're splendidly-crafted, fully-realized songs. Snappy Little Numbers is really living up to its name with the release of this album! You can tell that great time and detail was placed on the construction of the songs, whereas the recording itself was more raw and spontaneous. That's the perfect combination, and Nervous Birds! One is a poppy, post-punky, lo-fi delight for all of its 19 minutes. Bring on part two!

-L.R.

https://snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/nervous-birds-one
https://debtoffensiverecords.bandcamp.com/album/nervous-birds-one
https://nightcourtpunk.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/nightcourtpunk
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP-XGzPPL0WixAe_9nEb_Vg
https://www.facebook.com/snappylittlenumbers
https://www.facebook.com/debtoffensiverecs

Los Pepes - The Happiness Program

When I first heard Los Pepes back in 2014, it was love at first listen. Now here was a band that truly put the power in power pop! Debut album Los Pepes For Everyone proceeded to sound like a lost classic from the heyday of U.K./Northern Irish punk/pop. Los Pepes quickly became favorites of mine, and today I am honored to induct the band into the F & L "double digits club". Yes, this is my tenth review of Los Pepes. The Happiness Program, out today on Snap!! Records, is the band's fifth album and first since March of 2019. It's also one of the band's best releases to date -- combining the more "pop" feel of its first two albums with the energy and harder edge of its third and fourth long players. This is the sort of album I will never tire of: a killer punk rock record with great hooks. It delivers a satisfying mix of high energy punk rock bangers ("Small Time", "I Want You Back", the title track), quintessential punk/pop tracks ("Let Them Talk", "I Remember You"), pure pop songs ("Anecdotes"), and kick-ass rockers ("Born Into This"). Ben Perrier, with assists from Seisuke Nakagawa and Simon J. Alpin, has written his best collection of songs to date. Out of 12 tracks, there's not a single dud in the bunch. And the addition of organ, piano, saxophone, harmonica, and lapsteel fills out the band's sound in a way that is truly complementary. If you dig old school punk rock music that emphasizes melody without skimping on the aggression, I recommend the immediate purchase of The Happiness Program. The Snap!! Records vinyl release is limited to 300 copies on double mint vinyl. Hit up snapville@gmail.com for information on how to order a copy. Those of you in Spain can look forward to Los Pepes touring your beautiful country next month!

-L.R.  

https://snaprecordsspain.bandcamp.com/album/los-pepes-the-happines-program-funlp-039
https://lospepes.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/lospepesmusic
https://www.facebook.com/SnapRecordSpain

Wild Sandals - The Big Surf-O-Rama

As if Wild Sandals weren't already the ultimate German pop-punk supergroup, Beppo Hawaiian and Florian Favorat went out and got Gumbo from Neon Bone to play drums on their new album The Big Surf-O-Rama! My heart can barely take so much greatness in one band! Arriving fast on the heels of the band's debut album Sandale Grande, The Big Surf-O-Rama doubles down on Wild Sandals' deep affection for the Beach Boys, Travoltas, and Don't Back Down era Queers. The album itself aligns nicely with the title and the cover art. It's full of songs about surfing, girls, summer romance, and fun at the beach. This band continues to check off all of the boxes for high quality "Beach Boys punk": majestic harmonies, gorgeous melodies, and lyrics that appeal to the eternal teenager in all of us. Songs range from the surf instrumental goodness of "The Curse of the Wild Sandal" to the snappy pop-punk of "Sina Is a Cheerleader" to the melodic loveliness of "Like A Summer Dream" to the classic vibes of "Beach Girl" to the Queers worship of "Scottie Parente". And speaking of Queers worship, what other band on Earth would think to cover "Janelle Janelle" in the style of Jim Croce? That's brilliant! The Big Surf-O-Rama wonderfully executes a sound that only a handful of bands have properly pulled off. With meteorological winter arriving in the Northern Hemisphere today, this album opens a much-appreciated portal to an eternal summer.

-L.R.

https://www.facebook.com/wildesandalen
https://open.spotify.com/album/6p1Ut5I312rvgaW2IauFIk

Kurt Baker - "Christmas In The Sand"

I always make an effort to not overdo the reviews of Christmas music. But man, I heard the new Kurt Baker Christmas track on Wicked Cool Records and simply could not resist! "Christmas In The Sand", co-written by Baker and longtime collaborator Wyatt Funderburk, is one of those Christmas songs that would be great even if it weren't about Christmas. And really, this song isn't about Christmas so much as it's about hating the weather at Christmas. Given the pervasiveness of holiday standards which glorify ice and snow, this track offers a refreshingly different point of view. I mean, come on: do people really dream of white Christmases? Baker's holiday on a tropical beach sounds way more fun! Musically, this track is right in line with the best of the Baker/Funderburk compositions. Geoff Palmer, Kris Rodgers, Craig Sala, and Zack Sprague are on hand as well to contribute their musical talents. If you're a fan of Christmas music, "Christmas In The Sand" qualifies as an instant classic to pair with your favorite version of "Mele Kalikimaka". If you're a non-fan of Christmas music, just think of this as a great power pop track which idealizes pretty girls and summer weather. Either way, it's a win!

-L.R.

https://kurtbakerwcr.bandcamp.com/track/christmas-in-the-sand
https://www.facebook.com/KurtBakerMusic