Saturday, June 06, 2026

TJ Cabot - Palm Stings EP


You may be wondering why I reviewed only Canadian artists today. Is it coincidence, or is there conspiracy afoot? Am I so salty that two Southern teams are playing in the Stanley Cup final that I had to resort to passive-aggressive protest? Is it perhaps some kind of holiday you didn't know about? Did I finally forgive Joe Carter for all those years of emotional anguish? If a few cases of beer and a secret poutine recipe happened to cross the border and wind up in my possession, would that be a national scandal? My lips are sealed. I can tell you that it has been a few years (three, to be exact) since TJ Cabot has released an EP's worth of home-recorded tracks, so the arrival of Palm Stings is highly welcomed in my world. 

These four demos are likely not destined for further refinement and eventual inclusion on the next Real Rejects album, so we can enjoy them strictly as TJ Cabot solo tracks in all their poorly recorded but expertly mastered glory. Anyway, this is pretty much what everyone has been longing for since the spring of 2023: blown-out smart-aleck garage punk that reeks of dingy basements and room temperature leftover pizza. If you're going to release home-recorded solo demos, they ought to be as raw and primitive as these. You can totally visualize TJ blasting out the drums, guitar, and bass like some mad scientist of budget rock. These are all really good tunes, but I'm especially partial to the garage rock-inspired "Firm Back Hand" and the punk-as-frick "Artificial All Along." Five Canadian dollars for this thing is a good value. That won't even buy you a gallon of gas these days. Stay home today and support the arts!

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Taxi Girls - "Secret Handshake"


At the end of this month, Taxi Girls are going to drop an album that will have people going absolutely bonkers. I'm talking about a record that will legitimately put these tremendously talented women in the thick of the "best band in the world" conversation (in my orbit, at least). You should clear your schedule for June 26th and prepare to rock out until you have to do something essential like eat or sleep. While we wait, the band has dropped another stone cold banger of a single. 

Compared to the edgy rocker "Say It!" (I can't even write the title without wanting to scream it), "Secret Handshake" brings quite a different vibe. It's still very much a summertime jam, but it does show a slightly softer side of Taxi Girls. In style, this is the sort of stuff I live for: classic poppy punk rock with an upbeat spirit that hits you with a massive chorus. That intro is pure gold, and then this snappy earworm will send you straight into head-bobbing, toe-tapping mode. Lyrically, you could probably call this a love song, but it manages to evoke something deeper and more universal than that. It's a song not just about the private language you might share with someone special but also about wanting that connection to never end. There's a sweetness and vulnerability to this song that Jamie's lead vocal fully captures, and every repeat listen makes me smile a little bigger. If this song were any catchier, we'd all have to be walking around in masks again. I always love tunes that are super-fun on the surface but something much more beyond it. 

Static, Taxi Girls' debut album, will be coming out on Wild Honey Records in Europe and Stomp Records in Canada. My math tells me that that's in three weeks, so you won't have to wait much longer! For now, I advise playing "Secret Handshake" on repeat and getting properly pumped. Get your pre-orders in while the colored vinyl is still up for grabs! 

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Dany Laj and The Looks - We're The Freaks


I'm always stoked for new music from Dany Laj and The Looks — especially when it turns up without advance notice and totally makes my day. "We're The Freaks" is the first single from the band's new album If Looks Could Kill, which is due out in September. There aren't any bad Dany Laj and The Looks songs, but "We're The Freaks" is a particularly inspired number. This one is right there in that Dany Laj power pop rock 'n' roll wheelhouse, and I have to say that it's one of the best songs he has ever written. Joined here by Jeanette Dowling and David Laplante, he's in vintage form. I love the guitar tone on this number! The song is about the importance of artists and independent spaces in revitalizing urban communities. They build something beautiful and exciting, and then in come stuffy new neighbors complaining about "the freaks making all the noise." And just like that, all that creativity and culture is at risk of disappearing. 

Leave it to Dany Laj to write a song this angry and still have it sound like a good time. But perhaps that is the whole point. He doesn't want to go to war with anyone. He just wants to spread joy and make friends. "Why you gotta be angry?" sings Laj. "Come join the party; it will set you free." More than anything else, this song is celebration of the musicians and artists who transform and positively impact cities everywhere. It has something important to say, and it sounds great cranked loud. The song clocks in at two-and-a-half minutes and leaves me wanting more. But that's okay since more is soon forthcoming! Habs and the Flyers in the conference finals next year? Let's bet on it! 

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Monday, June 01, 2026

Hoaxxers - Hard Luck


While most people would consider it an EP, Hard Luck by Austin-based pop-punk standouts Hoaxxers could easily qualify as an album. Out on Mom's Basement Records, it backs six new songs with the three tracks the band previously released as singles and comes on nifty 12" vinyl. Call it what you want, but I'm just going to call it first class pop-punk. 

It blows my mind when I note that my history of writing about Charlie, Kye, and Tron as a musical trio dates back more than 20 years to the first Joe Jitsu EP. Yes, that was before YouTube and smartphones existed. Only the most cutting edge of folks had ventured into this new thing called social media. Now it's 2026, and these guys are still doing their thing — and unlike me, they've only improved with age. Hard Luck delivers six (or nine) tracks of tight, melody-driven pop-punk that perfectly balances smooth vocals with punchy guitars. Hoaxxers are part of this whole wave of Xennial pop-punk bands (and most of them are on the Mom's Basement roster!) that have managed to transform the genre into proper music for grown-ups. The songs on this record are largely reflections on living life and navigating the complicated world we live in. The cited influences (Dan Vapid, Smoking Popes, Green Day, Big In Japan) certainly give you an idea where Hoaxxers are coming from. But after all these years, Charlie has carved himself his own niche as a vocalist and a songwriter. You pretty much know what to expect, but all these guys are older and wiser now. They haven't reinvented the formula; however, they've certainly refined and perfected it. 

Hard Luck is noteworthy because it includes a couple of very political songs. "Straight Down the Shitter" and "Make Your Bed" both explore similar themes about how to cope with day-to-day life when the world is burning, and they both opine on the folly of being apathetic or in denial that anything is wrong. "Sidetracked" is officially/unofficially the first "slow song" Hoaxxers have done, and it's quite a successful change of pace (literally). "Against the Odds" is the first Hoaxxers song to feature Tron on lead vocals, and it really fits his vocal tone and style. 

There are countless bands out there emulating the "snottier" side of '90s pop-punk, so it's nice to have bands like Hoaxxers working in very different territory. Produced by Matt Morris with some assistance from Steven Jolly, Deedle Lacour, and Zephyr Huffman and mixed and mastered by Davi Pacote, this is an incredible-sounding recording that really accentuates the quality of the songwriting, vocals, and musicianship. This is pop-punk of the highest quality, and little else needs to be said. For decades, I've pushed back on the notion that pop-punk as a musical genre has to live in a world of eternal adolescence. And bands like Hoaxxers are either proving me right or serving as exceptions to the rule. For me, listening to Hard Luck is like reconnecting with old friends and appreciating that they haven't turned into assholes. Get your copy on colored vinyl while supplies last!

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Nazi Tampons - Moon Invasion


As a great-grandchild of Slovakian immigrants, I'm always pleased to encounter bands from the mother country. While the band name Nazi Tampons might have you thinking, "What the fuck?", the band itself has absolutely floored me with its raw and hyper-spirited brand of old school garage punk. The group's new EP, Moon Invasion, powers through six tracks of blistering ferocity that falls somewhere between '90s budget trash and late '70s/early '80s fast-and-furious punk rock. This is music that will have you jumping around and shouting along like a maniac even as it kicks you straight in the teeth. You certainly can't question the enthusiasm and pure power that these individuals put into these songs. And every single one of these tunes absolutely rips. I'm reminded of bands like The No-Talents and The Loudmouths from back in the day — and who can deny that we need more of that kind of energy in today's punk rock? The Nashville-based tape label Knuckles on Stun has given Moon Invasion a limited-edition cassette release. And when I say "limited," I mean you better move fast! If you long for the good old days when punk music was dangerous and disreputable, you've just met your new favorite band! 

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Tuesday, May 26, 2026

Hayley and the Crushers - "Cringeworthy"


Did I really get out of bed at 5:00 am just so I could listen to the new Hayley and the Crushers' single and perhaps write a little something about it before heading off to work? That's the level of geekery I have reached! I did not know that "Cringeworthy" was coming out until yesterday afternoon, so I approached this song with zero idea of what to expect beyond knowing it would be super-awesome because, well, it's Hayley and the freaking Crushers! So you're getting my fresh, off-the-cuff take with no time for polishing or overthinking. Bathing and breakfasting await, so I have to hurry. 

On that note, I must say "Cringeworthy" is, as I presumed, super-awesome! In fact, it might extra-super-awesome. It's honestly one of my favorite songs this band has ever done, and the vibe reminds me of those great singles the band put out when it first signed to Kitten Robot Records. I love that this song lives in the world of pure pop goodness with punk and new wave influences — always a sweet spot in the Crusherverse. This song is classic Crushers without necessarily trying to be classic Crushers. It's got a serious, somewhat heavy theme, but it's still wonderfully intoxicating in a way all great pop ought to be. The music video is an absolute hoot. Overall, this song and video seem to be going the opposite direction from the popular sentiment that all those millions of people out there doing their thing online are so very cringeworthy. Perhaps, you know, we ought not to be so quick to judge people for what they're putting into the universe — especially if they're doing what they love. How does all that judging and shaming serve us? Perhaps my interpretation is self-serving since what I do is certainly cringeworthy in the eyes of many, but I'm taking something very positive from this song. My first few spins with "Cringeworthy" were more than worth the lost sleep. I can't wait for the album!

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Monday, May 25, 2026

Gene Champagne - "Gimme Ammunition"/ "She's An Atom Bomb"


Back with his first new solo tracks in a couple years, Gene Champagne hits the mark with a new digital single (arriving in advance of a vinyl release) in his signature punky power pop style. This ace drummer (Brad Marino, Teenage Head, The Killjoys) is also a formidable singer and songwriter, and he's really speaking my language on this crackling summertime two-fer. "Gimme Ammunition" is snappy power pop that will have you tapping your toes and humming along in no time flat. When that hook hits, it hits big! In just a few ticks over two minutes, the song is over and done and leaving you wanting more. That, my friends, is pop songwriting 101. On the virtual flip side, "She's An Atom Bomb" is a little faster and punkier — yet every bit as sunny and catchy. This song is a total earworm, and the lyrics are hilarious! This is a perfect little punk-pop single for warm weather season, and it's sure to go over well with just about anyone who regularly visits this site. You can always count on Canada to come through!

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