Unicorn Dogs are having quite the year! Their brilliant debut album Age Typical Junk Behavior will soon be getting a vinyl release in collaboration with a couple of titans in the pop-punk label world: Jolly Ronnie Records and Mom's Basement Records. In conjunction with this LP release, they've put out a music video for their should-have-been smash hit "Dumb Stuff." Meanwhile, the band has a brand-new digital EP out today titled Inauguration. After taking a quick peak at song titles like "Snake Oil Salesman," "Executive Order," and "Chief Executives," you will have no trouble discerning the concept of this EP. Let's just say that when it comes to opining on the state of America post January 20, 2025, Unicorn Dogs are not afraid to tell you how they really feel. This is a band that's good enough to write about any topic under the sun and make it feel urgent and anthemic. So you can imagine that Unicorn Dogs raging against America's descent into authoritarianism is going to be powerful stuff.
When it comes to protest music of any kind, I'm always looking for one main thing: the music has to be on par with the message. And that is certainly the case here. I will paraphrase my brother from across the pond and say that Unicorn Dogs are the epitome of pop-punk with balls. I've heard very few bands capable of writing songs that sound this raw and this catchy. Of course you can feel the passion and indignation in these songs, and that all comes through more forcefully due to the quality of the melodies and the cleverness of the lyrics. The band has turned Inauguration into a choose your own adventure experience: you can listen to the entire EP in one single shot (with some added snippets) or enjoy it one track at a time. Covers of "Boys Who Rape (Should All Be Destroyed)" by Raveonettes and "Serendipity" by Trusty are Bandcamp exclusive bonus tracks that fit in quite nicely with the rest of the EP. All this for $2 is a deal and a steal for fans of pop-punk and opposers of fascism!
1 comment:
The ones we both do simultaneously usually turn out to be great releases
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