I love that this blog has been around so long now that I can sometimes review bands I wrote about years ago and people will be like, "Who the hell were they?" If you've never heard The Beaten Hearts, that's okay. You get to hear them now!
The availability of the 2010 recordings of The Beaten Hearts on Bandcamp ought to be a huge deal for fans of 21st century garage punk and Canadian punk in general. This was Brian LaManna's band in between The Valentine Killers and Phone Jerks. The lineup also included Derek Lounder and Jeremy O'Neill from Fear of Lipstick, former Teenage Hurricane and future Phone Jerk Tyler Boutilier, and the legend himself, Mr. Ray Auffrey. In retrospect, we can all wonder how in the world we ever forgot about a super-group like this! Perhaps it was because they only released two singles. Six of these songs were released on 7" records in 2011 (on Maladroit Records and the venerable Sonic Jett Records). Five have never been officially released until now. In my original review, I dropped all the usual band comparisons (New Bomb Turks, Humpers, Dead Boys, Saints, Teenage Head, Pagans) but also commended the quality of the songwriting. Listening back to these songs now, I'm noticing a melodic, heart-on-sleeve sensibility that reminds me somewhat of Pat Todd.
While the importance of The Beaten Hearts as a precursor to The Phone Jerks or a hint of what a second Valentine Killers album could have been are cool things in their own right, the music would be worth revisiting even if this had been a band of nobodies. Brian's talents as a songwriter and especially as a lyricist are super-underrated, and there are more than a few gems in this set. When people are releasing fanatic bootleg compilations of 2010s Canadian punk rock a few decades from now, "Red Line Gurls" will certainly be a go-to cut. "Back to the Deadline" brings to mind Iggy Pop fronting The Saints and is a stone cold ripper. "(This Is) How It Ends," which Brian wrote about his mother's death, is the kind of powerful ballad that I wish more punk groups would have the nerve to try. Was there any doubt that Joel Jett, with his impeccable taste, was not going to pass up releasing these songs on his label? "Badlands," the A-side of the band's second 7", is a scorching homage o.g. Cleveland punk rock with lyrics inspired by Terrence Malick's classic film. "Rhonda Lynn" is excellent poppy garage punk rock 'n' roll that will get your toes tapping and your head bobbing. "AM Sound" finds the band again worshipping at the church of The Saints, and who's going to complain? "She's Stimming Outta Control" is the original version of a song that would become one of the best Phone Jerks tunes. This is a hugely personal and significant song for Brian, and the world is a better place for having it in it (twice).
How crazy is it that these songs were recorded 15 years ago? I am happy to report that they hold up great in the light of 2025. I know we live at a time in which there's so much stuff out there. There are more things to listen to than we have time to listen to. But if you dig soulful garage punk with a '90s feel and a power pop heart, The Beaten Hearts are an essential listen. I'm always talking about how Canada freaking owned punk rock in the early 2010s, and this album ought to be part of that conversation.
https://beatenhearts.bandcamp.com/album/the-beaten-hearts-2010-recordings
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