Sound and Fury – Sound and Fury
Rebel Youth Records

(4/5)

Ok all you Punk Rock kids out there; it’s time to strap on your party boots, throw on some suspenders, and dance the night away with Sound and Fury’s debut album Sound and Fury! To best understand the sound of this band, listen to the album…but if you’re going off reviews before you buy the album, I say imagine AC/DC and Airbourne getting into a drunken bar brawl with the Sex Pistols and the Ramones as far as music style and lyrics go. The combination of the two styles doesn’t sound like it would work out all that great, but it’s really the total opposite! Getting a little deeper into the album, my favorite songs would have to be “School’s Out” (Track 1), “Teenage Rampage” (Track 2), and “Night of the Ghouls” (Track 6). “School’s Out” and “Teenage Rampage” are two of the songs from the album that really show the old school Punk style of Sound and Fury and “Night of the Ghouls” is one of the AC/DC style Rock tracks. Overall, I recommend Sound and Fury to fans of the four bands mentioned above as well as anyone who’s looking for another good band to check out.

SiX – Between the Warning and the War
1605 Records

(4/5)

With Between the Warning and the War as their third release, SiX is continuing to make their presence known as a West Coast Rock band. Not only are there Heavy metal and Punk influences helping push SiX through this 13-track (plus 3 “hidden” tracks), fist pumping, Hard rock album, but vocalist Lauren is helped out by Tony Campos from Static-X on “The Day I Died” (track 1) and “Warning” (track 7) as well as Mike Clark from Suicidal Tendencies on “Forgiveness” (track 4). Overall, Lauren, guitarist Alfunction, and drummer Rob Woods, and bass player Bob K really attack mainstream music while letting their roots show with the mix of old school power and the future of aggression on Between the Warning and the War! Honestly, I think it’s a great album and it was really hard to choose favorite songs, but “The Day I Died” and “Circles” were the two that really jumped out at me. “The Day I Died” sticks out for its aggressive, Punk/Thrash-like sound that starts the album off with a bang! When you hear it, you can’t help but want to start pumping your fists and moshing with your friends. “Circles” is just one of the songs off the album that show off some of Nate Bowers’ double bass skills along with the Drowning Pool-like feel of the whole track. All in all, Between the Warning and the War is an album for your arsenal if you’re into Hardcore punk and Hard rock! Look for Lauren, Alfunction, Rob and guitarist Johnny Utah playing live near you!

Handheld – Handheld
Year of the Sun Records

(3.5/5)

If you’re looking for a generic mix of Green Day and Bad Religion, check out Handheld’s self-titled, full length, album on Year of the Sun Records. Handheld has successfully taken the Punk Rock sound of Green Day and put it together with the speed and 2-3 minute song lengths that Bad Religion has been popular for throughout their career. Despite whether or not this is my favorite style of Punk or music genre period, I must admit that these guys have managed to perfect their sound to be popular among the Punk crowd of today! On a more technical note, I really haven’t found a song I like any better than the others, but bassist Ricky Guerrero proves time and time again that he definitely has skills as a Punk bassist. Overall, if you like Green Day with some good ol’ Bad Religion thrown in the mix, I recommend picking up Handheld’s self-titled album!

D.I. – On The Western Front
Suburban Noize Records

(3.5/5)

Two words: Old school! If you’re looking for an old school Punk band in a new school world, check out D.I. Their newest album On The Western Front is a great example of what is that classic West Coast Punk. To compare their sound, they remind me a lot of bands like Social Distortion and the Dead Kennedys! Honestly, it’s pretty refreshing to hear a splash of that old school Punk sound that’s not all about politics and world issues! Being the only original member still in the band, ex-Adolescents and Social Distortion drummer Casey Royer tears up the vocals on the first album since the reunion of D.I. with Chckn and Clinton on guitars, Eddie tater on bass, and Joey Tater on drums. Really, none of the tracks on this album stuck out to me, but they all definitely take me back to my Punk days. Overall, it’s a good album, especially if you’re looking for that good ol’ West Coast Punk style!