Let me just say this flat out, I love it! It’s by far one of the best Ska albums I have heard in a long time. I love how Reel Big Fish has retained their sound and hasn’t changed from what they’ve always sounded like, unlike a lot of other bands who were once awesome *cough cough* Linkin Park *cough cough*. But I digress. Reel Big Fish has nailed it this time around. They have produced an album that sounds amazing. The recording quality is great. Their new songs are tremendously awesome. They have managed to make, what will probably be, my favorite album of the year. And you know what? For me to like music so much that I label it as my “favorite”, well, it honestly just doesn’t happen. But with this album, I can’t not label it as my favorite.

Album Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The song that I like the most on this album, dare I say, my favorite song, is “Everyone Else is an Asshole”. It’s just pure awesomeness. I also really enjoyed “She’s Not the End of the World”. But don’t get me wrong, the whole album is amazing, I just enjoyed those two songs the most.

This album drops on July 31st, and if you are a Ska/Punk fan, then BUY IT! You won’t regret it! If you’re a fan of Reel Big Fish, you won’t be let down, you’ll love it.

Now, let me sign off with this: thank you to Reel Big Fish for making another great album! I can’t wait to hear the next one!

~Matt

The official Band of the Month for May 2012 is BabySnakes, a solo act from New Milford, CT featuring the lovely Jackie Hopkins!

Biography

I’m Jackie. I’ve been playing guitar and writing songs for 4 years now. I like Nirvana and Neutral Milk Hotel and Bob Dylan the best. Kurt Cobain’s performance of Leadbelly’s “Where Did You Sleep Last Night” made me want to start playing guitar. I play shows a lot and I want to play more. I’ve played at the Maxx, The Bank Street Coffee House, The Barn, The Room, and in people’s back yards.

Music

Social Media

The Band of the Month for April 2012 is What’s Left from Danbury, CT!

A band formed out of Danbury High School and is influenced by the blues, rock and their own sound they’ve developed. They are all on a mission to create sound and to make it on the big stage.

The Hidden Hospitals, after 5 years of touring, have recently released their debut EP 001. The group has worked continuously hard to produce their well-tuned, cohesive sound. The Chicago, IL natives have been centered upon finding the perfect way to display their musical talents and  their message to the fans throughout their career so far. Even the name of the band, Hidden Hospitals, was produced to center around their messages. According to the band, Hidden Hospitals means: “Places revealed to those seeking resuscitation, rejuvenation, decompression, atonement.” The symbol for their group, is also the universal symbol for aid (the double H).

Free copies of EP 001 will be given out at each of shows during Hidden Hospitals’ short listing on the East Coast.

Tour dates are as follows:

THU 05 APR- Underground Lounge (Chicago, IL)

THU 12 APR- Fredonia, NY (BJ’s)

FRI 13 APR- Sullivan Hall (New York, NY)
* w/ Gabriel the Marine, Those Mockingbirds, Abel

SAT 14 APR- Heirloom Arts Theatre (Danbury, CT)

SUN 15 APR- Bug Jar- Rochester, NY

FRI 27 APR- Bangarang’s (Covington, KY)
*w/ Into It. Over It., Mixtapes, The Story Changes

Visit www.ticketweb.com for advance tickets where available. Presale tickets are advised, as door prices are likely to be higher in cost. Follow your social media outlets and the sites listed below for the most current event information, as it is subject change. More information is available at: www.sullivanhallnyc.com // www.bugjar.com // www.heirloomarts.org

The band, with its distinctive and raspy vocals, interesting guitar riffs, intriguing lyrics, and tap-inducing drum parts, is definitely reminiscent of their Classic Rock influences. In their song “Let’s Roll”, the lyrics proclaim  that “[...] trapped inside of ourselves are our dreams.” This ideal personifies the common element between all devoted musical artists, inexorable hope.

For The Darlings, it seems as though they have a bright future in the Music Industry.

The members of The Darlings have a long list of accomplishments. So far, they have:

• Won 2010′s Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands
• Become a Bud Light Band of the Month on LA’s KROQ
• Appeared on Good Day, LA
• Received endorsements from Ernie Ball, Supernatural Cymbals, and the FC Cancer Foundation
• Toured with Face to Face, Strung Out, and Pennywise
• Shared the stage with Sum 41, Bad Religion, and Social Distortion

They will be appearing at Warped for the fourth time this year, and are due to release their debut LP soon. The New Escape is to be released on April 24th (Gadsen Records/UMG).

The Darlings On The Vans Warped Tour:

Jul 13 Holmdel, NJ
Jul 19 Mansfield, MA
Jul 20 Camden, NJ
Jul 21 Uniondale, NY
Jul 24 Columbia, MD
Jul 25 Virginia Beach, VA
Jul 26 Atlanta, GA
Jul 27 Orlando, FL
Jul 28 West Palm Beach, FL
Jul 29 St.Petersburg, FL
Jul 30 Charlotte,, NC
Jul 31 Cincinnati, OH
Aug 01 Milwaukee, WI
Aug 04 Redmond,, WA
Aug 05 Portland, OR

A post-hardcore band from Findlay, Ohio. Founded by vocalist Nick Moore, the band’s second album, The Dawn of My Death, was released October 28, 2008. The album reached #10 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. Their third album, “Untouchable”, was released March 16, 2010 and reached #22 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart. They’re now set to release a brand new album on Tuesday, March 27th. And lucky for you guys, I received a preview of this album!

Redemptions Review

Before Their Eyes really went all out this time. They brand new album sounds truly incredible. Mixing amazing harmonies with their impeccable screams, they hit a level truly high on the metal scene scale. Of course, like everyone is doing these days, they mix in some amazing glitchy effects to their music, which really seals the deal. They hold several similarities to Attack Attack!, A Day To Remember, and Silverstein; and being a fan of those bands, I greatly enjoy listening to Before Their Eyes, and I guarantee those of you who like those bands will feel the same about this album as well. It’s so hard to say what the best track on this album is, but if I had to choose, I would have to say “Lies” is the best song on the whole album. Don’t get me wrong, all the tracks are, dare I say, immaculate. The last track on the album, “Alive”, is also amazing, I’d have to say it’s the second best. It also sums the album up extremely well, instead of ending on a pumped up note, it really calms you down and provides a stellar finish. All in all, Before Their Eyes did by far, a truly exceptional job and I hope they keep up the epic work.

Album Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Pre-order Redemption Now!

Redemption Tour

Before Their Eyes will be headed out on a short run of shows in May called the “Redemption Tour” presented by Silence The City Clothing and Dr. Ricks Denim. The support bands include Legacy, Belle Histoire, and City Lights. The tour will begin May 4th and will be hitting the Midwest / Northeast throughout the month. The shows are in support of Before Their Eyes new record “Redemption” that will be hitting stores March 26, 2012 and features guest vocals from Breathe Carolina and Landon Tewers of The Plot In You. More Dates will be announced soon.

Before their Eyes has played many tours, including the “Spring Break Your Heart Tour” with Forever The Sickest Kids, Tonight Alive, We Are The In Crowd & Breathe Carolina, “The Bangover Tour” with Bless The Fall, the “Coaxial Flutter Tour” alongside Saosin, the Hot N’ Heavy Tour alongside Drop Dead, Gorgeous, and He Is Legend, the Artery Across The Nation Tour with A Skylit Drive and Four Letter Lie and the Black on Black Tour with Escape the Fate.

Dates w/ Legacy & Belle Histoire
5/4 Painesville, OH @ Score’s Fun Center
5/5 Williamsville, NY @ Pro Music Center
5/6 Albany, NY @ Valentine’s
5/7 Providence, RI @ PVD Social Club
5/8 Smithtown, NY @ Smithtown Masonic Temple
5/9 Geneseo, NY @ Minnehan’s Fun Center
5/10 Boonton, NJ @ The Canvas Clash
5/11 Lemoyne, PA @ The Champ
5/12 Columbus, OH @ TBA
Additional Dates w/ Legacy, City Lights & Strangers To Wolves
5/18 Dayton, OH @ The Attic
5/19 Goshen, IN @ The Note Venue
5/25 TBA
5/26 TBA
6/1 Findlay, OH @ The Lighthouse **no city lights

Purchase The Fun & The Lonely from iTunes HERE!

Check out the Civil War Rust Live:

March 22 – Vice Club / Walnut Creek, CA w/ Pennywise, Guttermouth
April 11 – VLHS Warehouse / Pomona, CA w/ Why I Hate, American Lies, Bonsai, Turkish Techno
April 12 – Meat Market Garment Factory / Tempe, AZ w/ RUMSPRINGER, THE ANCHOR, YOUNG//SAVAGE, HORROR SQUAD, DUDES NIGHT, WHY I HATE
April 13/15 – Tucson, AZ w/ WAY OUT WEST FEST!!!
April 16 – Eleven / San Diego, CA w/ Beside MySelf, Success, Why I Hate, From Scars
April 17 – House Party / Bakersfield, CA w/ Redadare, Why I Hate, Perdition
April 24 – Thee Parkside / San Francisco, CA w/ The Flatliners, Heartsounds, Great Apes (our official CD release show)

The band’s efforts have paid off considerably. Recently, they have been signed with Panic Records and are due to release their new, edited, and matured album Perspective on July 14th.  This is just another addition to their hard work in refining and retaining their pop punk sound.

BLOOD ON THE DANCE FLOOR , the duo formed in 2007  by Dahvie Vanity and Jayy Von Monroe, are known for their outlandish flair, interesting lyrics, and electronic sound. They are considered “game changers,” pairing their music with their preference to self-release music.  Their LP Evolution will be release on June 19th.

The band has gotten some bad publicity due to links on an alleged shooting suspect’s facebook page.  But Dahve explains: “My heart goes out to the families who felt the lack of love on Tuesday Febuary 28th 2012 in Chardon,Ohio. These horrific tragic events will be scarred in our minds for a long time to come, but through the very depths of despair we dare you to believe in hope and have the courage to give love to those who do not have it. Be brave and give thanks and joy to everyone you pass by every single day. We are all one connected and every passing moment is a chance to turn it all around and make Chardon Ohio a better place for humanity and for the people we love. I truly believe in that. I pray that time will heal your wounds and that the terror from violence ends and people start increasing the peace and start taking action towards a beautiful tomorrow. We only get one chance at life and we must make it count. Love conquers all so I give you every bit of my love in hope that joy will follow you till the very end. God bless you all in Chardon, Ohio and I wish you all the best from life. Amen.”

The duo’s Fight To Unite tour dates are as follows:

Apr 05            The Nile Theatre- Mesa, AZ          

Apr 06            The Epicentre- San Diego, CA                 

Apr 07            The Yost Theater- Santa Ana, CA                                  

Apr 08            The Key Club- West Hollywood, CA       

Apr 09            THE METRO Oakland, CA

Apr 10            Hawthorne Theatre- Portland, OR           

Apr 11            The Studio Seven Seattle, WA     

Apr 13            Club Sound- Salt Lake City, UT   

Apr 14            The Summit Music Hall- Denver, CO      

Apr 16            The Cabooze- Minneapolis, MN  

Apr 17            Mojoes- Joliet, IL     

Apr 18            The Crofoot Ballroom- Pontiac, MI           

Apr 19            Peabody’s- Cleveland, OH

Apr 20            Infinity- Buffalo, NY                       

Apr 21            Webster Theatre- Hartford, CT      

Apr 22            Northern Lights- Clifton Park, NY

Apr 24            Gramercy Theater- New York, NY

Apr 25            Crocodile Rock- Allentown, PA    

Apr 26            Sound Stage- Baltimore, MD        

Apr 27            Greene Street Club- Greensboro, NC                            

Apr 28            The Beacham- Orlando, FL          

Apr 29            Revolution- Fort Lauderdale, FL  

Apr 30            The Masquerade-  Atlanta, GA     

May 03           The Door- Dallas, TX          

May 04           Warehouse Live- Houston, TX     

May 05           The White Rabbit- San Antonio, TX        

May 06           Sunshine Theater- Albuquerque, NM    

The folk band hopes to portray that “all of us are a part of the same journey.” Following that ideal, their music is formed in a feel-good, traditional manner, so that their lyrics and the stories in the music may connect to the most amount of people. Hopefully, after being signed to Autumn+ Colour Records, their message will be spread to and harmonize a larger fan base.

Their new EP “Summer, Hither”  is set to release…. Suprise!.. this summer.