If you missed it yesterday, I've decided to pick a few records that we sell on the site and tell a little bit about why I dig them. So welcome to Friday's edition of Ryan's Hot Picks! Don't forget, I link you to my favorite jam off each record! Dig it.
The Beltones "On Deaf Ears" - I remember being late on this band. I picked up a CD copy of their "Cheap Trinkets" release and threw it in on the drive back to the punk house. I thought in my head "Wait. This is kind of exactly what I have been doing with OWTH lately, except good." So then I dig around a bit with friends and it turns out we have a ton of mutual friends with Bill. I hear tales of him being a complete maniac, which makes me like them even more. I remember asking Billy from D4 if Bill (singer of The Beltones) would beat me up. Billy paused for a suspicious amount of time and then said "Nah. Probably not.". Fast forward a couple years and Bill becomes a good friend of mine. He even gave me a couple songs he wrote so OWTH would have something to use for our split with Discharge. Awesome. On Deaf Ears is a re recorded collection of their 7" releases. Huge fan on the song "My Old Man". Always wanted to do an acoustic cover!
Cock Sparrer "Forever" - I know. Kinda weird to pick the new record from the old band. I remember when I got a promo stream of this. We put it on in the shop and were kind of shocked. Not because we couldn't believe these old dudes could do it, but man, they did it. I think it has something to do with how this kind of music is ageless. Whether you are 19 or 68, if you like this stuff, you are a grumpy old man. Haha. Guess what? That's me. I love these guys. I can't believe they like my band too. They had us come out and do the Bay Area release shows for this record. It was awesome getting to pick their brains about the history of the band. Plus, Mickey said Robbie looks "menacing" when he plays bass. Haha. Anyway, my favorite jam off this one is "Nothing Like You". Pretty much CS to a T.
Cursive "Domestica" - When I first moved to Minneapolis, I lived at a house with a bunch of guys that were into that emo / emo core / indie stuff. I pretty much exclusively listened to punk, so I was the odd man out. But I have to say, some of the stuff those guys turned me onto was great. This record was one of them. I couldn't really peg why. Maybe it's because it was the exact opposite of everything I was listening to. Either way, this one definitely shaped my idea of how music should be. Keep it interesting and keep it your own. My favorite off this one is "The Martyr".
Have a good weekend!
Love,
Ryan