7 Seconds
Take It Back, Take It On, Take It Over!
Side One Dummy Records, 2005

A typically revolutionary album title from a band with more optimism than I have that punk rock is going to change the world in any massive way.  I say this because they’ve been around longer than I’ve been alive (and no, I’m not just a really hilarious toddler).  17 tracks in 28 minutes.  I've listened to it 4 times whilst you've read this introduction.

For a band who once sang “I’m gonna stay young until I die” they write a lot of songs about being over the hill.  The 3 tracks that stand out most if you just have this album on in the background are the longest, “slowest” songs on the CD, they are all a bit cheesy (musically) and all have an ageing theme.  The best song all-around on the album, is the first, the only one that’s under a minute long  - “All Came Undone” is a song about looking back and wondering if you really changed things that much.  Which are the kind of elderly wises those of us in the 17 – 23 age-range can appreciate, because we wonder if we’ll look back and think the same.  There’s something disheartening about hearing Kevin Seconds pre-pubescent voice sing about “Your Parents Hardcore”.  On “Big Hardcore Mystery” he quite fairly says, “give the kids a try”, but it’s as if to imply that the kids aren’t giving it a try quite fine on their own.  Seconds also sings “some even tried to steal the name”, as if the bands musically tame and outdated definition of “hardcore music” is more true than the much heavier metal and emo hardcore bands that are around now.  Perhaps it would be cynical of me to wonder if the albums theme has anything to do with its title.  It’s not that I don’t appreciate what these guys did, but they’ve barely changed their sound in 20 years.  Which is okay I suppose, it’s a good sound.

Nevertheless, 7 Seconds have stuck around longer and remained more entertaining than many of their (younger) contemporaries, so perhaps we can allow them to settle into being middle aged.  Even though their gang vocals are starting to sound more like church harmonies, the guitars and drums are still infectiously well crafted, and Kevin Seconds unique voice still works brilliantly on your lugholes.  If you want something fast and fun and not at all groundbreaking, get this.

3/5

James Lamont.

South Asia Benefit gig: The Little Explorer, The Dragon Rapide, Tigers!, Day For Airstrikes, When
Words Escape, Raucous, Grayson's Hour, Durai, Cornish Tinmines
Sunday, 9th January 2005
The Phoenix, Manchester

It doesn’t take George Monbiot to figure out that the recent devastation in Southern Asia could have been minimised significantly in a world where wealth and resources are not so ridiculously (and purposefully) misplaced. It’s no pain in the arse for a Premier football club with more income than a remote island to throw a few thousand the way of a natural disaster, and the pathetic crumbs of “aid” donated by Western governments simply seem embarrassing. That is, until you read that Blairs government gave £1bn (20 times the aid money) to the Indonesian military, then a month before Christmas supported an arms fair in Jakarta. Then it becomes outrageous. The Indonesian military by the way, killed 20,000 civilians in Aceh and was still killing them right up until the day when it was hit by a tidal wave.

Luckily for our sense of shame, the British public have been donating a lot, apparently. As always, and as we seem keen to point out in the music scene, there is certainly a case of bandwagon jumping from people who never have and never will make a charitable contribution again. I suppose it’s better that they do this than bandwagon jump a national uzi fetish, but obviously, it’s pleasant to search out those genuine humanitarians. This is the point where I say, “yes, this is still a concert review.” As if it isn’t task enough to try and organise a 10-band line up, to do it so speedily is admirable. We don’t seem to have any trouble coming together in large numbers for benefit gigs, the sad thing is we don’t show unity of this scale all the time. The bands are a mixture that you wouldn’t normally expect to see together, which goes to show it can work.

The afternoon danced into the night from the rising punk of Durai to the non-stop noisities of Raucous.  From the easy mid 90’s emo of Grayson’s Hour to the twangly delicacies of Day For Airstrikes, and the kazoo’d madness of Tigers! to the sleepy sparks in The Little Explorer (who almost didn’t turn up at all).  Every band brought something positive to the table, and even though some claimed not to have fingers (I’m looking at you, When Words Escape!), the community vibe in the second floor venue was excellent throughout. Get your bum over to www.manchestershows.cjb.net for more gigs, and for information on the generous people who damaged our ears for free this past Sunday, www.mancpunkscene.co.uk would be a good place to start.

Between the door charge, cake/CD stall and additional donations, this day raised just under a £1000 for Oxfam ( www.oxfam.org.uk). An amazing feat. Let’s hope it’s not the last of its kind for a while after the BBC take their cameras off Sri Lanka, leaving the general populace back on the happy shores of apathy, far from any natural or man-made disasters.

5/5

Descendents
Cool To Be You
Fat Wreck Chords, 2004

It’s time once again to marvel at the aceness of the pencilled interpretation of Milo Aukerman on a Descendents release. After an excruciating 8 years, the Los Angeles punk legends have released a riff-rammed full length in Cool To Be You.

The song writing is split almost evenly between 3 of the members, bar guitarist Stephen Egerton. The band has never in their 25 years claimed to be about politics, and it would be a tragedy if they were. Instead they stick to their usual areas of expertise: Girls, high school, and things that suck (like stupid people). If you aren’t familiar with The Descendents, don’t be mistaken; this is no group of whiny floppy-haired fucksticks. Songs like “One More Day”, “Maddie” and “Anchor Grill” are as tuneful as ever – but they’re not quite as fast paced as previous Descendents love songs. There’s no stinkers here, but Aukerman’s classic voice is put to best use on the title track, “ ‘Merican” (the song Green Day SHOULD have written) and “Blast Off”. The familiarly titled “Mass Nerder” is arguably a little weak in comparison as the trademark fast and simple song (though it fails to be under 40 seconds). “Dry Spell” is the usual brilliant super-melodic album-ender.

The Descendents have had more line up changes and have broken up more times than you’d think a band could survive. Hopefully, this time, they won’t split up after they have rounded up yet another generation of eager new fans with this amazing record.

5/5

James Lamont.

Morning Pizza, 3BDS Down, Revenge of the Psychotronic Man, Built From Scratch
Sunday 22nd August 2004
The Attic, Manchester

"This ones for everyone who went out on the pull last night and then went home and had a wank."

Tonight a great pop-punk gig took place above The Thirsty Scholar, and for once, I’m not just using pop-punk as an alternative term to the latest onslaught of 47th wave emo.

Built From Scratch recently gave away a free demo CD, and their live show proves just as fun. Name another band with a song about bedding Dot Cotton. They kept saying they were shit though, which is a little off-putting.

The chaps from Revenge of the Psychotronic Man are the ones that put this free gig on, gave away a free demo CD and put together a free fanzine ("That’s Not Skanking"). How nice are they? The 3-pieces songs are all totally irrelevant film titles.

3BDS Down (featured in above zine) have a 4 hour drive ahead of them so seem to think playing faster will aid an escape. I don’t usually start reviews with quotes, but that had to be kept on record (there was one about arse sex too but I thought I’d spare you all).

After a year of playing gigs in the Northwest, Morning Pizza play to their biggest crowd at this gig in their first headlining slot. The band are really getting to sew out their own tight sound with songs about the music scene, and get more than a warm feedback from all the people that came to support local music tonight.

We’re informed there are talks to make this a monthly free night of unsigned bands, which is just what we need.

4/5

James Lamont.