Top 5 Thursday #3: Bands We’re Thankful For

 Scott Danshaw’s List:

1. Jay Reatard - No one took the foundations of “garage punk” laid out by bands like Oblivians to the heights Jay did. In my humble opinion he’s one of the best song writers of all time, just listen to the album Blood Visions if you don’t believe me.
2. Dead Boys - This band is the standard bearers of all things punk. If the Ramones & Sex Pistols “created” punk then Dead Boys are the band that gave it that no fucks given attitude. Not to mention having one of the greatest frontmen to ever do it in the late Stiv Bators.
3. Kill Cheerleader - if you read my article on their record “All Hail” then you know my stance on this band. They took the furiousity of punk, the blistering guitar work of 80’s heavy metal, and that “fuck you” rock n roll attitude that seemed to be lost after the 80s and made one of the best records of the early 00’s. Give “All Hail a listen and you’ll see what I mean.
4. Ceremony - This band is the epitome of punk. From the quick power violence of “Violence, Violence” to the throw back 80s hardcore of “Rohnert Park”, the straight forward punk rock of “Zoo” or their later more new wave/post punk influenced albums Ceremony has done it all. This band encompasses everything I fell in love with about punk. Do you need proof? Turn on Rohnert Park, press play on track 1,  and let it rip and I assure you you won’t skip a damn song.
5. Fidlar - The band that got me through so much in my 20s. From heartbreak to drug addiction this band encompassed everything I had going on in my life. I can’t say I have the connection to any band that I do with Fidlar. It’s like every song Zac Carper wrote on those first 2 records spoke to me telling me I wast alone and that I’m either gonna make it through or die trying. Obviously I made it through and I owe so much to Fidlar.

Ryan Germ’s List:

1. Botch: I go through very long stretches without listening and then I hear a song and binge their entire discography. Obviously we all know they peaked with 1999’s We Are The Romans, but their debut effort American Nervoso that came out 18 months before is also really good and would be any other band’s crown jewel, we get a sneak peak of a slightly more soft direction with 2002’s posthumous release, Anthology Of Dead Ends and a more raw sound in 2006’s rarities compilation Unifying Themes Redux. Without them I wouldn’t have discovered their Seattle contemporaries such as Trial or other Mathcore pioneers like Converge.
2. Wavves: A band that got me through the pandemic. I remember first listening to King Of The Beach and just slowly coming to appreciate the whole record. Despite Spun not being their best work due to the inconsistent mixing I still have a huge appreciation for the songs after hearing them live. Their previously unreleased 2009 record Babes is their defining work for me ever since dropping in 2023, Zach Hills drumming is so tight and it’s a perfect middle ground between KOTB and the early lo-fi records production wise.
3. Ink & Dagger: The reason for the name of the blog you’re reading. Their whole discography has no skips that i can think of off the top of my head, a debate that rages in my head every so often is if I prefer Fine Art or Drive This. What a band and I’m so grateful that I was able to see them with my dad.
4. Every Time I Die: The band that made me stop and realize that Metalcore wasn’t absolute overproduced, not actually heavy, fake metalcore dogshit. I found them through my dad showing me The Damned Things and then popping on Gutter Phenomenon. When I heard the southern riffs in The New Black my mind was blown similarly to when I was shown Botch, but for a completely different reason. It was a mix of screams and clean vocals over heavy riffs AND it wasn’t horrible like the popcore my mom used to make me listen to such as A Day To Remember or Falling In Reverse. I delved into the rest of ETID’s discography and couldn’t believe when every record was close to being on Gutter Phenomenon’s level of quality whilst also having such different sounds. ETID will always be a truly special band.
5. Kids Like Us: Listen. Do they have the best discography? Fuck no. But this is my list of bands I’m thankful for and I put what I want on here. When I was 7 or 8 I remember going into my dads room while he was cleaning and I heard Gator Smash. I talk a lot about life changing moments for me, especially when it has to do with my journey of hardcore. But I mean this with no hyperbole, nothing changed my life more than hearing that song. My taste immediately got shaped for the next 9 or 10 years of my life. I need something moshy, fast, aggressive, but slow and groovy too. Going back as someone who’s almost an adult and relistening to all of Outta Control is so rewarding too because now I can finally appreciate every aspect of it. Bottom line, without this band my taste could have been vastly different or worse.