Travis Barker and DJ AM Injured In Plane Crash

This is terrible, terrible news. Travis Barker And DJ AM are in reported critical condition with extensive burns from a plane crash in South Carolina. A few people on the plane were killed as well.

Although I am not 100% sure if this is real, this is terrible news indeed.

Get well soon

source: http://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=560251

PunkStop Profile - Say Anything

Say anything.

That is exactly what Max Bemis does with his band "Say Anything," he says whatever he wants or whatever is on his mind...resulting in some bold yet highly bizarre lyrics. Max has Bipolar disorder but for some reason I get the feeling that his "disorder" actually helps him to create the amazing music the band makes.

Say Anything is one of the most talented bands of its genre... and there latest CD "In Defense of The Genre," sure defends a genre that is stereotypically not known to feature a whole lot of talent, but boy these guys got talent. Their current bass player, Alex Kent, is personally one of my favorite bass players, for he always plays really busy cool lines. Their drummer is pretty decent, having some cool fills here and there and the guitars are really good as well. "In Defense of the Genre" Is a must have for bass players... and all other musicians as well that are fans of the genre.

Speaking of "genre" Say Anthing is a really diverse band that features hip hop, dance, punk, rock, pop punk, pop, emo, and even funk in many of their songs.

To keep this post relatively short, Say Anything is a truly unique band that is jam-packed with talent, and most importantly, Say Anything mixes a diverse amount of styles of music to really create their own "sound." "In Defense of the Genre" Is a must have for musicians, or just fans of pop punk whatever kind of music in general.



Notable Songs
-Wow I can Get Sexual too
-Alive With the Glory of Love
-Baby Girl Im a Blur
-Shiksa
-Every Man Has A Molly
-Woe
-This is F****** Ecstasy
-Died A Jew
-Retarded In Love
-Skinny, Mean Man
-Surgically Remove The Tracking Device


This is one of my favorite bands and I really think everyone should at least check them out

Links:

http://www.sayanythingmusic.com/
http://www.myspace.com/sayanything
http://www.purevolume.com/sayanything

This Month's Playlist

This month's playlist includes some more hardcore bands to add some adrenaline to your day.

O yea, if you havent heard of T13C, CHECK THEM OUT

Mark Hoppus, Producer

This will be a relatively short post... On Mark Hoppus's official blog, found at:

http://himynameismark.com/

There is an interview with Mark about his role as a producer, talking about some of the bands Mark has helped produce. Maybe your a fan, maybe your not, but Mark Hoppus and Blink 182 were definitely a HUGE influence on the creation of emo, pop punk, and all that other stuff.

So in case your curious about some of the bands Hoppus has helped produce with, check it out here:

click here

Notable Bands Mark Hoppus Produced For:
-Motion City Soundtrack
-Socratic
-New Found Glory
-Koopa

some cool stuff.... check it out

Recent Releases

A lot of good music has been released lately, from August to September. Let me give you the lowdown of what you need to start listening to.


Asteria - Asteria - Aug 19
-Asteria is back and better than ever with a brand new self titled EP. Great musicianship on this album. This is pop at its finest, great vocals, bass playing, some cool guitar and drum stuff here and there, nice electronic effects. Long Story short, check these guys out. Previous single "The Taste The Touch" is not their only good song ;) This EP is a must have for all pop, and pop punk fans.

Jack's Mannequin - The Glass Passenger - Sep 30
-No, this CD is not out quite yet, but definitely make sure to put "The Glass Passenger" on your list. Jack's Mannequin is a very talented, catchy band that anyone can listen to. With previous songs "Bruised," "Holiday From Real," "The Mixed Tape," and "Dark Blue," these guys are loaded with catchy single quality songs. I have high hopes for "The Glass Passenger. Be sure to check this one out.

Underoath - Lost In The Sound of Separation - Sep 02
Not a huge fan of Underoath, although their new cd got really, really good reviews.... And I think this is a must have/must check out for all hardcore, screamo fans.

Senses Fail - Family Tradition EP - Aug 26
-This Ep, plus future cd (Life is Not a Waiting room out Oct. 7th) are probably the 2 cds Im most exited for on this list. First of all, everyone reading this go buy the new Senses Fail EP on itunes for 3 bucks. It comes with 3 songs and a cd sampler track. All 3 of the songs are amazing. These guys are so talented... guitar solos, sweet drumlines, decent bass, ridiculous vocals... This Ep + Future Cd are must haves for everyone reading this. BUY IT

Valencia - We All Need A Reason to Believe - Aug 26th
-These guys prove that pop punk is still out there( not another stupid media hungry boy band...) and better than ever. I havent bought this CD yet but its on my list. If you are a fan of All Time Low, these guys tour with them... Valencia's newest CD is a must have for all pop punk fans and a must check out for everyone reading this. These guys are talented and I have high hopes/expectations for their future.

Punchline - Just Say Yes - Sep 16
-Not out yet, but Punchline is a pretty good pop punk band worth checking out. Ive already got the new single "Somewhere In the Dark" and have to say... this is some really catchy cool stuff. They have however changed their sound quite a bit(judging by their new single) So I can't say this would be a must have... but this is a must check out. Check out Punchline!



...Should have a cool artist profile for you guys in the next few days

~PunkStop Music Blog

Hawthorne Heights Future is Fragile

Band: Hawthorne Heights
Album: Fragile Future
Release Date: August 5th, 2008



Hawthorne Heights has always been one of my favorite pop punk/screamo bands. Songs like "Ohio Is For Lovers," "Saying Sorry," and "Pens and Needles" really seemed to show off the catchy yet aggressive music Hawthorne Heights quickly became known for.

Sadly and unexpectedly, Hawthorne Heights guitarist Casey Calvert was found dead November 24th 2007 at the age of 26. He was a huge part of the band and helped to define their popular, catchy sound. His death was a definite tragedy, he would have made a lot of great music and done a lot of great things. RIP...


The band however decided to move on, admitting that Casey would have wanted it that way. I couldn't agree more. It is quite obvious that most of the lyrics from "Fragile Future" are about Casey.

The new album however left me disappointed and unsatisfied. HH changed their sound completely, no screaming at all, no aggressiveness, and a more pop like sound. Just listen to their single "Rescue Me" and you will know what I mean.

I just miss the screaming, and the aggressiveness that made HH what they were known for. The new album lacks the old aggressive tone, leaving behind a real "empty" sound. I keep waiting for the songs to pick up, become more aggressive, but they don't. A lot of the songs just don't seem to go anywhere at all.

I understand that Casey died and the band is really emotional about him, and wanted to write this album for him. But why write bad music when they know they are completely capable of writing way better stuff? Fragile future is not a bad album, its just mediocre and HH is capable of writing way better music than this. Its not a bad album, its just not that good.

I still love HH but I just think the new record was a step in the wrong direction. Ill keep listening to it, maybe it will grow on me, but I think they should be more than just mediocre at best, and to me, thats all Fragile Future is.

Notable Songs
-The Business of Paper Stars
-Rescue Me
-Somewhere In Between
-Come Back Home

Vocals - 6 - pretty monotone voice, the vocals at the end of "Until Judgment Day" are just downright ANNOYING. Where the heck is the screaming?
Musicianship - 5- nothing fancy here, no cool bass riffs, no crazy guitar solos, no cool drum fills, nada... not bad musicians...solid group....
Creativity - 6.5 - definitely a different sound for HH but not too original sounding
Lasting Value - 4.5 - Listen to HH's older albums instead
Tilt: --

Overall Score 5.5/10


Final Opinion:

-not a bad album
-its great that these guys are still together and strong
-HH is capable of way better music than this

Sorry about this not to "positive" post... I should have some cool info on some actual GOOD new releases in the near future.

PunkStop Music Blog Is Back

The PunkStop Music Blog is back!



First of all I would like to say sorry to all of my subscribers for not informing you of my prolonged absence. Long story short, I was pretty busy during school last year and just sort of forgot about this "project."

Well the good news is that Im taking a new web class this year and it is going to be to my advantage to keep this blog going for a long time.

More good news -- I have a lot of new material planned for the PunkStop music blog, including a lot of new material that should keep all of you bass players interested... (wow, did I see like 1 hand raise?)

So keep checking back for future updates,

There will be many ;)