How can you not like a comp disc? Especially one from our pals at TKO, this disc, Better Than a Kick in the Head, It's... Punch Drunk III, the TKO Records Compilation (long-ass title, huh?) delivers the TKO sound you've come to trust and love. Here are the Beltones, U.S. Bombs, Sixer, Angelic Upstarts, Limecell, The Stitches, Workin' Stiffs, Bonecrusher, and the Generators...whew. Just to name a few. 26 tracks of jaw-numbing punk punches to the head by TKO stable-mates, and folks from Hellcat, Flat, No Pride, Victory Records, etc.
I'm beginning to feel like Leon Spinks. Some of these tracks are listed as previously unreleased, but this is a year old and has been sitting on someone's desk -- sorry, TKO, but a few of the "unreleased" tracks have, indeed, been released and are my-tee-fine, too. So, this is a chance to audition the bands and see if you want to pop for the whole disc. They probably have a Punch Drunk IV out now, and I'll get it next year.
Some of the tracks are previously available only on vinyl, so it's worth the paltry bucks for 26 different bands. That is 26 different bands...good God. And you are getting the stuff here, too. Not the dregs, this is the red tops. You have got to admire TKO Records for believing in and following their vision -- although I believe that if I said the word "vision" to any of them they might just make me punch drunk. They are true to their ideals, and produce consistent products that let you know "if it says TKO, you will be knocked out." This is punk the San Francisco way, with no apologies. None asked for, none needed. Don't look to this for pseudo-punk, pop-punk, or half-assed punk. And it isn't meandering noise punk, either. It's the real deal. Get it, get a tattoo, get a piercing, and break out the safety pins, kids. (BW)
(TKO Records -- 3126 W. Cary St. #303, Richmond, VA. 23221; http://www.tkorecords.com/)

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Various Artists
NYC Takeover Vols. 1 and 2

Recorded at a Victory Records showcase, the six bands on this record display some of the current variety in the category of punk rock. These bands are all similar to a certain degree, though not the degree that you were expecting: if this record is at all representative, apparently the biggest influence in punk these days is metal. None of the bands seem very afraid of their metal "side," and certainly some, like All Out War and Skarhead, embrace it completely.
All Out War at times build up some hardcore momentum, but they spend as much of the time in their slower moments with overly virtuosic fills. Skarhead adds an interesting rap feel to their songs, and even include some Public Enemy samples in between the songs -- which completes the overall PE/Anthrax model, even though their between-song patter is more reminiscent of Cypress Hill. Reach the Sky adds a little metal proficiency to their hardcore, the way that Bad Brains did, but not too much, resulting in a solid set of hardcore -- no rap, no metal (really), just straight-up.
My personal favorite band was Greyarea, who don't seem to fit in with the rest of the bands, if only because their songs have melodies. They put in a solid set of positive, emo-inflected punk rock. The taut song construction and the tightness of the band make for a good, catchy set, managing to nicely straddle the line between hardcore and emo. Their "Take My Chances" is a particularly upbeat song -- the rest, particularly their last song, "Before Me" are a little darker and more open-eyed, though no less good. (HM)
(Victory Records -- 346 N. Justine, Suite 504, Chicago, IL. 60607; http://www.victoryrecords.com/)

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Various Artists
Punk Rock Strike, Vol. 2: Punk Rock Strikes Back

What I like about like about comps is that you get to check out a ton of bands on one compact disc. Punk Rock Strike, Vol. 2 is full of great bands playing upbeat tunes to keep your head bobbing for over an hour. I had only heard a few of these bands before, but most of them seemed to fall into one of a few categories: 1, sounds like Green Day; 2, sounds like Bad Religion; 3, sounds like Social Distortion; 4, sounds like Sunday's Best; 5, etc.
I had thought a better review would have been to sit down with some of my gearhead friends and try to make a chart of the guitar/amp combinations of each band. After giving this disk a few listens, I didn't want to mock it anymore, as there are a lot of good songs here. Hope, Luckie Strike, River City High, and Big in Japan all contribute unreleased tracks that are surely as good as anything on one of their records. Thrice, The Wunder Years, and San Geronimo also contribute excellent tracks.
I put this CD on my portable MP3 player and listened to it at the gym one day, and I'll tell you what, it really melted away the miles on the lifecycle. It was also punk enough to get me to push myself a little bit on the weights. Springman Records put out this CD to give these bands exposure and surely anyone into punk will find a song or two they like and probably at least one band they've never heard of. As a bonus, you get tracks by Bay Area indie bands Enda, Mates of State, and Xiu Xiu. What's not to like? (KM)
(Springman Records -- P.O. Box 2043, Cupertino, CA. 95015-2043; info@springmanrecords.com; http://www.springmanrecords.com/)

Tribute albums should be left for the artists that deserve to be paid tribute. Now, as magnificent of a band as Weezer are, they're neither dead nor retired, and they certainly haven't made a large enough impact on the music scene to deserve a tribute quite yet. That's exactly the reason why I was thrown off when I found out that the emo-est of emo bands contributed covers of thirteen of Weezer's finest to A Tribute to Weezer. While I am slightly shocked that such an album exists, I must admit that in its entirety, it's not all that bad...but it's not all that good, either.
My main beef with the album is that most of the time you've got a song by Weezer, played by guys that look like Weezer, played exactly how Weezer would play it. Tributes should have artists do their own renditions of the songs -- they should spice it up with louder guitars or speed up the vocals and alter the harmonies; they shouldn't rehash the same tune as it was originally played.
Piebald's version of "No One Else" is a case in point. Not only is it played exactly how Weezer plays it, but it's played by a band that looks and sounds like Weezer. Glasseater's "Holiday" is not anything special, either. It's the same song played the same way, just by different guys. Further Seems Forever does a cover of one of Weezer's most brilliant songs, "Say It Ain't So," which has undeniably been done better in the past by Deftones -- their version is just another lame attempt to play the song the way Weezer does.
Although the album almost entirely lacks originality, there are a few songs that bring something new to Weezer's songs. Dashboard Confessional's version of "Jamie" is completely stripped-down, in the best way possible, and though Weezer wrote it, it's a Dashboard song from the get-go. Female vocals and an acoustic guitar make the song shine beautifully, and Carrabba's prevailing-yet-delicate vocals are pleasantly different from Rivers Cuomo's, giving the song a new edge. Affinity's "My Name Is Jonas" is definitely a fresh take on that song, as well. Lots of screaming and effortless melody makes you forget you're listening to a song initially done by Weezer. Christopher John's "The World Has Turned..." has sweeter vocals and a delayed tempo, both of which make the song more mellow and innocent and ultimately a beautiful and touching version.
In the end, while A Tribute to Weezer is an easy listen, you might as plug the real thing into your stereo. It's better that way. (NK)
(Dead Droid Records -- P.O. Box 68061, Grand Rapids, MI. 49516; info@deaddroidrecords.com; http://www.deaddroidrecords.com/)

Various Artists
This Changes Everything: A Second Nature Recordings Sampler

Although it rarely receives comment, the near-constant failure of label samplers is almost preposterous, since their very raison d'être is supposedly to provide us with the very best. Freed of the necessity to hew to the vision of a specific artist and beholden only to those records falling within a moderately arbitrary release window (or, in the case of a retrospective, a historical narrative, however subject to revisionism that may be), the compilers get to choose the cream of the available crop. Considering that the whole purpose of this enterprise is invariably to tempt you in the direction of other albums, picking anything but the one or two best songs from each of the selected artists would be risky at best and counterproductive at worst.
And still we find ourselves inhabiting a world in which it is the rare label sampler that is even start-to-finish listenable, let alone consistently superlative. It's truly one of the great paradoxes of our age, and if you let it, Second Nature Recordings' This Changes Everything will lead you straight into that minefield. The label draws heavily, though by no means exclusively, from bands from the general vicinity of its Kansas City base, and it's your typical don't-call-us-emo smorgasbord. The best cuts, from Reggie and the Full Effect (the thunderously melodic "Thanx For Stayin'" from Promotional Copy, a better deal at twice the price) and Sharks Keep Moving ("Try To Sleep," which makes effective use of space by finding an idea and building on it instead of just repeating it), minister effectively to those who haven't yet heard the gospel. It's too bad that most of the other bands (which include Coalesce, the Blood Brothers and Kid Kilowatt) simply preach to the choir. Of course, there exists the possibility that every single act here kicks my ass and yours and that Second Nature has left far worthier cuts on their albums proper. That's too bad, because based on This Changes Everything, I have no real desire to hear them. (MH)
(Second Nature Recordings -- P.O. Box 11543, Kansas City, MO. 64138; http://www.secondnaturerecordings.com/)

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Various Artists
Turbo's Tunes

Kill Rock Stars will always be that other Olympia label; always in the shadow of its older sibling, K Records. K got there first, crafting an entire community of naïve rockers out of the college students and hangers-on that populate Washington's capital city. Beat Happening. Lois. That sort of thing. You wouldn't think there would be a need for another label so specialized for a town of under 50,000. You'd be wrong. And despite the nine-year age difference, there is still a strong resemblance between K and Kill Rock Stars. Each label sets out to document the Olympia, Washington music scene, and as any two documentaries on the same subject are likely to do, they sometimes overlap. Many artists have releases on both K and Kill Rock Stars, and both labels now include non-Olympia bands on their roster. So is the label really that important? Probably not, but Kill Rock Stars wants you to know just what they're made of. And to that end, they've put out Turbo's Tunes, a compilation of songs that are on other Kill Rock Stars releases.
Turbo's Tunes starts out with what is arguably KRS' strongest band, The Gossip. Beth Ditto has the kind of voice that tells you right away that she knows her influences, but isn't bound by them. "Got All This Waiting" is an infectious, raunchy blues track that is every bit as much Jon Spencer as it is Bessie Smith. It's strong so it's no wonder it's the album opener. Turbo's then proceeds through some of KRS' stronger acts to Sleater-Kinney.
Does anybody else think that Corinne Tucker can sometimes sound like a young Geddy Lee? Okay, maybe it's just me. "Ballad of a Lady Man" may not be the high point of Sleater Kinney's career, but it's still got the rock and it keeps this comp moving.
It takes Two Ton Boa to bring the party down with a song that is so long and sludgy it seems to take up half of the album. "Bleeding Heart" is nine minutes of repetitive metal clichés that never seems to end. And when it does, you find yourself wondering what the hell you were just listening to. Is this the same album? Then Kleenex kicks off a garage-rocker that reminds me of defunct Austin band, Pork -- okay, same album.
Frumpies are next with an embarrassing song that name-checks Thee Headcoatees and features the female bonding chorus, "We knew we were Frumpies forever / We are Frumpies now / We were Frumpies then / Friends until the end." Yawn.
At least Holly Golightly was actually in Thee Headcoatees. She does a loungy twelveíbar number that sounds nothing like the Billy Childish garage rock that inspired Thee Heacoatees and most of the artists on this comp.
Then comes Cadallaca, Corinne Tucker's other band. "The Trouble" sounds like Sleater-Kinney with a far less competent drummer. It seems like playing with other musicians would prompt you to explore other styles, right? Not here. What we get instead is Cadallaca showing us simultaneously just how much influence Tucker has on Sleater-Kinney and how important the playing of Sleater-Kinney's Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss is.
With Slumber Party, Turbo's Tunes slows down. "Any Other" is a spare, sad song that reminds me of Low. Lois and Brendan Canty (of Fugazi fame) do a nice mellow number, which is Lois' stock in trade. Next style, please.
Danielle Howle turns in a menacing track. The Breakdowns do the obligatory alt-country number. Bonfire Madigan do more garage rock, but with cello and drums. Seriously. Then Unwound starts the male vocalist portion of the album, doing a typically slow, tense song. Up next is Jim Carroll doing yet another throwaway track. Why does he keep recording? Or more to the point: Why do people keep putting his stuff out?
Sport Murphy does a song that would make Billy Bragg proud. Sue P. Fox does a cut-rate Sonic Youth. Har Mar Superstar does ironic nu-soul that doesn't really do his live show justice. And finally, the album ends with Jean Smith doing an instrumental that sounds like Brian Eno, circa Thursday Afternoon.
It's hard to review compilation albums, especially when the songs have no unifying theme. At least with a theme, you could be sure that a given song's inclusion had a purpose beyond selling more albums. But with Turbo's, you get a lot of filler. Don't get me wrong, many of these are good songs, but I would never recommend that you buy Turbo's Tunes over, say, an album by The Gossip. Overall, the album is uneven at best, but with the volume and range of material, Turbo's Tunes does serve to point out that Kill Rock Stars may be the more vital of Olympia's scene documenting labels. (JC)
(Kill Rock Stars -- 120 NE State Ave. PMB 418, Olympia, WA. 98501; http://www.killrockstars.com/)