entry 4: A whole bunch of music for when shit fucking sucks.

Well, folks, shit fucking sucks. It’s sucked for a long while, but the squeeze feels particularly acute lately. It’s hard to try and cope with the fact that shit fucking sucks when everyone around you is not only aware of it, but they’re screaming with fear and blowing up your phone and showing up in news headlines. Your chest feels tight, your head hurts, it feels like you’re drowning on land and it’s hard to feel any emotion besides miserable. Shit fucking sucks. So what do you do?

There’s a lot of awesome people who have written extremely proactive articles about what you can do in the long term - organize, support each other, volunteer, learn. All of that is awesome and are essential to participate in if you want anything (even on a micro scale) to get better. But what about when it’s Tuesday and you’re at work and you just gotta get through the fucking day even though you’d rather eat glass than think about whatever exploited labor you’re forced to participate in?

Personally, that’s when I pop my headphones on, crank the tunes, and scream-sing until my voice is hoarse. Here’s some fantastic fuckin bands for some mental catharsis.

Jeff Rosenstock
[BANDCAMP]

Holy shit, Jeffy has single handedly been responsible for saving my stupid fucking brain too many times to count over the years. He manages to capture so many frustrating, ephemeral feelings that leave your brain clouded and exhausted - in particular anxiety and a deep, unyielding rage at the state of the world. Jeff’s roots stretch back to the DIY punk scene, and they first blew up with their project “Bomb the Music Industry”. Kick ass fucking name. Really revolutionary band imo, but then they broke up! Boo. But thankfully, that didn’t stop Jeff from continuing to make music. Yay! Now, in the modern day, we have the wonderful project that is “Jeff Rosenstock” slash “Death Rosenstock” - the former is the name on Jeff’s solo albums, the latter refers to him & his band that plays at live shows.
Jeff’s music is pure, utter catharsis to me. I’ve screamed songs like “All This Useless Energy” and “Wave Goodnight to Me” through tears in my car more times than I can count, and at this point when the horrible dread of the fucked up world we live in creeps too close for me to ignore, I automatically run to my playlist of his songs. He’s not afraid to speak to power the pain and anger we feel towards the government of our stupid fucking country in songs like “USA”, “N O D R E A M”, and “HELLLLHOOOOLE”. His most recent project, HELLMODE, brings this to the forefront with songs like “FUTURE IS DUMB” and “HEAD”, but never does Jeff fall into the trap of hopelessness. His songs feel like anthems. They make you want to get up off your ass and march down the street. We’re not alone in this, we’ve never been alone in this. We’ve got this.

Also: Jeff’s nonbinary and uses he/him pronouns. I mention this because it’s a massive W for us in the nonbinary community lol.

Cheekface
[BANDCAMP]

Where my Cheek Freaks at?

First, shout out to my friend Chip for introducing me to Cheekface. Thank you Chip, your taste in music continues to be impeccable and awe-inspiring.

Cheekface is known, primarily, for their fucking weird style of music referred to as “talk-singing”, delivering dry humor, tongue-in-cheek wordplay, and a smirking critique of our shared anxiety complimented by upbeat, punchy tunes. Not the normal type of biting rock music or angry punk music you’d associate with emotional catharsis, but goddamn does Cheekface shoot a bullseye right to the heart of the weird malaise and depression spiral that’s sooo easy to fall into these days. Cheekface is at the edge of the cliff you’re about to fall off of when you’re at the end of your rope, offering an outstretched hand with a wiry smirk, making a joke about how you’ve gotta “hang in there” as they pull you out of oblivion. They might not be for everyone, but they sure as fuck are for me. If you’re a 20 to 30-something, struggling to keep your head above water as you navigate this fuckin crazy world… or if you like good music… give Cheekface a listen!

RECCS: “Hard Mode”, “If I Catch on Fire Please Put Me Out”, “We Need a Bigger Dumpster”, “Popular 2”. Also, if you’re getting your fuckin phd, “Grad School”.

Amyl and the Sniffers
[BANDCAMP]
Okay, so we’re pissed off. But we’re also wound up, aren’t we? And there’s no better band to blast when you need to jump around and punch the air than Amyl and the Sniffers. Their second and third album are both fantastic. “Freaks to the Front” is the song that made me fall in love with them, and it’s still an angry, energetic anthem. Amy of “Amyl” is wicked charismatic in a real “fuck you” way I admire. A personal favorite track of mine is “Me and the Girls”, a song about how awesome it is to not give a fuck with your besties. It’s cathartic to sing along with “U Should Not Be Doing That” and cursing out all the random men who have ever been fucking weird or controlling towards you for no fucking reason. I’m rambling now, next band time.

Lambrini Girls
[BANDCAMP]
Lambrini Girls new album “Who Let the Dogs Out” is exactly the angry, pissed off garage punk with heavy feminist themes we deserve right now. Fuck the police, fuck the patriarchy, fuck you, and fuck me. When shit fucking sucks, there’s nothing better than singing along to an unflinchingly honest description as to what exactly is making the world so frustrating to live in. “Big Dick Energy” and “Bad Apple” (about violent misogyny and police brutality, respectively) have been on heavy rotation for me these past couple days. But it’s not all dismal out here with the Lambrini Girls - “Cuntology 101” is probably one of the most confidence-inducing songs I’ve ever heard. That’s right bitch, learning to love yourself IS cunty! And we’re only getting through this if we take care of ourselves and each other. Let’s all learn, grow, live, and be cunty.

Mannequin Pussy
[BANDCAMP]
Now for some punk that's a little different: Mannequin Pussy might be softer than the two counterparts listed above, but they don't pull their punches when describing their ideolody. Their lyrics cut right to the marrow for me: "Loud Bark, Deep Bite" is a phrase that fucks so hard I want it tattooed on my body. And we cannot discredit the always classic verse from I Got Heaven: "And what if we stop spinning? And what if we're just flat? And what if Jesus himself ate my fuckin' snatch?" Catchy verse are bolstered by even catchier instrumentals, and their lead singer Missy is one of the most charismatic performers I've ever had the privelege to see live. Seriously, their concert was a hypnotic, powerful experience - catch them live if you ever get the chance.

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… Still here? I’ve got some more for ya. Here’s a smattering of shorter reccs for well known bands to remind you of during these shit ass times:

System of a Down
Truly a classic of highly political, deeply disillusioned music, and nu-metal kings. Don’t ask me what’s going on with their drummer, I dont fucking understand it either.

RECCS: BYOB, Prison Song, Deer Dance, Chop Suey!, Toxicity, Attack, Fuck the System


Dead Kennedys
We need more Dead Kennedys in our life, do we not? Perhaps one of the most well known punk bands of all time, political to their core. Regardless of what their legacy is, their music fucks and has influenced generations of hardcore punk bands & fans that came after them. Including me! Listening to Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables at a young, malleable age was very good for my development.

RECCS: Literally all of Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, Well Paid Scientist, Nazi Punks Fuck Off.


Bad Brains
The absolute legends of hardcore punk, if you’re listening to anything from this blog post do your diligence and learn your fuckin music history. While they might not be as well known by the mainstream as the previous two mentioned bands, you cannot talk about the influence of punk music without mentioning the band that pioneered the D.C. hardcore sound.

RECCS: Sailin’ On, Banned in D.C., I Against I


Slipknot
Huhhhhhh?! Slipknotttt? But they’re not specifically a politically charged band? Yeah SO WHAT! Sometimes shit sucks so much you just got to listen to some deeply angry music and imagine exploding peoples heads with your minds scanner style. It’s healthy for you! And have you ever listened to Slipknot? They rule. Plus, to deny their role in alt-movements in the early 2000s (and how SCARED the mainstream was of them!!!) would be ahistorical. Regardless of what Slipknot’s mission was as a band, the mark they made on the alt-music landscape and the backlash they received cannot be understated.

RECCS: Just put on their self-titled debut album and Iowa back-to-back and you’ll be set.


Want to check out the bands I mentioned in this post? Check out this Spotify playlist I made with a bunch of the reccs, along with some others I think fit the theme ENJOY!