I'm done showing up to fucking work

Kon'nichiwa, Wednesday warriors, and welcome to another daring episode of WWA. In this week's adventure, we find our hero fighting off workday ennui and struggling to meet critical deadlines. Wielding only the awesome power of punk rock, harnessed through songs from bands like Choking Victim, Good Riddance, Roots Manuva, The Dead Milkmen, Minor Threat and The Bronx, our hero conquers the week!

Enjoy the tunes, buckaroos.



Annnd, the web player link for all you ducks.

OK, so we're kicking off the playlist this week with a classic from Philly's notorious 80s hardcore outfit The Dead Milkmen. Tiny Town is the opening track off their 1985 debut full length, Big Lizard in My Backyard, and serves a blistering burn on small town American life. Like the rest of the album, Tiny Town blends punk energy and vocals with a jangly folksy sound, and is punctuated throughout with their trademark sense of humor.

Nothing Personal is a hard hitting track from Dinosaur Pile-Up, a post-alternative rock band from Leeds, England. The song is featured off Dinosaur Pile-Up's latest record, Eleven Eleven. Although the album was released in Europe in October 2015, American fans weren't able to buy it in stores until August 2016...rude!

A good buddy of ours from London was staying with us for a couple weeks, and while he was here, he turned me onto English rapper Roots Manuva. I had never heard of him, but apparently he's an incredibly influential and popular artist/producer in that culturally impressive little island. Witness (1 Hope) is his biggest hit, and was a single from his second album, Run Come Save Me, released in 2001 through Big Dada label. Roots Manuva blends a nice mix of hip hop, dub and funk, and the lack of quantization on his beats produces a pleasing, off-kilter, almost lagging, effect.

Infested is a dirty tune from those disreputable NYC miscreants that are Choking Victim. The song was NOT part of their sole full-length release (No Gods, No Managers) but rather was featured on Hellcat Records' Give 'Em the Boot compilation. A staple of the C-Squat crust punk scene, Choking Victim provides a refreshing antithesis between soothing, catchy (crack) rock steady ska, and unforgiving, chaotic and unkempt hardcore punk.

Well, balls, it certainly seems like we're featuring a lot of music from our friends across the pond. Eat the Rich is courtesy from those pervasive purveyors of perversion, Motörhead. It was released as a single in 1987, and was written specifically for Peter Richardson's film of the same name. Formed in 1975 by the infamous, dead-but-never-forgotten Lemmy, aka Ian Fraser Kilmister, Motörhead rocked the shit out of it all the way til his death in 2015. DID YOU KNOW - Lemmy was a huge fan of slot machines and arcade games, and he'd often mutter 'lemmy a fiver until Friday' to feed his addiction, leading to the creation of his famous nickname.

Up next is LA hardcore band The Bronx (whaaaa', geography fake out), with their throaty and punching anthem Heart Attack American. This is the first track on their self-titled debut album (the first of four self-titled albums), which was recorded in 2003 in producer Gilby Clarke's kitchen. I love the open room sound heard throughout the album. All in all, good shit. What you got cooking next, guys?

Trusty Chords is a crooner of a tune off Hot Water Music's 2002 full-length album Caution. A reliable go-to when you want music with some feels, these Floridians have been churning out soulful songs since their genesis in 1993. Although they've slowed down these past several years, they still get together and do stuff here and there. Keep an eye out, ya never know when they may announce a new project...

Our penultimate selection is Dry Season, a speedy song from melodic hardcore veterans Good Riddance. These guys, led by indefatigable frontman Russ Rankin, had a long and successful run through the 90s and 2000s, releasing seven critically acclaimed albums through Fat Wreck Chords. After a long hiatus that started in 2007, Good Riddance got back together to write their latest record, Peace In Our Time, which includes Dry Season...and which was also released through Fat Wreck.

We'll end today's merriment with Dinosaurs Will Die, from NOFX's 8th studio album Pump Up the Valuum. This track sounds very NOFX-y for the time (circa late 90s/early 2000s), featuring doubled guitar lines with running solos, mid tempo rhythm, and a polished quality to the production. Pump Up the Valuum would go on to be the last album NOFX published through Epitaph. Fun fact - the band purposefully misspelled 'Valium' in the album's name to avoid a lawsuit. Not very punk rock, guys!


Alright, that is enough excitement for one week. Tune in next Wednesday to see what we got in store next. Please feel free to send feedback, song requests, t-shirts, hair, or anything else you want. Toodle-loo!