2009 has been a huge year for the Michigan-based group The Swellers. After signing to Fueled By Ramen, the band has released their debut for the label, Ups and Downsizing, put out a 7″ on Paper+Plastick, and embarked on a nationwide record release tour with Paramore. During their recent show at The Metro, I had the chance to sit down with drummer Jonathan Diener and ask him a few questions about the band’s new found success and the future of the Swellers.
So, you just came off a tour with Paramore, which had to be a little different for you. (Much larger crowds/venues, different kind of crowds) What were your expectations going into that tour and how did it end up?
The Paramore tour preparation was definitely stressful because we didn’t know how we would go over with their crowd. It was our biggest merch order ever, we were playing the biggest shows we’ve ever done, and everything was just on a much larger scale. We knew with FBR and Hayley [Williams] backing us that we’d have the advantage going into the tour, which was nice, and it ended up working out perfectly. Paper Route and Paramore are full of great people, and the crew and everybody involved were all total professionals. All in all, we had a blast. We made some amazing friends, and a lot of new fans.
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If you have any interest in punk music, you should have heard of Dear Landlord by now. The band has been one of the most talked about acts within the scene this year, and it will be no surprised when their debut full length Dream Homes tops many of this year’s “best of” lists.
Comprised of members of the Copyrights and Rivethead, Dear Landlord perfectly blends the sounds of those two bands. It’s equal parts classic Minneapolis rough, raspy punk and quick, hyper-melodic pop punk from the Land of Lincoln. With two solid 7†releases under their belt, Dear Landlord released their first full length Dream Homes earlier this year, and, to put it plainly, it is one of the best pop punk albums I’ve heard in awhile.
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Ever since their much hyped about debut Orchestra of Wolves, I have always enjoyed Gallows’ music, but I’d never been able to make it out to any of their shows. So, I was anxious to see how they sounded live compared to their records, and to find out whether or not they were as good live as I have been told they were. The fact that my first experience seeing the Watford, England-based act was at The Riveria was kind of a let down, though. I assumed going into the show that the venue might not be the best fit for Gallows’ breakneck hardcore sound, and I was right. This is not a band that is meant for 100 ft ceilings and huge auditorium acoustics.
Regardless, they made the most of the night. Led by the intense stage presence of singer Frank Carter, the group tore through their forty minute set with the kind of energy necessary to win over a crowd that probably wasn’t too familiar with their music. Playing mostly off their debut, I was pleased to hear a few tunes, such as “London Chicago Is The Reason†and “I Dread the Nightâ€, off their latest album Grey Britain as well as a solid cover of Black Flag’s “Nervous Breakdown.â€
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The Menzingers @ Fest 8 (photo by ceephoto)
So, my trip to Fest started on somewhat of a sour note as I started get really sick with the flu only a few days before I left for Florida. However, I am a trooper and refused to let a little sickness get in my way of a weekend of good ol’ fashion rock n roll. Instead of boring you with every minute detail of the weekend, I am only going to talk about my favorite two sets of the weekend.
On the first night, one of the bands I was most looking forward to was a band that I had actually seen one week before at the Metro, but that’s how much I enjoy them and their live show. The band I am talking about is Philadelphia, PA’s own The Menzingers. Like many acts at the Fest, The Menzingers enjoy bigger than normal crowds in every year in Gainesville and this weekend was no different. Performing at the Atlantic to an (over)capacity crowd, the Philly foursome rocked through a set comprised mainly of their latest EP Hold On, Dodge coupled with a few older tunes and covers of The Clash (“Straight to Hellâ€) and Billy Bragg (“To Have and Have Notâ€). The reaction of the crowd was amazing, and it was thrilling to see so many people just as excited for this band as I am.
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I’ve been waiting for this upcoming weekend all year long, and that is because I am going to Gainesville, FL to attend this year’s The Fest. I mean how could I not being excited about attending a weekend filled with over 200 of the best punk bands going? Unlike festivals like SXSW and CMJ, people and bands don’t flock to The Fest in anticipation of signing a record contract or to hear the next “it†band, but they gather in Florida to join in celebration of their love for music that probably won’t reach the masses. It’s really more like a Star Trek convention- replace the acne ridden nerds in their homemade costumes trading limited edition cards with drunk, bearded nerds in cutoff shorts and Crimpshrine shirts buying rare presses of Reinventing Axl Rose.
The Fest was started by No Idea Records and is held during the last weekend of October. The concerts are held at this time because during this weekend almost the whole town, which is home to the University of Florida, leaves for Jacksonville to attend “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.†Last year was the first time I attend Fest and I had the time of my life- even if I did sleep in a car with 3 other people all weekend because we foolishly didn’t reserve a hotel. The weekend is trademarked by drunken revelry, secret house shows, and reunion of some of the scenes favorite bands, and I can’t wait to get back down there. Expect a full report on all the weekend’s events next week.
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I discovered We Were Promised Jetpacks in probably the rarest way people hear new music these days, on the radio. Yeah, that’s right. I heard about a new band not on a major label on the radio. Pretty shocking stuff, right? Well, to be fair I was listening to KDHX , which is far from your typical, Clear Channel-owned radio station.
Anyway, the story goes like this: I was in St. Louis in my car listening to International Pop Overthrow when suddenly this really up-tempo, epic sounding pop number comes on, so I whip out my phone and open to the Shazam app to see who’s rocking this jam. The answer was We Were Promised Jetpacks. I was lured in by the powerful, rapid strumming and wailing, Scottish vocals of their single Quiet Little Voices. This quick sample filled me with intrigue for a a band I’d never head before. Read more…
Bands like The Sidekicks tend to scare me. When young, talented punk bands break into the scene with incredible debuts, I cannot help myself from getting the feeling that they will ultimately end up breaking my heart by “evolving their sound†(i.e. discovering Radiohead and attempting to make ambient, “arty†music) or something along those lines. So naturally after discovering that this Cleveland, OH based four-piece were all minors when they released their debut album So Long, Soggy Dog on Red Scare Records, the fear set in again.
So Long, Soggy Dog was such a refreshing record that took all the great qualities of acts like Dillinger Four, Hot Water Music, and other Orgcore luminaries and added a more youthful, energetic quality that made it stand on its own, so it was no surprise when The Lawrence Arms’ Brendan Kelly called the album “one of those records that seems like it could only be made by kids†and heralded it as one of his favorites of the year.  Now if these kids can make a record that can stand with best of their veteran counterparts’ before they can even share a drink with them, they are bound to expand their horizons to create something different next time around, right? Well, the Sidekicks did, and it is amazing.
When playing their latest release Weight of Air, I find myself Read more…
