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Flashback: Descendents

Berkeley, California, flashback, hard rock, hardcore, Hermosa Beach, punk No Responses »

Nov 182011

Ever wonder where the emo-punk got it’s start? Contrary to what Billy Joe may think, it wasn’t Green Day. Sorry to disappoint but, while they were prolific early adopters of the genre, it was actually a band nearly (400) miles to the south in Hermosa Beach, CA that many point to as the true founders of melodic hardcore. Descendents got their start in 1978 but it wasn’t until a few years later that I discovered them on a fateful “unauthorized” Spring Break trip to Myrtle Beach, SC. Certain details of the trip are still a bit fuzzy but what I do remember was my buddy Ted “Under the Table” Levendosky turning me on to Milo and the boys doing their rendition of “Wendy” by the Beach Boys. Epic. Some of my other personal favs from their 1986 release entitled Enjoy! are “Sour Grapes”, “80s Girl” and “Get the Time”.

Regrettably, there is hardly any decent live footage or video from the band’s earlier work but the vid above for “I’m the One” found on 1996′s Everything Sucks disc is very much representative of the simple punk genius that is Descendents. Dig it.

-Drago

Getting Frenched Feels So Good

alt-rock, alternative, featured artists, France, Kesshin, Paris, punk, rock, unsigned 1 Response »

Mar 102011

artist: Kesshin | genre: alternative, punk, rock | label: unsigned

Kesshin are a three piece hailing from Paris who sing in English and whose music has been featured in the video game Splinter Cell Chaos Theory. They play fast, feature shouted vocals and thick, chunky guitars that remind me of early Green Day, Social Distortion and Bad Religion.

A new EP, For Too Long Now, is available and offers fantastic tracks like Young, Brilliant and Alone” (I didn’t realize my middle school days had inspired a song), which clearly invites the Green Day comparison, but the stomping rhythm and the way they stumble into the chorus makes it Kesshin’s own. I love the power of their songs. They are tight and sound terribly confident on Final Report, which was in my face immediately. I loved the way the song gets to a point where it’s just the singer and the bass, then the drums come roaring in again. The best thing about “A Thing Or Two” is when they double track the singer’s voice. It’s almost like they have to do that, since the band is playing such blistering stuff behind him. The rapid-fire attack of the guitars in “Killed In Action” make it their best song.

Kesshin are a bit of a mystery, however. Unsigned, they don’t have a dedicated site and I wasn’t able to find any upcoming tour dates. Too bad, as I’ll I bet they are sick live. The only place I could find their music was at their mypace page, www.myspace.com/kesshintheband, where you can hear the songs from Splinter Cell Chaos Theory and a bunch more. I need more information on Kesshin, because what I’ve heard is really, really good.

- Thurdeen