House Boat - The Thorns Of Life

Post-Ergs, I guess House Boat are NYCs go-to for post-Screeching Weasel pop-punkery around town. That is with all deference to Iron Chic, who to stir it up from the jump, are vastly superior. It's not that House Boat are bad, I guess it's really maybe that Grath seems to be trying too hard. Playing the third tier Paddy card is not a good look for anyone, despite the sheer volume of contenders clamoring for the slot.

I guess we can start with the Thorns Of Life title, which wasn't especially funny when The Offspring pulled the original card on that when they were going to call their last dungheap Chinese Democracy. That kind of snark doesn't look good, especially when it means a lot of songs with titles longer than their namesakes. Think Chixdiggit if they were more depressed and angst ridden. None of the songs are terrible. I like it better when Zack sings and the last one is really nice, but Thorns Of Life won't be my first go-to for post-Weston emo-punkery, even if I read on the interwebs that Mikey Erg said this is the best record he's been on? That seems like it might be a misquote, but hey I don't drink Jameson either. Get Thorns Of Life here from the HB bandcamp or get a hard copy for your hard specie from Traffic Street here.

R

Live: Dear Landlord with House Boat and Mikey Erg @ The Knitting Factory 5.12.11

Looking at the fake poster to the left for this show, one might surmise that we had a contender for the show of the year for JS-NYC. I enjoy all off the parties, but it was really the mid-card that had me excited. It had been well over a year since the Unlovables had played out and The Sainte Catherines have a hell of a new record. Putting them on a bill where I could start thing off with the tail end of a House Boat set seemed like a fine recipe for an evening in Brooklyn. In what is becoming my new favorite irritation, the aforementioned two bands that I hadn't seen a million times before dropped off the bill just as soon as I bought the ticket. Don't get me wrong, it was only $8, but come on.

I considered bailing, but Mikey Erg jumped on the front of the bill, so I figure I'd make it an early evening and count my blessings. Mikey put in a good solo set, albeit one without the Cee-Lo cover that highlighted his solo show last week at Cake Shop. House Boat were up next. I always enjoy them a lot more than I expect to, but could deal with about 50% less drunk Grath per show. Suffice to say, he is no Paddy Costello. This show featured the recording, rather than ad hoc local, HB lineup with Zack and Mikey. It was good and hopefully now that Grath has a job, we'll get less talk and more rock in the future. As such, I hear there is a new House Boat record on the way, so we'll see how things transpire.

Dear Landlord came on at the wonderfully reasonable hour of 10 to a rambunctious crowd. I like me some DL, but was surprised to see the number of DL painted jackets and his and her t-shirt combos out at the show. Dream Homes has been out for a bit now and there is the new split with The Dopamines, but it still doesn't leave an epic amount of variety set-wise. I was more than pretty stoked to find that Zack and Brad have got the Copyrights half of the franchise knocking out Rivethead covers. That will get me to make the long walk down the block to ABC next month. All in all a good set, and I made it home by 11:15, so I will call this a win, despite the fact that I sure would have preferred to have seen The Unlovables and The Sainte Catherines on the damn bill.

R

Live: The Dopamines with House Boat, The Challenged, Grabass Charlestons @ Lost & Found 8.16.10

It is always a cause for much rejoicing when the Dopamines make it to town. I was bummed that they weren't playing with Grabass Charlestons, as they had been for the previous week or so, but it was free and I had preemptively taken the next day off, so all seemed to poised to put a check in the W column. This was probably going to be one of the last shows I'd be seeing for a bit and I wanted to make the most of it.

My plan was to arrive to see part of House Boat and The Dopamines set, then go home and eat mass quantities. I posted up about 10:30 to the strains of a curiously Gainesville-sounding band. A quick glance to the merch table confirmed that Grabass were in fact in the house, added unannounced as the first band on the bill. Well played, promoters! It was free and all, but come on! Does no one think it's a good idea to actually announce touring bands are playing? Seems to me it would make it a lot easier to put gas in the van at the end of the night, but hey I'm old. Grabass are great, and I would have liked to have seen more than the four songs I caught, although the Mikey Erg guest spot for the closer was fun to see.

The Challenged were up next. The trio are locals playing the Green Day card who have been increasingly larger players on the scene of late. They have played a bunch of dates recently with the recently de-mothballed Screeching Weasel and dropped their a new full-length called Loaded Language that think I'm going to have to check out. I would have been much more into them if I hadn't missed Grabass beforehand. House Boat were up in fairly short order, sporting their NYC (read: non Zack Rivethead) incarnation. Grath was as drunk and unemployed as he has been of late, and chatty as a result, but when they actually played songs HB were quite good. I can't say I'm that crazy about them that I wanted to catch their whole set, but they are a fun time.

Dopamines were up next, in their double Jon/double Mikey recent incarnation. Spirits, as well as blood alcohol levels were high, helped in no small part by Sib bartending and a five-liter bottle of Jameson the band had picked up a few shows previously. The show was heavy on the awesome new record Expect The Worst, along with a smattering of older chestnuts, all jammed into their now-obligatory half-hour set. A stage invasion by the aforementioned bartender with Jameson bottle in tow stretched things out somewhat, but I was sweaty and sated headed South by ten after one. I'd like to see them longer and earlier, but there are few thing more enjoyable than The Dopamines live in this day and age. Here's hoping we get a tour with Cheap Girls in town real soon.

R

Live: The Dopamines with Be My Doppleganger and The Homewreckers @ Tommy's Tavern 4.1.10

It's nice to see that Spring has pretty much sprung in NYC. It just makes it all around that much easier to get on the bike and see shows in Brooklyn without rain or snow to foster laziness. That said, I would walk to Brooklyn to see The Dopamines. They were one of the best bands at last year's Insubordination Fest, but I was looking forward to seeing them in a little smaller room, especially since I have been able to get all their stuff.

After a little jamming and a couple beers in the backyard with Drew and Jim we hit Tommy's. The Homewreckers were just starting, which presented a bit of a problem, as I figured them to be in the lower eschelon of the bill and it was late-ish already. Not that they weren't decent, but save for the fact that the drummer beat the hell out of the kit, I would have missed them if I could. There's some scene cred with the Cristy Road and Frank Unlovable in their ranks, so we'll see if they make their Little Lungs turn for me down the line. Next were Be My Doppelganger, who added a little Chixdiggit to the Midwest punk rock mix. They have been touring with The Dopamines for these dates and they are a good match. I have to track down their records, but they sure were fun to drink PBR to, even if some of the ladies up front couldn't hold their liquor

Drew bailed before The Dopamines, but Jim and I stuck it out to be rocked soundly. Man, are those Dopamines a good time, especially with Mikey Erg holding down the second guitar slot. It was kind of a short set, but we got a healthy smattering of non-hits and a Green Day cover for Larry Livermore's benefit. In checking in with Larry, it seems like that was a fairly epic set by Dopamines standards, and while I could have heard a couple more songs, it was a damn good time. Oddly enough, in checking out Livermore's web presence I assumed that I had missed House Boat, but they were actually the headliners, making the above flier absolutely 100% inaccurate in order. I really like House Boat and would have been all about seeing them, but left thinking I had missed them, begging the question: Is it that fucking hard to list the proper order and start times for a show? Even in punk rock, that doesn't seem to be too much to ask, especially as I'm pretty sure it was creeping 1am by the time Dopamines finished. That said, props to all the bands and to Tommy's (plus Drew and Jim) for a great $5 show.

R

Jaded Scenester Top 10 Records of 2009

Ok Boy(s) and Girl(s):

Just because you clamored for it, here's the formal Top 10 Records of 2009 (full-length) as selected by your pals at Jaded Scenester NYC. Thanks to all of the people therein(on?) for all the sweet ear love that they provided in the wasteland that were the internets most lauded records of 2009. If I have to hear one more bad Fairport Convention (or more probably High Llamas) rip-off record reverbed out to infinity by some 20-something beardo or beardos, I'm going to go John Belushi on some motherfuckers. Don't even get me started on the hip-hop records. Criminy! Sell back that Dirty Projectors record and know, love and buy all the 10 releases below. If you are concerned, please rest assured that single tracks, EPs, reissues and live shows will all get their separate lists. Try and control yourselves. Do take note that we've got a Best of 2009 playlist available for your perusal. It's free, just drop JS-NYC HQ a line and we'll send you a download link out pronto.

Jaded Scenester NYC Top 10 Records of 2009

1. Jon Snodgrass - Visitor's Band

2. Drag The River - Bad At Breaking Up

3. Austin Lucas - Somebody Loves You

4. Lucero - 1372 Overton Park

5. Glasvegas - Glasvegas

5. The Dopamines - Soap and Lampshades

6. The Hold Steady - A Positive Rage

7. Banner Pilot - Collapser

8. The Riot Before - Fists Buried In Pockets

9. Dear Landlord - Dream Homes

10. House Boat - Delaware Octopus

House Boat - Delaware Octopus

I've actually seen House Boat live a couple of times and wasn't really over the moon. Frankly, I thought that the incestuous nature of the pop-punk scene of today was beginning to get more than a little bit ridiculous. This new amalgamation marked the 10,000th band to have Mikey Erg behind the kit, but kept up with the Jones' by having Zack Rivethead on guitar. Ex-member aficionados will delight in seeing Grath and Ace from The Steinways in the fold. Those first couple shows didn't really grab me that hard, but listening to The Delaware Octopus, I've got a new outlook. It's on It's Alive and has Luke from The Copyrights behind the glass, if you needed the pot sweetened any. You get a lucky 13 songs for your hard-earned dollar, only one of which deigns to cross the 90 second mark, but you won't feel slighted after hearing tracks like All Of The Time and Are You Into Metal. Get The Delaware Octopus immediately, then start harassing the gents for some more damn live shows already. Here's a link.

R

Live: The Copyrights, The Unlovables, Dear Landlord & House Boat @ Fontana's 6.22.9

I had been saying for a couple weeks now that this show was the NYC show of the year (thus far) and now that it's done, you'd be hard-pressed to get me to say otherwise.

I showed up at Fontana's a couple songs into the House Boat set. Wonderfully enough, the listing of the bands was woefully inaccurate, listing The Copyrights as going on first, an eventuality that was rapidly rushing me towards apoplexy. I was pleased to find that someone was just an idiot. House Boat features the ubiquitous Mikey Erg on drums, along with Grath and Ace from the The Steinways. Zack Rivethead fills out the lineup on guitars and vocals. It's better on paper, at least at this juncture, but it was only their second show. Don't get me wrong, it was real good, but I think I'd like it a lot more with more time to marinate on the songs. There's evidently a record coming soon, recorded at Sonic Iguana with Luke from The Copyrights. Somebody would do well to hook a brother up. Hint, Hint.

Next up was Dear Landlord, who are simply awesome. Featuring half of The Copyrights and half of Rivethead (R.I.P), they have finally gotten around to recording a full-length that's coming out this Tuesday on No Idea. It is staggeringly awesome. Pick it up immediately. We got most, if not all of their canon and the room got real frisky real quick. Every song is a slice of some post-Weasel pop punk goodness that should be played as much as possible. See them live, buy their records, name your children and bands after them.

The Unlovables made one of their increasingly frequent live appearances next. They had a couple of new songs and sounded pretty great. Hallie has not gotten any less lovely, I will tell you, and the older songs still hold up nicely. The local kids were out in force and loving said Unlovables (aided and abetted by liberal amounts of Rolling Rock). They are an awesome time live and the Archers Of Loaf cover doesn't hurt one damn bit. Here's hoping we get some new stuff out quick, and some more live shows soon.

The Copyrights closed the evening in righteous fashion, churning out banger after banger that would make lesser bands hang it up stat. The well-lubricated crowd was chomping at the bit to see the Kings of Carbondale and the gents did not disappoint. If there is a better punk sing-a-long than Cashiers, I have yet to hear it. Luke didn't make it on this trip and Ronnie from The Arrivals has stepped into the breach to savage the drum kit, but that was the only thing close to disappointing. For the record, Ronnie was awesome, as was everything about their set.
How four of the best punk bands in America could play for $8 and not sell out is beyond me. I heard the next night in Brooklyn had a lot more bodies in the room, but there is no reason why a show this good shouldn't have been better attended. You punks need to get off your lazy asses.

R