This Time Next Year- Drop Out Of Life (2011)

Drop Out of Life by thistimenextyear

All Or Nothing Interview

I recently had the opportunity to interview Birmingham, England's All Or Nothing.

How would you describe your band to someone who has never heard All or Nothing?

I guess i would say we are a modern day pop punk band. Different to a lot of whats out there at the moment as we try and keep things more varied and not so "samey" with everything that we write.

What bands would you say are your biggest influence?

We all listen to a ton of different stuff these days. But we all grew up on the same Pop Punk scene of Saves The Day, New Found Glory, Green Day a lot of the Drive Thru era bands etc. As we have gotten older all of our musical tastes have changed a lot. But those first bands have probably influenced us the most as they were the ones made us all love this style of music yknow.

You're playing the Slam Dunk Festival on May 30th in Birmingham. How did you get involved with this Festival?

Yeah we have been lucky enough to have played the Slam Dunk festivals for the past few years. This year we weren't really expecting to be on the bill as we have been away from the road since December writing our album. Luckily for us as this one is in our hometown we got asked to play it as they wanted some local bands on the show. I cant wait to play it though and show people what we have been writing.

There's a crazy amount of pop punk coming from The United Kingdom these days. Who would you say are some of your favourites?

Yeah there are a lot of bands playing this kind of music. When we first started out like 9 years ago most bands were all playing Ska and Post Hardcore whatever the hell that was haha. So its cool that there are so many good bands from the UK. Im not sure if you would class these bands as Pop Punk bands but we all love Lower Than Atlantis and Futures. I really like Sharks and there is a band called For Eyes who people should check out.

Your sound has evolved a lot since your 2005 release “Who Got Shot”. What can we expect from your new material?

Haha yeah it has. i was listening to that e.p the other day and i forgot about a few of those songs we used to play. Everything back then we tried to write was to be fast and aggressive with a poppy chorus. The new stuff now is a lot different to our last release. We still kept a lot of what All Or Nothing is about but now we have Paul in the band our writing has changed a lot. The songs have different moods now and are a lot less one dimensional. Don't worry we aren't turning into a prog pop punk band haha. There are still big choruses and is real upbeat. Its hard to explain haha which is why i cant wait to get this music out there so people can hear it!

How's the new full length coming along? Have you started recording yet?

Yeah its pretty much all been written. We have around 18 songs now that we need to cut down to an album. Pretty much every week day we have been practising all day so there has been a huge amount of time and effort to make this the best record we could. Unfortunately we haven't started to record it yet and are still sorting out schedules and which producers to go with. Things are different now we have singed to a label. We cant just decided everything on our own and bang things out. It has to be thought over a lot more. We are itching to get it recorded though so we can get out there and get drunk.

How did you get involved with Transmission Recordings?

Well once we signed a deal with our manager he got us in touch with them. They already took care of our publishing and they had just started up their own label. So it made sense to get it all under one roof. We were really stoked to be picked up by a label like Transmission and judging by the stuff our label mates The King Blues are doing we are excited about the future.

What are your fondest memories about touring with The Wonder Years?

There are a lot of good memories we have with those guys. I think my fondest memories personally are of the first tour we did with them in 2007. It was our first proper tour and we were all so pumped to be out playing shows. I havent drank so much cider in such a short amount of time. Every night on that tour something stupid happened haha. Its real good to see those guys do so well. They work hard and deserve it.

Do you have any plans on touring North America? Maybe with your friends in The Wonder Years or The Swellers?

YEAH!! As soon as we can possibly sort this out we want to get over there. Since we released the split with The Wonder Years on No Sleep loads of people have been emailing us and tweeting us about getting over there. So we are desperate to play shows. Im sure once we get over we'll be playing shows with The Swellers, The Wonder Years, Man Overboard, Transit, A Loss For Words. All those yanks haha.

What's the most memorable show that you've been involved with?

There are loads of them that have been unbelievable. But personally my favourite show was when we toured Russia. We somehow got to play this huge 3000 people venue with Bring Me The Horizon and we had no idea how people would react to us. As soon as we went onstage people were going crazy. Seriously mental. Best show.

What's the weirdest thing that has ever happened on tour or at a show?

Haha this didnt happen that long ago actually. In December we toured Europe with Man Overboard and Transit. We had just played the oddest show in Belgium in this community hall thing. Where there were these dj's going for the world record of being on air for the longest time?!?! Haha anyways we all play and its snowing pretty hard. Jo B from Transit eats the BEST POTATOES OF HIS LIFE. But that night we didnt have anywhere to stay. So the promoter who was a janitor at this local community hall says we can stay in there as long as we" dont make any noise" as we werent allowed to be there and people started working at 9am below the hall. So we get there and its literally like my old school assembly hall. No beds, just a wooden floor and a raised stage. Ridiculous. We ended up sneaking downstairs and finding LOADS of beers. We all grabbed a load and drank them and snook out the next morning.

What can your fans expect from you in 2011?

Fingers crossed we will have our album out by the end of the year and follow that up with touring pretty much everywhere and anywhere. We were all hoping to have the album out already but hopefully 2011 can end up being really exciting for us and our fans. We miss playing shows and hanging out. Being at home all the time sucks.

Any final comments for your fans?

Yeah sorry we have been away for so long but we promise that once we have this record done it will be worth the wait. We will tour everywhere and anywhere and Nick will eat all your food haha.

Man Overboard- Driveway (2011)

A brand new song from Man Overboard.

http://www.mediafire.com/?bfd05mcm7k0ovav

http://losttapestore.com/
http://DefendPopPunk.com
http://manoverboard.bandcamp.com
http://manoverboard.tumblr.com
http://twitter.com/ManOverboardNJ
http://manoverboard.bigcartel.com

The Wonder Years- Local Man Ruins Everything (2011|)

Brand new single from The Wonder Years.

http://www.mediafire.com/?z1elrad53w7xd8u


The fountain was off.
This is the first time I’ve been back to the city in months.
I’m trying to hold it together but irony’s found cracks in the foundation.
And you know,
I try so hard to be some great white hope
But I can’t shake the feeling that tonight I’m gonna end up shaking in bed alone.

I’m not a self-help book; I’m just a fucked up kid.
I had to take my own advice and I did.
Now I’m waiting for it to sink in.

Expect me standing tall, back against the wall,
'Cause what I learned was
It’s not about forcing happiness;
It’s about not letting the sadness win.

I don’t have roses in the closet
But I’ve got pictures in a drawer
It’s everything left in me
Not to stare at them anymore.
I walked upstairs and shaved my beard.
I felt like I was holding sadness here
(I was holding sadness here)

I’m not a self-help book; I’m just a fucked up kid.
I had to take my own advice and I did.
Now I’m waiting for it to sink in.

Expect me standing tall, back against the wall,
'Cause what I learned was
It’s not about forcing happiness;
It’s about not letting the sadness win.

I don’t have roses in the closet
But I’ve got pictures in a drawer
It’s everything left in me
Not to stare at them anymore.

I’m not a self-help book; I’m just a fucked up kid.
I had to take my own advice and I did.
I’m not a self-help book; I’m just a fucked up kid.
I had to take my own advice and I did.

Challenges - I Was Always Good At Lying

Brand new music video from Worcester Massachusetts' Challenges.

http://www.myspace.com/challengesma

Flip Like Wilson- Demo (2011)

Pop Punk from Leicester.

http://fliplikewilson.bandcamp.com/

http://www.facebook.com/fliplikewilson

Forrest- Demo (2011)

Pop Punk from The United Kingdom.

http://forrestsw.bandcamp.com/

This Is Our Year- Love American Style (Single) (2011)

Pop Punk from Chicago. If you like this song, pick up their new EP at www.tioyband.bigcartel.com/.

http://www.mediafire.com/?z46gncesluuwz4g

www.facebook.com/tioyband

www.twitter.com/tioyband

When Thieves Are About- Challenger EP

Pop Punk/Melodic Hardcore from Lyndhurst, NJ.

http://www.mediafire.com/?b6ykv4h211qppa8

http://www.wtaaband.com

http://twitter.com/#!/WTAANJPOPPUNK

Hot Damn- Rewards (2011)

Pop Punk/Easycore from South, Wales, U.K.

http://hotdamnuk.bandcamp.com/

hotdamnuk.tumblr.com

After The Anthems- What If The Astronauts Are Lying (2011)

Pop Punk from Ontario. For fans of All Time Low.

http://www.mediafire.com/?u27v8pzpv2tcce5

http://www.aftertheanthems.com/

So Many Ways- ST (2011)

One of the best Hardcore/Pop Punk bands around. Make sure you buy this at http://somanyways.bandcamp.com/ or http://www.somanyways.bigcartel.com/product/so-many-ways-self-titled

http://www.mediafire.com/?8usfk3ysvrfuwdl

www.myspace.com/somanywaysrock

July- Raw Homie (2011)

14 seconds of gold, from Brampton Ontario's July.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/3zzcp61aaw9p9fe/Raw%20Homie.mp3

http://www.myspace.com/wearejuly

Fragments- Demo (2011)

Pop Punk from Allston, MA.

http://fragmentsband.bandcamp.com/

http://fragmentsma.tumblr.com/

Apart From This- Daydream EP (2011)

Pop Punk from Melbourne, Australia.

http://www.mediafire.com/?cj32zj5u3df42qu

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Apart-From-This/359290378372

http://www.myspace.com/apartfromthis

Help Mike Bird

On the evening of Thursday, April 14th 2011 the Buffalo hardcore community gathered at Mohawk Place to support Terror and Trapped Under Ice as they took the stage to play a show.

With plenty of pile-on’s, stage-diving, sing-along’s and an incredible vibe of unity and energy, the show got off to an awesome start.

However, what began as a good-old hardcore show ended in a tragic incident that has forever altered the life of one of Buffalo hardcore’s very own members.

MIKE BIRD, regular show-goer, hardcore kid, and a member of the Buffalo Straight Edge community, was knocked to the ground by a stage-diver. Hitting his back and head on the concrete floor, Mike had to be rushed to the hospital via ambulance to be treated for his injuries. Unable to move his limbs, or feel any pain in his lower-body, Mike received emergency spinal surgery for his injuries.
The official diagnosis indicates that Mike broke the C5 and C6 vertebrae in his lower spine. With no feeling in his legs, it is unclear how soon 19-year old Mike will regain use of his lower body and be able to walk (or mosh) again.

Without the luxury of being able to afford his own health insurance coverage, this injury is crippling financially as well.
An ambulance ride, emergency room visit, sophisticated spinal surgery, X-Rays, physical therapy, and medication leaves Mike Bird with a medical bill that will most-likely amount to a six-figure sum. His lack of insurance and limited mobility will make paying this debt an impossible task.

The Buffalo hardcore community is banding together, pooling our collective resources and organizing benefit events to help offset Mike Bird’s medical bills.

WE NEED YOUR HELP.

The community aspect of hardcore is something that transcends the boundaries of cities, crews, cliques, scenes, and sub-genres.
We are ALL hardcore kids; we’re all cut from the same cloth.
We ALL go to shows, we ALL stage dive, and we’ve ALL had our share of mishaps.

It could have been any one of us in Mike Bird’s shoes.
He just happened to draw the short straw that night and get knocked down.
But as we all know, when someone gets knocked down in hardcore, we PICK THEM BACK UP.

Several benefit events are being organized within the Buffalo scene as we speak.
I’m told that both Terror and Trapped Under Ice are both on-board for a special merch-run related to this incident.

We have set up a PayPal account for donations.
100% of the money donated to this PayPal will go DIRECTLY to Mike Bird’s medical expenses.

If you have ANYTHING you can donate via PayPal, a quarter, a dollar, two dollars, please send donations via paypal to:
Sticktightbuffalostyle@gmail.com
NO donation is too small.
Mike Bird has NOTHING, so ANYTHING you can donate will add up.
If you have any questions about this fundraising effort, or want to help out and become involved, shoot me an e-mail at FrankNiemiec@yahoo.com
Thanks.
-Frank XXX
Copy this link to donate.
https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_flow&SESSION=DFjcmbHiPsXCI5DVy-td_DP2d0e7T80OIz3LtqAacQs956z7UNxFFlgC7kW&dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1f8e263663d3faee8d5863a909c4bb5aeebb52c6e1151bdaa9

original post at http://betterxtimes.blogspot.com/2011/04/mike-bird.htm

Heartwell- On Science, On Strings (2011)

Pop Punk from New Jersey, features ex members of The Glory Days. Buy it for 3$.

http://heartwell.bandcamp.com/

www.heartwellokay.com

Small Town Syndrome

Sweden's Small Town Syndrome will be releasing their new album April 21st.

http://www.facebook.com/IKEswe

Spraynard- Spooky, Scary

Spraynard perform their new song "Spooky, Scary" accoustic.

Spraynard- Funtitled (2011)

Amazing Pop Punk from West Chester, P.A. One of my favourites. Make sure you pick this up at http://www.asianmanrecords.com/basket/funtitled.html

http://www.mediafire.com/?fzm5ahzs1h3if19

http://www.spraynard.net/

Channel 4's Finest- Bear City EP (2011)

Pop Punk/Easycore from Pittsburgh, PA.

http://www.mediafire.com/?lhvcof2z24aglwk

http://www.facebook.com/channel4sfinest
http://www.myspace.com/channel4sfinest

Take It To 88- Say Goodbye

Brand new video from Colorado's Take It To 88.

Front Page- Still Learning (2007)

Pop Punk from Jersey, features Zack and Justin from Man Overboard.

http://www.mediafire.com/?14kdqed8i4pgukg

http://www.myspace.com/thefrontpagenj

Of Loyalty- No On Can Escape A Color

Brand new Pop Punk/Easycore band from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Download their first song "No On Can Escape A Color" at http://ofloyalty.bandcamp.com/

http://www.facebook.com/ofloyalty
http://www.twitter.com/ofloyalty

Up And Atom- Demo (2011)

Female fronted Pop Punk/Easycore from Melbourne Australia.

http://www.mediafire.com/?5uii78zsr57qdb2

http://www.facebook.com/upandatommelbourne

Armed With Crayons Interview

I recently had the chance to interview Jared from Armed With Crayons.

PPND- Thanks for joining poppunksnotdead.net for this interview.
How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it?

Armed With Crayons- Our music is a blend of Pop-Punk, Punk, and many more. We are highly influenced by Blink-182 like most other Pop-Punk bands. New Found Glory and Teenage Bottlerocket also play a big part. Sometimes we listen to Rebecca Black, to make us feel better ha.

PPND- How did you come up with the name Armed With Crayons.

Armed With Crayons- It was an accident, we just wanted a name that would stand out!

PPND- Your new EP entitled “Saved By The Bell”, is a really fun summer album. How did it come to be?

Armed With Crayons- Our EP actually wasn't suppose to be an EP. We started working on the songs early 2010 hoping to get our name out there. As per request of our fans, our demos quickly changed into an attempt at our first EP.

PPND- What do your parents think about your band?

Armed With Crayons- Most of them are pretty supportive, they are usually always there when we need their help. haha

PPND- How’s the pop punk scene in Colorado ?

Armed With Crayons- To be completely truthful the pop-punk scene is dead in this part of colorado. We are hoping to help bring it back, and open the kid's minds out here.

PPND- Do you guys plan on touring once high school is done? If you come to Toronto I’ll buy all of you pizza.

Armed With Crayons- Oh yeah, we're gonna tour the shit out of this country. We have been waiting to tour since the EP was being recorded. We would tour before high school ends but there are problems with money and gas is just too damn expensive. But we're dying to get out there on the road. And of course we will come to Toronto, the band is built of fatty foods.

PPND- When can I buy a Mario’s Danger Cavern shirt?

Armed With Crayons- They are actually being made right now but the process is kind of slow right now because the guys making the shirts are pretty busy. Also they are being made in the Philippines so communicating frequently is kind of a problem ha. But hopefully they are available soon.

PPND- What’s your all time favourite video game?

Armed With Crayons- Overall the band prefers the original Super Mario World, hands down!!

PPND- What’s your favourite episode of Saved By The Bell? Mine would be a three way tie between the caffeine pills, the Zack Attack band, and the murder mystery one.

Armed With Crayons- Actually we don't watch it as much as you think ha. But when we do watch it we liked the caffeine pills, the Zack Attack band, and the murder mystery one. hahahaha

PPND- Have you seen the Youtube video of that Filipino band covering “What Johnny Appleseed Would Do?”

Armed With Crayons- Yes we have. We think it's amazing that someone would want to cover our song. Thank you guys, Awesome job!

PPND- Have you guys been contacted by any record labels yet?

Armed With Crayons- Right now we are just enjoying playing our music, and sharing it with people. And maybe something will come along the way, but right now were not really focused on it.

PPND- What bands have had the biggest influence on your band?

Armed With Crayons- Well Blink 182 of course. The Ramones, New Found Glory, Sum 41, Screeching Weasel, Green Day, Teenage Bottlerocket, The Misfits, Less Than Jake and Rebecca Black.

PPND- What bands are you guys currently listening to?

Armed With Crayons- Blink 182,New FOund Glory,The Wonder Years, Cant Bear This Party, Screeching Weasel, Rancid and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and many more

PPND- What band would you dream of sharing the stage with?

Armed With Crayons- haha Blink 182, or The Wonder Years. That would be incredible

PPND- Do you have any final comments for your fans?

Armed With Crayons- Well, dont expect anything like you have heard before from us with our new stuff! :) Also Thanks everyone for the huge support and feedback we have gotten back about the EP! We love you all, and we hope you support us down the road.

Citizen Show

If you're in the Ohio area, make sure you check this show out.

Half Hearted Hero- Running Water EP (2011)

Pop Punk/Skate Punk kings from New Bedford, MA. Make sure you pick this up at:
http://halfheartedhero.storenvy.com/

http://www.mediafire.com/?x8oxxvd43yi3hjk

http://halfheartedheroband.bandcamp.com/
http://www.myspace.com/halfheartedheroband

Sunsets- We're In This Together EP (2011)

Pop Punk/Easycore from Brisbane, Australia.

http://www.mediafire.com/?14m7o1okqks4qk3

http://www.myspace.com/SUNSETSAUS
http://www.facebook.com/#!/sunsetsaus

Heres To The Heroes - Shoot out The Stars

Pop Punk from Cincinnati, Ohio.

http://www.mediafire.com/?orikc4dks5a3r

www.facebook.com/pages/Heres-To-The-Heroes/190788847615991
www.myspace.com/htthband
www.purevolume.com/htth
www.reverbnation.com/htth

Indonesia Easycore Compilation Part 1 (2011)

Check out this compilation from my friends at thistimeeasycore.blogspot.com/

http://www.mediafire.com/?4052wcyvh6c2t46

Indonesia Easycore Compilation Part 1

1. Failing Forward - Zombies
2. Zombies Daylight - Dan Semua Yang Tertinggal
3. Noise Addict - The International Perfect Playboy
4. Rockmini - Don't Be Afraid To Be Fat
5. First Class Today - Tak Perlu Takut
6. No More Heroes - Insomnia
7. Tintupper - we must to say
8. Hubungan Tanpa Status - Keep My Angry Off
9. Last Action Hero - Do Something
10. Not Delusion - Earth Is Not A Gift From Parent, But It's A Debt From Our Kids
11. Dumbriders - Indah Kurasa
12. Freaky Clown Pocket - Stand up Strong Boy
13. Last Kid In Atlantic - Friends is the closest enemy
14. Pick pocket - perhaps
15. Uncle bendoth - Let's Bang Your Fucking Head
16. Cereal Neutron - Something You Can't Defeat ( Feat. Ian Fullblast )
17. Everydays weekend - question mark
18. Toilet Rules - Kembali

Turnover- ST EP (2011)

Quality emotional pop punk from Virginia Beach.

http://www.mediafire.com/?y9e3xvl4h1uu3za

Turnover.bandcamp.com

Citizen Interview

I recently had the opportunity to interview Mat from Michigan's Citizen. Check them out at http://citizenmi.bandcamp.com/

PPND- First off, thank you for joining me for this interview.

PPND- How would you describe your sound to someone who's never heard of Citizen?

Citizen- Aggressive, and solemn in a way. We like to play music that will keep the energy level up, but really means more than just that on an emotional level.


PPND- How's the pop punk scene in Michigan? There's a lot of bands I listen to from there.

Citizen- The pop punk scene in Michigan is great. We have some awesome bands like Bike Tuff that really give the scene a push. The majority of shows are hardcore/metalcore shows, but when there is a punk or pop punk show, it's never disappointing.


PPND- I really like how your sound has evolved from easycore to a more well rounded sound. What were the reasons for the drastic changes?

Citizen- The reason for such a big change was a change in musical taste, and different ideas being brought to the table. The first Citizen demo was written/recorded by myself after I had quit my previous band, and at that time I was really into the whole "easycore" scene. But, as I started finding members, we all blended our ideas together to push our music in the direction we are all proud of.


PPND- Do you have any plans on recording a full length album?

Citizen- At the moment, no, but we are planning to release a 7" this summer, and another split with the UK band Starters on City of Gold Records.


PPND- How did you get involved with Either/Or Records.

Citizen- Before we went and recorded with Vince at Skylight Studio, we sent him some demos that I recorded at my house. Rob just happened to be there when Vince was checking them out, and Rob really liked the songs so he contacted us. We're pretty happy about that.


PPND- I plan on road tripping to Bled Fest this year. I hope you guys don't play at the same time as Transit. How did you guys get involved with this diverse festival?

Citizen- Ha hopefully not! I'm pretty sure we got involved because we emailed the promoter about it, then he asked us to play a show up in Howell, Michigan, and after he saw us he just asked us to play. Which is great because Bled Fest is awesome every year and we love that we are going to be part of it.


PPND- What has been your favourite show that you've been involved with?

Citizen- I'd say our favorite show so far was at the Rathskeller in Kent, Ohio. That was a rough night for us, but it was awesome playing with bands like Transit, Hostage Calm, Tigers Jaw, and Louder than Bombs.


PPND- Do you have any plans on playing in Canada? Toronto's only 4 hours from Michigan.

Citizen- As of now we don't, but hopefully in the near future we can get the chance too. We haven't really looked into it that much.


PPND- What's the craziest thing that has ever happened on tour or at a show?

Citizen- We haven't been on tour yet, BUT, we have had our radiator blow up on the turnpike about 2 hours away from home on the way to Philly. This sucked real bad. Everything was going wrong, my phone wouldn't work, the tow truck took like 3 hours to come get us, the shop couldn't fix our car that night, and I broke a clothes hanger off of a hotel wall on accident. But, we eventually got everything situated and we made it to Philly alright and recorded our EP.


PPND- What can your fans expect from you in 2011?

Citizen- A 7", a split EP with Starters, and hopefully a tour during the summer.


PPND- Do you have any final comments for your fans?

Citizen- Thanks for reading, and check out The Fragile Season, Louder than Bombs, and Seahaven. Thanks!

Armed With Crayons- Saved By The Bell EP (2011)

Super catchy Pop Punk/Easycore from Colorado.

http://www.mediafire.com/?wq03b4zeww454o0

http://www.myspace.com/armedwithcrayonsmusic