PUNKTASTIC 13.13
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13.13: THE BEST OF 2013 As every year reaches its conclusion, conversations over the quality of music begin to emerge. As ever, 2013 has proved contentious – some argue that the year failed to bring any heavy-hitters to light, while others view the year as yet another gem in the history of music.
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For us, as with every year, the year has been about finding the gems in a sea of wavering quality. For every ‘Talons of the Hawk’ there has been a ‘Love Lust Faith + Dreams’. Even the albums eagerly awaited by diehard fans proved difficult to swallow – take Black Flag’s recent ‘What The...’ effort.
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Perhaps more so than any other, Fall Out Boy divided their following straight down the middle with the more commercially focussed ‘Save Rock and Roll’. To top it all off, Ronnie Radke returned with Falling In Reverse’s ‘Fashionably Late’ – a record which singlehandedly sparked a fun-versus-quality debate yet to draw any definite conclusions.
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In a live setting both Fall Out Boy and Paramore swapped stadiums for intimate venues, Lonely The Brave built a reputation as a live force to be reckoned with, and The Wonder Years garnered attention as they travelled across the UK with up-andcoming pop-punks Real Friends.
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Flag played live while Black Flag managed a short lived reunion in an epic (if not slightly moronic) battle for rights, and Biffy Clyro were crowned the royalty of festivals as they smashed their headline Reading and Leeds performances – despite Trent Reznor’s of Nine Inch Nails objections.
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With 2014 already promising the eagerly awaited return of Brand New, the best Groezrock line-up we could have imagined, Linkin Park playing ‘Hybrid Theory’ in full on the legendary Download main stage, Metallica taking requests at Sonisphere, blink-182 returning to Reading and Leeds, and Against Me!’s album shaping up to be the best damn piece of music we have heard in a long time, things are looking fucking good.
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But back to the quality of 2013... we’ve pulled together 13 songs that sum up our year at Punktastic. There are many songs that could have made up this short playlist, and one or two that you may argue shouldn’t have (we wouldn’t want to deprive you of an opinion). If anything, these 13 tracks prove that there are bands out there striving for excellence, and for that we salute you.
! — Ben and everyone at Punktastic ! http://pnkts.tc/comps
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TRACKLISTING 01
The Front Bottoms
Twin Size Mattress
02
The Wonder Years
Passing Through A Screen Door
03
Off With Their Heads
Nightlife
04
Pianos Become The Teeth
Hiding
05
Paramore
Still Into You
06
Lonely The Brave
Black Saucers
07
Direct Hit
Buried Alive
08
Real Friends
I’ve Given Up On You
09
Against Me!
Fuckmylife666
10
Moose Blood
Bukowski
11
Gnarwolves
Limerence
12
Fall Out Boy
My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark
13
Transit
Weathered Souls
01 THE FRONT BOTTOMS Twin Size Mattress
Despite still dividing opinion with their name alone, New Jersey duo (or quartet in a live setting) The Front Bottoms followed their critically acclaimed self-titled debut with ‘Talon Of The Hawk’ in May 2013.
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‘Twin Size Mattress’, the lead single from their sophomore release, proved an instant sing-along classic when showcased on their pre-release tours, yet it was the immensely emotive chants that really grabbed the audiences’ attention.
02 THE WONDER YEARS
Passing Through A Screen Door
Taken from our favourite album of the year, ‘Passing Through A Screen Door’ proved indicative of what The Wonder Years achieved throughout ‘The Greatest Generation’.
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Adding some weight into the sometimes shallow pop-punk genre, the Philadelphian six-piece injected substance without sacrificing the melody and immediacy they had honed on ‘The Upsides’ and ‘Suburbia...’.
03 OFF WITH THEIR HEADS Nightlife
Few songs in 2013 had quite such an immediately infectious melody as ‘Nightlife’.
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The balance between upbeat bouncy punk and frontman Ryan Young’s visceral vocal style and scathing lyrics formed a perfect angst ridden anthem without, regressing to adolescence tinged themes.
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As the band both started and quashed rumours of their demise in 2013, ‘Nightlife’ and ‘Home’ – the band’s third full-length amongst a sea of EPs and splits – proved that they had plenty more to offer.
04 PIANOS BECOME THE TEETH Hiding
With its understated opening bars, ‘Hiding’ slowly developed into a painfully climactic beast during its five and a half minute running time.
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The track was released back at the very start of the year as part of a split EP with Touche Amore. It allowed the Baltimore-based atmospheric-hardcore group to try their hands at something a little different.
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Rather than filling the track with heavy screams, the broken vocals which dominated ‘Hiding’ perfectly conveyed the dense emotion, all the while underpinned by the unpredictable drum patterns and guitar riffs.
05 PARAMORE Still Into You
Released just under a month before the band’s selftitled fourth album, ‘Still Into You’ showcased Paramore’s inherent penchant for a catchy melody.
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Following the departure of the Farro brothers at the end of 2010 rumours of a new style for the band had emerged.
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Although both ‘Now’ and ‘Still Into You’ added a more pop focused edge to the sound, they both retained Paramore’s fundamental crossover pop-rock.
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Easily one of the catchiest tracks of the year, its bubblegum sound and lyrics proved endearing for a wide cross-section of fans.
06 LONELY THE BRAVE Black Saucers
Lonely The Brave have been talked about a lot in 2013, in part due to their atmospheric explosion of a live show, and in part due to their cataclysmic heavy rock compositions.
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‘Black Saucers’ was as heartbreaking as it was euphoric.
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It balanced powerful riffs with ethereal tones which saw the band play alongside Deftones and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, destroy the Introducing Stage at Reading and Leeds and slot between some pop-punk upstarts at the UK leg of the legendary Warped Tour.
07 DIRECT HIT Buried Alive
At its core a traditional take on pop-punk, Direct Hit mixed things up on ‘Buried Alive’ with an occasional scream and some off-kilter drum patterns.
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Still, the track was pure fun through and through with some contradictorily unsettling lyrics.
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Like Hit The Lights with more substance, Direct Hit tell told their murderous story under a veil of punchy melody.
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Burying someone alive never sounded so joyful.
08 REAL FRIENDS I’ve Given Up On You
Taken from the Chicago based quintet’s mini-album, released in June, ‘I’ve Given Up On You’ is one of the only ballads that hit all the right chords in 2013.
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Led by Dan Lambton’s lovesick vocals, the track teetered between sadness, anger and acceptance as the truth in the lyrics remained doubtful.
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The track’s captivating power in a live setting was equally unexpected, as it quickly developed into a fan favourite following its release.
09 AGAINST ME! Fuckmylife666
Few developments in 2013 were as inspiring and powerful as that of Against Me vocalist Laura Jane Grace.
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Announcing her lifelong battle with gender dysphoria, Grace penned two initial tracks based on her feelings and experience. ‘Fuckmylife666’ in particular conveyed her struggle to the masses, discussing her inability to continue living her own personal lie.
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Brave and honest, ‘Fuckmylife666’ may have been one of the most important tracks of the year, as well as one of the most beautiful.
10 MOOSE BLOOD Bukowski
Canterbury based Moose Blood have spent 2013 pushing their way towards the forefront of the American inspired emo revival.
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With their homage to American Football, Dashboard Confessional and cult film High Fidelity, Moose Blood slotted themselves into an ailing subculture and offered it a defibrillator.
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‘Bukowski’ brought the American indie-teen back to life with its sweet lyrics and suitable cultural references, yet mostly it offered something unique in an increasingly stale genre.
11 GNARWOLVES Limerence
The first minute of ‘Limerence’ channels the Brighton based punks stateside counterparts such as Title Fight, Balance and Composure and their ilk, yet once the track kicks in it remains quintessentially British.
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Unafraid to avoid Americanisms and throw two remaining minutes of balls-to-the-wall punk, ‘Limerence’ demonstrated Gnarwolves’ multiple skills and varying directions.
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Their support slot on the short Funeral For A Friend run back in October really saw them come into their own.
12 Fall Out Boy
My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark
Love it or hate it, ‘Save Rock and Roll’ immediately placed Fall Out Boy back at the top of their game. Rendering their hiatus obsolete, ‘My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark’ emerged in February to take over speakers around the nation.
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Rock clubs, private parties and commercial radio stations all jumped on the bandwagon to celebrate the return of the pop-rock stalwarts.
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Although the album continues to cause controversy as it sits in a number of best of 2013 lists, tracks such as ‘My Songs...’ sounded undeniably huge at the band’s 2013 live shows.
13 TRANSIT Weathered Souls
Talk of Transit has remained remarkably subdued in 2013 despite the release of their fourth fulllength and an acoustic EP.
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‘Weathered Souls’, taken from ‘Young New England’, didn’t rewrite history or blow the shackles off the box containing mainstream poppunk, but it did provide one hell of a catchy chorus.
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It led to those euphoric moments where you can’t help but shout the lyrics back at the top of your voice.
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If we could remember 2013 in any way, caught up in moments like these would be it.
Thanks Thanks for taking the time to read these notes accompanying our thirteenth and final compilation in our 2013 series.
! If your band would like to be on one of our future compilations, then please email a song and a bit about yourselves to tom.aylott@punktastic.com