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Los Angeles, California’s J MAU & THE KISS OFF emerge from what they lovingly call their “beloved hellhole” with their debut single “Poison,” out March 25. Founded in 2025 by Justin “J Mau” Maurer, longtime punk lifer and founder of Clorox Girls, Suspect Parts, L.A. Drugz, and Maniac, the project finds Maurer turning toward something darker and dustier without losing the bite that’s always defined him. “Poison” is a cinematic honky tonk murder ballad filtered through decades of West Coast punk history. It’s the first glimpse of a songwriter who’s always followed the feeling, even when it led somewhere uncomfortable. Maurer’s story isn’t mythology. It’s messy and real. A CODA raised between Los Angeles and Bainbridge Island by a single Deaf mother, American Sign Language was his first language. Punk became his second. After surviving a turbulent childhood and helping put his abusive father in jail as a teenager, Maurer found autonomy in the underground. By fifteen he was booking shows and touring. By twenty he was releasing records and circling the globe with Clorox Girls. Along the way he built a parallel career as one of the country’s most respected ASL interpreters, working alongside prominent political figures like Michelle Obama, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, and Joe Biden, stage interpreting for punk legends like Alice Bag and The Avengers, interpreting Deaf actor Troy Kotsur’s historic 2022 Academy Award acceptance speech, and appearing with Kotsur on Curb Your Enthusiasm. His life has always moved between worlds. After stints living in Madrid, London, and Baja California, and in the wake of a divorce that leveled him, Maurer found himself flat on his back in an East Hollywood apartment, cowboy boots still on, old country records spinning. Hank Williams. Buck Owens. Merle Haggard. Gram Parsons. Kris Kristofferson. Townes Van Zandt. He finally understood it. “Real country music is poetry,” Maurer says. “It’s about failure, heartbreak, and the tragic human condition. Music to laugh and cry and live and die by.” That rock-bottom clarity led him to write “Poison.” Recorded at Savannah Studios in Boyle Heights with Ignacio “Iggy” Gonzalez and backed by Patrick “Butterworth” Vasquez and Kevin “Quake” Milner, the track moves like a slow-burning reckoning. Acoustic strum, restrained rhythm, and a haunted vocal that feels equal parts confession and warning. From his window in Pico Union, Maurer could hear children playing at the elementary school across the street. Listening to old country compilations full of doomed protagonists, he imagined himself as a man on the run whose days were numbered, watching that schoolyard and knowing he might never see it again. That’s where the line came from: “When will you see the children play / You never will again.” The refrain doesn’t comfort you. It circles back like a hard truth you can’t shake: “It’s got a way / That poison’s got a way / It’s got a say / It’s got the final say.” The single arrives with an 8mm-shot video co-directed by Maurer’s former MANIAC bandmate Zache Davis and Marta Ribate Gracia-Davis. Grainy, sun-bleached, and edited with a careful hand, it plays like a spaghetti western fever dream, a corrido where the protagonist must confront how he’ll be remembered before the end comes calling. The artwork, designed by longtime collaborator Matthew “Snake” Davis, leans into vintage flash tattoo skulls and silent-film menace. J MAU & THE KISS OFF Online INSTAGRAM| SPOTIFY| BANDCAMP| FACEBOOK| YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Oakland, California’s Lethal Limits is the solo project of Jeff Corso, a Bay Area punk lifer raised on coastal fog, cracked sidewalks, and the kind of East Bay shows that smelled like dust, sweat, and wet concrete. Based in Oakland and hailing from Half Moon Bay, Corso has spent decades inside the region’s punk and hardcore underground. Elevate, his new EP out March 13, 2026, lands like a familiar jolt. Four songs. No filler. Loud, melodic, and wired with the same nervous energy that once spilled out of basements, skate ramps, and all-ages rooms up and down the 510. Lethal Limits lives where punk crunch meets power pop clarity. The songs hit fast but linger, built on hooks that feel learned the hard way. There’s a strong 90s backbone running through Elevate, the kind that recalls flyer-stapled lampposts, Gilman Street matinees, and the melodic punch of bands like Hüsker Dü and The Pixies without drifting into revival territory. Corso writes like someone who came up when melody mattered just as much as volume, and when songs had to survive blown PAs and half-attentive rooms. Arriving nearly four years after Lethal Limits’ self-titled debut, a roughshod, self-produced full-length that quietly turned heads, Elevate shows a project sharpening its instincts. The edges are still intact, but new shades creep in. There’s flashes of Thin Lizzy-style guitar swagger, heavier 90s grunge weight, and a thicker low end, all while keeping the choruses front and center. It sounds like the natural evolution of someone who grew up on punk, skate videos, and college radio, then kept writing long after the scene changed. Recorded between February and April 2025 by Corso at Vam Vam Studios in Oakland, Elevate was mixed and mastered by Jack Shirley at Atomic Garden, giving the songs clarity without sanding off their grit. Corso handles nearly everything himself, guitars, bass, vocals, keys, tambourine, while drums from Aesop Dekker (Hickey, Ludicra, Agalloch) add weight and precision beneath the hooks. The result feels immediate and human, like a band playing live in a room, not chasing perfection but locking into feel. Photo Credit: Tom “da bomb” Corso Lethal Limits Online INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | BANDCAMP | YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

What do you get when you combine two Canadian music lifers into one guitar-heavy power-pop unit that still believes in volume, melody, and sweat? You get SLIP~ons. Fronted by Brock Pytel of Montreal pop-punk staples Doughboys and anchored by Brian Minato, longtime bassist for Sarah McLachlan, the Vancouver four-piece make rock music the honest way. Plug in. Turn it up. Let it rip. Their sophomore EP Overtime arrives February 20, 2026 via Scamindy. SLIP~ons aim straight for the sweet spot where 90s alternative heft meets power-pop immediacy. Think Sugar-era Bob Mould muscle, Hüsker Dü urgency, and the loose confidence of The Replacements, with flashes of Ash and Dinosaur Jr. in the guitar tones. Rounded out by Rob “Shockk” Matharu of The Spitfires on guitar and Shane Wilson on drums, the band plays with instinct and economy. Nothing is overthought. Everything hits when it’s supposed to. Overtime takes its title from the sudden-death hockey period, used here as an extended metaphor for pressure, consequence, and the moment when everything sharpens. The EP leans heavier and more focused than the band’s debut, pairing Pytel’s gravel-edged vocals with punchy, direct arrangements that waste zero time. The lyrics widen their scope too. Politics surface naturally, filtered through experience rather than slogans. As Pytel puts it, “I made it all the way through side A without a single song about a breakup.” The shift is subtle but intentional, and it gives the record real weight. The EP was recorded by John Raham at Afterlife, formerly Mushroom Studios, a room steeped in Canadian music history. Raham’s resume includes work with Frazey Ford, Dan Mangan, Tanya Tagaq, Destroyer, and Pharis, and his approach here keeps the performances immediate while giving the songs room to move. Mixing duties were handled by Dave Ogilvie of Skinny Puppy, whose touch adds grit and tension without sanding off the edges. Overtime was mastered by Ronan Chris Murphy, whose work spans artists such as King Crimson, Ulver, and Gwar, bringing clarity and punch while preserving the EP’s raw, guitar-forward bite. SLIP~ons Online WEBSITE |INSTAGRAM| BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | TIKTOK Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Seattle’s all-women garage-rock wrecking crew The Darts kick off their new album cycle with “Midnight Creep,” the first advance single from their upcoming LP Halloween Love Songs, out March 3 on Adrenalin Fix Music. The single drops Tuesday, January 13 and finds the band slipping deeper into the spooky, swagger-heavy garage-trash universe they’ve been flirting with since day one. If you’ve ever wished the Back From the Grave comps came with a dance craze, you’re already in the right neighborhood. The Darts have spent the last decade carving their name into the global underground with Farfisa-first garage chaos, sold-out shows across Europe, the UK, and North America, and multiple sold-out vinyl runs. They’re known for genuine, close-to-the-crowd performances and Nicole’s honest connection with the room, a band that brings people into the show and plays from real joy rather than polish. They’ve landed sought-after KEXP live sessions and hit major festivals like Punk Rock Bowling, Binic Folk and Blues, SJOCK Festival, and Bear Stone Festival, earning fans ranging from Dave Vanian to Stephen King to Jello Biafra. With Nicole Laurenne (vocals and keys), Rebecca Davidson (guitar), Lindsay Scarey (bass), and the returning Rikki Watson (drums), this lineup feels like the most dialed, dangerous, and joyfully unhinged version of the band yet. “Midnight Creep” started as a surprise curveball when Lindsay brought Nicole a demo called “Phantom Creep.” Nicole was already quietly writing a Halloween-themed album and immediately heard a chance to chase something different: an honest-to-ghoul old-school monster dance, the kind that might’ve aired on a haunted Shindig episode taped in a basement full of fog machines and paper-mâché bats. She rebuilt the tune into a slinky, organ-driven earworm; Lindsay created a simple, go-go-friendly choreography; and suddenly The Darts had a Halloween banger that felt both brand-new and weirdly familiar. They’ve been testing it on the road for months, from Switzerland to Cincinnati, and everywhere in between. The reaction has been instant every night. Whole rooms start doing the dance without needing to be shown. It’s instinctive, like the ghosts of old 45s are moving people around by the hips. To bottle that energy, they teamed up with Frogman director Anthony Cousins, who shot a gloriously campy video steeped in B-movie mood: basement gloom, creature-feature attitude, and the dance front and center for anyone ready to join the creep. It looks like the lost midnight-movie segment some long-gone TV station forgot to broadcast. Photo Credit- Tina Gross The Darts Online INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

After the success of his version of the Ohio Express “Yummy Yummy Yummy” last year   Champagne decided to to revisit “I Can’t Pretend” as song he was familiar with as the drummer for Canada’s Teenage Head who recorded their version of the punk/surf classic on their 1985 album “Trouble In The Jungle”. “This is a song that I have loved for a very long time and I have always thought of recording it” says Champagne.  “It fits really well with the new material I am currently writing. The vibe of the song is perfect and it seemed like a great opportunity to give the song some attention and put a bit of my style into it”. “Because this is a cover song my goal was to keep the integrity and spirit of the song yet lend a little bit of my style. I wanted this song to blend well with what original music I have been writing and recording and I think it turned out just the way I intended”. Gene Champagne from Hamilton, On Canada is a singer/songwriter and solo artist, also known for being the drummer for Teenage Head, The Killjoys and The Black Halos. His version of “I Can’t Pretend” is two parts CanCon.  Gene will be supporting The Boys (UK)  Fri March 13th       – Toronto,Ontario- The Horseshoe Sat March 14th      – Hamilton,Ontario -The Corktown Sun March 15th     – London,Ontario – Palasad Social Bowl Links Spotify Apple Music  Bandcamp Instagram Facebook Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Bombastic and intimate, sarcastic but vulnerable; Montreal’s Fake Friends lives on the edge of duality. Fuelled by the manic charisma of frontman Matthew Savage, the six-piece post-punk outfit is an engine that runs on making tunes and ripping gigs with a sincere bravado that is downright infectious to witness. The many lives of the band are hard to track; starting out as a reason to hang out throughout 2020, the band has since rotated through enough members to roster an NHL team. Through it all, the band’s founding fathers Matthew Savage (vocals/cult leader) and Luca Santilli (guitar/rock god) – who history will remember as roommates – have retained the same ethos of making danceable rock with dedicated unseriousness alongside good friends. Now rolling out a lineup with Michael Kamps (bass/aura farmer), Felix Crawford-Legault (guitar/golden clown composer), Bradley Cooper-Graham (keys/disney adult) and Michael Tomizzi (drums/gambling savant), Fake Friends are as wild and productive as they’ve ever been.  “A lot of us have known each other for many years,” explains Matt. “It just sort of came together organically as different people moved out of the band, and I just replaced them with all the people I’ve always played music with. For whatever reason, this time, it’s cookin’.”  Photo Credit: Nick Pegg The Fake Friends Online INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | BANDCAMP | WEBSITE | YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Tacoma, Washington songwriter Kye Alfred Hillig returns with “Ezekiel Bobbing For Apples,” the new single arriving January 7, 2026, and the first release from his upcoming album The All-Night Costume Company, due March 4. Built around haunting guitar leads and striking male-female harmonies that nod to the emotional gravity of classic country duets like Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, the track introduces Hillig at his most direct and melodic. It sits between alternative-country and indie rock, carrying the tension and plainspoken urgency of a songwriter raised on punk rooms rather than polish. Hillig has spent more than two decades working the margins of the Puget Sound music scene, balancing songwriting with the realities of work, responsibility, and long stretches outside the spotlight. Since stepping fully into his solo work in 2012, he’s released a deep catalog of records defined by sharp hooks and lyrical candor. His songs often land where discomfort and dark humor overlap, more interested in honesty than resolution. Fans of Father John Misty, The Jayhawks, and early-era The Shins will recognize the instinct for narrative and melody, even as Hillig’s voice and perspective remain distinctly his own. “Ezekiel Bobbing For Apples” moves with restless intent. The arrangement is lean but charged, guitars circling and cutting while the rhythm section pushes steadily forward. The blend of voices adds weight rather than gloss, creating moments of tension and release that feel earned instead of ornamental. Lyrically, the song sits with a kind of open-eyed vulnerability. “It’s really a bit of singing up from the bottom of the well,” Hillig says. “Everything feels kind of screwed and hopeless at times, but the message is I am with you. There’s something freeing about saying that out loud.” Shaped by years of DIY spaces and unvarnished rooms, the song carries a quiet defiance, even as it stretches into broader country and indie-rock forms. It never pauses to second-guess itself. Kye Alfred Hillig Online INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Blending indie with equal parts folk-rock and traditional singer-songwriter, Holtby crafts songs that lyrically deal with everyday life; love, loss, the passage of time and reflection. “Pretending” covers all of these bases. “This is a song about giving yourself the advice you’d want to give others” says Holtby.  “There are certain inevitabilities in life that we all must face in one form or another. I’d found myself asking the same questions for a long time, and realizing nobody was going to save me unless I faced the facts and made these choices for myself. It’s about getting over it… whatever it might be.” The song was produced by Holtby and longtime drummer and musical partner  Terrence Craig Toutant at Matthew’s home studio in Warkworth, Ontario with additional production by  Rob DeBoer. It was mixed by Chad Skinner at Half Moon Audio in Toronto.  Photo Credit: Kendra Taylor Matthew Holtby Links : Website Spotify Artist Page Apple Music Artist Page YouTube Bandcamp Instagram TikTok Facebook Bluesky X Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Vancouver soul and blues heavyweight Mike Van Eyes returns with his second single, “Ain’t That Loving You, Baby”, landing January 14, 2026. Smooth, swinging and soaked in classic R&B, the track shows another side of his signature sound, less sprint, more slow-burning glide, with a groove that leans into feel, finesse and pure musical chemistry. It’s already timeless, the kind of song that feels pulled from a golden era but played with modern fire. Long considered one of the city’s most electric piano forces, Van Eyes has spent decades deep in the roots of rock ’n’ roll and R&B, building a legacy through his work with Vancouver institutions The Epics and The Trespassers, as well as touring with the Herald Nix Band, where he even shared stages with The Clash and sat in with Howlin’ Wolf’s band. Along the way, he’s lent his talents to artists like Colin James, The Yodells, GI Blues, Copyright, The Undertakin’ Daddies and Peewee Clayton, a résumé that reads like a history book of West Coast roots music. “Ain’t That Loving You, Baby” was recorded at the legendary Mushroom Studios (now Afterlife) with Juno Award-winning producer and engineer Erik P.H. Neilsen, capturing that unmistakable vintage warmth with a sharp, modern mix. The result is a track that swings effortlessly, anchored by Van Eyes’ expressive piano work while letting the rhythm section breathe and stretch naturally around it. Mike Van Eyes Online INSTAGRAM | BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK | WEBSITE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Toronto’s melodic punk lifers Wasting Time are back with their new single “Ripped Blue Jeans”, out December 12 via People of Punk Rock Records. It’s a nostalgic rush of anthemic hooks and heart-on-sleeve energy that could’ve soundtracked any MTV’s 120 Minutes marathon. The track captures that feeling of late 90s freedom, cracked sidewalks, stickered guitars, the smell of sweat and stale beer in community-hall venues, and long summer nights when the world still felt small enough to dream your way out of it. Formed in 2017, Wasting Time has steadily built a catalog rooted in melody and sincerity: five EPs, three full-length albums, and a streak of singles that echo the honesty and grit of Alkaline Trio, No Use for a Name, MxPx, Blink-182, and Green Day. Their latest release, Hurry Up and Wait, cemented their reputation as one of Canada’s most reliable carriers of melodic punk tradition, and “Ripped Blue Jeans” only deepens that lineage. Mixed and mastered by Matt Gauthier at Arc Studios, the single offers the first taste of their upcoming full-length, Are You Out Of Your God Damn Mind?, due out in the new year. The song hums with the spirit of a simpler time, before algorithms and playlists, when discovery meant burning mix CDs or catching a new band between Tony Hawk Pro Skater soundtracks. You can almost see the baggy Dickies, chain wallets, and flannel shirts tied at the waist. It’s a nod to every kid who ever scribbled lyrics in the margins of a school binder or fell asleep to Dookie playing on repeat. Wasting Time capture that pulse without imitation; it’s not nostalgia for its own sake, but a reminder of why those songs mattered in the first place. Wasting Time Online INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK | X | YOUTUBE | TIKTOK Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Alex Little steps forward with “Sounds Like A Deal,” the first single from her forthcoming EP Spider in the Sink. A Vancouver-born songwriter with roots in both punk clubs and family record collections, Little distills years of playing, listening, and living into a song that refuses to look away from exploitation and spectacle. The track arrives with all the grit, energy, and sharp-eyed honesty that have made her one of the most compelling voices to emerge from the city’s rock underground. Raised between False Creek and Commercial Drive, Little grew up absorbing a wide spectrum of sounds. Her mom played her The Replacements and Bowie, her dad brought The Beatles and Iggy Pop, and early shows included Roxy Music and Tom Jones before she turned ten. She first sat behind the kit in high school and in the punk band Vapid, before moving to the front of the stage with Alex Little and the Suspicious Minds. With Spider in the Sink, she now claims her name as a solo artist, writing songs that are unvarnished, melodic, and lived-in. ALEX LITTLE  ONLINE INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | BANDCAMP | YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Mason Lowe, drummer of Seattle’s feel-good classic rock outfit Bread & Butter, returns with his second solo release, ,Crashes Your Party out October 10, 2025, on Bubblebutt Records. The two-song 7” single explores the highs and lows of a self-destructive flameout, pairing swaggering fuzz and reckless charm with tender introspection. Together, the songs tell the story of a character who burns bright and fast, and the quieter aftermath that follows. “I’m drawn to people who are kinda outlaws,” Lowe explains. “They’re bold, they’re surprisingly smart. They can be troubled, they do things on their own terms. I’m the opposite. I worry about everything. I’m wondering what other people are thinking… I’m worrying right now!” Lowe continues, “I’m drawn to people with that wild energy – some of my best friends are wild! The story arc in this pair of songs is something I’ve seen up close… many times. I put it to music.” The dark, groovy A-side “I’m Not Sorry” comes barreling through your speakers like the Kool-Aid Man to “punch a hole in the scene in the shape of my body.” Fuzz bass and layered rhythms belie the narrator’s inflated ego, while unusual instrumentation like bass harmonica and xylophone create an unsettling, “bad fun” vibe. Its counterpart, the sweet and melancholy B-side “Crashin’ In,” reveals the tenderness behind the bravado. “I was so dang proud of that song,” Lowe says. “And I just wasn’t ready to let go of that character. So I looked at this lost person and rolled back the clock. What high were they coming down from? What was a night with this guy like before everything fell apart?” Following his acclaimed 2023 debut Morning People on Killroom Records, Lowe continues to expand on the sunny, harmony-rich world he built in his basement during the pandemic. Where Morning People was bright and sentimental, Crashes Your Party leans darker and more cinematic, yet still sparkles with Lowe’s signature mix of humor, hooks, and heart. The two sides connect lyrically and emotionally, with lines that mirror one another from song to song, verse to verse. As always, there’s a wink behind the melancholy, the kind that makes you hum along while wondering if you should maybe call your therapist. MASON LOW ONLINE INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | BANDCAMP | WEBSITE |TIKTOK | TWITTER Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Toronto, ON  – Canadian singer and guitarist C.ROSS (Chad Ross) has announced his new solo record Future Site of C.ROSS, out October 22nd, 2025 on Atlanta’s Echodelick Records. Ross has long been a fixture in Canada’s psych and indie-rock underground. Known as the singer/guitarist for heavy psych rockers Quest for Fire (Tee Pee Records), space rock explorers Comet Control (Tee Pee), and as a member of the legendary garage rock band The Deadly Snakes (In The Red), Ross has also toured internationally with Vancouver’s Pink Mountaintops and released acoustic-driven solo work as Nordic Nomadic (Blue Fog, Tee Pee). On Future Site of C.ROSS, Ross leans deeper into his unique blend of fuzzy psych-folk and cosmic rock, pairing raw songwriting with expansive production. The 7-song album was recorded, produced, and mixed by Joshua Wells (Destroyer, Lightning Dust, Black Mountain) at The Mango Pit in Chicago, with Wells also contributing drums and keys. Additional recording and production were handled by Ross in Muskoka, Ontario. Guest musicians include Aaron Goldstein (pedal steel) and Eiyn Sof (backing vocals). “I started working on the songs for this record right after Skull Creator was released in 2022,” says Ross. “The tail end of the pandemic was on the horizon and I was still in hermit mode with my acoustic guitar, living in the woods in Ontario with my family. This is the second record I’ve done with Josh Wells. I flew down to Chicago with a handful of acoustic songs and we managed to put everything together rather quickly at his studio. We worked at it over a year, sending ideas back and forth from Chicago to my studio in Ontario. What transpired was a really nice extension of the first record.” With echoes of Judee Sill, Duke Garwood, Syd Barrett, and Dead Meadow, Future Site of C.ROSS is both grounded and cosmic – balancing fuzzed-out riffs, pedal steel textures, and delicate acoustics. The lead single “Plant Your Eyes” is described by Ross as: “…about the things your eyes can’t see. The constant vibration of the unknown. It’s kind of this absurd idea that your eyes can be thought of as seeds, that grow colourful light. I tried to channel some deep Crazy Horse fuzzed-out riffage and some delicate acoustics – all the ingredients for a healthy garden.” D I S C O V E R Bandcamp: https://nxnx.bandcamp.com/ Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/cxrossx?igsh=MWdoM2Y5bm1oaGxk Youtube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmmYibPZPqsM6tp6c5gVTpg Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/artist/2NSh2rOc62ImboBTgowQMg Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Oakland power pop band The Goods return with Don’t Spoil the Fun, their first full-length album, arriving October 24th, 2025 via Dandy Boy Records. Written and produced by frontman Rob Good (Ryli) in his Oakland studio, the record captures the band’s signature mix of jangling guitars, big melodic hooks, and heartfelt songwriting. Joined by bassist Cherron Arens and guitarist Gabriel Monnot, Good channels the classic shimmer of The Byrds and Big Star with the energy of Teenage Fanclub and Matthew Sweet – crafting songs that feel both familiar and fresh. The album’s focus track and accompanying video, “Sunday Morning Out of the Blue,” also arrives October 24. It’s about the push and pull of trying to make a relationship work  –  the kind of argument that leaves you both worn out and closer at the same time. Built around bright guitars and melodic basslines, the song captures that uneasy calm after a fight, when things finally start to make sense again. Across its eleven tracks, Don’t Spoil the Fun explores the search for love, connection, and meaning with warmth and empathy. “These songs were written over the last five years – some of them even pre-date our first EP,” says Good. “We recorded several versions before finally landing on something that felt right. This album is us leveling up our sound and finding our own style.” From the chiming immediacy of lead single “April Fools” to the wistful reflection of “Remember,” the album moves fluidly between exuberant and introspective moods. “Photograph” memorializes a lost Oakland venue, The Golden Bull, where The Goods played their first show, while “Aurora” celebrates staying rooted instead of chasing dreams elsewhere. “Me and My Ghost” turns a song written for a friend into a self-reflection on solitude, and “Keep It Safe” closes the album with a gentle reminder to protect one’s mental health amid chaos. With their blend of bright guitars, fuzz-drenched hooks, and honest storytelling, The Goods craft a record that balances classic influences with a distinctly modern heart. Don’t Spoil the Fun arrives October 24, 2025 on Dandy Boy Records. D I S C O V E R Bandcamp: https://dandyboyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/dont-spoil-the-fun Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_goods_music Youtube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpoBK9seWqis1TndDBjI4vQ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2MPqTq6PBP2ZEWnNQEhVqB Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends

Ugly Stick’s Absinthe returns in 2025 with a long overdue vinyl reissue, more than thirty years after its first appearance on CD in 1993. Formed in Delaware, Ohio in 1989, the four-piece carved out a sound that was equal parts Los Angeles punk and Midwestern heartland rock, drawing on the grit of X and the melodic punch of Tom Petty to create what critics would later hail as “genre-crossing” and “seminal.” Hovercraft Records has remastered the album and added bonus material from contemporaneous live shows and unreleased studio sessions, marking the record’s first-ever release on LP and digital platforms. Steeped in the small towns and shrinking industrial landscapes of Middle America, Ugly Stick were uniquely positioned to capture the tension of that moment in time. Their cow-punk attack carried both the edge of beer-soaked garage nihilism and the expressiveness of roots rock filtered through a landscape of carnival posters, endless farm fields, and collapsing barns. As Columbus Alive once wrote, Absinthe was “the bedrock of the Cowtown sound,” establishing Ugly Stick as central figures in a movement that defined the Columbus scene of the early ’90s. The record’s remastered release only underscores how prescient the band was. “Their mix of punk, college rock and alt-country was years ahead of its time,” noted Daggerzine. Exclaim! observed that “straddling the line between genres is never an easy task but with Ugly Stick’s talent and experience the results have rarely been so rewarding.” From the ragged twang to the jangly guitars, the band’s ability to transform punk and rockabilly into something original drew international praise, with Belgium’s Rootstime calling them “pioneers of a genre and a sound which was baptized as the Columbus sound.” Photo Credit: Amy Rathbone UGLY STICK  ONLINE INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | BANDCAMP | YOUTUBE Checkout my YouTube Channel with long form interviews from the Subversives | the History of Lowest of the Low. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuxFWKuRdmn9j8UTW6AHwS_f Also my Weekly Tour Vlog is up an live on the YouTubes https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9d1VSeOHYuwphwhc4zd0VgY66f1OUQZp Pledge monthly with Patreon https://www.patreon.com/apologue Shop Apologue products at http://apologue.ca/shop Check out new Four Square Here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/brighton-beach-ep https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/seven-oh-seven https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/industry-at-home–21st-anniversary-remix-remastered https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/foursquare/when-weeks-were-weekends