Kill, war, suicide, dead! That was the line up at Rutabaga Suicide's CD release show in March, 23rd. All four bands got together and flipped a coin. Kill The Car, a face-melting 3-piece of thrashing goodness from Winchester, Virginia started it off. Warhawk, a metal quartet with unforgettable baselines came next. The stars of the night, Rutabaga Suicide, an easy-to-love punk rock 4-piece from Carlisle, Pennsylvania  opened up the second half. Finally, Dead Television, which happens to be the band I'm in, brought in the rear. I feel honored to have headlined the CD release show for the most kickass band ever to come out of Pennsylvania, and if check out their featured songs, you'll understand why.

          Whenever I play or go see a Rutabaga Suicide show, I end up having mixed emotions. The first emotion always being, "HOLY SHIT THEY ARE AWESOME!" Then comes my sorrow-filled emotion, "HOW COME I CAN'T BE AWESOME LIKE THAT?!" I feel these emotions whenever I pop in their new album, Never Break. Bob, the bassist and co-vocalist, kicks off the first song, which is self-titled, with a bassline that rapidly builds your anticipation for the moment of eardrum-bursting that you know is coming. Sure enough, drum and guitar come in and then you hear, "Let's go!" From there, any intentions you had on sitting still and modestly bobbing your head to the rythym has completely gone out the window. I can't listen to a single measure of that song without head-banging. It's literally impossible, and that night was no different.
         Another song that shouldn't go unnoticed, not that any of there songs should, is "Carrie Fischer". There is this classic 70's punk feel about the vocals that remind you why punk exists; because it's straight up everything you ever needed. The riff is simple yet badass and there's a fitting solo towards the end, so before you get anxious and skim through all the songs, stick around for the solo. It's worth it.

          The taunting wait for I The Mighty's first ever Equal Visions Records EP Karma Never Sleeps is almost over, and they streamed the whole thing on YouTube! Although, needless to say, you're going to want to get it for yourself on March 27th when it's offically released, and you still have time to pre order it with some wicked merch. Don't let a deal like that slip through your fingers!

          I The Mighty is a progressive/alternative rock band from San Francisco. If you’re a fan of Say Anything or Envy On the Coast, you’re gonna love these guys. They’ve released two previous EPs, one being self-titled, and the second titled Hearts and Spades. As for Karma Never Sleeps, the guys really packed their sound with a lot of drive. We like the drive. The EP introduces you to what you’re in for which, as they so eloquently put it, is “the earthquake coming on”. They tell the listener to wake up, and they get their attention by the throat. It was a perfect song selection to get you pumped for what else they have in store in this EP.

          I have to say as I listened to the EP, one of the biggest things that stood out to me was the variety in their bridges.  I can’t begin to tell you how many bands overuse the, wait for it…. BREAKDOWN. You don’t get that with I The Mighty. These guys really do diversity a justice. Each song explores a different sound, while staying true to this EPs homage. In “These Streets Are Alive”,  the song begins with a cry for help. The seams of the world are being gently pulled away. By the second half of the song, you’d imagine the buildings of cities are crashing and burning down as we face our ‘inevitable and impending doom of the end of the world’ (which is scheduled to be this year, if I’m not mistaken). If the world does come to a horrible, fatal ending, this is a song I wouldn’t mind going down with, because the lyrics are downright epic, bringing tragedy and hope together in a beautiful collision of contradiction emotion. You can also hear how their guitar and vocal styles have really developed handsomely. Every time you hear that tremolo, you feel like fighting, and I don’t mean the fist-pumping-tribal-ape-mosher kind of fighting.The kind fighting you do with hope because things might be tough now, but there’s a promise for something better up ahead. This is the kind of stuff we need these days, and I The Mighty truly delivers it.

          Go see for yourself, and pick up your copy of the Karma Never Sleeps EP once it’s released on March 26th.

- Tunage

Written by Deanna Trombley