I remember the first time I saw Swingin’ Utters in Mesa AZ (with AFI in tow!) back in the mid 90’s I was floored. I thought punk like what the Swingin Utters brought to the table, with that much melody, soul and ferocity was dead and gone. Vocalist Johnny “Peebucks” Bonnel has since been involved with a few other bands including Filthy Thieving Bastards and more recently Druglords of The Avenues which just released a new album (their 2nd full length) on Red Scare Records in May of 2013. Druglords play a brand of tuneful straight forward punk with heaps of charisma and passion that’s been a trade mark of a Peebucks band since the very beginning. This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on  Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Please introduce yourself and how do you contribute to Druglords of the Avenues? I'm John Bonnel and I do vocals, lyrics and album art in the band. Where are you all from originally? JB: I'm from Santa Cruz, Ca., Matt Grayson is from M...

When I first heard the full-length album Point of Action (on LP on Deranged and CD on Dirtnap Records) by Impulse International I felt an overwhelming sadness and disappointment. Sad and disappointed in myself that a record of this magnitude can exist in the world since 2009 and I am barely hearing it in 2013! Boy did I miss out on this one (I still hang my head in shame as I am typing this). Impulse International set loose music that’s got elements of catchy as a cat’s claw punk rock bang, power pop groove amid stabs of new wave strut while holding hands with 1960’s, mod , and r & b cool. This band somehow chews all of this together, swishes it around and spits it out in your face, and the taste is delectable. This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on November 18th, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Who’s answering the questions here? Adam: This is Adam, a.k.a Julius Buck, a.k.a Captain Beef Shield ST: Who is in the band and how do you all ear...

Yes most members of Livids have been in some super fantastic bands in the past. Truthfully, when investing your hard earned beans on some vinyl, does this really matter to you? The fact is the proof has to be in the pudding you got in front of you. Livids not only delivers the evidence quite adequately but also rams that pudding straight down your craw! Fun, fast, melodic Rock ‘N’ Roll punk out of Brooklyn NY that leaves a scorch marks like an 88 mile an hour DeLorean ran over your face! Here’s hoping they get a chance to unleash the fury on the rest of America soon, because we can certainly use more bands like this here. No politics, no preaching, no agendas, just a good time. The way rock n roll music is supposed to be! This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on November 5th, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Who’s answering the questions here? Daniel Kelley Eric Davidson ST:  Who is in the band and what instrument do they play? Jami Wolf – ...

I like to try to describe a band’s sound just so the reader can have some clue of what they’re reading about. With a band like The Sex, it makes this task a tad difficult. The AZ punk trio just self released their second EP in June of 2013 and it’s all over the early punk rock spectrum. It has hints of melodic Stiff Little Fingers riffs; the vocals sometimes remind me of The Violators, all delivered with Sham 69 urgency. Everything else you need in the mix that makes a punk band enjoyable is in there too, but I’ll stop here. So never mind the labels…here’s The Sex! This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on November 5th, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Please introduce yourselves and how you contribute to the Punk Rock Sex machine? CO: Punk Rock Sex machine. I like that. My name is Casey O’Brien and I play guitar. I normally write the base of the songs and the rest of the dudes and dudettes write the rest. KM: I’m Kate Mexal, my job is vocals and ...

This is not your timid 20 something’s on stage staring at their sweat beads on the ground. SVT bunch play earsplitting, express train punk Rock ‘N’ Roll the likes of which The Valley of the Sun has never seen before. A singer that prowls around the stage in Blade Runner Replicant makeup programmed with Bon Scott venom and Joan Jett strut and a guitar player that was in one of the best garage punk bands of the mid 90’s, The Chinese Millionaires. What more can a fanboy ask? Grab on to something load bearing, I hear the air raid sirens, and the house is beginning to rumble. Behold, the Scorpion vs. Tarantula Rock ‘N’ Roll hurricane is about to plug in. This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on October 22nd, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Who’s answering the questions? Jay Bennett, guitar ST: Who is in Scorpion vs. Tarantula and what instrument do they play? JB: L. Hotshot, vocals. Tana Satana, bass, Michael “Cappy” Renfroe, drums. ST:  I noticed y...

Keith Jackson has driven his band through many a storm. There was the whole Gin Blossoms uproar, The Grunge years, the Pop Punk phase, the Indie Rock uprising and so on, you get the picture. Through all of this the Glass Heroes have remained the Gibraltar Rock of punk in Phoenix, Arizona. They have stayed on course through 22 years of proudly rocking tried and true, smashing through the little kiddies and their fleeting fashions like a Rock ‘N’ Roll Juggernaut. Don’t let the “Glass” in their name fool you folks, these heroes are constructed of concrete, stone and gravel. This Interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on  Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Please introduce yourself (or selves) and how you contribute to the Glass Heroes pogo machine? This is Keith Jackson of the Glass Heroes! Nice ta meet ya. I’m the vocalist/guitarist for the band. Ad Adams=Drummer Steve Shelton= Guitar Stevie Davis= Bass ST: Where are you all from originally? KJ: We are a...

Every now and again you read a band’s profile that just hits the mark spot on. One would think that a band would know their sound. Not always the case, I assume it’s a bit of the old “forest from the trees” syndrome. Anyhow, Greenback High describes themselves as “Power Pop for Punks”. Simple and brilliant, that’s what I thought when I read that excerpt, that’s what I thought when I first heard their debut 7”. The hooks of power pop songs propelled by the power of a punk engine. I can’t wait to see what gets dropped on us next! This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on September 5th, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Who’s answering the questions here? Floor Tom, Joshy, and Beardo. Who is in the band and how do they earn their keep in it? Floor Tom Jones – Guitar, Vocals Beardo – Bass, Vocals Joshy Atomic – Guitar, Vocals J.J. Heathen – Drums, Vocals ST: What is the Greenback High origin story? How did you all come together? Beardo: Like a lot of band...

One of the things I admire the most about Duncan’s former band The Boys, is how great the band remained throughout their career. For me, each of their albums got better and better when it seemed for many of their peers the exact opposite was happening. They started off as punk with a pop edge and ended up with straight power pop gems To Hell With The Boys and Boys Only. Duncan Reid’s debut solo album Little Big Head picks up right where those two albums left off. Tremendous power pop the likes of which this earth hasn’t seen for a long time and was long overdue for. Memorable songs with no fillers, the way our rock n roll forefathers intended it. A friend of mine described Duncan Reid’s music as “beyond brilliant”, who am I to squabble? This interview orinanlly appeard in Audio Ammunition on August 29th, 2013 Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Let’s start with: where you are originally from and what (or whom) motivated you to want to pick up an instrument and learn how to p...

After about 30 seconds into Wyatt Blair’s debut record Banana Cream Dream, I was pretty sure I was going to love it. It’s one of those records you sit down to listen to, loving every song, hoping and keeping your fingers crossed the next song is going to be as good as the one you just heard, and it is! Wyatt Blair’s music embodies everything I love in bands like Dave Clark Five, 1910 Fruitgum Company, and The Bay City Rollers (yes you read correctly, THE Bay City Rollers). Rock N Roll that straps a smile on your face and shoots high tension coiled springs from the bottom of your feet. Can’t wait to hear more! This interview originally appeared in Audio Ammunition on  Interview by Jay Castro Shock Treatment: Who is in the current Wyatt Blair band and how do they earn their keep in it? Wyatt Blair: Jeremy Katz (Bass)- he plays in an awesome band called Froth! I live with Jeremy so it is convenient and he is one of my best friends. Tomas Dolas (guitar)- Tomas & I have bee...