Combusting Boy |

#5) The Vigilantes – No Destiny EP

I think the first 7″ I ever bought was by these guys. It was the Too Old to Work, Too Young to Die 7″. Catchy street-punk mixed with pop-punk.

When my first girlfriend dumped me at 16 and I had to take the train home from Worcester, I recognized the singer and sat next to him and told him my story. I don’t think he cared. Missed their last show in 2002 because I wanted to sleep in.

#4) Ringers – Curses

Out of the 5 bands on my list, I’ve seen Ringers the most live. They’re still active and you can catch them at a smelly basement in Boston every other month. They usually play at The Fest in Gainesville, FL every year. Last year they played at some ding bar at 11am. Former members of Sirens, Pinkerton Thugs and probably 10 other bands. The dude Ross ran Regeneration Records in Allston for a while. Last time I checked it’s only a tattoo shop.

#3) The Showcase Showdown – Appetite of Kings

I wished I had seen The Showcase Showdown in their day. They broke up when I was in my early teens and the shows they played look fun in photos. Dirty pogo-punk with cute Victoria on bass. Members play in the current band Spazz. Favorite tracks: Oi Oi Deacon and Police, Police.

#2) The Pinkerton Thugs – End of an Era

The Pinkerton Thugs recently “reformed’ to play some shows around town. I’ve been to one and it was so-so for a matinee on a Sunday. This record came out on Go Kart. Yeah, technically this band is probably from Maine but they have a Boston PO Box listed in the liner notes so that’s good enough for me. Really good songs.

#1) Dropkick Murphys – Do or Die

Before these dudes became every shlock jock’s favorite band in Boston, they put out Do or Die in 1998. Most songs were written by Rick Barton who is in some other band these days. They would lose original members on every release hereafter and now you’ve got one original member – Ken Casey, the bassist. This album is still perfect 10 years later.

From Wikipedia:

Lanemeyer was a pop punk band from northern New Jersey.

Lanemeyer was formed in 1997. Taking their name from John Cusack’s character (Lane Meyer) in the film Better Off Dead…, Lanemeyer were known for their humor and love of comedy. They broke up in 2001 after touring with bands such as The Lawrence Arms, Bigwig, River City High, Whippersnapper, and many more. After the breakup, several members continued to perform with other bands, such as The Forever Endeavor and Day At The Fair (Rushmore Records). Lanemeyer has reunited several times to play single shows, with varying member lineups.

Lanemeyer’s Stories For the Big Screen was huge for me when I was a teenager. It was infectious pop-punk about girls, breaking up, and growing up. The singing wasn’t the best, their playing wasn’t top notch, but there was always something about these songs that just clicked with not only me, but others I met along the way who also had some weird attachment to this band.

So here it is: Lanemeyer - Stories For the Big Screen

I’m glad this still exists on MySpace. I couldn’t find this on youtube. We’re all video spoiled.