Yo what’s up everyone. I wanted to tell ya about something cool coming up, and figured this would be a good excuse to catch ya up with some stuff and talk shit etc etc etc yo let’s do this.
LATE NIGHT WITH SETH MEYERS PERFORMANCE!
Wow! This is nuts! We’re gonna be on television Monday night playing a tune! I’m not sure what else I should be saying about it except please watch it! Tell people to watch it even if you hate them ESPECIALLY IF YOU HATE THEM but ESPECIALLY IF YOU LIKE THEM. If enough people watch this we make A MILLION DOLLARS, I don’t make the rules!!
ROSEN-RE-STOCK
HEY! Some of y’all have been asking us to re-stock our weed pride flag, and some WORRY. and POST- era stickers and pins which feel timely as we spiral into oblivion. So we actually listened! We’ve re-stocked the flags three times now, and we’re going to try to keep them in stock, but now that I finally have this mailing list going I wanted to let y’all know first that this stuff is available NOW and should start shipping next week. We also have some leftover limited stuff from the NO DREAM preorder back in the store - blacklight posters, coloring books, you know, useful shit. Anyhoot…
WEB STORE LINK IS THIS LINK MONEY US HERE!!!
2020 (D)U(M)PDATE
HI ok! In case ya missed it, I put some new music out last week on Bandcamp and Quote Unquote, some songs I’ve been workin’ on for a little while at home, mostly made by myself but with some key assists from Laura Stevenson and Jer Hunter (aka Skatune Network). ANYWAY, despite me asking for no money for this stuff, people were still kind enough to donate and as promised it will be going to charitable causes. And y’all… have… raised… $2782.14!!! FUCK YEAH!!! In celebration? I guess? I threw another track into the pile - it’s a cover of Belle and Sebastian’s “Fox in the Snow” that I originally recorded for Don’t Stop Now III which was a benefit for the COVID-19 Undocumented Worker Fund. Stefan from PUP sang on it too! Check it out!
I have thought a lot the past month about the idea that we are often just throwing money at problems and that inherently feeds into the flawed system of capitalism, but at the same time I know this is the pit we’re all in together and those internal conflicts are unavoidable to an extent. With this in mind, I chose to donate to Mutual Aid LA and North Brooklyn Mutual Aid, two mutual aid networks, one in the city I live in, and one in the city I called home for most of my adult life before this.
If you’re not familiar with the concept of mutual aid networks - it’s pretty sick! It’s basically a way for people who have been fortunate enough to benefit from the system to redistribute some of their wealth and possessions to people in your community who haven’t had as much luck. If that sounds like something you’d like to do, you should check if there is someone doing this in your city already and volunteer or donate! Check out this handy guide on how to get more involved, start your own network, and do good shit that will make you feel good at a time when everything makes you feel bad! Or maybe you’re doing fine and you don’t give a fuck bro?!?!?!?
HEY DID YOU KNOW I MADE A MUSICAL?
Well, OK IIIIII didn’t make it, but I have been writing all the music for the very very good cartoon Craig of the Creek on Cartoon Network. Shit, it was even EMMY NOMINATED! In 2019, I came out to Los Angeles a few times and worked with the writing staff on a bunch of songs that turned into an eleven minute mini-musical called “In The Key of The Creek”. We’d meet up at Cartoon Network Studios and talk, then in my typical weirdo DIY way, I would drive back to a stranger’s apartment in North Hollywood to write and record all the songs on a laptop that would NOT STOP CRASHING and email them over saying “uhhhh do you like it?” We also recorded gang vocals with a lot of the crew at a practice space in Burbank which was super fun.
I was kinda blown away with how enthusiastic, prepared and ass-kicking all the voice actors were. It was surreal to see how the storyboard artists Ashley Tahilan and Tara Helfer brought these songs to life in the world of the Creek and once it was all put together, animated, colored, etc… like… holy shit. It rules so much. It also ended up kinda speaking to these pandemic times. Weird! Anyway, I’m not sure if any of you know that I’ve been up to this stuff but now you do! You can stream In The Key of The Creek on the Cartoon Network app or this person’s YouTube playlist has all the songs on it hahaha.
SOME SHIT I’VE BEEN LISTENING TO!
Hey, I don’t know is that what this newsletter is for? Here’s some stuff I’ve been listening to a lot the last few weeks! Here is a Spotify playlist of all the albums, I was thinking of putting all the links (not just Spotify) in every one of these little descriptions but… I… am… too… laz……
MIKE HUGUENOR - X’ED
Hey! You know Mike, he plays guitar in my band! He’s also played in a few legendary San Jose bands including Shinobu, Hard Girls and Classics of Love. This is his debut solo full-length and it is an all-guitar instrumental record. Everything you hear on it is a guitar, sometimes used conventionally, sometimes percussive, sometimes some weird shit that I don’t know what’s happening. I’ll admit that in the wrong hands, this concept sounds pretentious and unlistenable, but all the facets I love about Mike’s songwriting are here just channeled through one instrument - THE RIFF STICK BABBY.
OCEANATOR - THINGS I NEVER SAID
This is a GOOD ASS RECORD. Dang. Played a show with Oceanator late last year and was stoked when the new songs I heard had hella pop-punk DNA in there. I mean, this isn’t really a pop-punk record. It’s got the energy, but the guitars are heavy and thick, Elise sings often sings in a low register which feels appropriate with songs about the world crumbling around us.
AJJ - GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY
Okay, so I’m biased. I played and sang on a few songs on this record, and AJJ have long been one of my favorite bands. Weirdly this album was a grower for me, but I’ve found myself listening to it non-stop the past month as California has been veiled in a, uh, veil of, uh, smoke. veil. “No Justice, No Peace, No Hope” is one of the most brutally sad and honest songs I’ve heard in my fucking life. But even with the heaviness of the subject matter on this record, it is not a depressing record. It’s like sitting down with a buddy and debriefing on the things you can’t keep inside anymore.
PURPLE MOUNTAINS - S/T
When I was reading all these dumbass statements from dinguses in the music biz saying people can’t vibe with sad songs in 2020 because 2020 is too sad, I couldn’t believe it. For me, sad music doesn’t make me sad. It makes me feel less alone in it, less despaired, less hopeless and in a way, energized to keep fighting. The story of David Berman and this Purple Mountains record that came out last year is tragic. Berman’s suicide hit me really hard, and honestly made it difficult to listen to this record since it all felt so fresh. Over the last few weeks though, I have found myself listening to it more and more, and it’s taken on a bit of a healing quality. Like Good Luck Everybody, this record feels like finding a friend in dark times and talkin’ through it all.
JER - R/EDGELORD
Jer was kind enough to play horns on some of the 2020 DUMP songs and some Craig of the Creek shit and while talking I was lucky enough to hear some of the new songs they were writing. I’ve always loved the energy they put into the covers they do as Skatune Network and have honestly been thinking “damn I can’t wait til they write some songs of their own” and they have finally started putting some out! YES!! This song has a lot of classic ska/punk vibes, but Jer isn’t content to just make some ska/punk bullshit and go “cool! It’s nostalgic” then walk off into the sunset. It’s also… A GOOD SONG. Great melodies, energy, cool structure, sounds great, and I just love that Jer is TALKING SOME FUCKING SHIT. Hell yeah.
ILLUMINATI HOTTIES - FREE I.H: THIS IS NOT THE ONE YOU’VE BEEN WAITING FOR
Ok, I heard this mixtape when it came out and was like “ok that’s cool” and kinda moved on. But then every time I got in my car and just wanted to listen to some new shit that ROCKED this always ended up on my stereo. At this point I feel like I just can’t stop listening to it. I wish I grabbed the vinyl when I could. Sarah’s records always sound so fucking good too. The “mixtape” format opens the door for a ton of freedom and experimentation while remaining rooted in good songwriting and mean-ass lyrics. Fuck yeah.
TEENAGE HALLOWEEN - S/T
Aw man, I was fuckin’ PUMPED when I heard this record. Our band has played shows with Teenage Halloween for years, and their debut album kicks so much ass and shows how far they’ve come as a band. If you are looking for some new punk songs to get into, CHECK! THIS! RECORD! OUT! Catchy, loud, emotional, fuckin’ sick.
CHOKING VICTIM - NO GODS / NO MANAGERS
Ironically, the only place I could find the album cover was Amazon. So many friends have texted me about this record in the last five or six months. We all agree. This is the perfect time to listen to Choking Victim and Leftover Crack.
LIKE COMMENT AND SUBSCRIBE LOLOLOL
Okay cool, that’s it for me. I’m not going crazy proofreading this so uhhhh forgive any bad writing please.
OH YEAH! I’m gonna leave the comments open on this one, so if you have any questions for me I’ll do my best to respond there, or if it’s a LOOOOONG question, maybe I’ll address it in the next “newsletter.” I’m not planning to have the comments open on all of these, and if it seems like a toxic environment I’m just gonna close em up and scream into the abyss “I WAS WRONG WE CANNOT HAVE NICE THINGS IN ANY CAPACITY!”
Wishing you love and kindness and oh yeah… please vote?
— Jeff
Ok I’m committing sin of double comment to say holy shit that fox in the snow cover is so perfect! You really nailed it. Made my night
Awesome post! Excited to check out the tunes you’ve recced! My sentiments exactly on Purple Mountains. Thanks for being rad even when things are fucked. Wishing you the best!