Grabass: Sometime last year, I said, “Fuck it. I give up. No màs.” But then, when I can’t sleep, I start thinking… what mechanisms make rafts of shitty bands super popular while bands that I absolutely love—and plenty of people seem to dig, too—remain relatively obscure? The Grabass Charlestones are one of those bands. Two absolutely great songs—one about the world going to shit and that’s why Will likes cats (infallible logic), and one about a dude who burned everyone in his wake. Is it because the drummer’s the singer? (That worked for the Carpenters.) Is it because they don’t pander to any sort of trend? (That worked for the Ramones.) They don’t pander to any sort of scene? (That’s working for the Ergs!) Conundrum. But the band doesn’t seem to mind, so I’ll stop here. Ergs!: On the flip side, a band that’s getting its due. People are rightly amped up on them, as they show that pop punk isn’t a terminal trajectory into a musical cul-de-sac. It’s like looking at a fancy rock: durable as all hell and with slight twists, something new sparkles from them again and again.
–todd (No Idea)