Shotwell: Imagine if Fifteen’s music didn’t suck almost as bad as the lyrics, that it was smart, duct tape and crossed-fingers Crimpshrine-glorifying punk with a few more pop elements. Then, you’d get Shotwell. The music smells of rotting sneakers and shirts that have mildewed and fused to the body from weeks of unwiped sweat. That’s a compliment. GBOW: Before Jawbreaker as we know it gelled, they released a demo under the name Rise and Blake didn’t sing lead. (A guy named John Liu did.) This reminds me of that demo tape, while mixing in some Husker Du guitar wash. It’s swelling, creative punk that’s sensitive and subtly complex, but isn’t being a pussy about it. For two bucks, you could do a lot worse.
–todd (Half Day)