February 08th, 2012
Stream 'Trenches' For The Very First Time
I finally have a new song to show off! The track in question is the first August Premier song to be officially streamed.
'Trenches' is AP's opening track, features Allister's Tim Rogner as a guest vocalist and is available at canyouseethesunset.com.
February 06th, 2012
August Premier's Album Release Date
It's weird, I have an actual piece of news to write about this time around.
August Premier's ten track album Happy Miserable will be comfortably floating around on your iPod (hopefully) on March 27th!
January 31st, 2012
The Icarus Account
Just got another song in for the new cover project...The Icarus Account is simply a kick ass song from the last compilation. This next project is going to be the most impressive group of talent yet...
January 22nd, 2012
August Premier Artwork
Here's a draft of the cover art for August Premier's upcoming album Happy Miserable as well as a music teaser of all their tracks.
January 19th, 2012
Punchline
In honor of Punchline's latest EP, which reached an unprecedented level of success on the iTunes daily charts by reaching the number one music spot despite the fact that they're represented by they're own indie label and are a DIY artist.
Anyways,
I figure I would give them a bit of love by streaming their cover of Alkaline Trio's 'Madam Me' which appears on the compilation titled A Tribute to Alkaline Trio. Hopefully their EP's success is a sign of the times, and turns out to be a glimpse at the comeback potential that this genre has. I encourage anyone who wants to support the scene and who loves quality music to give Punchline's new EP a spin. You can find So Nice To Meet You right here.
January 14th, 2012
Bright and Early Unplugged
Bright and Early has followed up their EP Getting Through It with a free acoustic EP titled Unplugged. If you're interested in getting a copy for the affordable price of absolutely nothing than head on over to the bands bandcamp page and you'll see the glory that is more B&E.
January 11th, 2012
Best Cover Band In Sweden
"Detta är helt enkelt Sveriges bästa tolkningsband, det finns inget band i Sverige som kan göra om låtar till en annan genre och ÄNDÅ få det att låta så bra, proffsigare än så här blir det verkligen inte!" - Rocknytt.net
If you're like me and don't understand any of what I posted above, I'll do you a favor and translate the reviewers delightful description of the Future Idiots.
"This is without any doubt Sweden's best cover band, there's no band in Sweden who can remake songs in a different genre and STILL make it sound so good,
it's not gonna get more professional than this!".
January 9th, 2012
Self-Titled
The song selection and track listing for the new Self-Titled Future Idiots album is all squared away.
Here's what the album is going to look like:
1.Hangout With Grannies
2.Seven of Nine
3.Never Surrender
4.I Still Got Porn
5.Girl of my Nightmare
6.Christina Hendricks
7.I Love Katy Perry
8.My Condition
9.Hymn of Alcohol
10.Failure
11.Tomorrow
12.What's it to You
13.Anya's Song
14.There For You
January 6th, 2012
Short and Sweet
The name of the new ten track August Premier album? Happy Miserable.
January 4th, 2012
I Love Katy Perry
Here's an unmastered, rough mix of a new Future Idiots song tentatively known as "I Love Katy Perry". You can practically taste the Blink-182-like glory that's going to appear on their upcoming full length, self-titled album.
January 2nd, 2012
Battles
The first taste of August Premiers return to Pop Punk prominence is beginning at Soundoff where you can hear a clip of their track 'Battles' which is dominating the battle board (you'll understand if you check out the site).
December 30th, 2011
Self-Titled Design
Here's a draft of the Future Idiots new album cover art. Typical outstanding design from the Swedish masterminds.
December 29th, 2011
New Year, New Album
This post is going to be short and sweet. The Future Idiots are currently putting the finishing touches on a new full length self-titled album. This album will mark their third original full length record. Love and Murder and Lust being the other two.
I'll have some unreleased, rough mixes of a few new songs to post over the course of the next few days.
December 27th, 2011
Classic Christmas
Some people say Christmas is about friends and family. Others say it's about Jesus. I say it's about the NBA kicking off their regular season and gaining three to four pounds through a sheer lack of will power and an overwhelming over-consumption of anise candy and home baked chocolate chip cookies.
That being said, Christmas and New Years are combining to make me incredibly unproductive, so I'm going to lazily offer up one of our more underappreciated international artists named Kyoto Drive. Now it's time to get back to watching in awe as Kevin Durant leads the league in scoring for a third consecutive year, while I get in on a second helping of left-over honey glazed ham.
December 22nd, 2011
Best Damn Deal of the Season
A lot of stores offer terrific deals this time a year but I'll give you the best damn deal of the holiday season right here:
August Premier, The Composure, Squid the Whale and Gunner playing at the Brauerhouse
Lombard Tuesday, January 17th for seven bucks. Now that's a deal.
Here's The Composure's cover of Sleepyhead just so you can get a feel for the ensuing awesomeness.
December 17th, 2011
You're Giving Me Your Virginity for Christmas
A couple of dudes by the name of Mark and Dave wrote a song titled "You're Giving Me Your Virginity for Christmas" with the intention of trying to get the Future Idiots to record the track. Being the awesome guys that FI are, they felt honored that somebody wrote a song for them and immediately took up the challenge to record. The result is a kick ass Christmas themed song brimming with humor and satire.
December 15th, 2011
Koji and Bright and Early
Did you feel that quake? It was the result of the combined talent of Koji and Bright and Early colliding in a mini-acoustic tour. You can feel the power for yourself on the 12, 13, 14 and 15th of January when the two artists join up with A Loss For Words to dominate the world acoustically.
If you want significantly less hyperbole with your info, and if you want to stream an awesome track or two visit B&E's facebook for the rest of the details.
December 13th, 2011
Maybe I'll Catch Fire
Not to inundate the last week or so with August Premier news, but did I mention they have a ten track album coming soon? The bad boy was engineered by Matt Allison. Who just conveniently happens to be the mastermind behind a ton of different records. Most notably (in my opinion) Alkaline Trio's first couple of albums. More specifically Goddamnit, Maybe I'll Catch Fire and From Here To Infirmary. Doesn't get much better than that. News about the release should be on the horizon.
December 11th, 2011
TOAM
I'm going a little old school by streaming The Ocean As Mistress. They're one of our classic artists that we worked with a number of years ago that's looking to make a comeback of sorts and release some new material in 2012.
Anyways, 'Virga' is one of the best tracks that I've ever had the pleasure of releasing, so I thought I'd bring it back from obscurity.
December 8th, 2011
Retro Feel
August Premier is working on recreating a pic for their new album's cover art. The layout should be stylized in a similar manner to this: Sample.
Gotta' love the classic feel.
December 7th, 2011
Balloons...Everything's Okay
I've been spinning August Premier's final album mix for their upcoming record, and I have to say this new creation is simply a reminder of why I originally loved the band back in 2002.
In my opinion the new album is going to be a more mature version of "Balloons...Everything's Okay". And that's some high praise considering Balloons is one of my top five favorite EPs of all time.
December 6th, 2011
Selling Yourself Short
I'm streaming 'Selling Yourself Short' by Bright and Early for no other reason than I'm listening to it right now, and enjoying the hell out of it.
December 5th, 2011
Sputnik Supports My Love
Think my love for Bright and Early is somewhat skewed because of a personal relationship? Think that all the gushing I've done about "Getting Through It" is all lip-service? Well you're right, I'm incredibly biased.
But than again I never expected anyone to take my word for it.
However, I am happy to announce that I'm not alone in my opinion. Sputnik Music fully supports my band crush on B&E's new EP.
4/5 stars - Sputnik Music
November 29th, 2011
Goes Heavy Metal
There's a nasty stereotype out there suggesting that Pop Punk artists lack talent. That's supposedly why they play similar melodies and try their damndest to assemble whatever they're playing in as uncomplicated a fashion as possible.
In an attempt to debunk this myth, the Future Idiots successfully flex their musical muscle by shredding their way to respect. Just listen to 'Through The Fire and Flames' and tell me FI or Pop Punkers lack talent.
Sure they mold these Metal songs into poppier renditions of themselves. Partially because Pop Punk is the sound the guys love, but primarily the Pop Punk style is due to the fact that a carbon copy cover defeats the purpose of doing a cover in the first place. If a person wanted the original song they would listen to the original.
The bottom line is when it comes to the flashier parts of each track, FI more than demonstrates their skill and talent just as impressively as some of the most renown Metal bands in the business.
FI isn't looking for validation though, they're looking for a reason to rock out to a few songs they enjoy, and maybe garner a little respect while doing it.
Available Now
iTunes, Amazon, PRR Store
November 25th, 2011
Xmas Lovin'
I love Christmas and the season that comes along with it. In fact I enjoy it so much that I'm offering a 50% off coupon for all items in our store, both physical and digital, and I'm also bringing some old Pac Ridge Material out of the wood-works for a limited time.
I figured in addition to Christmas this deal would also be in honor of Black Friday/Cyber Monday. I'm doing my best to cover every aspect of this season with one fell swoop.
Just enter christmaslove in the check out and you'll be good to go.
Now that Thanksgiving's over it's officially time to scope out a Christmas tree. In my opinion the smell of Pine in the house officially kicks off the season and gets me all nostalgic and in the spirit.
November 23rd, 2011
B&E Exposed
In their infinite kindness and awesomeness the podcast Radio Exposed took the time to interview Bright and Early about their EP and their Alkaline trio tribute contribution.
The interview took place on 10/30 and goes from minute 53 to the hour and twenty minute mark on the podcast. The recording even finishes up with a streaming of "For What It's Worth".
You can download the interview along with the rest of the podcast at their site radioexposed.net.
On a side note, I definitely recommend subscribing to their podcast. They're super nice guys who have a great taste in music and are really quite random and unpredictable in a good way.
November 21st, 2011
Goes Heavy Metal
I mentioned a few days ago that one of our favorite international artists was getting ready to have a metal, cover album drop on November 29th.
Well it's not November 29th, but it is time for you to be able to stream the entire album for free. And by that I mean Goes Heavy Metal by the Future Idiots is actually going to be available for full stream at our bandcamp page starting today. Which coincidentally means the album is for sale/download a week before the actual release date exclusively on our page.
If you want a song recommendation, I have to say my personal favorites off of the FI EP are "Through The Fire and Flames" and "Afterlife". Both are absolute gems.
November 19th, 2011
Best Tribute Album
This review of the Alkaline Trio Tribute album is a bit of a late arrival, but the fact that someone out there cared enough to do a review of a four month old compilation makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The cherry on top comes in the form of them naming the Alk3 tribucomp the best tribute of the year. Making them the best reviewer of the year in my book. I'm also streaming My Arcadia's cover of 'Maybe I'll Catch Fire' just for kicks, and because it's awesome.
8.7/10 - Friday Reviews
November 17th, 2011
Pop Punk Battle Cry
A couple of reviews have just recently cropped up for Bright and Early's EP. So if you want to read about Getting Through It's eloquently spun lyrics or wry humor you should check out Absolutepunk.net's review. You can even listen to one of their tunes below while enjoying the excellent writing AP has to offer.
8/10 - Absolutepunk
November 13th, 2011
Going Metal
The Swedish Pop Punkers known as the Future Idiots have another release in the works. This time around they're doing their best to venture away from their usual Pop Punk sound by injecting a dose of metal into their musical repetoire. So if you like the Future Idiots, Pop Punk, Metal, Shredding or a combination of all four of these particular traits then you should keep an eye out for Goes Heavy Metal. The EP is a four track mini-cover EP of various metal artists.
The album will be dropping on November 29th, but you can stream FI's cover of Dragonforce's song 'Through the Fire and Flames' right here if you're interested.
November 4th, 2011
Free B&E Song
It's raining here in Southern California. Which means Winter is probably settling in everywhere else too, if it hasn't already that is. So as a way to smile in the face of the gloomiest weather, I have a free Bright and Early song to offer up for free download.
'For What It's Worth' is the third track off of B&E's latest EP and is available right here for your downloading pleasure.
Hopefully a little Pop Punk will lift the heart and warm spirits for the upcoming nastiness that's bound to ensue.
October 31st, 2011
The Film Vault
The Future Idiots recently had several of their songs appear on a popular podcast that goes by the name of The Film Vault. A show where hosts Bryan and Anderson recommend movies while being entertaining and only mildly racist.
So if you're a fan of movies or the Future Idiots check out the 'Top 5 Biopics' episode and you'll get to hear an unreleased tune of there's titled "Through the Fire and Flames" as well as a plethora of witty movie banter. Win-win. And I would be remiss not to tie in Halloween to this post in some fashion, so if you're in the mood for something befitting of October 31st, you should check out their scary movies themed episode. That episode doesn't have FI, so it obviously wouldn't be quite as good, but Bryan and Anderson still kick ass anyway.
You can find the episode on iTunes, at The Film Vault Blog or at andersonandbryan.com.
October 28th, 2011
Eight Songs Free
We've been on a bit of a roll lately with some quality music. Between the Alkaline Trio Tribute, The Scene and now Bright and Early's EP we seem to be doing nothing but getting bigger and better.
Those musical highlights inevidably bring me to the next few endeavors we're undertaking. First up is going to be a full length with former Fueled by Ramen artist August Premier. They're a personal favorite of mine from before Pac Ridge ever existed, so getting to work with them has been nothing short of a surreal experience. Secondly, we've got former Drive Thru artist Jesse Ponnock recording an EP with the amazingly talented Ace Enders.
Both records are going to drop some time this Winter. And as a way of prepping people for the upcoming awesomeness. I want to release an eight track compilation of some of our best work. It's available now and it's absolutely free. So check out our bandcamp page and enjoy some quality tunes from a variety of different artists for nothing.
This year is a celebration of our best musical releases to date and it's all thanks to the listeners and fans. It's because of you guys that independent music is making a comeback and that we're able to put out more material with artists like Bright and Early, August Premier, Jesse Ponnock, Punchline, The Wonder Years and all the other quality artists that we've worked with this year.
FREE COMPILATION - ACT ONE
October 22nd, 2011
Full Stream of Bright and Early's EP and Interview
If anyone is interested, Bright and Early's EP is available for full stream at our bandcamp page.
And if you find that you have an insatiable appetite for all things Bright and Early, you can find an interview at the new music blog Play Crack The Sky which features B&E's vocalist and guitarist JB. The interview was performed by Sean Reid. A skilled music writer that knows quality independent music. So if you want to stay informed and entertained, I encourage everyone to check out the site.
October 18th, 2011
Bright and Early - Getting Through It
"Immensely listenable...You'd be ill-advised not to give it at least a spin or two." - Punktastic
"...Honest and organic approach...delivering some of the catchiest music we heard from any band..." - Rockfreaks
These are just a few of the kind words that are being used to describe Getting Through It, Bright and Early's new record that's conveniently available today.
You can find the album wherever you enjoy supporting indie music; iTunes, Amazon, Interpunk and of course our bandcamp page are just a few of the locations where you can find a copy of the album, but bandcamp is the only area where you can get a bonus B&E tune. I call it keeping the love in house.
October 16th, 2011
Getting Through It
A few of the songs off of Bright and Early's unreleased EP are now available for instant stream.
'Rule of Three' is streaming at Absolutepunk and 'For What It's Worth' is available at Alter The Press. Both are great sites for finding up-to-date news, exclusives, and if I might say so, terrific Pac Ridge music.
Getting Through It will be available October 18th, and a little earlier for anyone who's nice enough to spend their time reading my posts.
October 10th, 2011
New Band, New Album, New Post
There's no doubt about the fact that Pop Punk is making a comeback. There are simply too many talented Pop Punk bands on the rise to keep the once dying genre in the shadows any longer. With New Found Glory, Allister, Rufio, Punchline and I Am The Avalanche all making headlines again, and artists like Man Overboard, Transit, Fireworks and The Wonder Years all beginning to grab the spotlight. There's simply no denying the obvious and inevitable fact that we're in the midst of a Pop Punk renaissance.
Fresh off their tour with Punchline, Bright and Early slides into that second category of Pop Punk bands. And by that I mean they're one of the handful of artists that have been critical in resuscitating the once dying genre and bringing the Pop Punk style and flavor back from the edge of extinction. And not only is the genre beginning to peak again, it's clearly better then it's ever been. You can hear the proof on their new record titled 'Getting through It'. There's passionate vocals and clever song writing that's reminiscent of Gatsby's American Dream in 'Stick By Me', then there's the undeniably catchy track 'Rule of Three' that'll bring back fond memories of the glory days of the scene while just beginning to scratch the surface of what the genre could actually achieve in this second wave of popularity.
Over-produced, hackneyed impersonations of quality artists is what nearly destroyed Pop Punk.
Bright and Early is just one of the handful of artists that's going to do their damndest to save it.
Getting Through It - October 18th
October 3rd, 2011
Stream The Scene In Its Entirety
I've been yammering on about The Scene and Alkaline Trio tribute compilations for what seems like months now, so I figured I should get straight to some substance and let people know that the combined 59 tracks are available for instant stream on our bandcamp page.
So if you've heard me hype these two projects, but have never gotten a chance to see what I've been talking about, now is a better time than any.
October 1st, 2011
Play Crack The Sky
What's up with the slew of comps I'm releasing lately? What artists do I think have the ability to excel in the music industry? What do I have planned for the next six months? Answers to all these questions and a bunch of other more interesting ones are available in an interview I did with music blog, Play Crack The Sky. I get fairly personal, and of course, never lose my long-winded narcissism throughout the entire process, so check out the interview if you're interested.
Also if you're new to Play Crack The Sky, which you are because they're new, they're a site in the vein of Absolutepunk or Alter The Press. Meaning that you can discover all the musical news, exclusive downloads and features your heart desires. Even more importantly, Sean Reid, the guy who posted the interview and runs the site, actually cares about independent music. Making him, in my opinion, one of the saviors of this industry, because people who care about quality and talent over status is what will keep this scene we all love afloat. So seriously if you want to be kept up-to-date and entertained at the same time, you really should bookmark this site.
September 30th, 2011
The World Concave
I already posted the video for The World Concave's contribution to The Scene, so I thought it would only make sense to put the song itself up for grabs. That being said, you can temporarily download 'Loom' for free right here, or you can stream the track and the entire compilation the track is on to your hearts content right here.
September 27th, 2011
The Scene - Available Now
The Scene can now be found at whatever site you use to satisfy your music indulgences; iTunes, Amazon, Interpunk or right here with us.
There are two specific reasons why I took the time to put together The Scene compilation. The primary factor being that there has been a void in quality compilations since Blink-182's Atticus series went on hiatus. Atticus was a near failsafe way of identifying incredibly talented new artists without having to wade through the countless garage bands that exist today. And I'm not demonizing garage bands or indie artists, I'm simply saying there's only so many hours in the day and unfortunately they can't all be spent discovering new artists. Even if I do wish that was the case.
The second reason for the creation of this album stems from my dislike of fighting controlling labels, egotistical managers and overentitled artists who care more about the politics involved with the music industry than in the fans who gave them their opportunity. These labels, managers and bands don't realize they're destroying the scene that their career is built upon. Instead this compilation is composed of generous managers, labels who want to cooperate with one another for the mutual benefit of everyone involved and artists who just want to perform their art for a living in front of passionate fans who actually care about their music. These artists, labels and managers simply want to be heard and realize that working together is beneficial for everyone involved and this compilation is definitely a step in that very direction.
September 24th, 2011
Three Free Downloads
Purevolume.com has always been a terrific destination for discovering up-and-coming artists. That's why I'm honored to announce that they're featuring The Scene compilation on their homepage this weekend.
They even included a few quotes from a tangent I went on regarding why I put together this project. So if you want to download three free tracks off of the album and read a little bit of my rant just head on over to their site.
September 23rd, 2011
The World Concave
There are a handful of people that I find I have something in common with. One of those individuals just so happens to be The World Concave's Craig Cirinelli. The guy has an unmatched enthusiasm for creating beautiful art, writing and performing brilliantly crafted music and has an unequaled appetite for consuming musical lore.
For example, Craig created The Scene artwork, the Alkaline Trio tribute artwork, contributed a song to our compilation and even recorded a video for their contribution to The Scene.
Craig along with bandmates Dan, Erik, Alf and Mark all put together the dark, ominous tune titled 'Loom', which can be heard in The World Concave's first official video that you can find right below this long-winded post. The video will be cropping up on Blanktv.com, Engineer Records and like I've said a couple of times already, The Scene compilation, as well as numerous other places of course.
Check it out, and better yet, check The World Concave out. They're seriously talented and deserve a lot more recognition for their hard work and passion.
September 19th, 2011
Joe Wilson
Joe Wilson is one of the four artists that we were lucky enough to get to contribute on both the Alkaline Trio Tribute and The Scene compilation. So I'm extra excited to present the fact that both Joe Wilson's Alkaline Trio cover of 'Goodbye Forever' and his original song titled 'Severed' can be found, streamed and downloaded at our bandcamp site and at The Scene's Facebook page.
Also if you find yourself really enjoying Joe Wilson's tunes you can find more original work by him at http://www.feelingleftout.net/
September 9th, 2011
Young Hollywood
Another spectacular addition to The Scene compilation was contributed by the artist Young Hollywood who performs their song "Lust At First Sight" on the very first track. The track can be streamed at our bandcamp or the album's FB page.
If you like what you hear you can find more Young Hollywood tunes and follow-up on the band by visiting their FB page.
September 6th, 2011
Move Out West
I want to dive into this new release head on and give you a glimpse at Move Out West's contributions to the album. Their song is the sixth track off of The Scene compilation and is titled 'Sink With You'.
'Sink With You' can be found on our Facebook, Purevolume and at www.pacificridgerecords.com.
You can also stream a couple of other songs by other artists off of The Scene compilation directly from our album page.
If you find yourself wanting to hear more about Move Out West you can find them and their music at their home page.
September 5th, 2011
You Just Need To Know Where To Look
There was such a positive response from the Alkaline Trio Tribute that I thought it would be a terrific idea to do another project with a few of the same artists that I had the pleasure of working with before like The Lion Faced Boy, Still Rings True and My Arcadia, as well as about a dozen new artists.
The project in question was created with the idea that we would gather a terrific group of under-the-radar talent and let them demonstrate their skills with original music. And in my opinion Blink-182's compilation series titled 'Atticus' is the closest comparison to this particular project. 'Atticus' attempted to shed light on new and upcoming artists by including a variety of genres and styles on one record, and in doing so they exceeded almost everones expectations by unveiling original talent like Taking Back Sunday, The Starting Line, Bad Astronaut, Hot Rod Circuit, Finch, Rise Against and dozens of other bands that are thought of as the greatest of their era. Since Atticus has been slow to keep up their work, I thought Pacific Ridge Records would take a stab at selecting a few artists that have unparalleled ability, and who I think with a little dedication and hard work are destined to achieve great things.
The compilation is titled 'The Scene' and will be released on September 27th. You can check out the artwork, stream three songs and view the track listing right here.
September 3rd, 2011
I Have Opinions Too
The Material, Floral Terrace and My Arcadia recently expressed their opinions on what their favorite Alkaline Trio songs are, so I went ahead and followed suit. Albeit in a slightly more long-winded approach as I'm prone to do...you can find the mini-interview at Purevolume.com.
September 1st, 2011
The Material, Floral Terrace and My Arcadia
Check out a mini-interview with The Material, My Arcadia and Floral Terrace about their favorite Alkaline Trio songs. Also stop on by their Purevolume accounts to download and listen to their Alk3 cover tunes for free.
PV Mini interview
August 30th, 2011
A TRIBUTE TO ALKALINE TRIO
Before I get into my long winded diatribe about Alkaline Trio I want to say A Tribute to Alkaline Trio is now available and can be streamed in its entirety at our bandcamp page. It can also be found at iTunes and Amazon.
Almost every artist on this compilation comes from a drastically different level in their respective musical careers. Punchline and I Can Make A Mess have just about done it all, while reaching a level of fame and success that has carried on over the years. The Lion faced Boy and My Arcadia are just beginning to catch on and garner some tangible level of fandom. Allister and August Premier are making a comeback, and Straight Outta Junior High and Jonah Matranga are continuing to produce quality music after all these years.
The same differences that are apparent with the broad assortment of artists also exists with the wide variety of genres that are included. There's When We Team Up's post-hardcore take on 'Warbrain', Rattlesnake Gunfight's alternative country breakdown of 'Another Innocent Girl' and Koji's brilliant acoustic take on 'She Took Him To The Lake', and those are just three of the numerous styles that appear on the album.
And while there are so many differences within this compilation. There's one constant, and that's the respect that's being paid to Alkaline Trio that's clearly evident in the wide array of quality individuals and fantastic talent that participated on this project. And with 39 tracks and more than a dozen artists that I had to politely turn down, I can tell you with 100% certainty that the Trio has inspired a countless number of artists and will continue to instill musical passion in future generations.
To end this long winded rant I want to say that ultimately this tribute was made with the idea that maybe one of these 39 songs would turn at least one person, who may not have heard of Alkaline Trio, or maybe hadn't given them a chance, into a true fan of their work. Or with a little luck, maybe a fan of Alkaline Trio will find their next favorite artist hidden among the 39 various acts that contributed their hard work and talents to this project.
August 29th, 2011
Floral Terrace
Floral Terrace is offering up one of the most popular songs on Purevolume right now for free download. The track just so happens to be another magnificent Alkaline Trio cover off our tribucomp, so if you want a free version of 'This Could Be Love' just head on over to PV and secure yourself a free mp3 of an awesome song.
Tomorrow A3T drops so if you visit the album site tomorrow you'll be able to stream all 39 tracks for free.
August 26th, 2011
My Arcadia and The Story Changes
I have more A3T news to love and consume, because I know nobody's tired of that yet.
You can download My Arcadia's cover of 'Maybe I'll Catch Fire' at Purevolume.com for a limited time.
You can also hear The Story Changes rendition of 'San Francisco' while watching the band dominate a bowling alley on their youtube channel and FB page.
August 23rd, 2011
Radio Exposed
I want to give a shout out to a podcast by the name of Radio Exposed who interviewed Rattlesnake Gunfight about their contribution on the Alkaline Trio Tribute. They also chatted a bit about Pac Ridge and the compilation as a whole.
Basically what I'm saying is that they have an quality, entertaining show that deserves some attention so check them out.
Plus they talk about Pac Ridge and beer, which is always a surefire way to catapult you into the category of awesomeness.
August 19th, 2011
In Bloom
I'm taking a break from the Alkaline Trio Tribute posting onslaught that I've been non-stop talking about lately to inform you that In Bloom will be playing a show this Saturday with A Loss For Words (Rise Records) & Vanna (Epitaph Records). Also, on September 22nd In Bloom will be opening for The Ataris and Unwritten Law. For the time and location just head on over to their facebook page.
Since I haven't talked about Alkaline Trio for a whole two sentences I should probably mention that In Bloom did a wonderful rendition of the Maybe I'll Catch Fire gem, 'Keep 'Em Coming'. Also, My Arcadia will be streaming their Alk3 track Monday...
August 17th, 2011
Jonah Matranga
If anyone is interested in hearing another track from the Alkaline Trio Tribute you can head on over to Alternative Press where they're featuring Jonah Matranga's version of 'I'm Dying Tomorrow'.
Jonah's rendition is a heartfelt rendition of the tune, so don't expect to be playing air guitar to the song. Expect to be moved emotionally.
August 14th, 2011
And Then There Were None
'If You Had A Bad Time' can now be streamed at our Purevolume site, or at our Facebook page.
August 12th, 2011
Unity: Funeral For A Friend, Moneen, Fightstar
In a little non-Alkaline Trio related news, we have a handful of Pac Ridge artists participating on an Engineer Records benefit compilation that has some fairly prominent talent contributing tracks for the purpose of charity. Pac Ridge will feature artists along side bands like Funeral For A Friend, Fightstar and Moneen. Specifically you'll find Ramona, In Bloom, The Ocean As Mistress and The Cameo In.
Here's a little more info about the charity and the track listing.
It's easy to forget natural disasters when they no longer make the news headlines, but the people left behind continue to struggle sometimes for years after the event. In March 2011, Japan was hit by a life changing series of earthquakes and a devastating tsunami where families and homes were literally torn apart. Engineer Records has not forgotten this awful tragedy and is doing something to raise much needed funds for the homeless children of Japan. With the help of its good friends in the music world, it has brought together a moving charity compilation Unity. The album features The Gaslight Anthem, Funeral For A Friend, Moneen and Fightstar, as well as a host of other fantastic artists, and includes many exclusive tracks that won't have been heard before and which have been produced solely for this compilation – so you wont be able to get them elsewhere. The Unity download will be available as a set of 25 tracks – so for a small donation you get the whole album. Initially, it will be available from Bandcamp and 100% of the proceeds raised from donations will go to the charity. It will also be available from iTunes, Amazon, and Spotify at a later date. Proceeds will go to Save the Children's Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami appeal ( http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/en/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-appeal.htm )
Unity Tracklist:
01. Freeze The Atlantic -
The Alibi
02. Fightstar - Colours Bleed To Red
03. Maycomb - Whatever Happened, Happened
04. The Gaslight Anthem - Our Father's Sons
05. In Bloom - You Sew Me Up
06. Brian Southall & Craig Cirinelli - Losing My Religion
07. The Morning Of - Tell Me I'm Wrong
08. Paige - Young Summer
09. Call Off The Search - Second Best
10. Kyoto Drive - Chapters
11. Funeral For A Friend - Sixteen
12. The Lion And The Wolf - The Lion And The Wolf
13. Mikee J Reds - Don't Know When
14. Moneen - The Day No One Need To Know
15. Her Only Presence - Goodnight
16. The Cameo In - Stumble Home Thursday
17. Luke Pickett - We All Wear Crowns
18. Nathaniel Sutton - Shades Of Neon
19. Remember Paris - Run Something Terrible
20. Dan Coutant (of Joshua) - Fail
21. Ben Parcell - The Only One
22. Ramona - Kids In Tokyo
23. The Satellite Year - Jelly, Jelly, How To Survive Such A Trip
24. Archie's, Come Back - After The White Star Disappears
25. The Ocean As Mistress – Virga
August 8th, 2011
Promise of Redemption
Valencia's side project Promise of Redemption does their best to conquer one of Dan Andriano's finest displays of writing by covering the obscure yet popular song 'Take Lots With Alcohol'. The track features Will Noon from Breaking Pangaea and Straylight Run, and has a self-described (by Shane Henderson of PoR/Valencia) Get Up Kids-like breakdown.
You can find PoR's rendition of 'Take Lots With Alcohol' bouncing around on Youtube or right here where the album is located.
August 3rd, 2011
Koji, The Material and Into It. Over It.
Punktastic, Alter The Press and Purevolume have been nice enough to feature a handful of tracks from our Alkaline Trio tribute. So if you want to give a couple of other tracks on the compilation a listen just head on over to Alter The Press and stream Into It. Over It's. take on Message From Kathlene, then turn your attention to Punktastic's preview of Koji's cover of 'She Took Him To The Lake' and finally check out Purevolume's feature of The Material's rendition of Bleeder.
July 29th, 2011
Spontaneo - Clavicle
If you want a little taste of the Alk3 Tribute, you can find Spontaneo's rendition of Clavicle in our media section, on our media player and at our facebook.
July 27th, 2011
A Tribute to Alkaline Trio Available Now
If you haven't had a chance to stream a few of the Alkaline Trio tribute tracks just head on over to the compilations FB event page and you'll be able to chat with a good number of the artists that contributed songs and even listen to their covers as they slowly begin to post them.
Also you can preorder the album right here and you'll instantly receive Bright and Early's cover of 'Stupid Kid', Promise of Redemption's version of 'Take Lots With Alcohol' and Spontaneo's rendition of Clavicle a month before they're officially released. Once August 30th rolls around the rest of the tracks will all be sent your way along with an 18 track digital sampler I'll send you just for being bitchin'.
ORDER
STREAMING PAGE
COMP PAGE
July 18th, 2011
Bright and Early
August Premier isn't the only artist that I'll be working with this Summer. I'll be partnering up with the band Bright and Early in a couple weeks in an effort to release some sweet sweet tunes later this Summer.
Right now you can listen to B&E's new single 'Always On My Mind' at the bands Facebook or at Modern Short Stories (Punchline's Record label).
July 14th, 2011
Delivering The Goods
The news about August Premier's recording just got a bit sweeter. They're planning on skipping the EP non-sense that most artists decide to cop out with and instead are going straight for the full length record. That means AP will be delivering 10-12 tracks of delightful audio ecstasy instead of the usual four to six tracks that leave you wanting more.
July 13th, 2011
AP Is Recording With Matt Allison
You know how I said August Premier would be recording through sheer happenstance in August, or more specifically the 15th through the 30th? Well they'll be recording with renowned producer Matt Allison who just so happens to of worked on some of the best releases to derive from Chicago Illinois. One of those dozens of hit records happens to be Alkaline Trio's Maybe I'll Catch Fire. Which coincidently happens to be the album that was almost entirely covered on our Alk3 tribute that's dropping in a month-and-a-half. The happenstance train just keeps forging onward in the Pac Ridge circle of life.
July 10th, 2011
August Premier Wants To Be Liked
Now that you know August Premier is back from the dead, you should give them some cyber lovin' and 'like' their FB page. They're definitely entertaining dudes, so you'll definitely get some sweet deals, free stuff and some awesome tunes by joining the ranks of their loyal fans and posting on their wall.
Say something mean about their drummer Mickey and you'll be rewarded with a little extra something from me personally.
July 8th, 2011
August Premier's New Album
Guess who's recording a new album August 15-30th?
July 5th, 2011
30 more Free Songs
Sure the fourth of July is over, but the patriotic irony of releasing an international artists album on a USA specific holiday sure as hell isn't.
Buy Grand Theft Audio 2 and get Lust and Love and Murder for free.
July 4th, 2011
18 Free Songs
If you simply 'Like' the Pac Ridge facebook page you'll get a free 18 track compilation emailed to you pronto. Not a bad deal for a simple click.
Why the great deal with no catch? The sudden burst of generosity may have something to do with the fact that I've had three or four too many cups of coffee, or it could simply be the Independence Day spirit that's coursing through my veins. Either way the compilation comes filled to the brim with everything from unreleased material to old school tracks, and everything in between. After you 'like' the page make sure to message me at contact@pacificridgerecords.com so I know where to send the digital album.
July 3rd, 2011
Over My Head
Stream the new Future Idiots track 'Over My Head' at the PRR Facebook or PV page. The song's a classic that you'll instantly recognize once you give it a listen.....and by classic I mean it's six years old. Also known as a lifetime ago in music terms.
July 2nd, 2011
FB FI
If you're wondering where you can get a constant stream of Future Idiots content then you've stumbled across the perfect post.
For all the crude jokes and cheeky humor you can handle
check out FI's Facebook. And if you fancy their site make sure to show your humble sherpa some love and throw a 'like' or two Pac Ridge's way.
July 1st, 2011
Firework
Is there a better way to kick off the fourth of July weekend than with FI's timely cover of Firework?
Probably. But there's no denying that the song is incredibly appropriate and the timing couldn't have been better.
Listen to the song on FB or PV.
June 30th, 2011
Hot Links
I have an alternative for those of you who hate PRR and refuse to order or listen to music directly from Pac Ridge. Here are a few links to Grand Theft Audio 2 that will make the album accessible to you without having to tolerate my lame posts and redundant topics. You can stream some of the tracks at these various destinations and the best part of the experience is that they present themselves without the pathetic sense of self-deprecating humor.
June 29th, 2011
Future Idiots Grab The International Pop-Punk Throne
If you enjoy loquacious and verbose descriptions of albums and artists then I have just the article for you:
Fans generally consider Pop Punk to be significantly more simplistic of the genres that are considered 'Scene'. Well, what does that say about the Future Idiots being able to hammer out 16 tracks of the Billboards finest selling artists in a way that makes these platinum hits much more pallettable? I'll tell you what it says. It says there's a Pop Punk throne that needs a leader and FI is more than willing to dawn that crown and accept the responsibility necessary to revitalize a genre with such a poor reputation.
In an attempt to lead this Pop Punk revolution, dirty tactics are absolutely necessary. And showing up these artists with 38 room houses and multi-million dollar recording contracts is the first step in the all out invasion of Pop Punk. So if you want to mosh to FI's rendition of Jason Derulo's pop sensation 'In My Head' or reminisce in the former glory of Deep Blue Something's timeless classic 'Breakfast At Tiffany's' then give GTA2 a listen. If you want to join the battle and bring Pop Punk back from the edge of extinction and pry if from the grip of the whiney kids everywhere. Then arm yourselves with your favorite pop-punker's choice of weapon (Tom Delonge SignatureES-333 Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar) and join the front lines with the Future Idiots.
June 28th, 2011
GTA2 Out Now
GTA2 is finally out, so now you don't have to read my daily posts that are incessantly spamming the hell out of it. Instead you can listen to me streaming the hell out of it. You'll be able to listen to a new song off the album every couple of days on the PRR facebook and purevolume page. I'm starting with my personal favorite, 'In My Head'. Originally performed by Jason Derulo. Truly performed for the first time by FI.
June 27th, 2011
Stream Four New Tracks
Check out FI's GTA2 page and stream 'Hey, Soul Sister', 'Firework', 'In My Head', 'Breakfast At Tiffany's' and 'Sadie' which were originally performed by Train, Katy Perry, Jason Derulo, Deep Blue Something and Alkaline Trio.
June 26th, 2011
Bonus Time
As if sixteen tracks wasn't enough of a deal. If you pre-order Grand Theft Audio 2 you'll receive FI's parody video of Rebecca Black's song 'Friday' along with an additional seventeenth track.
June 25th, 2011
Trolling The Mailbag
In my lazy quest to answer general comments and questions in the most effective way possible I try and present the answer to the questions I'm asked most frequently for any given week.
This weeks ever so popular question just so happens to be about the same topic as last weeks Q&A session. The Alkaline Trio tribucomp, so here it is:
"Why did you choose to have those Alkaline Trio songs covered?"
First off, I didn't choose these particular tracks to be covered. The bands that are taking part in the compilation did. I made a list of all the tracks from Goddammit!, Maybe I'll Catch Fire, the self titled album, From Here To Infirmary, Good Mourning, Remains and a few key tracks from some of the newer albums just to round out the list. That means we're talking about well over 100 songs for the participating artists to choose from. It was obvious from the beginning that the sheer number of quality tracks meant that there was no way that every popular song was going to get covered. And some of the tracks that were chosen to be covered ended up falling through due to unfortunate circumstances that cropped up for a select number of artists that forced them to abandon their participation on the project. These unforeseen drop offs led to gems like Crawl, Blue In The Face and Mr. Chainsaw being chosen and sadly never covered due to the problems faced by the artists that chose them.
Now you know the tangible reason for the lack of certain cover songs appearing on the comp. Now here's the psychological/philosophical reasons. I understand that it's human nature to say what isn't a part of a project as opposed to what is. For example, if Stupid Kid and Nose Over Tail weren't included on the project people would chastise me for those omissions. But since those tracks made the cut, people don't acknowledge the success but rather focus on the shortcomings. I'm not saying that this is a negative approach for people to take, just an unfortunate part of our psyche, and given my love for Alkaline Trio and my desire to see every song possible covered, I completely understand.
June 24th, 2011
The Blink 182 of Sweden
The Future Idiots 16 track cover album is now available for preorder.
If you're curious the album features cover tracks of the following artists;
Blink 182
Sum 41
Katy Perry
Rihanna
Deep Blue Something
The Fray
Alkaline Trio
Jason Derulo
Sean Kingston
Coldplay
Angels & Airwaves
Mumford & Sons
Train
Bruno Mars
30 Seconds To Mars
and a parody of Rebecca Black's song 'Friday'.
June 23nd, 2011
Grand Theft Audio 2
There's no audible pleasure more enjoyable than that of our international artist, Future Idiots, taking 16 Billboard topping tracks
and covering them with enthusiasm, spunk and a Pop Punk flare.
June 22nd, 2011
August Premier
If you've seen the track listing for the Alkaline Trio Tribute Compilation you'll notice that a familiar yet almost forgotten name appears on the second disc. If you're well acquainted with some of the Fueled By Ramen artists from earlier this decade you'll remember the name August Premier. If you're hardcore like myself you'll remember them on the kickass but unfortunately now defunct label LLR records.I guess what I'm basically trying to say is that AP is back and joining Pac Ridge to release their first material since Fireworks and Alcohol was released back in 2003.
June 15th, 2011
Trolling The Mailbag
In recent weeks I've received a number of angry emails, which is something I've come to expect when I release a tribute album. After all, people are passionate about their musical idols, so I understand the anger to some extent, but it seems this time around people are being a bit more ridiculous than usual. Also I've been getting a lot of questions about certain semi-interesting events that are occurring that I feel need to be addressed. So I figure I'll start answering questions in a lazier more wide-spread fashion. And by that I mean as regular posts.
Question: Why would you release a tribute to Alkaline Trio with these bands? I don't even know who they are.
Answer: First off, if you haven't heard of I Can Make A Mess, Allister, Punchline, The Wonder Years, Into It. Over It. or Jonah Matranga then you don't like music. Jonah's one of the most influential singer/songwriters of the last decade. Educate yourself a little and Wikipedia the man. I Can Make A Mess is comprised of Ace Enders, a man who is widely revered and is thought of as one of the best artists, engineers and individuals this industry has had to offer in years. Allister, Punchline and The Wonder Years are wildly popular artists who ooze talent and have paved the way for numerous other bands that have sprung to life recently. And Into It. Over It., Koji, The Material, My Arcadia and every other artist on this compilation are tremendously talented, up-and-coming artists that are destined for great things if they stick with their craft. In fact, most of these bands have accomplished more in their short existence than most artists will achieve in a career. I'm not saying they're all going to be the next All Time Low or Four Year Strong. Hell I'm not even saying you're going to like every song on the record. I'm just saying give these artists a chance before you crucify them. Because finding new quality artists is one of the most rewarding moments in life in my opinion. Yet people today seem disinterested in discovering new bands. Instead people seem to take pleasure in posting in message boards with such clever and insightful quips as "Who?" and "Never heard of them". Sure there's usually a plethora of intelligent people berating those posters for being morons. But there's definitely not an adequate number of posters bashing the ignorant masses, that's for sure.
In the end a persons opinion of music should be based on the sound of the artist rather than name recognition. I mean why harbor so much resentment towards an artist you willingly admit that you've never even listened to. Let me give you an example of why that naive, blind approach to judging and mindless criticism is unfounded. I got the same "Who" response to the original posting of All Time Low and Four Year Strong's Blink tribute tracks. We see how that turned out. Sure there were plenty of artists on the Blink compilation that didn't work out, but those few gems that were on there were just glimpses in to the beginning of some of the most prominent scene oriented artists of the last ten years. I'm not saying every song on here is going to blow your mind, or that every band on here will turn into the next big thing, but at least give an artist a chance before discarding them as rubbish. Because whether you like to admit it or not, there are real people behind every song you listen to. These people spend hours, days, months and years of their life practicing their instruments and working for little to nothing just to try and bring you a little satisfaction in the form of music.
What I'm saying is you never truly know when you're going to discover you're next favorite band, but you're definitely not going to find them by being close minded and cruel.
June 6th, 2011
Alk3 Release Date
The release date is August 30th. Mark it on your calendar boys and girls.
May 31st, 2011
Alk3 Track Listing Pt.2
As I mentioned in my last post in which I mentioned the track listing. That was only the first disc of the tribute. That's right, this bad boys going to be two discs long, and I'm not talking about one disc and a handful of remaining tracks. I'm talking about two 19+ track discs. Enough rambling and build up though. Here's the second disc of the tribute:
1.Barely Blind - Nose Over Tail
2.The Catastrophe - Tuck Me In
3.Floral Terrace - This Could Be Love
4.August Premier - Sun Dials
5.Jesse Ponnock - All On Black
6.United Federation of Planets - Exploding Boy
7.Rattlesnake Gunfight - Another Innocent Girl
8.Promise of Redemption - Take Lots With Alcohol
9.Ramona - You've Got So Far To Go
10.Koji - She Took Him To The Lake
11.The Story Changes - San Francisco
12.The Icarus Account - '97
13.Still Rings True - My Friend Peter
14.The Composure - Sleepyhead
15.Time & Distance - I Lied My Face Off
16.Future Idiots - Sadie
17.In Bloom - Keem 'Em Coming
18.Straight Outta' Junior High - Fuck You Aurora
19.Washington Square Park - Cop
Obviously there's a good chance that some of these artists are unfamiliar to you. That's why I started the Kickstarter project a couple months back. I wanted talented artists that were relatively underexposed to get a chance at getting on a project with the likes of Jonah Matranga, Ace Enders, Punchline and company. Sure enough the Kickstarter succeeded and new artists were added to the mix. A few more artists than I originally anticipated but new artists none-the-less.
Now there's 39 artists from various generations and genres of music, some rookies, some grizzled veterans, some pop punk, some hardcore and some from the tree of Pac Ridge family. That being said, you won't like all the songs unless you slide nicely into the musically diverse side of the tolerant spectrum. But hopefully a few of the tracks give you that warm fuzzy feeling that you felt the first time you heard your favorite Alkaline Trio tune.
May 23rd, 2011
Alk3 Track Listing
I know I'm practically inundating you with updates after my month long hiatus, but I can't resist the urge to post the track listing for the Alkaline Trio Tribute album.
Here are the contributing artists in order of appearance:
1.Spontaneo - Clavicle
2.Bright & Early - Stupid Kid
3.Punchline - Madam Me
4.Allister - My Little Needle
5.And Then There Were None - If You Had A Bad Time
6.The Lion Faced Boy - You're Dead
7.The Material - Bleeder
8.Joe Wilson - Goodbye Forever
9.I Can Make A Mess Like Noboy's Business - Southern Rock
10.The Promise Hero - Sorry About That
11.The SpacePimps - Jaked On Green Beers
12.Jonah Matranga - I'm Dying Tomorrow
13.Rob Huddleston (of Ann Beretta) - Help Me
14.Into It. Over It. - Message From Kathlene
15.My Arcadia - Maybe I'll Catch Fire
16.When We Team Up - WarBrain
17.Hold For Swank - My Standard Break From Life
18.Weatherstar - Radio
19.Matt Brasch - Snake Oil Tanker
20.The Wonder Years - Cooking Wine
The crazy part is that's only disc one!
May 16th, 2011
A Tribute To Alkaline Trio
I made a vow to myself not to post anything on any Pac Ridge website until I got the last Alkaline Trio cover track in my possession. That day has finally arrived. Well technically I'm still two tracks shy, but the two tracks in question won't be done for a couple of months, so you have some bonus material to look forward to down the road.
Anyways, here are a few nuggets of information that might interest you if you're curious about some of the post-production that's taking place with the compilation. The album is currently being mastered by engineer Dan Coutant of Joshua fame and the artwork is being created by Craig Cirinelli who is currently a member of The World Concave and is an all around artistic badass.
The idea is once Dan finishes putting the final touches on the songs I will slowly post some of the tracks over the course of the next couple of months, so check back soon for some musical awesomeness.
In the mean time here's a little something to check out. The picture is a rough version of the cover art. The goal was to have a subtle mixture of what looks like Alkaline Trio's earlier art mixed with a touch of realistic darkness that fits the usual Alkaline Trio format. All in an attempt to pay our respect while having our own flare. Hope you like it!
April 15, 2011
It's Friday
Everyone has enjoyed the priceless parodies performed by Weird Al. 'White and Nerdy', 'Amish Paradise', all timeless classics. But what has Al done for us lately? The Future Idiots asked themselves that very same question and decided it was time for them to pick up the slack. So if you enjoy ridiculing Rebecca Black's version of Friday as much as the other 104 million people who have streamed it then you'll enjoy this rather brilliant interpretation.
Future Idiots - Friday
April 04, 2011
In Bloom Streams All My Potential
In Bloom has decided to......"decided to" sounds so official. Like the US decided to bomb Libya. It just sounds too intense and contrived to be involved in a music post. It's about time everyone, including myself, referred to the release of music and music related news in a much more jovial manner. After all, music is basically a couple of friends (talented friends in the case of Pac Ridge artists) banging around instruments for two and a half minutes and calling it art. Obviously I'm understating the effort that goes into music, but you get my point. It's definitely not that serious of a matter. The point is, I'm using the term "felt like" instead of "decided to" from now on. And yes that was a massive tangent.
That being said, In Bloom felt like streaming their whole EP over the course of the next week on our Facebook page. Why? Because they felt like it.