Let me tell you about Jeff Rosenstock maaaaaaan.....
I remember being like 16/17 and starting to go to my first local shows at this all ages venue in Nashville called "RCKTTWN"(super cool name, I know.) I had already been into punk music for most of middle school and into my freshman/sophomore years in high school. But up until that point I had only ever really been to bigger concerts and I'd go to Warped Tour every summer. None of my friends were into the same music as me which, still to this day doesn't really make much sense; but whatever. I knew there had to be a local music scene of some sort but I just wasn't sure how to find it. Once I got into high school I started noticing that there were a few people that were into some cool music that went to shows. Somehow I think I got invited to a battle of the bands at Rockettown by a classmate, because she knew that I liked AFI or something.
Well, I went to that show and had to sit through a bunch of horrible brocore and sceney bands (as was popular at the time) but then I saw these guys called Off Duty Ninjas. They were a ska/pop punk band whom I eventually became good friends with. Pretty soon I started going to lots of good shows and getting into the pit and making friends with lots of new people. I finally felt like I belonged somewhere and it was so much fun. Most of the bands I was seeing at the time were ska bands which was a great way to get familiar with things before going to heavier hardcore shows later on. Somewhere along the line I heard about Bomb the Music Industry! I think I might have seen them on their tour when they played with another local band called Stuck Lucky but, I don't have the flyer anymore. Anyways, somehow I ended up with one of their cds which had a lot of songs from their Get Warmer album but it was on a burned cd and I think just a bunch of random songs that they put on there to sell on tour. I probably listened to that cd a lot for a year or so but then I started getting into heavier music and stopped listening to ska music as much. A lot of those first shows are kind of a blur for me now as they all blend together into one season of life. I mostly just remember having to get dropped off at The Muse which was a venue that had all ages shows but also had a bar. It was in a really shady part of town next to the interstate, strip clubs and adult book store and had a tattoo shop upstairs and the sound was always terrible. The owner was notorious for being a really shitty junkie that would just rip off people, but that was one of the only places that would book punk bands. I hung out there all the time even though RCKTWN was nicer and safer, but they rarely had good shows. I'll always remember those early days and getting my first black eye in the pit and meeting people like me and feeling part of a group. I'm pretty sure that's where I saw them. The are one of those bands that if I went back in time, I probably would've appreciated seeing them a lot more and been more stoked on them but I just didn't really know that much about them at the time...LAME. I probably would've gone to more house shows back then but I didn't really know about them, a couple years later though, I was really in the swing of things.
Anyways, fast forward to nowish... Its been about decade since I started going to shows and getting involved making flyers and hosting shows/bands at my house... I live in Seattle and have been here about three years and really miss being part of the local scene and going to shows 4 nights a week. I know there's got to be a scene out here but I've had trouble meeting people. I pretty much just go to work at the coffee shop and go home. I'll go to a concert every once in a while, mostly larger concerts and if one of my friends bands are on tour I'll make a point to see their show and catch up with them. But otherwise I'm just a lonely person hanging out in their room listening to music and getting into stuff way later than I should. I still keep in touch with my friends but they are so far away and I kind of feel like I'm 16 again trying to figure out where I belong here. About a year ago when my coworker Jared started working with me I saw that he was wearing a "Bomb the MEWsic Industry!" shirt one day and that's when I decided that we had to be friends. We closed together a lot and he eventually introduced me to Jeff Rosenstock, formally of BTMI! (duh.) I have since come to loooove his music so much and found myself revisiting a lot of albums that I had kind of forgotten about over the years.
So lets talk about Jeff's music now...
His albums We Cool?(2015) and Worry which came out last year are incredibly heart felt and relate-able. There's more production on them then in his previous solo releases which are also great. I really like how he can sing about uncertainty of the future and regret and make it seem like a fun party. The songs bring me back many memories of being a stupid drunk punk kid and riding bikes in the summer not really caring about the future but also help me deal with what I'm going through now. When I listen, I feel like I'm hanging out with an old friend over some beers and exchanging stories about being wreck less kids, being socially awkward, and just trying to get through the pains of growing up. The songs are very catchy and you'll find yourself singing them to yourself at random times throughout the day. There's some horns and fun keyboards thrown in there too which makes you feel like dancing. I love listening to him when I'm happy and also when I'm feeling really down about life or stressing out about having crushes on people. Do yourself a solid and become friends with Mr. Rosenstock if you aren't already acquainted...
Here's his bandcamp where you can listen to and support him by buying his albums! You can also listen to him on Spotify! Cool yeah?!
https://jeffrosenstock.bandcamp.com/
This is one of my favorite videos of both Jeff Rosenstock and AJJ performing dueling medleys of covers at The A.V.Club :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLnfFUZNkww
