Top Tens: Damon Workman of Bypolar Records’s Top Ten Influences

These are the ten top influences, not necessarily in order, for Damon Workman – the President/Co-founder Bypolar Records.

My Parents: Not to be lame but my parents taught me more about being punk, without being punks, than anyone or any thing else. They taught me to question authority, think for myself, stand up for those who couldn’t, to be my own person, and – above all that – being kind and caring for the rest of the community was what it’s all about. My entire existence in the world of punk is based on this.

Fight Club: More the movie than the book. I’ve been told it’s a red flag for a lot of folks. For me it’s always been about reinventing oneself through the destruction of ego. Rejecting what’s holding us back in favor of what is truly important.

The art of Vincent Van Gogh: The more I learn about Van Gogh the more impact his art has on me. The colors and textures are simply amazing, and I find something new each time I see one of his paintings. A sad, troubled soul fighting his own depression and inner demons in an effort to bring something beautiful into the world.

Bob Mould: Since my very first listen, his guitar has been the “ideal” in my mind. It is perfect. I listen in awe to everything he’s done, from the poor quality recordings of the SST years up to present. He’s simply amazing

The Minutemen: These guys inspired my love for all things MathRock. In my mind they are responsible for just a ton of bands I came to love later like Jawbox, NoMeansNo, and, even, At The Drive In.

Alkaline Trio: They get a lot of flak from some, but you’d be hard pressed to find better writing of dark themed catchy pop songs.

Bad Religion: The fact that they’re still slugging it out after 40 years I think says a lot. I listened in high school and over the years my love for them grew. I’ve seen them more than any other band, and still keep buying tickets.

Mike Park: He is quite simply the man. I feel like I need to write a long diatribe about all the ways he makes life better but I’m going to leave it at “he’s the man”. Just an exceptional and inspiring human being.

The Replacements: They and Bob Mould are two of the biggest musical influences on me. Westerberg is one of the best writers of all time, drunk or sober. They always delivered the best damn songs album after album right up until the final track on All Shook Down.

The Las Vegas punk scene: I’m not sure if I should name names here or not because I wouldn’t want to leave anybody out – but the scene in Vegas is like no other. When I first moved there I felt immediately welcomed by the community and like I was a part of it from my very first show. They are fiercely loyal and supportive, and show after show you see the same faces coming to give a boost to whoever is playing. Quality bands, quality people, and the reason I will always consider Vegas my home no matter where I may live. Inspiring enough that I carry the goal of building and creating something similar whatever city I move to next. Cannot say enough positive things about the desert dwellers there, making great music and just being amazing individuals.

Like Bypolar Records on Facebook here and check out their released on Bandcamp here.

Album Review: Thanks, I Hate It by Kid You Not

Florida’s Kid You Not have been a big favourite of mine for a few years now so the news they were releasing a new album filled me with joy. Co-released by Deep Elm Records and Bypolar Records, the album is titled Thanks, I Hate It and it features ten new mid-tempo gruff punk anthems. The album was released on the 30th of October so I assume that The Fest was supposed to be their album launch show – I was really looking forward to seeing Kid You Not live for the first time in Gainesville and listening to these songs live would have really been a special time. 

Track one is named Here’s To Those Who Wish Us Well. This track serves as part introduction/part song. It’s a shorter track that sets the scene for the entire album, building dramatically and featuring some emotional vocals addressing mental health. It leads wonderfully into the second track, And Those Who Don’t Can Go To Hell. This song instantly feels fuller than the opener and strikes me as the first proper song on the album. The vocals are so powerful and are delivered in a way that will have you singing along and seriously invested in the track. The way that the song builds at the start got me really pumped up for what was to come and, when they vocals begin, it’s like a punch in the face – but in a good way. The track is about writing music and creating the best song you possibly can. Fantastic Drugs And How To Take Them is the title of the third song. This song is about using drugs, prescription or not, to help with your mental health and the effects of that. It will be a relatable song for many, including myself, and will earn some big sing-alongs from crowds in the future. I love the use of gang vocals during the song as it’s such a relatable song for so many. It gives a nice feeling of everyone being in this together and will bring folk together.

Up next is the album’s title track, Thanks, I Hate It. The song continues the theme of mental health, with Kid You Not’s lead vocalist singing about finding a purpose due to being cynical about life. This was an interesting topic for a song and one I related to far more than I thought I would. My cynicism often drives me to try and make things better and, in my mind at least, right. There’s a familiarity about this song that I found quite comforting. It’s easily accessible because of this and kind of feels like putting on your winter jumper for the first time in a year and feeling all cosy and warm. Agony Breathing was a stand out on my first listen through of the album. The track takes you on more of a ride than any of the previous songs. At times it feels quite stripped back before reverting to that glorious full sound the band have perfected over the years. The chorus is one of the catchiest on the album and will quickly get stuck in your head. Agony Breathing talks about looking back at your past mistakes and trying to learn before eventually finding comfort.

The second half of the album starts with Condolences. Starting in a similar way to the first half of Thanks, I Hate It, Condolences is a shorter a slower track that serves as an introduction to the second half. The drums provide a great spine whilst the guitars buzz off it. This leads nicely into The Bums Lost. Immediately the track bursts with energy with an up-tempo beginning. That beginning is brought to a startling halt with the lyrics “I feel like I’m dying, and sometimes I wish I was, to get it over with.” These lyrics really set the tone for the song. It’s about feeling lost and confused in your life due to your mental health. As the song progresses the band talk about wanting to try and make a change but being too stubborn. The slower bridge that builds towards the song’s final moments is one of my favourite moments on the entire album. Handbook For The Recently Deceased was a song that I knew was for me as soon as I heard the opening guitars and then the huge vocals. The guitars in particular really stood out on the track, with an intricate riff buzzing amongst those gruff vocals. They gave the song a poppier feel without taking away any of Kid You Not’s edge. I feel like this could become one of Kid You Not’s most popular songs, especially live. It has that quality that can really capture a crowd’s attention and feel like they are a part of the song.

The penultimate song is named May I Never Be Complete, May I Never Be Content, May I Never Be Perfect. After a crashing start we jump to just vocals and guitar before slowly building the song back up. This is a great way of first grabbing the listener’s attention and then really keeping them invested in the song. By the time the chorus rolls around we are treated to that full Kid You Not experience – that beautiful, full sound and some delicious gang vocals. My interpretation of the song is that it’s about self improvement and never settling for something you know could be better. The final song on Thanks, I Hate It is Inside Every Cynic Is A Disappointed Idealist. The song starts in a quiet and sombre fashion before the vocals come in. I enjoyed how the entire song seemed to use gang vocals. Kid You Not have this brilliant ability to make the listener feel involved as all great punk bands should do. The song is about having big dreams and feeling like nothing can stop you before learning that there are plenty of things that will put a stop to your progress along the way. I’m guessing that Kid You Not’s dream was being in a band and the overall message is that, despite any bumps in the road, they will keep doing what they love because they have to. The album finishes with a feeling of hope and positivity that will hopefully inspire people going forward.

Kid You Not have always been a very solid band but their songwriting on Thanks, I Hate It seems to have come on leaps and bounds. If you’re a fan of bands like Iron Chic, Red City Radio or, in the UK, Burnt Tapes or The Run Up, then you should already be aware of Kid You Not – if you’re not then I seriously suggest you fix that.

Steam and download Thanks, I Hate It on Bandcamp here.

Like Kid You Not on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Album Review: Vacant Hearts 7" by Hell's Ditch

Hell’s Ditch are somewhat of a UK DIY punk supergroup. Featuring previous members of River Jumpers, Chief, Bad Ideas, Dearest, Maycomb and Knock Out Kaine, the five piece have come together to release the Vacant Hearts 7”. Released by Disconnect Disconnect Records, Bypolar Records and Rosecoloured Records, Vacant Hearts was supposed to be the first step of a very busy year for Hell’s Ditch until the world fell over. Thankfully they were able to get these songs out into the world and what a couple of great songs they are.

The first of the two tracks on the Vacant Hearts 7” is its title track. Perhaps a little unsurprisingly, the first thing I thought when I heard the song was how nice it was to hear former River Jumpers vocalist Nick Davis’s voice again. One of my favourite vocalists in the DIY scene. If you were a fan of River Jumpers then you’ll perhaps know what to expect here – melodic pop punk music with an edge and plenty of great hooks. The song is about feeling dead inside and wanting to change that. The chorus is catchy enough that you’ll be singing along with the band and if it’s a topic you can relate to then you’ll certainly feel better screaming your lungs out to the song. A great positive introduction to Hell’s Ditch.

The other song on the 7” in titled Hope Is Hope. This is another song that bleeds positivity. It’s about holding on to hope when all feels lost. On this track, Hell’s Ditch show what fantastic lyricists they are. Perfectly crafting imagery within the lyrics, so much so you can almost imagine the characters involved in the story and envision the music video in your head. The production (by the legendary Mass Giorgini) is perfect. You can hear each instrument so well and can pick out all the subtle layers that each member of the band brings to the track. As you might expect, the song peaks at the chorus. The band do a great job building things up and getting you pumped for it to hit before you lose your voice shouting along.

This is a perfect introduction to Hell’s Ditch. You wouldn’t expect anything but quality from these guys and they definitely don’t disappoint. Hopefully, when the world is up and running again, the band can reschedule all of their cancelled shows and maybe even get some more music out. Two songs isn’t enough.

Stream and download Vacant Hearts on Bandcamp here.

Like Hell’s Ditch on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.