Do It Yourself! Volume #7


Nerf Herder
"Jenna Bush"
Admittedly, this is one of the worst songs that I've ever put on one of these discs. Some of the lyrics are totally cringe-inducing, but, after all, it is a novelty song. The band that's so obsessed with the infinitely dorky that they co-opted an obscure phrase from "Empire Strikes Back," sets their eyes on the first daughter. C'mon... what do want, it was an election year!

Cenzo
"Go Back Now"
The undisputed lungs of the American, third wave ska movement, Vinnie Nobile, is back with a killer track that shows that, in his hands, a trombone is an instrument and not a novelty.

Tsunami Bomb
"Russian Roulette"
Good lord! Angry, female-fronted punk rock for the .

The Slackers
"Rider"
A sneak peek at their brand new anti-war album, "International War Criminal." Rider is a decidedly low-key, slow grooving track that waxes poetic about the uncertainties of war.

Only Crime
"Tenebrae"
Hardcroe in the tradition of Black Flag and their West Coast ilk. What else would you expect from the folks involved in Good Riddance?

Motion City Soundtrack
"Future Freaks Me Out"
The Mid-West represents with power-pop for the new millenium. This Minneapolis crew combines elements of punk and synth with a hip-hop sensibility to create a completely original sound.

The Network
"Transistors Gone Wild"
Novelty band? Sure. But you gotta love the idea. Essentially it's a mega-star rock band playing dress-up as a covert, Devo tribute band. 

Skindred
"Set It Off"
Listening to this song's like what I'd imagine an old time Jamaican sound system party to be like... if the dj was on PCP. It's about as heavy as dance music gets. It's the perfect marriage of reggae and metal. 

The Soviettes
"Bottoms Up, Bottomed Out"
Melodic female fronted punk rock. 

Swingin' Utters
"Five Lessons Learned"
A classic, galloping punk track in the tradition of Sham 69 and Stiff Little Fingers. Don't nobody make it this good anymore.

About the Artwork:
I worked pretty damned hard to throw together a cover that was based on the Kraft macaroni and chees box. Alas, I wasn't able to come up with a decent pic of macaroni and cheese. So, what I did was dig into my extensive library of weird-ass pics to find something, anything to turn into decent artwork. I found the black and white "how to suture flesh" pics and thought immediately of the picture that went on the front cover. The idea to slice all of the text in half came when I was almost done, but is probably the coolest feature of the art.