• Tag Archives teenage kicks
  • The Ledge #589: New Releases (Pt. 2)

    This week’s episode may be a sequel to last week’s new release broadcast, but unlike what usually happens in the film industry there’s no drop in quality. Just like last week, there’s plenty of power pop, Americana, garage rock, punk, and so much more! Plus, I snuck in a couple tracks from the brand new Uni Boys album, which came out today!

    As for the “52 weeks of Teenage Kicks” series, once again I have an artist that I could not find any info utilizing the ol’ google machine. Does anybody out there now anything about Starlet Vain? All I could find is that she has a number of cover tunes on YouTube, and seems to have pretty great taste in her selection of tracks to redo. Please forward any info you have on this artist!

    Like I do every week, I must again plead with y’all for more versions of “Teenage Kicks”. If you are a musician, or have any contact with artists that could record their own take on the classic, please contact me!

    For more info, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #582: Big Stir Records

    Earlier this week I was surprised to get a pretty large dropbox link from my friends at Big Stir Records. Taking a look at the contents, I noticed that there was not only a sampler compilation of many of their current artists, but there were almost two dozen station IDs recorded by those artists specifically for my show.

    To say I was pleased would be an understatement. I was seriously touched, even though I knew they were having their artists record these for stations all over the world. But for my little show? I had to show my appreciation, so tonight’s episode is (almost) all Big Stir artists. Besides a track or two from each of the artists who recorded a little something for me, there’s an extra hour of some of my favorite tunes from the label.  

    If you’re not familiar with Big Stir, they are a Burbank, Clifornia label founded by two of the most lovely people in the music business, Christina Bulbenko and Rex Broome of The Armoires (one of the artists featured in tonight’s show). Over the years they have released more than 70 albums on vinyl and CD, and they specialize in melodic power pop.

    Here’s the best part of this Big Stir theme. One of their artists, Popular Creeps, had earlier expressed interest in recording a “Teenage Kicks” cover for my “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks” series. Once this theme was solidified, I sent leader Lenny Grassa an email asking if he had made any progress on it. He just so happened to be heading to Lansing, Michigan to do just that with his friends in The Stick Arounds! So tonight’s show kicks off with a brand new cover of “Teenage Kicks”, followed by a couple of tracks by both bands. (The Stick Arounds are not on Big Stir Records, though, but I just had to show my appreciation to them for assisting Grassa.)

    As I do every week, I must again plead with y’all for more versions of “Teenage Kicks”. If you are a musician, or have any contact with artists that could record their own take on the classic, please contact me!

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #575: Second Quarter Report

    With tonight’s show being the last broadcast of June, and especially as it is also the last day of the month, it’s pretty clear that it needed to be a second quarter recap. There’s over two hours of great music that has come out in the last three months, similar to the first quarter recap show of March 31.

    The material ranges from the fantastic power pop of Paint Fumes and Jagger Holly to veteran rockers such as Ian Hunter and The Waco Brothers. There’s some rootsy rock and roll from Tommy Stinson, Deer Tick and The Baseball Project. The music comes from not only the usual US, UK, and Canadian artists but also from Australia, Austria, France, and Germany. 

    As for this week’s “52 weeks of Teenage Kicks” series, I have a very special cover by German punkers Die Toten Hosen. Way back in the early 90s they had a fantastic covers record called Learning English, Lesson One, where they invited members of the original bands to assist them with their remakes. 2017 saw the relese of Learning English, Lesson Two that continued that format. For their version of “Teenage Kicks”, they featured original Undertones guitarist Damian O’Neill! I also included the two brand new covers I had previously played over the last quarter by Jeremy Porter & The Tucos and The Waco Brothers.

    As I do every week, I must again plead with y’all for more versions of “Teenage Kicks”. If you are a musician, or have any contact with artists that could record their own take on the classic, please contact me!

    For more information, including setlists, please head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #568: New Releases (Pt. 2)

    After last week’s special Record Store Day edition of the monthly “new release” show, we’re back this week with the more traditional type of broadcast devoted to brand new tunes. And, like usual, we’re all over the place when it comes to genres. There’s some great power pop. There’s a little bit of punk. A tad here and there of garage rock. And, yes, there’s some Americana. 

    But it’s not just the varied genres of the show. It’s the fact that this music comes from all over the world. From Australia to Germany to Canada to even my little city of Sioux Falls, SD. Yes, the first set of the show is devoted to a trio of great local bands – The Rose Quarter, Thought Patrol, and Off Contact – all of whom have wonderful records that are eithier already out or about to be released.

    As for the “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”, I have a cover that’s almost 40 years old but is still technically a new release. The version by Dawn Chorus & The Blue Tits initially came out on Stiff Records in 1985, but it has also now been included in a brand new collection of female power pop. She’s Got The Power! Female Power Pop, Punk & Garage not only includes this track but tunes by Blondie, The Dollyrots, Baby Shakes, Amy Rigby, Lydia Loveless, Shonen Knife, and many more!

    And, of course, I have to once again beg y’all for brand new covers of this classic tune. Please, please, please, if you have the capabilities, or know any artists that would be perfect to remake “Teenage Kicks”, send them my way! Next week, I will be world premiering a brand new submissions that I’m sure you’re all going to love!

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #559: New Releases (Pt. 2)

    The second part of this month’s new release series sees no drop off from last week’s extravaganza. In fact, it makes the case that 2023 is shaping up to be yet another great year of music. There are long-awaited returns by The Reverend Horton Heat, Chickasaw Mud Puppies, Cheater Slicks, and Shonen Knife. There are great new bands such as Civic,  Strange Neighbors, and The Circulators. There’s some punk. There’s some power pop. There’s some indie rock. Yep, just like normal.

    This week’s entry for the 52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks series is a version that was released in 2022. The Knee-Hi’s are a great Chicago based band whose album, Charmed, is described on their site as “a living love letter to rock ‘n’ roll, serving up a mixture of rock, punk, glam, power pop, garage and doo-wop”. Sounds like a Ledge band, right?

    Once again I’m pleading for anybody out there to send in their own versions. I want as many new covers as possible! All you have to do is record it and forward it to paulisded@gmail.com.

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #558: New Release (Pt. 1)

    Once again, there is so much great new music coming out that this month’s new release show is forced to be split into two separate episodes. Tonight’s first part not only features the usual great tunes from labels such as Rum Bar Records and Big Stir Records, but is highlighted by an extended set from a record that will undoubtedly end up towards the top of my best records list at  the end of the year.

    That record is the latest by The Whiffs, Scrach ‘n’ Sniff. Simply put, this is everything that I love about power pop. The pop hooks are certainly there, but it’s the “power” portion of their sound that sets them apart from almost everyboyd else in that subgenre.  They aren’t just a power pop band. They’re a solid rock and roll band. I hope you love them as much as I do.

    I’m also pleased to have a set of local music this month. Yes, Sioux Falls, South Dakota does have a music scene, and tonight’s show features new music by Winter HellThought Patrol, and Merry Martial. Please check out their bandcamp sites!

    And, of course, there’s also this week’s edition of “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”. I have a great new rendition by Iowa City’s Blast Choir, who just a few weeks ago sent me their killer “The B.C. EP“. Thank you, my friends, for your submission, and once again I’m pleading for anybody out there to send in their own versions. I want as many new covers as possible! Send them to paulisded@gmail.com. 

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #557: 1998

    It’s always shocking when you stumble upon tweets or articles noting the anniversary of beloved albums. You can’t help but wonder how something that seems like it came out yesterday is actually…well, old!

    That’s the case with tonight’s show. Every single song you hear is 25 years old. It’s just insane to me that some of my favorite Americana (Son Volt, Golden Smog, Drive-By Truckers), power pop (Sloan, Tommy Keene, Nada Surf), singer/songwriter (Elliott Smith, Silver Jews), and punk (Fugazi, Screeching Weasel, Bad Religion) records have hit this milestone. It just doesn’t feel like nostalgia

    As for the “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks” entry, I’ve got a fabulous rarity. 1998 saw the release of Scandal Controvery and Romance, the classic debut record by The Prissteens. To celebrate the 45th birthday of their A&R rep, Howard Thompson, the pressed up 45 copies of a tribute song called “Oh Howard!”. The b-side of this single was their Undertones cover that featured a few lyrical changes and retitled “Teenage Dicks”. (Both of these tracks were eventually reissued on 2020’s The Hound collection of rarities and demos.)

    Once again, I’m always actively looking for new covers of “Teenage Kicks”. Please don’t hesitate to create your own personal spin on one of the greatest songs of all time. Contact me at paulisded@gmail.com if you have a version to submit or if you have any questions regarding this project.

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #556: More Miscellany

    This week’s show is once again a mix of old and new. There’s quite a few brand new releases highlighted, accompanied by quite a few records that I’ve found myself playing in my free time. 

    Which leads me to a question to my lovely listeners. For as long as I’ve done the show, the presence of “themes” has been a constant. Honestly, that’s how my brain works best for picking music. It gives me a reason to air a tune. Even the monthly new release episode is basically a theme that’s just like shows based on certain years or terms.

    Lately, I have sort of abandoned the theme and played these kinds of old/new mixes. Part of this is that due to the fact that I now report a top ten playlist every week to the Radio Indie Alliance. I know I can submit any ten tracks I play but I’ve been paying even more attention to new music than usual.

    So this is what I want to find out from you guys. Do you like these freeform type of broadcasts or should I revert back to having a weekly theme? The themes aren’t going away entirely, no matter what anybody says. But should they become a monthly occurrence just like the new release show? Let me know by commenting on this post, or contacting me on the various social media platforms. Oh, and I need ideas on what to title these shows!

    As for this week’s edition of the “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”, I’ve got a nice little surprise from Rum Bar Records artist Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents. Jenny’s version came out in 2013 as the b-side to her single, “Getaway”, and the 50s pop/rock feel is a refreshing take on the punk classic. Thank you Jenny Dee!!!

    For more info, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #555: This And That

    Once again we have a show devoted primarily to material I’ve been listening to around the house. Honestly, since it was announced that Television’s Tom Verlaine had passed away on January 28, 2023, I have wanted to do a little tribute to him on The Ledge. So tonight you can hear a handful of his classic Television and solo tunes. RIP.

    There’s also a wide variety of tunes that comprise almost 60 years of rock and roll. There’s a handful of garage rock classics from the acclaimed Pebbles series. There’s a track from one of Robert Gordon’s collaborations with guitarist Link Wray. There’s also a sort of tribute to Burt Bachrach in the form of a Stranglers cover that somehow caught my ear a day or so before the announcement of his death.

    And there’s also a couple of sets of new tunes, primarily songs that were cut from last week’s new release episode, along with more cuts from recent Rum Bar Records releases. I’ve also premiered the newly reissued single from Popsicko on Big Stir Records, which was officially released today. (Look for a full album later this spring).

    Don’t think that I’ve forgotten about my yearlong sub-theme, “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”. This week’s submission is from a great friend who has not only been a Ledge listener for over a decade but he’s a bigtime supporter of RealPunkRadio in general. Kingbubbatruck, aka Brent Dowell, sent the show a fabulous, slowed-down version that is perfection. Thank you, Brent.

    Speaking of the Teenage Kicks theme, I was given the opportunity to be a guest writer on S.W. Lauden’s Remember the Lightning substack. The piece was publsihed this past Thursday, so please go give it a read here! Thank you, sir, for the opportunity!

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here


  • The Ledge #554: New Releases

    Everybody knows the drill by now. The first Friday of the month means it’s new release night at The Ledge headquarters (aka my bedroom). Somewhat weirdly, though, is that this February episode is technically the first new release show of the year. But that’s due to the Teenage Kicks subtheme necessitating a December 30 airing of the January new release show. Make sense?

    Speaking of “Teenage Kicks”, I’m so happy that this week’s submission is by Sixgun Republic leader Christopher Chancey! He’s got sort of a rockabilly vibe going through his little version, and I love the use of a piano! Chancey also submitted an old cover of “Sonic Reducer” his band put out back in 2007. Thanks Christopher!!!

    Do you have a version of this seminal tune to submit? Do you have a little bit of time you can set aside to record a track to air? Please submit it to me! I’m so blown away by the reaction to “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”! A few bands have already promised to forward a submission in the near future, but the more versions the better! If you have any questions, please contact me at paulisded@gmail.com 

    For more information, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com

     

    Download MP3 here