The long running series in the “Punk Goes…” series has recently revealed the idea of Punk going Crunk. If anybody has a clue about this series, we can all agree it’s been going downhill for a while now. I bet most of you are wondering, “Is this album going to break the streak?”

Well then, the first track that opens up the album is Set Your Goals covering Lil’ Jon’s “Put Yo Hood Up” in a very embarrassing manner. Right about here is where this album starts to look like a dim and sad journey to nowhere. Say Anything has the standout track of this album. I’m not just saying it to suck ass, but it’s true. You can tell they recorded the track to have fun; not to make a rock remix. If there’s one track off this album that deserves attention it’s this one. The next standout is Forever The Sickest Kids’ cover of “Men In Black” by Will Smith. Now honestly, who doesn’t remember this song, or movie for that matter? Listening to this track makes me want to go watch the movie all over again. Though not an ace track it’s still up there compared to the rest. Finally the only other track really worth listening to is All Time Low’s cover of “Umbrella” by Rihanna. If you’ve listened to any mainstream radio stations, you’ve heard this track. That’s basically the gold of this album. It’s a sad disappointment.

Should you choose to buy this album, I’ve warned you already. Though a good idea to the mind; they should have taken more time to think it over. My opinion is they should have taken more popular songs that today’s culture have already heard. I mean they made goods choices and the bands covered them pretty well for “Crunk” but it just isn’t what today’s kids have heard. Where’s Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Etc.? Again, it’s a good concept just bad execution. Not worth it for the cost.

When a new band hits the mainstream people get a split perception of them. The old school fans begin to hate them, while most of the typical teenage girls begin to love them. That’s probably going to be the case with the upcoming release of Forever The Sickest Kids’ full length due out in a couple weeks. For now though, they released a Hot Topic exclusive EP with two songs.

While this isn’t going to exactly be a huge review, it was quite enjoyable to do. I mean there’s not much to say. It’s typical pop-punk at it’s full. The first track is the energetic one that gets you into the state of mind; while the second track is the acoustic. I normally don’t enjoy acoustic work that much, but for this case it was mixed very well with different effects. I have to say, one of the best acoustic style tracks of the year so far.

If the band can keep up the energy and lyrical work by getting listeners hooked they’re going places. If they choose to have a single from these two songs it would have to be “The Party Song” no doubt. I highly recommend waiting for the full length to be released, but if you can’t it would be a good idea to pick this up. This band is going to be huge.

Very rarely do I enjoy listening to indie music. On more rare occasions do I actually even enjoy EP’s. The minute I hit play and started listening to Mansion’s self-titled EP the melody hit me hard. This has to be one of the best EP’s since Saosin’s “Translating The Name”.

What better way to start things off with lyrics such as “F*ck you and your God damn scene…” in the indie genre. The more I progressed through the album, the more sub genres come out. Even though there are only 4 tracks, there’s enough variety to attract many different listeners. I was surprised to hear some electronic induced tracks quickly switching over to Deftone style tracks. I’m sure you’ll have at least one favorite track by the end of this short journey.

Although there wasn’t much to review here, it made my list of top releases this year. The only thing worth waiting for more than this is a full length. Let’s hope they can make the album filled with quality tracks and not just filler when the time comes. They’ll be going places if they can pull it off.

It’s the time of year again to bust out your bottled water and sunscreen lotion to battle the heat at one of the most overrated tours of all-time. If you can’t make it for any obvious reason of the gas prices or this year’s line-up; there’s at least the compilation album for purchase. Now over the past years of this release, I will admit, they were solid releases. Into the years leading up to this year though, SideOneDummy has really dropped the ball. There’s very few decent tracks to be excited for. Actually, I should say there aren’t any tracks to be excited for. In the past this release has been jam packed with unreleased tracks that made the compilation worth the buy. I’m not saying it isn’t worth the buy though, since these releases are usually under $10 at most big named stores.

Unlike the past years, the album includes a lot of bands most people would recognize that follow today’s scene. Some of the acts include Relient K, As I Lay Dying, Angels & Airwaves, Cobra Starship, Gym Class Heroes, The Academy Is…, and a lot of other bands that are on this year’s line-up. You may be thinking, “Great! I love all these bands.” Unfortunately, you’ve heard all the tracks before. There’s nothing new or exciting that makes this compilation stand out from past releases. The one thing positive I can say about this release though is the price tag. It’s worth the buy, with how many tracks there are to this album (50 to be exact), but it just isn’t worth the listen. Hopefully next year SideOneDummy picks up the ball and adds a little mixture of unreleased tracks or demos.