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Destruct: Cries the Mocking Mother Nature 12” (Grave Mistake Records) Cries the Mocking Mother Nature is the long-percolating second album from Richmond’s Destruct. It’s no secret we’re enamored of Destruct here at Sorry State. A big part of that is that we get to see them live all the time, and Destruct is a punishing live band. Both live and on their records, Destruct live is an all-out assault whose fury, like the M.C. Escher staircase, seems to ascend infinitely. Destruct is just so fucking powerful, striving for and often attaining the same intensity that marked the Japanese hardcore punk bands that have shaped their sound. I’ve always heard four key ingredients in Destruct’s stew: Bastard, Disclose, Gauze, and Crow. They don’t emulate those bands so much as synthesize them, similar to how those bands synthesized—maybe even purified—their own influences. Also like those Japanese bands, Destruct is exacting in their execution. Everything about them is considered and calculated… it’s like they’ve combed through every aspect of their songs, their aesthetic, and their very existence as a band and maximized its power and intensity. Cries the Mocking Mother Nature is the result, and it’s one of the most coherent, powerful, and unrelenting statements of hardcore punk 2023 has to offer.

What’s up Sorry Skaters?

It’s been a solid week at Sorry State International Headquarters. When I end up getting through with picking orders, I’ve been putting together the Savageheads: Service to Your Country records and I know a lot of y’all are gonna be wanting to get a copy. It’s definitely one of those albums that you won’t get bored with revisiting it often and come on... are we in any kind of excess of bands who worship The Partisans? That’s a hard argument to make.

This week I’m going with 3D and the Holograms S/T LP for my staff pick. Who isn’t a sucker for blisteringly fast high hat hits? It seems impossible to play the hi hats as fast as JJ. I mean it’s approaching the AK-47 speed. We got Bill on vox with what sounds like just the right amount of effects. Also, I really like how on the back of the cover when it is listing members, there is JJ, TV and then just Bill... Shout out to Bill and all the Herberts out there! Your name doesn’t have to be Asstoilet or Fredastairesasshole or Therighttoeatfredastairesasshole. Follow your dreams… anyway this record is killer and I love that they take a chance on getting really weird with the 6th track titled 3D Theme. It sounds like punk that got digitized/transformed for a 32 bit video game in which the main character must conquer the challenge of finding all the half full cans of beer at parties that people have forgotten about. I’d play that game and then defend myself by denying there being any nostalgic feelings there. Moving on, this LP also reminded me to revisit Tarantula’s S/T 7" from 2017 just because of the crazy fast hi hats. Love that record. As far as lyrics go, they make me think of Maniac by G.B.H. Here are a few excerpts from different songs that all share some sort of central theme: “He’s loud, he’s tough, he’s so obscene” “He cries and fights n kills” “He severs your hands” “His brain’s a piss drenched slimey ball” “He can’t see he can’t think, He’ll end your life if you blink”. It’s like if Maniac was fleshed out over half a record, but stupid fast. Brilliant. Anyways, that’s all I got for all of you this week. Hope everyone is drinking life’s cup and enjoying it. See ya next week!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a good week. The newsletter this week happens to fall on my birthday, woohoo! I thought it would be fitting to write about one of my favorite voices in all of music, Miss Dolly Parton. More specifically, The Monument Singles Collection 1964-1968, a record that actually came out this past Saturday for Record Store Day (I believe I mentioned it in my staff pick last week). This was one of the RSD titles I was really looking forward to and it didn’t disappoint. Since it’s a compilation of A-sides and B-sides throughout her early career before she was really established, there’s a lot of different sounding stuff on here you wouldn’t expect to find on a Dolly record. Busy Signal is one of the coolest Dolly songs I’ve heard with it being a more soul style, complete with background singers and someone making a busy signal sound throughout the song. It’s cool to hear her trying out these different styles early in her career to see what kinda sticks. Coincidentally, there happens to be a track on here titled Happy, Happy Birthday Baby, which I promptly listened to this morning with my coffee. Thanks Dolly, although unlike the person you’re singing to in the song, I’d never leave you for someone new. This past year has been really great and I think it also happens to be about a year now since I started working at Sorry State. I’ve learned so much and I’m very thankful for everyone here. I couldn’t ask for a better group of co-workers or boss. Dominic even gifted me some sweet Doc Watson records for my birthday. What a pal. It’s still pretty crazy to me to get to work at a job I actually really enjoy doing and don’t ever have to dread going into. Anyway I’m gonna go enjoy my birthday now and go eat Laotian food with my friends. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Hello and thanks for reading. Today I am writing about DESTRUCT’s new LP, Cries the Mocking Mother Nature. That’s no surprise though, right? I feel like I’ve been fan-boying this band since I first saw them live in 2018 with DISSEKERAD in Richmond. While they left a big impression, it was a strange line-up where Patrick took over vocal duties and they played without a bassist. I knew they usually had bass, but I didn’t know the bassist was still up there performing, haha. Regardless of being short a huge component of their sound, DESTRUCT was so good, like a machine. I had no idea a band from Richmond like this existed before I saw them that night. At the time, Echoes of Life had not been released, just their Human Failure demo. While that tape was a solid debut, it does not give testament to how good DESTRUCT was. Two songs from the tape were re-recorded on Echoes of Life and it sounds almost like an entirely different band. Aside from the excellent sound and songwriting on the records, what makes DESTRUCT stand out from others is their obliterating live performances. They have a well-formulated, massive sound. Regardless of the amps being so loud, little Alex behind the drums easily competes with the volume with his pummeling snare hand and fucking insane drum fills. On top of that, he plays speed alike to FRAMTID. My mind is blown every single time I witness them live. Last gig I saw them at, Zach and Patrick switched instruments on their final song and that one really fucked me up. Usually only bands who suck trade instruments. Anyway, I feel like Cries the Mocking Mother Nature is an amazing follow-up to Echoes of Life. Well, they did tease us with a few tracks from the new LP with their live cassette that came out a little while ago, Onward to Collapse. If you don’t have one of these and you are a DESTRUCT fan, I would definitely suggest picking one up. They are fairly cheap, and they have good sound quality. I’m not doing a very good job at describing the new LP but whatever, you can probably understand I think everyone should buy this record. I feel like they sound even more like DESTRUCT on the new LP, if that makes sense haha. They have their sound totally nailed down. I can’t wait for their next release, Screaming Death. I think I’ve probably mentioned this here...it will be a 12" split with DESTRUCT, DISSEKERAD, RAT CAGE, and SCARECROW. The DESTRUCT songs on that are some next-level shit. That will be a co-release with Skrammel Records and BPDT. Following that I know they will do a 7" on Acute Noise Manufacture, and maybe I have heard some talk of an ABSOLUT/DESTRUCT split... Alright before I go, I wanted to mention we have a few of these sick long-sleeve shirts from their tour with ABSOLUT this past year. Not sure why we have any left… these are two excellent bands teamed up on a shirt with an homage to MOBS and GHOUL. Alright anyway, thank you for reading, and thanks to everyone for the support!

What’s up Sorry State friends? I hope all is well in your world. We are recovered from this past weekend’s Earth Day and Record Store Day festivities and back to the grindstone here, gearing up for the next project. No matter the opinion on RSD—it has its faults—it was still a great day for us here at the store despite the shitty weather threatening to soak everyone waiting in line. It was cool seeing so many of our regulars and new friends coming through, and we thank you for your support. I hope that everyone managed to get that gem they might have had their eye on. I couldn’t resist blowing the grocery money on one or two items myself. I went for the Fall 1977 because, The Fall. I also took a copy of the Flash & The Dynamics—Electric Latin Soul, which has been on my wants list for decades now. I have a previous reissue and even some compilations with tracks, but this version came with improved sound and will probably have to do it as far as owning a copy is concerned, as originals never turn up. This year there were a lot of great releases to tempt the wallet with and I could have taken home a bunch. My DJ partner Matt snagged a few too, so between us we covered most of the titles we wanted. Most of them. LOL.

In other news, today, Thursday, is our colleague John Scott’s birthday. So, raise a glass and play a Doc Watson tune in his honor. In other, other news, Liverpool FC has finally managed to win a few games on the bounce this year and may yet still qualify for European competition next term. The title race may have been decided by City beating the Gunners yesterday, we’ll see, but from my perspective there are things to be happy about and to find positives from. I almost hate that I allow following a team and a game to affect my mood so much, but it surely does. I still believe that the beautiful game has a social impact far greater than just a mere sporting spectacle. It’s about community and brotherhood too. More positives than negatives.

Musically speaking, this week I have been listening to the complete range: Jazz, Psych, Blues, Hip-Hop, Soul, Latin, Reggae, you name it. We are going through collections and pricing records as fast as we can, and there are so many cool things to listen to. Visitors to our store should have no problem finding plenty of nice records of all descriptions and price ranges. One genre that we have a good amount of is Jazz. A few big name holy grails but mostly just good affordable copies of decent records. Lovers of the ECM label and 70s fusion will find plenty to tickle their fancy. I have started to dip my toes into the ECM world and whilst a lot of experimental free jazz is not my cup of tea, I have found my ears coming around to moments on these records. It must be an age thing.

This upcoming Sunday will be what is known as International Jazz Day. A twenty-four-hour celebration of all things Jazz. For my part, Matt and I will be broadcasting a special Worldy via The Face Radio. We go on from 7PM EST to 9PM EST if you want to tune in and listen along. I’m not sure exactly what I shall be playing, but we will try to spin as many jazz records from around the world as we can manage within the two hours. Jazz being jazz, that will mean most tunes won’t be two minutes and twenty seconds pop songs, but rather a bit longer. As our show aims to play music without borders, in addition to being international, I would like to try to fit in a few things that straddle the genre tags also. Perhaps some fusion will be in order?

As I have been writing this today, I have also been bagging some used records that we bought. One of which is Manfred Mann: Chapter Three on Polydor from 1969. It’s kind of exactly what I was talking about. A rock and jazz fusion record and an interesting listen I think. Not so much a hit with Jeff as we listened—too much saxophone for him. I dig it though.

This is a bit of a lost album in the Manfred Mann catalogue. It came about after the original line up of Manfred Mann, the band, called it quits and founding members Manfred Mann and Mike Hugg continued together, bolstered with a bunch of new musicians in a new Jazz Rock style. They went on to record two albums as Chapter Three, confusingly naming the follow up in 1970 as Volume Two. A third album was worked on but never released. Manfred Mann, feeling constrained by the set-up of Chapter Three and mostly playing Mike Hugg’s material, decided to break up the group and continued from 1971 as Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. In that band, he went on to have considerable success throughout the 70s, scoring hits with of all things, Bruce Springsteen covers. Regardless, I really like the vibe on the first Chapter Three record. It takes a few listens perhaps, but there are some choice moments on the record. It is hard to describe truly accurately, but typical with many records released at the end of the 60s, it has a unique, of the time, sound. Keyboard led with horns and a tasty rhythm section. There are more than one head nodding moments to enjoy on this set. Just as long as you like horns. In addition, there are vocals on the record, provided by Hugg, who comes off sounding like a cross between Dr. John and Brit Popper Tim Burgess from The Charlatans.

Lots of cool moments on this one but I like the cut called One Way Glass. Check it out and see whether you agree. The Prodigy like that song too and sampled it for their record Stand Up. In addition, a French group called Trifle has covered it. Mann himself redid the tune for an Earth Band record.

So, not Jazz, not Psych, not Prog, but somewhere in between the three. The UK version has a green cover with cartoon drawings of the two main players on the front, whereas the US version sports different artwork, showing a book made out to look like the number three. Get it? Either version shouldn’t be too hard to track down and won’t cost you an arm and leg. We have this US copy available in the store for any locals wanting to investigate further.

Okay, I must get back to helping Jeff with all these orders. Busy, busy, busy. Thanks for reading and your support and see you next time. Cheers all - Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Before I get into everything else, my new band Meat House put up a preview track from our upcoming record on YouTube. Check it out. It’s one song from our upcoming 7-song 12” EP to be released right here in-house on Sorry State. Test presses showed up TODAY as I’m writing this! I’m stoked. Hope y’all dig it.

This weekend, I’m heading up to the great state of Virginia. Public Acid is playing a gig in Norfolk on Friday night. Then both Public Acid and Scarecrow will be rocking in Richmond with our friends in the Sorry State family Sirkka on Sunday night. On the Saturday in between, I guess I plan to kick it around Richmond and see what kinda trouble I can get myself into. It’s been a while since I’ve spent a few days outta town and actually been able to hang out. It’ll be nice to have a change of scenery and get to enjoy it with no pressing tasks on my agenda. Hell yeeee.

So Record Store Day happened already. Crazy right? With the exception of mountains of boxes arriving at the store and all the prep work I had to knock out to be prepared for last Saturday, I barely even noticed haha. I know Dom and John Scott were champs dealing with all the Swifties. True saints for ushering in the long line of eagerly excited customers before it started pouring down rain. Thanks for all you Sorry Staters for coming by on the day and buying stuff online afterward.

Alright, let’s get into staff picks: Y’all ever have a band that you’re aware of, you even know that they’re popular, they’re in your universe of music that you listen to, but you just never really give them the time of day? For me, one of those bands has always been Redd Kross. I mean, of course I’ve always loved the 1981 EP with early incarnations of Circle Jerks songs. But I’d never given a whole lotta attention to their material beyond their pre-teen years (not even joking). I listened to this podcast a couple weeks ago that broke down all of Redd Kross’s albums and distinguished the different eras and evolutions of the band. In the podcast, they included Teen Babes from Monsanto as an absolutely necessary listen in their discography. Now, if you weren’t already aware, Teen Babes is all cover songs. They played a clip of Redd Kross covering “Deuce” by Kiss. First of all, I LOVE Kiss, so maybe I’m biased. But I just remember thinking, “Holy shit, this rips!”

Then I went back and listened to their first full-length, Born Innocent. Within literally a couple minutes, I was like, oh… I know a bunch of these songs. Whether it was hearing them in passing or on compilations or something, I definitely have stumbled across songs like “Linda Blair” and “Notes and Chords Mean Nothing To Me” in my long journey in punk. And while this album is a little rough around the edges, I definitely don’t think it’s a hardcore record like the first EP. You can maybe even hear one foot stepping out in another musical direction even this early on. What I find so interesting about Redd Kross is the McDonald brothers are clearly unique and eccentric personalities. Even as teenagers, they must’ve had a deep and dark fascination with pop culture, having covered “Cease To Exist” by Charles Manson on this first album. Pretty wild. In moving away from punk, you can tell the McDonalds had interest in everything from glam to 60s psychedelia, and even like The Partridge Family. Apparently, there’s a documentary about Redd Kross that’s been long in the works, and there’s a preview clip that shows Stephen and Jeff in a room full of old albums. They talk about how some of those early Partridge Family records were just as good and important to them as The Beatles haha.

As I continued to venture through their discography, you can see their style evolve on 1987’s Neurotica and their major label debut, 1990’s Third Eye. For me, this is where the band gets most interesting compared to their early more “punk” material. If you want a perfect visual representation of their loud, outrageous and colorful style, look no further than the music video for “Annie’s Gone.” A total banger, by the way. A little bit of big hair, but without the metal. Maybe some bell bottoms. There’s definitely an element of 60’s acid-fueled psych meets the cartoonish world of Alice in Wonderland happening with the art direction. Then musically, you can tell Jeff has evolved, writing more sophisticated melodies with lush vocal harmonies and big, big HOOKS. I dunno, there’s also something about the band subverting expectations of what a former punk band is supposed to look and sound like that is so rebellious and attractive to me. Even beyond Third Eye, I love songs like “Jimmy’s Fantasy” off of Phaseshifter. The music video featuring Jason Lee early on his acting career is killer. Even as far into their career as 1997’s Show World has some glowing moments for me. Their cover of The Quick’s “Pretty Please Me” is so awesome.

Whether in podcasts or documentaries or whatever, I’ve often heard Redd Kross described as a “band’s band.” Which I suppose I understand? I’ve heard a lot of their contemporaries describe them as the coolest band ever. And that if you didn’t get them, maybe you just weren’t cool enough for Redd Kross haha. For whatever reason, even during the band’s most pop-oriented period, they never really broke properly in a mainstream “rock star” kinda way. I mean, their big major label album came out in 1990, which preceded the alt rock boom post-Nirvana. So maybe that has something to do with it? Bad timing? Or maybe Redd Kross was simultaneously behind and ahead of their time.

Anyway, I’ve been going through a Redd Kross kick lately. I find their story and evolution super interesting. Maybe I can’t convince some of you readers to check out “Annie’s Gone” any time soon, but definitely go blast “Annette’s Got The Hits” next time you get a chance.

That’s all I’ve got. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

185 Miles South Podcast

This is probably old news to many people since, as of this writing, the podcast has 204 episodes under its belt, but a couple of months ago I discovered the 185 Miles South podcast, and I’ve come to really look forward to seeing new episodes in my feed. Maybe this is arrogant of me to think because 185 is so well-produced, but when I first listened, I felt like their podcast was doing something very similar to the Sorry State newsletter, engaging with punk rock’s past and present in a thoughtful, enthusiastic way.

The first thing I like about 185 Miles South is its format. While there are frequent special episodes devoted to a single topic, the standard format is magazine-style, with each two hour-ish episode featuring a mix of shorter segments. Taking inspiration from the classic punk zine format, typically there’s at least one band interview and a record review segment where the hosts discuss new music. There are also segments that pop up less frequently, some of which are more light-hearted. My favorite one that I’ve heard is 25 Ta Life lyric trivia, where they play a segment of a 25 Ta Life song and the contestants have to guess what the actual lyrics are. They play the clip and it sounds like Rick is spitting incomprehensible gibberish, and then when they reveal the lyrics it’s like “yeah, I guess that is what he’s singing.” It makes me laugh every time. We’ve been too busy to even think about it for several years now, but we spent a lot of time talking about launching a Sorry State podcast. My idea for how we should do the podcast was essentially what 185 Miles South is doing… I imagined it as an audio version of the newsletter, and hearing 185 confirms that format can work well if it’s done properly. I’m sure it’s a crushing amount of work for Zack and the crew, though.

Aside from its format, 185’s other strength is how smart and thoughtful the hosts are. I’ve listened to a lot of podcasts about music (including just about every one I can find about punk and hardcore), but I’ve found very few of them that are worth my time. A big part of this is that I’m a tough audience. I’ve been obsessed with punk rock since I was a teenager, and I’m almost 44 years old. I’ve heard a lot of records in that time and I’ve read a lot of books, zines, and other ephemera, so I have little time for intro-level stuff. I hate to say anything bad about them because they did a great job, but a good example of what I don’t like is the punk season of the No Dogs in Space podcast. The podcast is well-produced (by the same team that does the popular podcast Last Podcast on the Left), but it rarely told me anything I didn’t already know, and I often found myself yelling at the podcast when they spouted incorrect information or off-base opinions. Maybe I’m just an asshole? While I can forgive someone for not knowing something, I’ll turn a podcast off and never go back if I feel like it’s intellectually lazy. A lot of podcast hosts are just windbags who don’t take the time to understand what they’re talking about and, well, fuck that. At 185 Miles South, though, they know their shit. Not only are they well versed in punk and hardcore history, but even when they’re approaching something they’re not familiar with, they do it with open, honest, and attentive ears. Just based on the handful of episodes I’ve listened to, they’ve built up a lot of credibility with me, and I respect their knowledge and perspectives. And like we are at Sorry State, the crew at 185 Miles South is passionate about the current scene. They’ve already introduced me to a bunch of cool music I wouldn’t have heard otherwise.

While I love everything about how they produce 185 Miles South, they focus on a different, though overlapping, part of the scene than Sorry State. The hosts come from the more hardcore end of the spectrum; in fact, I think I remember checking out 185 some time ago when they mentioned it on the Revelation Records podcast Where It Went, but when I tuned in, they were going on and on about how great Earth Crisis or something was and I decided it wasn’t for me. While the podcast features plenty of coverage of the 70s and 80s punk I love (the most recent episode has a segment on the No Future Records band Attak, which illustrates how deep they go), the hosts and most of their guests hold straight edge hardcore in high regard. If you look at their Top 100 Records of the 1980s, for instance, you’ll see that Revelation Records released 5 of their top 15 records of the decade. They also find a lot more to like in the 90s punk scene than I do. Honestly, though, I think the problem here is me, not them. I was a teenager in the 90s and the straight edge scene was huge where I grew up in Virginia, so I’m familiar with almost all the music they talk about; in fact, I liked a lot of it in my younger years. However, in the early 2000s, I disavowed straight edge and post-straight edge hardcore and never looked back. For me, that has less to do with the music and more to do with the scene politics in my part of the world. I always found the straight edge scene (and most everything that sprang from it) snobby, cliqueish, and way too clean cut (but also violent and sketchy), whereas the punks more steeped in 80s music tended to be more open and welcoming, just wanting to rage out and party. Like I said, though, that’s just me being an old, closed-minded curmudgeon, and I think most sane people will appreciate 185’s broader focus.

So, yeah, if you’re as much of a fan of the way we talk about music in the Sorry State newsletter as you are of what we cover, I encourage you to give 185 Miles South a listen. I recommend starting with the latest episode, #204, which even features a glowing review of the new Illiterates LP on Sorry State. Enjoy!

Flower: Hardly a Dream 12” (Profane Existence Records) Flower released the digital version of Hardly a Dream in December 2022 and it immediately took over my playlist. I was surprised how quickly and thoroughly I fell for the record because it’s pretty far outside my wheelhouse. Everyone talks about how Flower sounds like Nausea, but I haven’t spent much time with Nausea’s music, so that connection doesn’t mean much to me. I hear a lot of 80s UK crust in Flower’s sound, and while I like a lot of that stuff, it’s not like I’m going to love a band just because they do a good job of evoking that aesthetic. There’s also a slight undercurrent of New York hardcore bounce to Flower’s sound, and that’s a style that really doesn’t do much for me. On the plus side, though, I’m a big fan of the other bands Flower’s members play in; their guitarist Willow also plays in Scalpel, whose LP we put out on Sorry State, and their bassist Jack also plays in Fuckin’ Lovers and People’s Temple. Music influenced by UK crust and stenchcore is also having a bit of a moment… the style seems appropriate to this day and age that can feel grindingly bleak, and some of my favorite current bands like Rigorous Institution and Subdued also draw a lot from that sound. One thing that Flower does that might sound bad on paper is build most of their songs around similar grooves and tempos. However, rather than sounding boring, it’s hypnotic in a way that sucks me in. Hardly a Dream is one of those records that just consumes me when I put it on. While those are the elements of Hardly a Dream I responded to while I spent the winter driving around with it on repeat, now that the vinyl is here, there’s even more to love. It’s a pleasure to sit down with the thoughtful lyrics, which come at you so quickly and in such volume that it’s hard to parse without the lyric sheet’s help. Like Flower’s music, Danny’s lyrics have a lot in common with 80s UK punk, but they’re not an homage to those influences… they’re made for today. And then there’s Willow’s incredible artwork on the fold-out poster sleeve, taking cues from Nick Blinko, but also evoking the hypnotic quality of Flower’s music with its dense, meticulously inked textures. Hardly a Dream is the total package, a vital and fully realized statement that feels tailor made for the world in 2023.

What’s up Sorry Skaters?

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but water is good for you and it makes your body happy. My nephew is only 27, and he recently got a kidney stone because he never drinks water. I’m sure there were also other contributing factors, but it definitely wouldn’t have happened if he was drinking water. Speaking of making your body happy, this record doesn’t fall short. I’m going with Who Are They Trying to Con by the Scotland-born A.O.A. I’m a sucker for angry Scottish vocals and without that element in this band I probably wouldn’t be as interested. It’s like if Oi Polloi leaned more towards Discharge guitar riffs and backed it with relentless driving drums and gang vocals. No wonder the two Scottish bands, Oi Polloi and A.O.A, did a split together in 1986.

I remember having a conversation with a regular dude about this band years ago at a bar. He asked “why the hell does a punk band have a peace sign on the cover?!” Me and one of my new friends began to explain the anarcho peace punk era/scene in the UK and where the “WAR BAD” platitude comes from. It still amazes me how many people do not have even the slightest amount of knowledge of even this country’s most recent history. Anyways, this dude ended up being someone that did not merit the time to explain such things. “Screw you, I’m gonna go blast Antisect in my car.”

I’m keeping it short and pissed this week. Thanks for reading everybody and we’ll see y’all next week!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week and is ready for Record Store Day this Saturday. We’ve been gearing up for it here at Sorry State. There are a lot of great titles coming out this year. I’m personally most excited about the Dolly Parton record coming out, a compilation of her early work (‘64 -’68) on Monument Records. This past week I traveled home to Memphis to visit my mom. We decided to go on a road trip for a couple of days around Mississippi and Alabama and catch some Billy String shows. It was such a fun few days just hanging out with my mom and driving around and hanging out in Mobile. The Airbnb we stayed at also happened to coincidentally be less than a mile away from the old shack my great-grandparents lived in when they first got married, so we went by and checked it out. (I can’t believe it was still standing.) It was cool to see where they started from when they were probably about my age. I never met them, but it made me feel a little bit more of a connection to them to see that in person. The older I get, the more I appreciate learning about family history and stories from it. Anyways, I was a little curious about how much my mom would enjoy the shows. I knew she would have fun cause she loves live music, but Billy shows can get a little out there sometimes and usually go for about three hours. I got us tickets for both nights but I was kinda half expecting to only go to the first night. I wasn’t gonna drag her back for a second night if she didn’t love it. She ended up having a blast, and we danced together the whole night. After the show, we walked around downtown and ended up just walking three miles back to the Airbnb (with a stop at Taco Bell at 1AM naturally). I forgot my mom knows how to throw down; I was passing out before her that night. She insisted that we go back the second night and sneak back into the pit as we had seated tickets that night. Who am I to say no to my own Mom? We went back that night and snuck into the pit and even got up to the front row and danced again all night long. The highlight of the shows for me was during the second set of the second night, he performed a cover of Bob Dylan’s Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again. It was too fitting considering our road trip down from Memphis and me and my mom were just high fiving and hootin’ and hollerin’. Honestly, it’s probably one of my favorite memories ever. I had a smile so big I was like the guy on the Jamming With Edward cover who’s smiling so hard his face falls off. I’ve been to a good amount of Billy shows, but these two in Mobile with my mom are probably the most fun I’ve had at a show and I’m just happy I get to have all these great memories from this trip. I love my mama. Obviously, I was traveling, so I wasn’t listening to records, but before I left, I found myself listening to this Mississippi John Hurt record a lot. Why not listen to some Delta blues and folk if I’m gonna be traveling around the Delta? I love John Hurt’s music so much, it just sounds so comforting. I’ve mentioned many times before but blues and folk music is so awesome cause so many of these songs are like a century old but they still sound incredible and the feelings they convey are still relatable to this day. I love just about every song on here, but if I had to pick a couple of favorites I’d go with Salty Dog Blues, Make Me a Pallet on the Floor, Sliding Delta and Stagolee. Man, I had to cut that short. I realized I was typing out like half the track list. I guess to bring it all back and tie everything together, it was cool to travel with my mom for a concert down to where my great-grandparents are from and listen to Billy play some old ass folk songs they might’ve even listened to back then too. The power of bluegrass and folk baby, the circle is never broken.