The return of the Lillingtons

 

The Lillingtons – The Too Late Show 

The Lillingtons are one of the most underrated pop punk bands of the 90s.  While the Lookout! Records  trifecta of Screeching Weasel, The Queers, and the Mr. T Experience got the most attention, the Lillingtons quietly released some phenomenal material.  I purchased their first 7″ called “I Lost My Marbles” at Milwaukee’s Earwaves record store (which has been closed for almost 10 years now) because it was produced by Joe Queer.  I was completely blown away by the catchiness of the music and the unique sound of Kody’s voice, which Joe Queer brilliantly highlighted by making it more prominent than the guitars, bass and drums.  They went on to release Shit Out Of Luck, their first LP, which built upon the foundation of their 7″.  The CD was pop punk at its finest.  Following that was what I consider the pinnacle of the band’s music, the 12″ split LP which might feature my favorite pop punk song of all time “Nowhere Fast.”  

As their popularity spead they  hooked up with Ben Weasel, who signed them to his Panic Button Label.  After they signed to Panic Button there was a definite change in their sound, the guitars became more prominent and Kody’s distinctive voice was no longer the centerpiece of the band.  The lyrics became more focused on monsters and aliens and the sound more polished.  While the albums from that era Television City Dream and The Backchannel Broadcast, were excellent, nothing could touch the split with Nothing Cool.   After the Backchannel Broadcast the band broke up.  This was also around the time that The Mr. T Experience and Screeching Weasel and the Queers either broke up or ceased recording new material.   This signaled the unofficial end of the hayday of true pop punk music in my opinion.

Last year Lillingtons fans were ecstatic over the release of Teenage Bottlerocket’s debut album “Total,” which featured Kody on vocals on about 1/2 the songs.  The CD was very good and kind of has a Riverdales/Methadones vibe…it was a bit more Ramonesy than the Lillingtons and I love the alternating vocalists.   Then it was recently revealed that the Lillingtons were reunited and releasing a new CD.  That CD is called “The Too Late Show” and I got it via Interpunk 2 days ago. 

I have listened to it 3 times already and I can say it sounds as if it would fit snugly between Television City Dream and The Backchannel Broadcast.  It is a good pop punk album from start to finish though there are some definite standouts on the CD.  “All I Hear Is Static” is an instant classic and it kind of reminds me of “99” by Screeching Weasel, the other songs that I loved right away is “Mars vs Hollywood” and “Please Stay Tuned”    I think as time goes on the CD will continue to grow on me. 

Though my tastes have skewed more towards indie rock over the last 5 years or so, I still consider pop punk to be my favorite genre.  This CD takes me back to the days of packing up 5 or 6 of us in a car and making the trek to Green Bay, WI to the Concert Cafe (what ever happened to Time Bomb Tom?) to see our favorite bands like the Lillingtons, The Queers, Boris The Sprinkler, The Groovie Ghoulies, the New Bomb Turks, Nothing Cool, and countless other great underrated punk bands. 

Welcome back Lillingtons!

Welcome to Eat, Drink, and Listen

Hello. Welcome to the launch of Eat, Drink, and Listen. This is a website about food, beer, wine, and spirits, and good music. 

I live in Wisconsin so a lot of the restaurant and beer reviews may be Wisconsin-centric, but that will only be a small part of this site.  I will post recipes (both mine and links to others).  I will try to do a weekly Brew Review where I review some type of a beer.  I will post comments and news on the Wisconsin Dining scene as well as on national things of interest. When I hear or read something really interesting or good elsewhere on the web, I will post a link.   I will rant about the Food Network from time to time as well, but only because it is a requirement that all food bloggers post at least one article ripping a Food Network personality once a year. I don’t know shit about wine, but I enjoy it so I may write about good wines I taste as well, just don’t expect much insight beyond “this shit is pretty fucking good for 5 dollars!” Oh yeah, and if you are offended by swear words and the occasional mention of disgusting acts like the dirty Sanchez (can you fucking believe some girl not only fucked Screech on video but them let him giver her a dirty Sanchez?  What would Mr. Belding think about this?) then this site is not for you.

As for music, my tastes lean towards independent rock, punk, early 90s alternative and Britpop, and good hip-hop.  I hope to do record reviews, concert reviews, lists, and other interesting stuff.  One of the things I hope to accomplish is to go through my old and very large 7” vinyl collection and revisit some of the best punk from the 90s.  I tend to get nostalgic when talking about music, reminiscing about the good old days like I was some washed up jock talking about his glory days on the High School football team like Uncle Rico in Napoleon Dynamite.  Oh I also think that the Rolling Stones are overrated and I cannot stand their “music”…ok I think they fucking suck. Now that that is out in the open we can move along.

Anyhow watch for some posts to appear shortly, including an account to the new Whole Foods on the East Side of Milwaukee.

Thanks for reading

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