Words by Jim Testa
Jim Testa founded the highly influential zine, Jersey Beat in 1982 which he continues to edit to this day. Through writing for his own publication and a number of other outlets, including as a staff writer for Hudson County’s Jersey Journal, he has championed local, regional and national up-and-coming bands. Punk has always shunned credentials, but rest assured that Jim won’t lead you astray.
GRAND SLAMS
SEMI-FAMOUS – Not Sorry (Sounds Rad)
If Victor Frankenstein taught us anything, it’s that sometimes the things you create start walking and talking on their own. Semi-Famous started out as a fictional band in John “Jughead” Pierson’s semi-autobiographical novel Weasels In A Box, his tongue-in-cheek reflection on his Screeching Weasel years. But sometime between the audiobook and the afterword, fiction caught up with reality. Pierson, joined by Ryan Rockwell (Mixtapes) and the late Billy Brown (Crash & Burn), actually recorded an album under that name in 2024—and somehow, improbably, here’s the second one.
This time around, the lineup expands to include Nanako Nishio, Poli Van Dam and Mike Kinshella, turning what began as an author’s lark into a legitimate pop-punk project. With multiple singers trading off leads and a stylistic range that runs from buzzy anthems to bittersweet ballads, Not Sorry often plays like a really solid compilation—varied but cohesive. When Billy Brown passed during the album’s recording, the band responded the only way punk bands know how: they wrote songs. “Billy The Fucker” celebrates his rowdy charm, while “Take 5” delivers a gut-punch of loss and gratitude.
Thematically, Not Sorry swims in deeper waters than anything Ben Weasel ever dared—grappling with regret, mortality, and self-reflection—but it’s never a downer. There’s too much joy in the way these songs bounce and chime, too much love in the details. “Sorry,” the opener, tips its hat to Screeching Weasel’s classic crunch, but elsewhere you’ll hear piano, trumpet, and even kazoo sneaking into the mix. It’s playful, heartfelt, and alive. Funny, isn’t it? One of the best punk records of the year didn’t come from a long-running band or hungry newcomers, but from a fictional group that decided to make itself real—and ended up meaning it.
THE NOTWIST – News From Planet Zombie (Morr Music)
Eleven people in one band sounds like a recipe for chaos, but The Notwist make it feel like a warm hug. Led by Markus Acher, the long-running German collective invites us to Planet Zombie, a world that’s far more tender and human than its name suggests. These songs drift by like late-night thoughts — hushed, reflective, and quietly beautiful — while still hinting at something brighter beyond the gloom.
Acher’s voice doesn’t wrestle with melancholy; it befriends it, turning sadness into something strangely reassuring. “X-Ray” pulses with jangly energy and soft propulsion, a reminder that introspection doesn’t have to stand still. And their cover of The Lovers’ “How The Story Ends” perfectly captures the album’s mood: obsession, heartbreak, and that fragile hope that keeps us going. News From Planet Zombie isn’t an escape — it’s a visit to a gentler dimension, one where every sigh and shimmer means something.
HOME RUNS
STIFF MIDDLE FINGERS – Like Eroding Stone (Dumb Ghost Records)
Leave it to a bunch of Lawrence, Kansas punks to take a name like Stiff Middle Fingers and back it up with the kind of snarling wit and chops most “funny punk” bands only dream about. What began as a group of friends bashing out old-school covers has turned into a seriously tight outfit, cranking out original songs that balance sarcasm with serious musicianship. These guys have always had a twisted sense of humor — their past LPs lampooning Big Black (Songs About Sucking) and The Adolescents (Lawrence-Kansas) made that clear — but under the parody lurks a band that can flat-out play. The new album opens with “Redacted,” a jittery blast of angular punk, while “Extra Quarters” hits that same off-kilter groove, full of anxious yelps and furious percussion.
Across Like Eroding Stone, Stiff Middle Fingers deliver crunch, bite, and plenty of nasal sneer — think snotty punk attitude with precision instead of slop. “Ugh” and “Hole” sound like relics from punk’s goofier days, reimagined by a band that actually knows its way around a chord change. Tracks like “Al-Gore-0-Phobia” and “Hole” even sneak in some big, harmony-laced choruses, and “Munky and Head’s Day Out” could’ve slipped out of the ‘90’s Gilman St. scene. There are plenty of bands that channel rage and frustration; one that makes you smile should not be overlooked.
OUR WITS – Let Me Join You (self-released)
Born at an open mic night at NJ’s Ramapo College, Our Wits began as a vehicle for spoken-word poet Dean Cordilis. Guitarist Matt Billy, bassist Nagee Diaz-Corpening, and drummer Mark Boulanger – after five years of woodshedding – have coalesced into a powerful engine fusing emo, post-punk, and shoegaze, bringing Cordilis’ words to life with savage efficacy. Death looms large over these tracks, some written as short, impressionistic poems, others more fully fleshed out as lyrics (including a meditation on cancer). Each track boasts an honesty and emotional urgency, offering a Jersey take on the explosiveness of Dischord’s ’90s roster.
THE DUMPIES – Lub Dub (Dirt Cult Records)
Oregon’s Dumpies don’t waste a second of your time — or theirs. Thirteen songs fly by in what feels like one long, glorious blast of basement chaos. You barely have time to grin before the thrashy guitars, snot-nosed vocals, and hospital noise samples come charging out of the speakers like a band that’s late for their own gig. Some of these tunes fall squarely into that old-school “nice hardcore” zone — no metal riffs, no macho posturing, just speed for speed’s sake and plenty of raw enthusiasm. Others flirt with pop-punk in the best way possible, finding sneaky hooks buried under the distortion and adrenaline. The result? A record that’s over before you can think of a reason to turn it off — not that you’d want to. The Dumpies rip!