punk this week: woodstock 99’s AI hardcore meltdown + 4 more

It’s Friday, April 12, and this is Punk This Week. This is…a self-explanatory recurring feature on see/saw: a rundown of the new punk records (albums, EPs, singles, demos, loosies, or whatever) worth a listen. Technically this is covering more than just this week’s releases since last week was the best of the first three months of 2024. The full post is available to subscribers. All April, everything’s free; in the future weekly recs will go up behind a paywall. Feel free to kick in the $4 per month to help grow this reader-supported endeavor.

Woodstock 99: 99 Ta Life [Sorry State]

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the beefiest, burliest punk bands are all from Cleveland. Woodstock 99 makes the hardcore equivalent of Zangief’s spinning double lariat—just muscle flying recklessly in every direction. There’s obviously a goofy streak to this band. They named themselves after the hell festival and have songs called “I Kissed a Cop” and “Megan Thee Stallion of Saints,” after all. 99 Ta Life peters out in the final track with what sounds like bad sampling but is actually just a bad AI-generated stunt. They have a whole interview about why they went that route in a recent Sorry State newsletter. Their reason for letting robo-Jesus take the wheel was that the original ending of the song was “boring.” Unfortunately this one is, too. The rest of the album rules, though!