punk this week: twisted teens, class act, p. noid, van goth + 14 more

Hey, it’s the weekly recommendations column Punk This Week. What an absolutely wild week for new punk and rock'n'roll records. The Twisted Teens album has finally arrived. Class Act say goodbye. P. Noid return, Van Goth debut, Earth Tongue and Ty Segall link up. There’s a lot of good stuff to dig into this time around. I wrote over 2,000 words this time, dang.

If you want to read about each and every one of these new records AND support an independent music journalism endeavor, grab a paid subscription. A paid subscription costs $4/month or $40/year. In addition to the weekly column, you’ll also get bonus podcasts, ad-free episodes of the regular weekly podcast, and the full see/saw radio archive. Happy reading, happy listening.

Twisted Teens: Blame the Clown [Chain Smoking/Jazz Life]

For literal months, this record has been sitting on my shelf; they’ve been selling these on tour and a rip of the cassette has been on YouTube for nearly that entire time. The New Orleans punks who happen to play country instruments have finally officially released the follow-up to the exceptional 2024 self-titled album. ”The green one” is streaming. Fuck yeah. There are so many songs on here that felt like classics as soon as they performed them live. “Is It Real?,” “Circus Clown,” “100 Bill Is Gone!,” “Wild Connection,” “Peekaboo Hand,” and “Not Real” are all exceptional, and that’s half the tracklist right there. 

Caspian is an unbelievable vocalist, whose rasp and charisma only adds character to the strength of his instrument. RJ’s pedal steel brings old world warmth to a record that feels contemporary as fuck, both in the way bars are phrased and in flourishes like the “find my phone” alert that pops up midway through a track. As a spoiler, this record (alongside the also excellent EU EP) was in the top 10 of this website’s broadsheet listing the best punk records of 2025. This band brims over with hits. They put on an amazing live show. It’s not often a band like this comes around.

Class Act: iii [self-released]

The third act traditionally brings clarity or narrative resolution, but with their final missive as a band, Class Act have tightened themselves into an impossible knot. iii isn’t a record with one clear sound, as the band have evolved to the point of uncommon time signatures and Midwest hardcore that’s folded in on itself repeatedly—a paper football made of dense bass, wild feedback, pounding drums, unhinged growls, and crunchy noise.

“Make it make sense,” they demand, but they can’t make sense of a goddamn thing. Why are people joyfully splashing in the water when they can clearly see somebody’s pissing right upstream? Wait…are the band wrong and is the piss actually good? They debate with themselves, but look around and see that humanity is rendered dispensable in a post-comprehension world.

Maybe this complete lack of resolution isn’t a storybook ending, but this is where the Kansas City band find themselves here at the finish line. They decided early on they would limit themselves to three records, and across their discography, their lyrics have become more solipsistic, their songwriting more circuitous.

This was always a project that existed in the same basement, but soon, they’ll take their findings out on the road for the first time. They’ve been swinging wildly in the dark, every futile and chaotic attempt at understanding hitting hard as they stay in the same place. Maybe the healthy thing is to finally walk that dog. Class Act is Brady on bass, Nick on guitar, Lance on drums and vox, and Bob on drums. Say bye bye.*

P. Noid: Downpour [Pocket Rocket]

Just one month after Chicago DIY pop hook weavers/rock’n’roll wunderkinds Saskia and Jack released the Bungee Jumpers tape, they’re back with their project P. Noid. That project’s tape Penelope Noid, which came out the tail end of 2024, was exceptional and widely overlooked.

Downpour is a nine-song collection of lo-fi pop gems that sound like dusty mixtape classics somebody’s crush slid over in 1995. “Saturday” and “Lucky” are unbelievable, this pair of sunny tracks that close the album with muffled earworms. Sometimes there’s a light dissonance to their music, like on “Makes Sense Now.” Like all of their projects, this is the perfect tape for a sidewalk stroll with your Walkman on an unseasonably warm winter day. 

Van Goth: Is It? [self-released]

Here’s a disclosure that Van Goth is fronted by Sydney Salk, who has written a bunch of stuff for see/saw and is a bud. Her bandmate is Simon from Choncy. Their debut album is defined by dark minimalism where their voices are accompanied by a pulsing rhythm and a bassline. Every now and then, you’ll get a few strums of a guitar, a couple notes plunked out on a synthesizer, maybe a shrill melody hammered out on a glockenspiel comes along.

“The Function” is an entirely dispassionate account of going to a gig in New York City—ordering a High Life has never sounded so accurately drab—soundtracked by an excellent groove. Van Goth is inscrutable by design, and as you dive in further and further, you’re moving your feet and you’re in on the bit.

Jacques Grêle et les Fausses Fuites: Too Small [Turbo Discos]

Jacques Grêle et les Fausses Fuites is the project of Danny Kendrick, and this record Too Small is a four-track masterpiece that’s both minimal and completely unpredictable. It opens with some banjo, but let’s break down “No Lyrics Left.” While Danny is singing about being creatively dried out (an apparent lie), there’s this perfect bassline, a few guitar stabs, and the only percussion is a few perfectly placed scratches of a small shaker. “My Friend’s Name” is both acoustic and warped like a track off DRINKS’ Hippo Lite. 

It’s my favorite kind of psychedelia—less about expansiveness and more about working small in unexpected ways. Somebody commented on this record’s Tremendo Garaje post that it should win a Grammy, and honestly, if there were any justice in the world, something this bedroom immaculate would get its flowers on the world’s biggest stage. It never will, so soak it up! 

Earth Tongue: Dungeon Vision [In the Red]

Earth Tongue are the platonic ideal when it comes to Ty Segall collaborators. The Auckland duo are out here delivering castle-storming theatrics bolstered by a massive fuzz guitar sound one minute, and the next, they’re fingerpicking an acoustic guitar and singing gently about crows and ferns.

Whether they’re doing blown-out Fuzz grooves or getting Sleeper subtle, it all works because they’re living the gimmick as hard as they can. Even with Ty behind the boards, it’s wild how much this sounds like it could’ve been a lost entry from his back catalog, which is high praise. Most other bands trying for something like this would sound like cosplayers; Earth Tongue just sound committed.

Ozzie Hair: Madhouse [Hot Sounds]

Melbourne’s Ozzie Hair is a member of the Prize and the Judges, which means he’s a killer guitarist. This new tape is sludgy and glammy classic rock that’s hazy, patient, and psychedelic. It reminds me of my favorite New England scumbag scuzz records, so RIYL Jungle Rot, Spacin’, or early Purling Hiss. 

Vipers: Vipers [Swimming Faith/Feral Kid]

Vipers is a project helmed by Nick from Coke Bust, and he’s joined in the band by members of some killer Buffalo bands (Science Man, Radiation Risks, Brown Sugar, and Candy). These songs fucking rip, and apparently Nick’s screaming about moving from Brazil back to the U.S. I’d be screaming like I was losing my mind, too.

Giallo: Tenebrarum [Convulse]

Exceptional riffs, absolutely feral death growl vocals, and stellar production define the heavy-as-fuck debut album from Minneapolis’ Giallo. This is a band that rules at a 31-second pummeling hardcore sprint and when they sprawl out for the more patient closer “Black Cat.” A band with multitudes with a record that will knock you over if you don’t steady yourself real quick.

Private Lives: “Think I’m Coming Around” b/w “Television Faces” [Bachelor]

Montreal garage punks Private Lives just released a new 7” to follow their full-length on Feel It Records this past year. The A-side is a garage punk banger with a perfect swaggering hook and a ripping guitar solo at its center. “Television Faces” doesn’t come out the gate quite as hot, but it revs up real good. I love this band in this mode.

Wasted Harvest/Flower Power: Split [Bend or Break/Factory Floor]

I’m absolutely obsessed with Flower Power, an Irish hardcore project that has released only heaters. “Yellow Oxygen,” for example, just absolutely kills. They’re a perfect foil to Wasted Harvest, a more patient UK hardcore band whose tread is steadier and slightly less volatile. Their A-side features literally one-third the number of tracks, and their closing six-minute jam takes its time. It’s hardcore that’s fried and gradual, which is a sick vibe. OK, now flip the tape and get your ass run over by Flower Power.

S.M.I.L.E.: Shut Up and S.M.I.L.E. [Delayed Gratification]

Last year, the Akron hardcore band released a promo EP featuring some of the best songs that now appear on this full-length. It’s burly as shit and whips by pretty quick while they scream at you about how you need to fucking shut up. Fun as hell.

Birth Rejects: Demo [Ragdoll]

The great Ragdoll Records returns with a new demo from the Indiana punk band Birth Rejects. The longest track is the opener “Mind Is War,” and that’s under two minutes long. This is sloppy and tape-muffled hardcore with some Pee-wee’s Playhouse samples, so I’m all in. Their punk names are Ritchie Dagger, Miss Isle, Chicka Yeah, and Dizzy Cadava. Amazing.

Bratakus: Hagridden [Venn]

This aggro two-piece Bratakus hails from Scotland and sounds like they’re ready for a massive stage. Bréagha and Onnagh Cuinn have the raw attack of two people trying to stir up as much shit as humanly possible while sounding mainstream radio-ready. Their lyrics are righteous, their screams are rough, and they hit hard. They sound like the best band that would land an opening slot for Green Day [complimentary].

Raya: 2 [Knuckles on Stun/Idiotape]

Madrid’s Raya have been churning out some exceptional eggy loosies over the past few years, and at last, we’ve got this new long-player. This is synth and drum machine-driven garage punk with a dystopic lean. “CIUDAD DEPRESIÓN” is the sweet spot where they pick up the pace. 

Public Error: Internet Blues [Knuckles on Stun]

Public Error is a sneering speed punk outfit from Tampa, and this new collection packs a minimalist budget punch. 

Crystal Ball: Demo tape [self-released]

Dour, hard-hitting garage punk from Shrewsbury that reminds me of a UK pairing with any band fronted by Chris Shaw. 

Caspa: I Hate Caspa [Dirt Cult]

San Antonio synth punks with a dark sense of humor. Tahnee’s sing-song way of speak-singing plus their sparkly synth tone and deep fuzz guitar? It’s a fantastic combination.

What else: PURA MANA are back with a new single from a forthcoming record on Roachleg, who also dropped two from an absolutely feral new CROSS record. Philadelphia thrash punks Early Grave have a new three-song promo that rips. John Wesley Coleman III has a new album out. You should check out this breakneck hardcore demo from San Francisco’s P.O.S. Check out new stuff from Orsini, Slags, Raw Impact, Psychic Armour, Factoids, Strängt Förbjudet, Corporate Plants, HUVET, OLD,

* Full disclosure: Class Act invited me to write a bio for the record’s Bandcamp page and I decided to publish that here rather than write a fresh blurb. This is a recommendations column, and what I wrote is essentially a two-paragraph recommendation. As payment, I asked the band to donate my fee to a Minneapolis mutual aid fund.