The tired and irrelevant disapproval of Epitaph Records

Epitaph's Punk-O-Rama 10 relates to possibly my earliest memory of evaluating a work critically. My favorite band was NOFX, who at the time released a series of EPs as part of its 7" of the Month Club. I didn't have a record player yet, nor was I very keen on how to obtain rare songs by other means. I used the Internet very infrequently.

Review: The Lawrence Arms confront adulthood on Metropole

“I blinked twice, and twenty years went by.” Rarely has a cliché come across so earnestly, but on Metropole, Brendan Kelly’s revealed longings, even the fairly pitiful ones, are sympathetic. The record itself is a testament to the fleeting aspects of adulthood. Fatherhood, husbandhood, relocation and work all rearranged the priorities of the long-running punk rock band, and it’s now been nearly eight years since The Lawrence Arms released its last full-length. As Kelly might put it, less than the blink of an eye.

Review: On its sixth full-length, Against Me! finds clarity

Transgender Dysphoria Blues is the product of more than two years of songwriting, a pair of lineup changes, and a recurring battle with progress. It’s the end result — or, perhaps, a single milestone — of Laura Jane Grace’s personal journey, one that has since evolved into something much more public.