Reviews
Read Magazine:
Wow, I thought fast, fun pop-punk bands were hunted to extinction by the emo death squads. Somehow The Ergs!
escaped adn survided to spread their Weasel-ish 90-second tales of love lost. There guys bring to mind all the great, peppy punk bands with
"er"'s in their names: Nerf Herder, Fred Mert, Queers, and umm.. Teen Erdols. I can't tell you how happy I am that there are pop-punk torchbearers
out ther who remember how to rock. All you emo bands, listen to this album and watch you lame-ass misconceptions about "melodic punk" crumble
before you.
Go Metric #19:
Seventy-five percent of this record makes instantaneous sense, on a subatomic level; anyone with taste is going to
connect with the bulk of this record right away. The remaining 25% is split into two parts. You've got 12.5% of the record that will come with time,
the stuff you have to work for a bit. The remaining eighth makes you scratch your head. Should that be here, the jazz break, the country noodling?
Yes, they should be here, but you have to fiddle with them, makes sense of them mentally and that's where the real satisfaction comes. The Ergs have
an amazing knack for deciding where to let their influences surface. And they do it under the guise of pretty love songs (whether it's love gone
right or wrong), and we can all connect with that, eh? ("yes" would be the correct response there.) (Note: Rumors that dorkrockcordrod is an
song-by-song response to XTC's Skylarking are greatly exaggerated.)
Punk Planet:
When I started listening in and looking at the CD, I actually thought these guys love the Descendents and Doc
Hopper. Then I see a member wearing a Descendents T-shirt, and the producer is an old acquaintance, Chris "Gobo" Pierce from Doc Hopper. Doc
Hopper was a punk band with so much pop sensibility it creeped me out that a band could be so aggro and catchy at the same time. Well, The Ergs!
took notes from one of the best in the biz and came up with 16 tracks of an instant classic, which quickly found a home in my collection. Hot licks,
incredible drumming (while singing!) and awesome bass lines. It doesn't break new ground, but it's hard to find good pop that isn't an old Weasel
or Queers record. Also, All/Descendents can't make good records anymore, so these kids should definitely step in and take a swing. Those are big,
harsh words for my favorites, but this rocks out so hard, it's practically making me hard. Songs with a sense of humor and all about girls, 'nuff
said. Buy it already! - Mr. Dana Morse
Razorcake:
There's no delicate way to say this. I think the ergs are geniuses. I adored their ben kweller EP, but missed
something.I loved it as a simple pop album. On dorkrockcorkrod (it's a palendrome!) it's easier to hear a lot of the complexities that are going
on behind the guise of pop. It's like rivithead where i thought it was just the hooks that had me listening the whole time, but then i began to
pay closer attention. They're all proficient players, and when you listen to whats going on in the background of the songs you hear some interesting
things. I actually hear a strong jazz influence, but it never overrides the pop (which is a lot more power in the pop than the EP) and don't worry,
it never even steps close to fusion. Broken-hearted lyrics prevail from their Carpenter-style set-up (you know, the drummer sings). Incredibly
infectious - i listened to it 14 times yesterday. - Megan Pants
Maximum Rock N Roll:
Who are these guys? Nerd and Proud! An awesome trio cranking out pop punk and power pop. Along the ways of the old
Cleveland MICE and the YUM YUMS. Maybe a bit thrashier. Fans of retro power pop and fun punk gotta get this! - Ray Lujan
AMP Magazine #10:
Bouncy pop punk with a tendency for absolute dork-outs, Songs of heartbreak, Saturday nights and Vampire
Parties. A fun, kicky little record that is well worth a few spins. - Jimi Cheetah
Now Wave Magazine:
The current state of pop-punk music makes me think of the late '80s Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy Twins. Perhaps you remember the plot. Ah-nuld plays
Julius Benedict, the product of a genetics experiment designed to create the "perfect human being". Unexpectedly, the "perfect" zygote had split into
two, with only the shitty genes going to Julius's twin, Vincent (Danny DeVito). Needless to say, Julius grows up to become a genetically superior
studmuffin. And Vincent (who is separated from his brother at birth) grows up to become a loser with few redeeming values (Of course everything works
out in the end, but that's beside the point).
It seems to me that the majority of pop-punk bands are either Juliuses or Vincents. And most of them are Vincents: totally lame, sadly lacking good
qualities, and all-around inferior. They're the bands that soil the good name of pop-punk. The pop-punk Juliuses are rare, but hearing one of them
always reminds me of why I fell in love with that kind of music in the first place. The Ergs! are such a band. One one hand, they're a throwback to
ballsy, kick-ass pop-punk godheads like The Descendents. On the other hand, their music recalls the sugary buzzsaw crunch of '90s pop-punk. But
somehow The Ergs! manage to embody only the things that are good about contemporary pop-punk. In the music of The Ergs!, you won't find even a
hint of the things you hate about, say, Simple Plan or _______(insert the name of your least favorite third tier Mutant Pop band here).
Typical pop-punk singers sound geeky in an affectedly ironic sort of way---as if they wanna be dorks but don't really have the heart or conviction
to do much of anything besides watch TV and write love songs about girls they've never even spoken to. Mikey Erg, on the other hand, is as likable
as any vocalist you'll ever hear. He's all about heart & conviction. He belts out his lovelorn lyrics with the naked, smoldering ardor of a man who's
been repeatedly bruised, beaten, and bloodied by that bitch called love. Most pop-punk singers sound like they need to be punched, but Mikey's clearly
been knocked around enough as it is. You'd rather drink beers with him and listen to his records. And if he is a geek, he's a geek in the way that
Milo Aukerman's a geek.
Typical pop-punk bands are hampered by wussy musicianship, but The Ergs! suffer from no such flaccidities. Calling them a "pop-punk" band might even
sell them short. Perhaps melodi-thrash or bubblegum hardcore would be a fairer term. Either way, this album totally rips, its rambunctious tuneage
propelled by manic, powerhouse drumming; hard, punchy guitars; dexterous, bopping bass lines worthy of the first three Joe Jackson albums; and
stinging, hooky leads (Jeffrey Erg has the coolest guitar sound out there, methinks). The style ranges from '60s-inspired powerpop to Minutemen-esque
demento jazz/punk to full-on head-bludgeoning hardcore---but a constant throughout is the sheer power and energy of The Ergs!' attack. These lads are
wicked talented---yet they play with the ferocity & exuberance of the 1981-82 Replacements.
The typical pop-punk band mires itself in musical and lyrical cliches. The Ergs!, on the other hand, twist the genre on its ear, infusing both an
encyclopedic knowledge of classic indie rock and their own highly peculiar sense of humor. How many other pop-punk bands would dare to record a
thrash-punk homage to Rik Mayall from The Young Ones, title their songs as esoterically as Gang of Four used to, cover a Crimony tune, or attempt
a jazz-meets-cowpunk barnburner like "I Feel Better Tonight"? And although the majority of the songs here are typically pop-punkish in their
obsessive focus on girls, the chick-fixating lyrics are clever, funny, and not at all lame. Nothing beats a good love song that can make you laugh.
On "A Very Pretty Song for a Very Special Lady, Part 2", Mikey laments, "I couldn't help falling/And your smile/It didn't help matters". Later, on
"Pray for Rain", Mikey theorizes that he can't write songs when he's happy because "broken hearted love songs are what I'm all about". So he prays
for rain "To bring some dark cloudy sadness to this warm sunny day". Classic! And the best line of the album is from the Joe Keller-penned "Extra
Medium": "I've always been a good American/I drank a lot of soda".
All in all, the beauty of dorkrockcorkrod is that it's a disc I just don't want to take out of my CD player. I just want to push that "play" button
again and again. And isn't that what ultimately defines great music, regardless of what genre you're talking about? This group's first EP, F'n, helped
get me through one of the worst months of my life---and the band has only gotten better in the four years since. Simply put, Mikey Erg is one of the
best songwriters out there. He can pen a catchy pop tune with the best of 'em, and here he and his bandmates have stuffed a disc full of should-be
smash hits. I could tell you that "Pray for Rain" and the peppy British Invasion sendup "Rod Argent" are my picks to click, but the truth is that
I might have two different fave tracks tomorrow. "Everything Falls Apart (And More)"? Tasty! The "Vampire Party" cover? Awesome! This is a
remarkably strong album from open to close---exactly the kind of sensational debut LP you'd expect from a band that's taken all these years to
hone its material and sharpen its attack.
The only thing I like more than music that makes me wanna dance is music that always puts me in a good mood. And for that reason, I give
dorkrockcorkrod my highest recommendation. - Rutledge
Now Wave Magazine:
I've just got in my should-be-more-comfortable-for-the-amount-of-time-spent-in-it chair after a lengthy Ergs!
listening session. My eardrums have been slaughtered with crispy, punk stained, early underground rock licks, SST-homage addled song structures,
and words from Henry Rollins's inner child.
In order to get the catchy tunes out of my head I typetypetype at the keyboard, hoping that the clicking and tapping will somehow help me concentrate.
It doesn't really. All I can hear is D. Boon and Bob Mould and Paul Westerberg and Milo and Ray Davies and... the list goes on.
I start to take a knife to the cake that is dorkrockcorkrod. How many layers can be in this treat anyway? It starts off with the 20-second
"First Song Side One". Before you can catch up to its own goodness, it's over and you're moving on to another song, much like those store signs
you see on The Simpsons that flash by not quite long enough to read before Homer says something funny. "A Very Pretty Song For A Very Special
Young Lady Part 2" and "Extra Medium" are a pair of highlights, frenetically played slanted poppy rock that was once the 'Mats' bread and butter,
currently heard on the finer Figgs records. And yet, even though the influences are worn on the sleeves, there's something distinctly unique here.
Even more so than on the Ben Kweller EP , the Ergs! have taken the lectures of their teachers and wrote a superior essay. If you want variety, check
out the hardcore breakdowns and jazzy interludes sprinkled throughout, or the silly brilliance of "Vampire Party" and the cowpunk-tinged "I Feel
Better Tonight". What? You'd rather just have more hit tunes? Well then go for "Pray For Rain" and "Saturday Night Crap-O-Rama".
What? Overdosing on creative hits? Check out the well-timed breather at the end of Side A and the beginning of Side B. (Yes, granted, I would
normally call these poky pop songs a "lull", but even still I can picture "It's Never Going To Be The Same Again" on someone's mix tape that
they made for an ex-girl, hoping that they can still remain friends). "Rod Argent" is a phenomenal Zombies tribute (even without any spooky
keyboards), and has to fight with "Everything Falls Apart (And More)" for my favorite song of the last quarter of the album.
Tons of bands can get loads of praise, but only every once in a while is something called a work of genius. There can only be a select few on
those year-end lists, and dorkrockcorkrod will be there, with good reason. - Mark Hughson
Jersey Beat:
To call The Ergs the punkest band in New Jersey is more than mere understatement; although barely old enough
to drink themselves, this four-eyed trio lives, eats, and drinks punk rock. Now please don't be confused; I'm not talking about that commercial
pop shit you see on MTV that calls itself "punk." I'm talking get in the van, play faster than fuck, don't shower for a week, capital P, capital
R, Punk Rock. It's not just that they've memorized the entire SST Records back catalog note for note (and I'm not just talking Black Flag here;
I've actually seen them nearly come to blows arguing the relative merits of totally forgotten craplike Slovenly vs. Universal Congress Of.) They
play like an SST band too - fast, choppy, frenetic, catchy, incorporating everything that you always liked in the Minutemen, Black Flag, and the
Descendents, throwing out insanely obscure covers in between the breathless two-minute Chinese fire drills they call songs. The band's released a
bunch of singles, EP's, and whatever before (they actually released a one-song MP3 on a floppy disk once,) but with this full-length, Mikey Erg
now ascends to the Pantheon of singing punk-rock drummers alongside Bill Stevenson, Grant Hart, and Chris Gobo Pierce (who, not coincidentally,
produced and recorded this joint at his Technical Ecstasy Studios in Brunfuss.) Mostly, Mikey sings about girls, which is fine. His songs are
stuffed with words, so much so that the melody often goes M.I.A. - kinda like a conversation with your best friend over an endless supply of
coffee and cigarettes at 4 a.m., until you realize that all the lines rhyme and most of them actually keep to a metered beat. But then one of
these tunes will break into an ecstatically catchy bridge, like "Pray For Rain," where he croons, "I could write you the perfect song/ and you
could sing along / about how everything's gone wrong," and you think, shit, I thought only the Descendents could still write songs like that! They
cover Crimony, a totally forgoten Mike Watt side project from 1986, and then there's "Rod Argent," which shows off the band's mastery of 60's
fuzz-pop (the excellent liner notes by Lewagogo Houston say something about staying up all night with the Zombies box set to write this one.)
And just in case you haven't been paying attention, they pay tribute to one of their many rock Gods with "Everything Falls Apart (and more,)" which not only kneels at the altar
of Husker Du (have I mentioned what a terrific guitarist Jeffy Erg is?) but also suggests that these guys have actually heard the Beatles too.
The Ergs will be spending the summer in their mini-van, crisscrossing the country and sleeping on people's floors. If you're really lucky, yours
will be one of them.
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