The Soda Pop Kids have carved themselves a permanent name in Portland punk history in recent years with their bubblegum punk sound and charismatic live show. With refreshing songs and a style all their own, singer Jonny P, lead guitarist Diet D, rhythm guitarist Zachariah Brookswith, bassist Tony Mengis (ex-Riffs front man), and drummer Alan dive headfirst into the very essence of good times rock ‘n’ roll. They seamlessly combine the rough punk edge of the Dead Boys and the New York Dolls, the infectious rock ‘n’ roll rhythms of Little Richard and Chuck Berry, and the ‘60s bubblegum pop of Phil Spector’s girl groups – but gone wild.
The boy’s second album is one of the most fun and infectious collection of songs to listen to in years, guaranteed! Produced by Pat Kearns (The Exploding Hearts, Clorox Girls), Teen Bop Dream unleashes the band’s full potential upon eager fans like one big temper tantrum. You cannot go wrong with songs like the get-up-and-party “Saturday Everyday”, the pop punk workings of “Fell in Love at the Arcade”, the nostalgic ballad “Another Cigarette Ends”, and the uber-fun punk of “The Soda Pop Sting”. Don’t be late for the non-stop till you drop Teen Bop Dream!
ROCK REPORT – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Portland’s The Soda Pop Kids are what you call a maverick in the world of music. While taking their cue from the New York Dolls, the quintet is more than just another glam/punk outfit. What sets them apart from other bands who dabble in David Johansen and co. influenced good time rock 'n' roll is their talent to combine said sound with an unadulterated 60's bubblegum pop swagger.
That being said, I think it’s clear this here album will not appeal to just anyone, but only to those who like their music a bit more dangerous and off the beaten track. But then, that’s exactly what good rock 'n' roll music is supposed to sound like now, isn’t it?
In fairness, I have to admit it took me a few spins to appreciate what’s on offer here, but once tracks like opener “Saturday Every Day”, the quite hilarious “The Terrestrial Twist” or the western tinged “The Ballad of Ranch Hand Rivera” (each track possessing an abundance of feel good energy) got their hooks in me, I too fell victim to the infectious sound of The Soda Pop Kids. My personal pick of the bunch is the heartfelt “Another Cigarette Ends” with “Fell In Love at the Arcade” and “The Soda Pop Sting” finishing a close second and third.
So if you consider yourself up for trying something a bit different but definitely fun, this might be the perfect platter for you.
SUGARBUZZ – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
From the dark caverns beneath the earth’s fiery core loom debauchery, sin, and pure unadulterated dark lords of looming legends. Stepping forward out of the grey shadows immerge a half praying mantis and a half cloven-hoofed beast. Hark, who goes there? It is I, Sir Soda Pop Kid, ready not to battle this beast but to join in the revelry of debauchery, sin, sex, and mountains of pills and booze.
Sir Soda Pop Kid, don’t you want to save earth and mankind from this evil beast? "Fuck that! Hell has the best parties anyway."
Okay, I have this friend named George (name changed because in reality I have no friends). He claims post punk took the rock 'n' roll formula and cut it up and spewed it back in the tired face of rock 'n' roll. Point taken, but who cares. Shut up George, you nerdy wankin’ record collector geek.
However, the flip side of the coin is if a band can use the same tired formula, and get George’s fat smelly, hairy, pimple laden lard ass off a couch and dancing like a reject from a Charlie Brown cartoon, then it has done its job! Nothing arty about that. 1, 2, 3, 4, lets get down and do the nasty. Grunt, grunt. Groan. Holler. Good night.
See, I figure everyone lays claim or wants to state who invented rock 'n' roll, or who was real rock 'n' roll, and who died for rock 'n' roll, and who banged rock 'n' roll, and who shit rock 'n' roll. Blah, blah, blah. Who the fuck cares. I am happy it still is happening. Gene Vincent was one badass motherfucker and Johnny Thunders epitomizes rock 'n' roll. If you check out Tiny Tim on YouTube doing "Do you Think I’m Sexy" on television, that definitely is rock 'n' roll. Oh, shit I am giving my opinion and ultimately not following the rules of acceptable rock 'n' roll criticism. Yawn.
Music is a religion. It never lies. The Soda Pop Kids embrace, entangle, engulf Chuck Berry licks, '77 punk rawk energy, and just the honest to goodness all American tradition of bashing out three chords (fourth is optional). Hotter and smellier than Barbara Bush’s wedge of cherry pie. Come get it boys! Drip! Drip! Buy or die. Or die then buy.
ADEQUACY – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
If you haven't gotten your soda pop kick today, head on down to the soda shop of anachronism. In this soda shop, lyrical and musical styles and attitudes, from '50s doo wop to '70s pub rock combine in a frothy delight sure to leave you dying for another sip of that deliciously tooth decaying goodness. A pinch of punk, a little pop, and a fair smattering of good old-fashioned doo wop combine to create an inventive musical formula that will get your feet boppin' at the soda shop hop. The Soda Pop Kids fuse musical styles, fashions, and attitudes from all the previous mentioned genres to create an enjoyable time warp that's upbeat and firmly based in the foundations of rock 'n' roll.
Despite songs and subject matter emanating from the doo wop style, musically the band sounds more like the pop inspired punk of Nick Lowe or Wreckless Eric. Songs about arcades, soda shops, and close encounters form their lyrical content. Jonny P., vocalist, positively squeals on "Terrestrial Twist" in which Jonny and the boys are interested in the finer points of twisting and shaking by the inhabitant of the flying saucer he's abducted by.
The guys are outrageous and over the top in the genre bending manner of The Clash. The tempo shows yet again in "Another Cigarette Ends", a sweet little ditty rife with oohs and aahs a half-spoken verse. The song builds up to a beautiful crescendo in the chorus.
"Too Pretty" begins with a '70s soft rock feel, electric piano, and tight vocal harmonies. All the songs are seething with an urgency and a hot bubblegum sensuality.
On "Six Gun Senorita" and "Ballad of Ranch Hand Riviera", the group borrows from the theatrical pastiche of the spaghetti western. Both songs and many other tracks on the piece are really nice ballads as well as enjoyable music. The album's a must for anyone who can't get Wreckless Eric's "Whole Wide World" out of their head once they hear it mentioned.
METAL CORE – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
This is some power poppy bubble gum punk rock that reminded me of early David Bowie, T-Rex, and the New York Dolls. The production is right out of the mid '70s, and the guitar sound and feeling is as well. Ten poppy tunes that wouldn't be out of place at CBGB'S in the '70s. Not many bands are around doing this style, and this to me is a like a breath of fresh air. The tunes are simply catchy poppy tunes with some cool vocals too. I dig it.
BURNSIDE – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Hailing from Portland, OR, these five rockers have carved out a niche for themselves, one in which they can be as fun, energetic, and rambunctious as they desire. This record is brimming with pure pop goodness, creating an atmosphere in which the listener can’t help but get on their feet and dance. With standout tracks that include the opener “Saturday Every Day”, “The Terrestrial Twists”, and “Six Gun Senorita”, Teen Bop Dream brings to mind music that The Fonz probably would have enjoyed (though he would have been too cool to admit it). This is a raw, organic, infectious blend of ‘50s doo wop filtered through the lens of ‘70s power punk. The album is, quite literally, a party thrown in honor of its influences, as the band takes pleasure in cranking up the volume on the fun. The Soda Pop Kids make it nearly impossible not to sing along, clap your hands, and shimmy your feet in time with the beat.
More than anything, it seems The Soda Pop Kids have crafted a record that compels people to come out and have a good time with their music. They’re not interested in earning scene points or reinventing the musical wheel with old parts from the last 50 years of music history. Teen Bop Dream is all about five guys playing music they love, not about what styles and trends might be cool and hip this week. Over and over again, their sound compels the listener to get out there and just have a good time with the band. And there’s never anything wrong with that.
LOUD FAST RULES – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
There is something so familiar about the sound The Soda Pop Kids have created. There are elements of 1970s British rock ‘n’ roll, with apparent influences of Slade, the Bay City Rollers, and early Slaughter & the Dogs. Throw into the mix the Dead Boys with a dash of the Ramones and the Shangri-Las as well as the guitar twangs of Gene Vincent and Chuck Berry. Having said that, they don’t sound derivative of anyone as they bring a very pleasant take on bubblegum pop and punk rock. I found myself playing air piano as the honky tonk rhythm carried me along. A few songs leapt out on the first play, such as “Saturday Every Day” and “The Terrestrial Twist”, but on subsequent listens I enjoyed them all. A nice refreshing change to these weary ears.
NO FRONT TEETH – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
How can something be so appealing when it’s so squalid, or so addictive when you know it’s absolutely mischievous? I don’t know either, but that’s The Soda Pop Kids. They are heroin bubblegum, a flick knife popsicle – so catchy, so cute, so fucking tasty, and so beautifully fucked up. Teen Bop Dream, their second full-length album, is just a superb progression from Write Home. That debut was brilliant and is still in heavy rotation here at NFT, but this record just extends the attitude, fun, misbehavior, and ferocity set on that first album. Their absolutely addictive blend of 1950s rock ‘n’ roll, 1960s pop, and 1970s punk rock is inimitable and explosive. That’s three decades filtered down into their volatile sound. There’s no charade or bullshit with The Soda Pop Kids – they’re in their own bop world and they just do what they do, which happens to blow me away! I guarantee this will excite the hell out of you too. Well, if you know how to have fun it will. Even if you’re a rigid prick this will loosen you up.
URB – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
“Bop It Up,” the second of many caffeinated refreshments on The Soda Pop Kids’ forthcoming Full Breach Kicks release Teen Bop Dream, is currently our favorite drip-free stimulant. Singer Jonny P. Jewels emits a strained “motherfucker” over up-tempo toms and crunchy power chords much like Rob Tyner of pick-me-up proto-punks the MC5 did on “Kick Out the Jams.” Although The Soda Pop Kids don’t have the seminal sweetness of the MC5, they are a perfect diet-punk for today’s rock-reluctant consumer.
LOUD FAST RULES – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Ten songs of bubblegum punk and power pop from this Portland band. The Soda Pop Kids have a sound somewhere between Phil Spector pop, The Rubinoos, and the Bay City Rollers. Some pretty decent tunes here like "Another Cigarette Ends" and "The Soda Pop Sting”.
PORTFOLIO WEEKLY – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Who: Shaggy-haired quintet from Portland, OR. Sounds like: The ‘50s are back with more sleaze. Is it any good? The Soda Pop Kids second effort is a true gem of a doo wap meets the Dead Boys. Opener “Saturday Every Day” is an anthem of sorts, with catchy callback lyrics reminiscent of the Bay City Rollers. “Another Cigarette Ends” is a true crooner, showcasing Jonny P. Jewels’ drippy and emotive vocals. Primal guitar riffs are heard within the extremely catchy bopper “The Terrestrial Twist”, while “The Ballad of Ranch Hand Rivera” brings out the little bit of country to the whole lotta rock ‘n’ roll. Other sweet numbers include “Fell in Love at the Arcade” and “Too Pretty”, with its delicate keyboard licks that meet a rockin’ end midway through the song. Jewels once again exercises his vocal talents with “Well, Well, Well”, and his range is impressive.
NOW WAVE – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Well! I'd like to welcome another finalist to the Album of the Year sweepstakes. As good as The Soda Pop Kids' first album was, in no way did it prepare me for the unabated awesomeness of Teen Bop Dream! The Portland fivesome has delivered one of the most fun and hookiest rock 'n' roll albums of recent memory, and it's damn near the best thing to ever come out on Full Breach Kicks. I've had it in my car CD player for a couple weeks now, and not once have I pushed the skip button. I just crank up the volume and enjoy the show – it's an upbeat, engaging, and thoroughly delightful album that somehow manages to make "retro" feel fresh. The addition of backup singers Laurel Virginia and Ruth Radelet adds a whole new dimension to the SPK sound, which really allows the band to play up its Phil Spector fixations. And with the great Pat Kearns producing, the bubblegum element of the group's music is accentuated to a T.
Picking back up with Write Home's amalgamation of Dead Boys/New York Dolls sleaze and Little Richard/Dion & the Belmonts roots, Teen Bop Dream perfects the formula by embracing songs over style. If there were any lingering whispers about The Soda Pop Kids being typical genre copyists, their new album wipes them away in a hurry. Sure, you can still hear shades of Thunders/Sylvain guitar dueling and serious echoes of Stiv Bators in the vocals. But Teen Bop Dream, while very much a punk album, clearly isn't trying to be. It looks further back – drawing its primary inspiration from doo wop, '50s rock 'n' roll, and '60s girl groups. Nods to flamenco and country rock are wonderful surprises this time out as well. It's all about the tunes – which are simply fantastic. The buoyant, infectious "Terrestrial Twist" sounds like a lost smash off of the Rocky Horror soundtrack. "Too Pretty" starts off like mid-'70s AM radio schmaltz and suddenly erupts into a high energy poppy rock 'n' roll frenzy. "Another Cigarette Ends" is a melodramatic teen idol ballad a la last album's terrific "Shots of Whiskey". "Bloodshot Eyes" is an absolutely great cover of an old Wynonie Harris hit. Containing just 10 songs, Teen Bop Dream is all gold, no filler.
If you heard Write Home and thought, "Good band, but why in the hell are they called The Soda Pop Kids?", Teen Bop Dream will leave no doubt as to the appropriateness of the band's name. The Soda Pop Kids' songs don't exist in the '50s so much as they inhabit some alternate dimension – a time and place where high schoolers fall in love in soda shops, play Pac-Man on dates, and worship teen heartthrob rock 'n' rollers who look more like Brian Connolly or Nick Lowe than Fabian or Frankie Avalon. The Soda Pop Kids songs touch on classic themes like falling love and having your heart broken, but sometimes branch out into weighty topics like dancing on flying saucers or the mass stealing of carbonated soft drinks from retailers. So grab your roller skates, load up on candy and pop, meet your best girl at the drive-in, and get ready to jam all night long to The Soda Pop Kids. What can I say? If you can't relate to lyrics like "I took my baby to the arcade", you don't deserve an album as fine as Teen Bop Dream!
AQUARIAN WEEKLY – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS:
As the name hints, The Soda Pop Kids are bubbly, addictive, and sugary, just like the beverage. Their sound brings you back to the nights spent in the roller disco but with more of a rock ‘n’ roll edge. They are a fairly new band, recently releasing their sophomore album Teen Bop Dream,
which is full of songs like “Saturday Every Day” you cannot resist bopping your head to. The songs are a mixture of ‘80s punk, ‘60s bubblegum pop, and a hint of R&B. Jonny P. adds in his vocals, which are reminiscent of Joey Ramone, giving the kids a sound quite original for today. The Soda Pop Kids are five guys who have made a name for themselves in Portland, but are ready to let the rest of the world get a taste of their music. Playing mostly on the west coast, the Kids are venturing out onto a country-wide tour this September. Their shows are full of high energy performances paired up with their big hair, tight pants, and loud personalities.
ALL MUSIC – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
Saying The Soda Pop Kids love their pre-punk and post-punk power pop isn't simply a description but a raison d'etre – opening track "Saturday Every Day" starts with an overt Bay City Rollers nod and then shifts into a track worthy of BCR-celebrator Nick Lowe. Not for nothing does one of the band members have a Stiff Records t-shirt on in their album cover. On their second album, the Portland quintet delivers precisely what is expected, continuing the spirit of their debut Write Home with another ten songs in the same spirit. If the results aren't as just-plain-great as they were with their fellow Oregonians, the late and lamented The Exploding Hearts, then Teen Bop Dream is just good, rough, trashy fun. A slew of different eras of eternal teenagerdom are packed into one place – fifties cool, seventies disaffection, eighties obsessions ("Fell In Love at the Arcade"), and a 21st century pureeing of all of that in one place. Singer Jonny P. sounds like he would have ruled the roost during Bezerkley's glory period, while the band happily tackles everything from country shuffles of a sort ("The Ballad of Ranch Hand Rivera") to more straightforward rockers with aplomb. Perhaps the best song also has the best title – a classic late ‘50s slow swing of a holiday-themed tearjerker with sharper guitar spike called "Another Cigarette Ends." When the spoken word break kicks in and Jonny gets backed with a wordless chorus of "Silent Night", it's a stellar moment.
VEGLAM – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
If I got the band’s approach to this new album, then I would say this is about mixing in subtle '70s glam with '50s rock 'n' roll. It’s a bit like imagining The Soda Pop Kids sneaking into Slade's dressing room to steal their clothes before going for a jam with Marty McFly at the Enchantment Under the Sea. Radical change? Not really, because even if the punk fever The Soda Pop Kids had on Write Home went down a little bit, the after-effects of this disease make Teen Bop Dream an album that is just amazing. More singings than screaming (with class!) this time, the new songs will carry you away with the help of female backing vocals that sound excellent. Ten little euphoria pills that will take you high and make Chuck’s suits, Little Richard’s moustache, and Brian Connolly’s platform boots turn up around your head! I would naturally think that the talented writer Diet D! is the essential piece of this rock 'n' roll machinery, but I can’t think of another way for him to express his talent since there’s such a rare cohesion in this band. This is an obvious five-piece puzzle, even though it wasn’t probably that easy to put them together at first. Don’t make the mistake of not getting this new work of our Portland brats, because Teen Bop Dream makes me think about a Coke bubble spilt on the corner of a bar: a bunch of sparkly, energetic, sweet little bubbles that are deteriorating the paint, leaving a trace you will never be able to clean off!
PORTFOLIO WEEKLY – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS:
It isn’t often that we get up-and-coming garage rock bands from afar descending upon a fine Norfolk restaurant. Portland, Oregon’s fiery Soda Pop Kids, with a penchant for Dead Boys stuffed doo-wap, have been masters of the road of late, touring on the soon-to-be-released Teen Bop Dream.
WESTWORD – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM:
The outfit's sophomore full-length, titled Teen Bop Dream, has just been released on Full Breach Kicks. Building on the glam-a-billy sound of their debut, the new record is a fast-paced, full-flavored soundtrack for protracted adolescence. The band's free-spirited sound and stage show borrows liberally from hedonists like Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Chuck Berry, with a heaping helping of Marc Bolan and the New York Dolls thrown in for glamour's sake. The new album flawlessly captures the quintet's boundless energy and relentless pursuit of rockin' fun.
PORTLAND MERCURY – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS:
Lace up the roller skates (if you show up in rollerblades, expect a beat down), Aqua Net the hair, and roll on out to the Legacy for an evening of decadent power pop and falling on your ass in front of a big crowd. That's the problem with roller skating events: For every swift derby girl that can skate backward, there is some drunken clown (usually me) who spends more time bruising their ass by unceremoniously crumbling to the ground every few feet. Roller skating is just not for everyone. Thankfully the bubblegum popsters in The Soda Pop Kids (whose fantastic new album, Teen Bop Dream, will hit the streets in November) are more forgiving. They'll love you, skate skills or none.
WILLAMETTE WEEK – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS:
Roller-skating fans, rejoice. For one night, you can relive your childhood roller-rink birthday parties – but with spandex, booze, and rock ‘n’ roll.
“We love the roller disco,” says Tony Mengis, bassist for local quintet The Soda Pop Kids. Fittingly, the band’s playing an unofficial release show for its upcoming second album, Teen Bop Dream (out this fall) at Mount Tabor Legacy’s roller skate and dance party “Glamskate Two.” It’s no surprise this bubbly band would love the combination of glittery disco and slippery concrete-floor skating: These guys are all about fun.
Heavily mulleted in skintight denim, the Kids look like a cross between Mötley Crüe and the Ramones, but this is no hair band. Originally from Denver, the Kids’ lead guitarist Diet D!, vocalist Jonny P. Jewels, and rhythm guitarist Zachariah Tombstone moved to Portland after playing Kelly’s Olympian while on tour with their previous band, sped-up rock ‘n’ roll outfit the Kill City Thrillers. “We needed a change of scenery,” says Jewels, 23. “Portland’s a pretty cool, progressive place.”
Over the past few years, the Kids have carved a niche for themselves among the leather-loving garage rockers who haunt bars like Mount Tabor Legacy (formerly Sabala’s) and Kelly’s. And adding ex-Riffs front man and well-known Virginia Cafe bartender Mengis to the band only gave the Kids more hometown appeal. But Mengis, a 37-year-old veteran of Portland’s punk scene, doesn’t feel like the band’s ringleader. “They all know what they’re doing,” he says of his much-younger band mates’ musical prowess. “They don’t really need me for anything.”
Despite being imbedded in the local scene, the Kids all admit they probably wouldn’t recognize hometown heroes The Shins “if they were playing at a bar we walked into,” says Jewels. But it makes sense: Teen Bop Dream fits the glitter punk mold; its clap and sing-along choruses (see the Bay City Rollers-inspired “Saturday Everyday”) and brass-laden R&B hooks emulate peers like The Nice Boys more than Portland’s indie pop giants. And while the blues-fueled “Bloodshot Eyes” is an admirable attempt at something different, the lone slowed-down track gets lost among the trembling vocals (think Johnny Rotten) and swirling guitars of the album’s pop songs.
But make no mistake: The Kids aren’t trying to reincarnate T. Rex, either – they’re just out to have a good time. “We play the kind of music we love,” says 22-year-old Diet D! “We’re all under the impression that bands like T. Rex didn’t have a very long life span. There could have been a few more, and we’re just trying to add to that.
NORTHWEST NOISE – ABOUT TEEN BOP DREAM: Teen Bop Dream?! Yeah no shit! The Soda Pop Kids thrilled and surprised my hung-over self on this sunny summer afternoon. Bang bang baby, and hey, turn up the stereo, I can’t quite figure out why I’m boppin’ my head and singing along to the melodies on The Soda Pop Kids’ soon-to-be released album, Teen Bop Dream. I can say with no bullshit that Teen Bop Dream is now one of my favorite local releases for 2007.
First-thing-first, Teen Bop Dream has been masterfully brought to life by producer Pat Kearns of Blue Skies for Black Hearts fame. This is the first full-length album I’ve heard that was recorded at Pat’s new NW Portland studio, and now we’re hoping Pat hooks up with more local bands because we love the sound he’s crafted.
The primal punk affections of The Soda Pop Kids have been captured and mixed with '60s bubblegum pop, scorching guitar riffs with bluesy rhythms, and textured, call-and-response vocals. Imaginative and creative songwriting help The Soda Pop Kids escape the malaise of formulaic punk fare, and instead they dish up songs about love at the arcade, alien abduction, gun-packing senoritas, and a boy leaving a girl. Expect Teen Bop Dream to be released November 13th! We really, really recommend you buy this album.
HIGH BIAS – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Portland’s The Soda Pop Kids tear through ten basic punk rock songs with the gleeful abandon of toddlers splashing through puddles. Despite the quintet’s relative youth, its musical roots stretch back to '50s R&B-flavored bop as much as late '70s hurricane stomp, which gives form to the band’s sometimes over-eager rush to the finish line. "Leavin’ Kill City," the ballad (of sorts), "Memory Lane", and the statement of purpose, "Bop It Up!", jump on those punk rock pleasure buttons like Keebler elves making chocolate cookies – with big love and bigger enthusiasm.
UNDER THE VOLCANO – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
The Soda Pop Kids wallow in a junked-up mess of sin and sleaze, mold it into a snotty juvenile delinquent noise, and recklessly deliver the goods three brazenly fierce chords at a time. Write Home is a full-throttle bare-bones rock ‘n’ roll extravaganza that absolutely gushes sex, booze, and dirty nihilistic desires. If it were the late 1970s, the Son of Sam killer would be jammin’ to The Soda Pop Kids while cruising the mean streets of NYC in search of his next victim of murderous glee. Rock ‘n’ roll doesn’t get any more deviant and dangerous than this!
VERBICIDE – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS – BAND ON THE RISE:
Ahh… smell that? It’s the smell of vomit, sweat, and knocked over ashtrays. Actually, no, it’s just The Soda Pop Kids walking by, a band that describes their music as “one big temper tantrum.” Although their name makes them sound like some adorable little mod outfit, this snotty group has gained praise as one of the best punk acts to come along in years. Their new album Write Home is a love letter to their mommies and daddies in the 1970s punk scene who were wondering what happened to their ungrateful children.
The two main members are vocalist Jonny P. Jewels and guitarist Diet D. They’re veterans of Denver’s Kill City Thrillers, who made a splash with their single Stiletto a couple years back. Since then, Jonny and Diet D. have moved out to delightfully dirty Portland, OR and started a new band. They picked up bassist Tony Mengis of The Riffs, drummer Stevie Kix of The Weaklings, and Zach Brooks of Call Sign Cobra along the way.
These boys just want to have fun — crazy, dirty, drunk, blurry, punk fun. Their explosive, gritty sounds bounce out of the speakers and will piss off your neighbors, which is just what The Soda Pop Kids want. They spit in the face of the whiny post-punkers and have fun doing it. They plan on recording a follow up to Write Home soon after doing an East Coast tour. When asked who they would like to tour with, Jonny and Diet D. replied, “Rod Stewart’s hair.” Perhaps, if they pull some strings at the label, they can get that set up. Pfft. Punks.
NOW WAVE – ABOUT THE SODA POP KIDS – LIVE AT TRITONE, PHILADELPHIA, PA, 10/03/06:
The Soda Pop Kids and the Fishnet Stalkers were both able to make the best out of a somewhat bummer situation. Despite the dismal turnout on a Tuesday night, both bands tore up the tiny 6 x 6 stage of the Tritone and had smiles across all their faces. Maybe they were happy because they were drunk? Maybe they were just happy to not be at a day job for a coupla weeks? I just know they were definitely happy to rawk out for the handful of people in the club and play their asses off.
The Soda Pop Kids ran into problems right from the start: broken equipment, amps blowin' up, PA struggling to keep up with the volume of the band. Yet they weren't gonna let any of those minor details stop them from rawkin' and havin' a blast. Their lead singer, Jonny P. Jewels, was runnin' around the tiny club like he owned the place and cradling the mic like a young David Johansen. Both guitar players looked and sounded like Tommy and Bob Stinson circa '82 'Mats, playin' fast sloppy leads and throwing themselves all over the stage and club.
They blew through their set in about 20 minutes, and that even included some drunken banter in between songs. Good raw tunes with pop hooks like "Electric Blood" and "Put On Your Tight Pants!" fit into a classic rock 'n' roll formula that never gets old.
GLITZINE – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
This one has been sitting around for a bit of time, though this is due to too many things on my plate, not due to my not caring to check them out. On the contrary this album has received more than its fair share of spins. So right there I am letting you know I like the band.
The Soda's play a form of ‘70s punk that has collided with old ‘50s rock. Yeah, they are actually pretty much a full on ‘70s punk outfit when you realize that much of the ‘70s punk scene was an amped up version of the ‘50s. But right down to the vocals which recall the glory days of Stiv and Darby mixing it up, we are styling in '78 and '79.
First track "Put On Your Tight Pants" kicks off with fine energy, but it's with track two "Bop It Up" that the disc really starts to hit its fun stride. Background vocals even bring about thoughts of the doo-wop styles throughout the disc, and the shuffles and beats are all ‘50s on speed. There are also plenty of hooks to keep the bubblegum crowd smiling.
"Shots of Whiskey" is just what the title leads you to believe it is, a slow, drunken sounding number. This is the one you put on when you crack open a bottle of booze to start drinking yourself into misery with, and then to start again just before you pass out. I'm not condoning such an act, but just admitting we all have been there and looked for the company of a trashed out tune (those of us who will drink and be depressed about something that is, those of you who don't drink, move on, as I guess you won't understand the need to tip a bottle into misery, ya unlucky lot).
The next tune, "Electric Blood", throws us back into the mania that started before our misery crept up on us, and it is business as usual again. The Soda Pop Kids are as refreshing as a nice cool lemon-lime soda on a hot summer day.
ALL MUSIC – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
One thing the punk revivalists tend to forget is that the first wave of punk bands, from the Flamin’ Groovies to MC5 to the New York Dolls to the Ramones, were hugely influenced by '50s and pre-psych '60s rock. Treating 1977 as “year zero” produces music that lacks the beating rock ‘n’ roll heart of a song like Blondie’s "In the Flesh" or The Clash’s "Brand New Cadillac". The Soda Pop Kids don't fall into this trap: Write Home owes as much to the early Beatles or even Buddy Holly as it does CBGB’s. The songs are dead simple, sounding like two-minute pure pop blasts even when the song lengths creep up to over twice that long. Singer Jonny P. Jewels has a classic snot-punk yarl more than a little reminiscent of both David Johansen and Stiv Bators, and dueling guitarists Zach Brooks and Diet D (big ups for the stage names, by the way) have the whole mid-'70s trash punk thing down cold, but it's the way songs like "Electric Blood" and "Memory Lane" (featuring a bass line reminiscent of, of all things, Little Peggy March’s "I Will Follow Him") reach back to the glory days of unpretentious rock ‘n’ roll that makes Write Home such a giddy delight.
I-94 BAR – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Rock 'n' roll has always prided itself on its outsider reputation. It’s fair to say that over the years – especially after the marketing and commerce people got their filthy hands on the genre and turned it into just another Madison Avenue branded commodity – the outsider thing has just become part of wider commodity fetishism. Bands like Green Day start off as errant kids with loud guitars and exuberant social habits and are gradually appropriate by the capitalist machine (though, to their credit, Green Day have tried in recent years to alter their image, but will never return to those Kerplunk! days).
The Soda Pop Kids come across as irreverent kids out for a good time and for all the sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll they can stuff into their trousers and formative years. Write Home isn’t anything groundbreaking, but it does exhibit a sort of honesty and sincerity that’s endearing.
The design of the album insert – a series of bits of scrap paper with hand written lyrics – suggests a band on the road writing home to describe the emotional and social minutia of its daily existence. "Ya see I rock too hard and I just can’t stop / I roll coz I’m wild and I just can’t stop" in "Chained with Your Love" (a sort of Ramones-style interpretation of the philosophy underpinning Hank Williams’ "Ramblin’ Man"), is played out at a speed and intensity that suggests the lyrics are just there as an after thought to the sonic attack. That said, I was quite taken with the SE Hinton quality real-life nihilism mixed with hope in "Electric Blood", as vocalist Johnny P. Jewels sings of "Walking down the road of life with no real place to go / Mediocrity surrounding me, then you come by like an injection to the brain / Plug me in, rev me up, make me fucking roll again", with the Ramones simplicity of the guitar assault being not too bad either.
"Shots of Whiskey" mixes the mindless emotional anarchy of youth with a bruising '50s bar room feel, topped off with some masculine bravado: "Tears are useless here, that’s just admitting defeat / I’d rather self-destruct then accept my place on Lonely Street". Then there’s the Little Richard meets punk rock mania of "Mona (Stay Away)", ebbing and flowing between a 200 rpm attack to a slow rolling dance-room feel.
The latter part of the album celebrates the '50s in greater style – not just the doo-wap rock style, but also the birth of the teenager concept, though The Soda Pop Kids persona is more Dee Dee Ramone than James Dean. On “Get Tight!”, the band’s protest for getting tight is far more credible than The Donnas’ increasingly piss-weak calls to get skintight, alright. The final track, "Leavin’ Kill City", is probably the most representative track – one moment it’s doing Chuck Berry riffs, next it’s running up the rock scale like Bill Haley on speed, next it’s churning out post-Ramones riffs at a frenetic rate, next it’s doing some faux-Beach Boys harmonies, and next it’s lamenting everything that’s wrong in the narrator’s fishbowl youthful existence. Nihilism has never been so exhausting. The Soda Pop Kids are really just kids having a good time, and that’s something that’s always good to hear and see.
RAZORCAKE – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
The first song “Put on Your Tight Pants” is so catchy and perfect. Now I can’t get this gooey glob of glam punk outta my CD player. “Chained with Your Love” and “Memory Lane” have those ‘50s “ooo-wah-ooo” backing vocals that I’m an absolute sucker for. Listening to this CD is like shooting cotton candy intravenously, chugging Swizzle Stix, and chasing it down with root beer spiked with cocaine. Cheers to the sugar rush.
UNDER THE VOLCANO – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Hailing from Portland, OR via Denver, CO, The Soda Pop Kids took garage punk and glammed it into a lipstick-smeared pair of pouting lips that reek of beer as they sneer your way. The constant nods to the Dead Boys and the Dolls are performed with such a love for the music, it’s hard not to get as enraptured in the songs as the band is. “Electric Blood” is the anthem for sloppy, drunken sexual endeavors in the darkest corners of the bar with the chick whose name you won’t remember, but you’ll always remember her when you hear the song.
NOW WAVE (JR) – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
First off, the best two tracks here are "Put On Your Tight Pants" (could this be a tribute to Maddy Tightpants, editor of Tight Pants fanzine?) and more to the point, "Electric Blood". This track combines some thirsty (no pun intended) Dead Boys rawk with the band's trademark Damned/Boys/'77 hook fest. I'll close out the review with an anecdotal description of the band's appeal:
You're craving the rush of that first belt of whiskey. You want the sugary allure of a cold Coke. You're jonesin' for a smoke. You walk into a club as these guys play and, lo and behold, a young hottie hands you a rum and Coke and a freshly lit cigarette. These guys are dolled-up Richie Edward types who bring on the sugar rush as catchy and raw as you can take it. The sensory aesthetic of their sound is a tri-fold convergence of the sweet bliss of a cold Coke on a hot day, the randy sulk of intoxication brought about by the whiskey, and a gritty grind so redolent of that addictive smoke. Listen to these guys, and you'll be dancing like the Napolean Dynamite character having been matriculated to some 1978 Saturday Night Live skit. Yeah, they play it old school, but boogyin' never goes out of style.
RAZORCAKE – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Hot damn! This full-length by these Portland kids is smokin’! Killer poppy garage glam punk with a real Teenage Head vibe. Reminds me of my faves The Slash City Daggers in spots as well. Dig the piano as well as the doo-wop backing vocals. Any of you who dug that Time Flys record will wanna be all over this. There is a real similar vibe. It’s also available on LP with different cover artwork. I can’t pick a favorite tune here because they are all fantastic, the sequencing is great, and this really flows well as an album. This is gonna gets tons of spins this year!
EAR CANDY – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Talk about tearing the joint apart! Build a rock ‘n’ roll monster out of the demented rockabilly hiccup of Jerry Lee Lewis channeled through Stiv Bators, the Chinese rock riffing of Johnny Thunders, the time bomb about to explode psyche of Iggy, and the flat out party attitude of every frat house from coast to coast and you’ll get The Soda Pop Kids. This album is an instant party every time you slap it in the player. If titles like “Put On Your Tight Pants”, “Bop It Up!”, “Shots of Whiskey”, “Electric Blood”, “Get Tight!” and “Leavin’ Kill City” don’t grab your attention then you better drive your ass down to the morgue. Another keeper from Full Breach Kicks. Four stars!
BMO’S WORLD – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Every once in a while a band comes along that absolutely just gets it. The Soda Pop Kids are that band. They don’t try to sound like anyone else in particular. They don’t try to mimic a particular style or limit themselves to a specific sub-genre. They just play rawk ‘n’ roll, fast and loose, with fire and conviction and total disdain for any naysayers or hipsters who would say rock is dead or the kids have all moved on to hip hop. There’s a fury and a passion to The Soda Pop Kids that comes across as sincere and totally believable. I love the “ooh la la la” background vocals, the just-about-to-slip-off-key lead vocals, the string-shredding guitar work – everything about every song on this disc is just exactly perfect in its glorious imperfections. I urge you, take my advice: Put on your tight pants, bop it up, have a couple shots of whiskey, get chained with your love, get tight, and leave Kill City. I know that doesn’t make any sense, but that's what listening to this disc will do to you. Fast paced, sloppy, glam punk blues-a-billy from the great northwest is what I’m talking about, and you don’t want to get left out. They used to be called something else, and come from somewhere else, and all the guys were in different bands before this one. So what? If this is the only record The Soda Pop Kids ever put out, that'll be enough to secure them a spot in the BMO pantheon.
LOWCUT – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Drunk on decadent swagger and sleazy glam punk rock ‘n’ roll, this outrageously good Portland combo comes at ya like Jeff Dahl had reanimated the corpse of Johnny Thunders for one glorious party! Ten tracks of utter rawk perfection, these young dudes are hell bent on bringing back the fun in rock ‘n’ roll, and boy do they succeed! The Soda Pop Kids somehow reminds me a bit of the vastly underrated punk ‘n’ rollers Lemons (if anyone remembers them?) with a healthy dose of Mott the Hoople. Out-fucking-standing! Even my cat digs ‘em. If you dig: The Lemons, Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers, or The Devil Dogs. Four razorblades!
ILLINOIS ENTERTAINER – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Chicago label’s latest offering is a relocated Portland-via-Denver proto punk incarnate. And you thought they only made this stuff in L.A. nowadays. Fixing American glam rock in the post-Sunset Strip metal world right takes a lot of unlearning, and The Soda Pop Kids went as sloppily as they could at Write Home. One of the biggest mistakes New York Dolls clones make is trying to build a career on their purposefully dead-end ideas, but “Bop It Up!” and “Electric Blood” are as no-future as it gets. Jonny P. Jewels’ nails-on-chalkboard vocals can be a close second to scraping the back of your hand on plywood, and the rest of the band sounds as dependable as Aerosmith at their coke zombie ‘70s low. But that’s the point, and The Soda Pop Kids are a heroin casualty away from being the genuine article. 7 out of 10 stars.
NO FRONT TEETH – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
This is a fucking amazing debauched glam rock ‘n’ roll drenched with early Bowery lewdness and sexy threat. This is evolved from the Kill City Thrillers with the addition of Tony Mengis from the excellent Riffs and Stevie Kix from The Weaklings, so this isn’t amateur stuff here. The vocals are fantastic, screechy, and fucked up and kind of remind me of Lloyd from Thee Indigents. I love these high, abrasive vocals. Simple, energetic, and dangerous, and that’s what the fuck I want. This has the perilous rock ‘n’ roll charm of the the New York Dolls and The Electric Chairs and the straightforwardness of Chuck Berry, blended with straight punk rock impulsiveness and a syringe full of glam. It’s just perfect. It’s pretty enough to draw you right in, but vicious enough to spit in your face and kick you in the balls. It’s like bubblegum and strychnine and I love this so much.
SLEAZEGRINDER – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Buncha underfed deviants from various razor rock outfits (The Weaklings, The Riffs, Kill City Thrillers) get together in the only town left seedy enough to take ‘em in (Portland, west coast version, natch), and form a rubber-legged glam punk band steeped heavy in bubblegum hooks and raunchy, junkie-rock guitars. They call themselves the Soda Pop Kids because, well, it looks good on t-shirts, and here we are. Despite the admirably ramshackle backing vocals and occasional wobbly guitar line, Write Home is actually a tight and extremely well-crafted debut, fulla catchy, hook-heavy ditties about cheap girls and cheaper booze that pay affectionate homage to the New York Dolls and the Dead Boys. Jonny P. Jewels probably can’t help sounding just like Stiv, so don’t damn him for it, just let that venomous howl roll over you like a French taxicab and dig the reptile cool and suicide party thrills of handclapping sleaze rockers like “Shots of Whiskey”, the infectiously raucous “Get Tight!”, or the ball crunching “Put On Your Tight Pants”. You even get a stab or two at Motown junk. None of it’s any kind of new or profound, but it’s all tasty and fizzy and fun while it lasts. You know, just like soda pop.
VEGLAM – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
To start in the most honest way, let me tell you that I love this band. The fact that the Kill City Thrillers have turned into The Soda Pop Kids and went through some line-up changes since the release of their single Stiletto is purely anecdotal because the huge potential I felt while listening to the first songs of the band has been wonderfully exploited to give birth to an incredible album. With Jonny P. Jewels (lead screamer and part time humorist) on the frontline, Rox. 45 (sexy doll who probably must be big trouble to the sleep of every Denver man), and Diet D. (androgynous disciple of Chuck Berry and Little Richard), The Soda Pop Kids have three major assets among them who can lean on D-Nice and Captain J. Walker, the irreproachable rhythmic section. I won't tell you much about each and every song of Write Home because they are all explosive, magic moments of pure rock ‘n’ roll madness. Finally, one band that smells like powder and sleepless nights of debauchery – a new standard bearer of a decadent kind of rock that was now dead to me. I see The Soda Pop Kids as a band who is having fun, writing in a hurry, setting venues on fire, sharing a few drinks (and more in case of affinity!) with their hardcore fans, and throwing out glitter on our sullen lives. I just hope this fantastic band will get some success as big as their talent, the ideal path of some girl underwear coming out from the audience to finally end up tactfully wrapped around a mic stand.
PS: If the departures of Rox. 45 (sniff...), Captain J. Walker, and D-Nice since the recording of this album got me a bit perplexed, the obvious talent of Tony (ex-Riffs), Zach (ex-Call Sign Cobra) and Stevie (ex-Weaklings), the new members, will cheer up some quite disorientated fans.
NOW WAVE (LR) – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Given that punk rock music has been around some 30 years and played by tens of thousands of bands, I can understand why so many individuals are cynical about the current state of punk. I cannot deny that mediocrity abounds in the world of underground punk, that the majority of today's punk groups are average at best, and that even some of the better ones are mere imitators of yesteryear's greats. But I never stop believing that punk rock is the best music ever invented, and every so often I'm rewarded with a new band that reminds me of why I fell in love with this kind of music in the first place. The Soda Pop Kids are one such band. I can't claim that they're the best songwriters in the world, or that they have made a classic debut record that you all need to buy the moment you finish reading this review. But perhaps that's part of what I like about this band: they aren't trying to be great or be the biggest band in the land. Instead, they just blast it out with reckless abandon, infectious energy, indomitable nerve, and an unmistakable understanding of how raw, dirty, exciting, and fun rock ‘n' roll should be.
Like any great punk/rock ‘n' roll band does, The Soda Pop Kids manage to make a tried-and-true musical formula sound fresh and electrifying. The group bashes, crashes, smashes, and trashes with all the adolescent vigor of a teenage garage band, yet its material skillfully welds the primitive jolt of early punk to the bopping beats and feel-good harmonies of 1950s doo woop and rhythm & blues. So while The Soda Pop Kids aren't treading new ground or breaking from tradition, they don't sound like any other band out there. Singer Jonny P. Jewels sounds an awful lot like Stiv Bators, but he brings it with so much heart and feeling and gravel-bellied snarl that you just can't call him a rip-off. When it comes to vocal performers, there are just some that are born stars. Jewels is exactly that, and he's backed by a band (lead guitarist Diet D, rhythm guitarist Zach Brookswith, former Riffs front man Tony Mengis on bass, and The Weaklings Stevie Kix on drums) that plays like it's on fire. Imagine the Dead Boys or 1981-82 Replacements showing up on the set of the movie Grease, baseball bats and chains in tow, kicking the living shit out of Sha Na Na, and rocking the balls off the place while Danny Zuko butt fucks Cha Cha DiGregorio behind the bleachers. That's the scene I visualize when I listen to this album. The typical punk ‘n’ roll band cops a few Chuck Berry licks and claims a '50s influence, but The Soda Pop Kids are obviously well schooled on the many facets and textures of rock ‘n’ roll's golden age. "Bop It Up!" is pure dance floor adrenaline, while the raw, powerful "Shots of Whiskey" recalls the gritty melodrama of the old time soul singers. "Electric Blood" is as fierce and fantastic as any punk tune you'll hear all year, while "Get Tight!" sounds like the Jim Carroll Band on Benzedrine. Echoes of everyone from Little Richard to the New York Dolls to Gene Vincent to the Heartbreakers resonate throughout the album, but at no point do The Soda Pop Kids sound quite like any one band you've heard before.
Formerly the Kill City Thrillers from Denver, the newly-christened Soda Pop Kids are the best band to come out of Portland since you-know-who. Something tells me that Write Home will be very much in the running for my album of the year honors.
3RD GENERATION NATION – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Das was mir direkt bei den insgesamt 10 songs unangenehm aufstoesst, sind die nicht zu ueberhoerenden “rhythmus & blues” – Einfluesse. Und ich wette, dass ihr Saenger weitaus mehr drauf hat, als man es bei diesem doch ziemlich verzerrten Gesang-Mix raushoert. Ich haette mir lieber ein wenig mehr glam-Rotz gewuenscht, anstatt ewig auf dem ausgelutschten rock ‘n’ roll –
Garagensound rum zureiten, denn dadurch klingen die Soda Pop Kids latent sehr nach boring Rolling Stones der 60er. Ich haette dann lieber die andere Variante bevorzugt, you know snotty Dead Boys der 70er mit den Black Halos und D Generation der 90er. Fuer mich bleiben die songs irgendwann im Nirgendwo stecken und wirken eben nur noch althergebracht und ziemlich gewoehnlich. Das das solch einer band passieren koennte, die u.a. den Saenger von The Riffs, Tony Mengis am Bass und Stevie Kix von The Weaklings am Schlagzeug beherbergt, haette ich mir vorher einfach nicht denken koennen. Das ist mir einfach too much an whiskey durchtraenkendem R&B stuff.
SLAM ROCKS – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
Dischetto di onesto rock ‘n’ roll punkeggiante quello fatto uscire dai The Soda Pop Kids (ex-Kill City Thrillers), band di Denver formata da Jonny P., Rox .45, D-Nice, Diet D, e Captain J.,
Write Home non presenta quella che si dice una produzione cristallina, ma tantè che nel genere che ci propongono poco serve, anche se in alcune tracce dei suoni migliori avrebbero di certo valorizzato le stesse.
Come loro stessi ammettono, il loro sound viene influenzato da New York Dolls, Dead Boys, The Stooges, ma con quell'aggiunta di rock ‘n’ roll a-là Chuck Berry che rende il tutto meno irruento. Dischetto non proprio per tutti, ma se amate le bands citate, Write Home potrebbe regalarvi ottimi spunti che io ho individuato in pezzi come "Paper Rose", "Memory Lane", e "Leavin' Kill City", al contrario, pollice verso per "Chained with Your Love", "Shots of Whiskey", e "Electric Blood".
DIG IT – ABOUT WRITE HOME:
La dernière trouvaille de chez Full Breach Kicks est une bonne surprise blindée d'influences familières: Stones, glam-trash à la New York Dolls, speed punk rigolo avec "hou wah hooou" à profusion et handclaps énervés à grimper sur la table. Le tout est vrillé de mini solos aiguisés et propulsé par une rythmique puissante autant que finaude (les breaks marrants tombent pile-poil). Le groupe s'appelle The Soda Pop Kids et a fraîchement émigré de Denver, où ils sévissaient sous le nom des Kill City Thrillers, jusqu'en Oregon, où ils ont débauché Stevie Kix, le batteur des tempétueux Weaklings. Le bassiste Tony Mengs, lui aussi recruté à Porland, était avant ça chanteur de The Riffs. Ce premier album Write Home, malgré un chanteur (Johnny P. Jewels) légèrement en retrait, devrait filer quelques salvatrices secousses électriques à ceux qui aiment relever leur punk d'une solide rasade de glam rock. Classez ça au chapitre "improbable rencontre Johnny Thunders/New Bomb Turks" et poussez les potards à 22. Il parait que leurs shows sont spectaculaires et que le matériel y est régulièrement maltraité.
