we were born and raised in the street that shot jfk

Summer is always going to be about punk rock for me. Usually it tends to drift more towards the perky strains of pop punk, but there’ll always be that intangible tie between the dirt, grit, and sweat of the day and fists thrown high into the air. Fortuitously, The United Snakes of America’s EP dropped on the warmest day in recent memory, setting the stage for summer to take on the mighty Culebras de los Estados Unidos!.

Starting with “Steedworthy”, the band lays it all on the table. Or, perhaps more accurately, the United Snakes lay it all on the table then shove your face in it. And you love it. The band’s sound falls somewhere between the likes of Queens of the Stone Age and Social Distortion, between the Toadies and the Whigs. The backing vocals on “Holler at White Teeth” make you want to bro down, and the whole album has the feel of kicking back on a friend’s front porch.

“Born and Raised” strikes an excellent balance between punk rock and rock & roll, giving Texas natives something to shout about.

Rounding out the album’s sound is the ever-so-slightly 90s-indie-tinged “Couple’s Skate”. It reminds me of my teen years, and I mean that as a compliment. It evokes the same feelings as when music was everything, everyone wore their heart on their sleeve, and nothing could best a night spent driving around, windows down, singing along at the tops of our lungs.

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Culebras de los Estados Unidos! dropped 03/17/09.
To hear the EP, check out the band’s MySpace.

original pirate material

With The Pirate’s Dilemma, journalist Matt Mason shows how changes in music, technology, and youth culture in general affect the marketplace and our day-to-day existence.

Covering everything from punk and hip-hop to street art and sea-fort dwelling principalities, Mason shows how the pirate mindset and “cut-and-paste” culture have created a new brand of marketplace competition and unforeseen developments in how we create and consume.

Part history, part commentary, The Pirate’s Dilemma proves to be an engaging and surprisingly fun read. Mason utilizes a conversational tone and youthful patois that still comes off as intelligent and well-informed and doesn’t end up sounding like a graying, tweed-wearing professor attempting to incorporate words like “bling-bling” into the discussion in an attempt at keeping up with the times.

To find out more, check out www.thepiratesdilemma.com.