We were recently asked to contribute questions to a special pop culture trivia section being hosted by The Nielsen Company. Along with sites like Billboard.com, IMDB, Cracked, Paste and several others, we wrote a handful of questions related to our area; in this case, we contributed questions relating to punk with questions hitting the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s music scenes.

The whole staff came up with them, so they’re a little challenging, but we figure you guys will make short work of them. You can check out the whole thing here.
Source Continue reading Punknews.org contributes trivia to new Neilson site →

SideOneDummy has helped to organize “Beautiful Noise.” A benefit concert for the family of Mike Conley that will take place Monday, April 28 at the Anaheim House of Blues. Performers include a special acoustic guest appearance from Social Distortion as well as The Cadillac Tramps and a tribute to Conley’s bands Jigsaw and Naked Soul. The evening will end with a set from M.I.A. with Jello Biafra and Kevin Seconds (7Seconds) handling front man duties.

All proceeds from “Beautiful Noise” will benefit The Mike Conley Family Memorial Fund. Mike Conley was killed in an accident in Chicago in late February of this year. Mike founded the legendary Las Vegas punk band M.I.A. in the early 80’s. Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys saw M.I.A. during one of their early shows and quickly signed them to his label Alternative Tentacles where M.I.A. released, “Murder in a Foreign Place” to rave reviews. After M.I.A. broke up Mike Conley continued his musical career with strong efforts from both Naked Soul and Jigsaw. Most recently Mike Conley opened The Avalon Bar located in Costa Mesa California. Mike Conley leaves behind three daughters and a wife.

Tickets go on sale this Saturday, April 5 for $35. Doors open at 7pm and the show starts at 8pm.
Source Continue reading Social Distortion, Kevin Seconds, Jello Biafra plan benefit for MIA’s Mike Conley →

A solo exhibition of drawings by Steak Mtn is set to open tomorrow at Chicago’s The Threadless Gallery. The show will run from April 4-29. An opening party is set for tomorrow from 4:00-7:00. The show, titled The Most Explosive Picture of the Year, will feature three different phases of the artist’s work, including work used in recent punk and noise records. Steak Mtn’s work has appeared on releases and apparel from Fake Problems, Panthers, The Draft, Atom and his Package and Against Me!

More information on the exhibition can be found here.
Source Continue reading Steak Mtn solo exhibit opens in Chicago tomorrow →

From First To Last have posted the first video from their upcoming Suretone/Universal debut. The self-titled record is due out April 15, 2008. It is the follow-up to Heroine which was released in 2006 via Epitaph.

Since that last record, the band parted ways with vocalist Sonny Moore. He has since been replaced by guitarist Matt Good. The album was recorded with producer Josh Abraham..

You can check out the video here.
Source Continue reading From First to Last: “Worlds Away” →

Anti-Flag and the Dropkick Murphyshave been confirmed to play on the main stage at the Reading & Leeds Weekender from the 22nd to the 24th of August. Festival headliners include Rage Against the Machine, Metallica, Tenacious D, Queens of the Stone Age, Slipknot, The Killers & Bloc Party. Other noteworthy acts include The Raconteurs, Avenged Sevenfold, Taking Back Sunday, and Vampire Weekend.

The festival features six stages and many, many more bands staged between Reading and Leeds, who swap lineups on different days. Visit the festival’s website for details.
Source Continue reading Anti-Flag, Bloc Party, Dropkick Murphys to play mainstage Leeds/Reading Weekender UK →

Fullerton, CA’s Death By Stereo are in the studio finishing a new record. They have posted a video journal, viewable on the band’s MySpace page, as well as a few new tour dates in preparation for support of the new album.

The band last released Death For Life in 2005.
Source Continue reading Death By Stereo post studio video →

No Idea Records has begun auctioning off test-pressings for a number of releases from their catalog. The auction is being held as a fund raiser to benefit J. Robbins’s son Cal, who was born with a genetic condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy. While treatments for the condition are available, they are extremely costly and not covered by health insurance.

So far the hottest item is a test pressing for Against Me!‘s Reinventing Axl Rose, which comes with a special cloth cover. Other items include test pressings from Hot Water Music, Less Than Jake, Chuck Ragan and Latterman. For the complete list, check here.
Source Continue reading No Idea auctioning test presses for J. Robbins’ son →

No Idea Records has begun auctioning off test-pressings for a number of releases from their catalog. The auction is being held as a fund raiser to benefit J. Robbins’s son Cal, who was born with a genetic condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy. While treatments for the condition are available, they are extremely costly and not covered by health insurance.

So far the hottest item is a test pressing for Against Me!‘s Reinventing Axl Rose, which comes with a special cloth cover. Other items include test pressings from Hot Water Music, Less Than Jake, Chuck Ragan and Latterman. For the complete list, check here.
Source Continue reading No Idea auctioning test presses for J.’ Robbins son →

Peoria, IL’s Scouts Honor have posted a live video of new song titled “Arise” being performed in Austin, TX during SXSW, captured by the folks at Thinker Thought Records.

Source Continue reading Scouts Honor: “Arise” →

Whitby, Ontario’s Carousel have posted a few tracks from their debut EP released in March. Visit their Myspace page to take a listen.

Muncie, Indiana’s The Widow Jenkins (ex Emery/Brazil) has just posted two new demos online for your streaming pleasure. “Gallows Hill” is available on the band’s MySpace page, while “The Skeleton of Dorian Grey” can be found at the group’s Warped Tour page.

Monroe, New Jersey’s Gray Lines of Perfection have posted a new song from their upcoming full length titled Reaching The Ends of the Earth on their MySpace page. The album is due out on May 20th on Harvest Earth Records.

Source Continue reading Carousel, The Widow Jenkins, Gray Lines of Perfection →

You’re the lucky reader of the 34th edition of the Punknews.org Vinyl File. This column aims to keep you informed with upcoming releases as well as spotlighting interesting releases, your favorite bands’ own collections and labels with a history of vinyl releases worth talking about.

This week we’re excited to announce the winner of a test pressing of Hot Water Music‘s latest collection, Til the Wheels Fall Off, which is out now on No Idea Records. It has a special red version of the tour pressing cover and is limited 1 of 20. Not only that, it also comes with a poster signed by the band.

As always, Vinyl File is brought to you by Ben Conoley.
Source Continue reading Hot Water Music test press winners and upcoming releases →

Paramore has posted the new video from their breakthrough album, Riot!.

You can find the video here.
Source Continue reading Paramore: “That’s What You Get” →