It's now time for our 190th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and with nothing brand new on sale this month from heavier or punk acts from the area, let's take a dip into the archives for an album that I've surprisingly never talked about in great detail here. In honour of this month's Room 206 reunion concert at Soo Blaster, this review is of
"Junk In The Trunk", a December 2003 compilation album put out by the original punk-centric version of
Tidal Records, the indie label led by Inner City Surfers frontman/Bookclub bassist Dustin Jones. The first CD release from Tidal, this was produced and engineered by Dustin and his long-time bandmate Dave "soanso" Bahun, with mixing by Eric Harry and mastering done at Umbrella Sound Studios in Toronto. This punk-leaning compilation features songs from five bands featuring local talent (one being Room 206), each contributing 1-3 songs apiece, as well as a title track featuring multiple musicians and a bonus track.
Unfortunately, the liner notes for the CD do not list complete performer credits on each song, just who wrote them, but Dave and fellow Surfers mainstay Mikey Hawdon (on drums) are credited for "guest appearances on various tracks". I won't assume who is/isn't on given songs unless I'm very certain, but expect commonalities from local punk musicians of the late 1990s and early 2000s. "Junk In The Trunk" has been out of print for over 20 years, but the CD cost $15 at the time. A YouTube copy has been online for three years, but it has bare bones information, two songs mistakenly cut off, and no bonus track, so I have re-posted the whole thing on the SMS' YouTube channel, and songs below are linked to the copies in that upload. No copyright infringement is intended whatsoever, all credit goes to the original musicians! With eleven songs running for about 36 minutes, let's take a long overdue look at the junk in Tidal Records 1.0's trunk!
Apologies in advance for any errors on band particulars, I wasn't following local bands yet in 2003. This album is opened by Brad Example & The Role Models, the band led by Surfers bassist Brad "Example" Lacell, which was sporadically active from at least 2003-2014 before his move out of town. Mel Radke and Brad's Love & Rehab bandmate Alexis Mantello are credited for providing backing vocals on their lone offering on this CD, namely "365", which was once re-recorded for MySpace in 2006. If you're familiar with the grittier, bluesier songs on Surfers albums with Brad singing, you'll be right at home on this song, which has a country ambiance to the guitar work while still having a punk edge, plus well suited lyrics. The backing vocals do somewhat clutter the sound when implemented, but it's a tight number that fans of Brad's solo material will get a kick out of, and it's nice to hear a Role Models studio track again!
Brad returns next for the first of three offerings by his Toronto punk band
Love & Rehab, who (at the time) also featured singer/guitarist Mike Theriault and drummer Alexis Mantello, all originally from the Soo. Modern readers may recall Love & Rehab for their reunion set at The Inner City Surfers' own reunion concert at LopLops in August 2019, and from a PositiveSoo article at the time. Mike & Alexis wrote their contributions to "Junk In The Trunk", with the first being
"Moonshiner", which is a somewhat laid back power pop number with a catchy guitar riff. I'd have
really boosted Mike's vocals in the mix, as his vocals are not very prominent beneath the instruments, but this is a fun track for what it is, and the talent is definitely on display to write a song that sticks in your head with strong melodies! If only Mike's singing was louder. Third up on the CD is Dustin Jones' Toronto-based punk band
Sideblinder, who had a more prominent run in the GTA from 2008-2013 that did receive some light attention in SMS posts.
While Sideblinder featured Salads alumni in their lineup during that later run, I don't 100% know who joined Dustin in this band as of 2003. Their first of two songs here is "Banished", and there will be obvious Inner City Surfers comparisons here with Dustin at the mic, but this is more of a direct punk number without their folksy influences, so if you like the punk sides of the Surfers, don't bypass this one. Again, guitar melodies shine here, and it's a well written number that calls to mind Dustin's prolific local band work while standing on its own, and the percussion is solid while it lasts too! Fourth up are The Varsity Street Kids, a rock band led by former Bombed Squad/Big Kahunas guitarist Pat Suriano, who is the only credited writer for their two offerings on this album, and also designed the album artwork. No other 100% confirmed band member credits are given, but Dustin is definitely helping on backing vocals, at the very least.
Their first song here is also the longest on "Junk In The Trunk", namely the 6+ minutes-long
"On The Cusp". Tidal compared Pat's music here to that of Dinosaur Jr. at the time, and you do get some of that on this laid back, deliberately paced alt-rock with some of the easiest lyrics yet to actually pay attention to. Pat's downbeat but pointed lead vocals suit the song's pacing, and while not at the pace and energy of earlier punk-leaning songs, but the chorus is really overdone, and I don't think this song really needed to be as long as it is, as it does get repetitive. Nice change of pace though, and it's have been interesting to hear this band more had they lived into The Sault Metal Scene's inception! We hit the halfway point next with the return of Love & Rehab, whose second song here is named
"Change". A rollicking and way more punk-inspired number than "Moonshiner" was, this again suffers in the mix, but not just vocally, as the instrumentation is really muddled.
It's not a bad song at all though, and for my musical tastes, it's more of an intense, in-your-face track from Love & Rehab with effective guitar moments and strong drumming! I just wish the parts came together more individually and that it was easier to really pick out Mike's vocals, which haven't been problems with the other bands on offer. The last of the five unique bands here is next, namely local punk staples Room 206, whose only song here ("Last Stance") was their first new song release in about eight years, but I don't believe this particular reunion lasted very long. Singer/guitarist Mike Yorke and bassist Brad Lacell are your credited writers here, while guitarist Dave Bahun and drummer Allan Watson likely rounded things out in terms of their lineup. By far the most intense punk song on offer, fans of skate punk will be right at home with Mike's melodic yet edged vocals, chugging bass, and quick paced verses, so Room 206 fans will have no worries!
Dave gets the best chance to shine yet on "Last Stance" via one of his trademark guitar solos, something that punk needs more of in general. Definitely a highlight for me on "Junk In The Trunk", and yes, we will have video footage from their reunion concert earlier this month in an upcoming news post! The next three songs are all from returnees from the album's first half, starting with Sideblinder's second song "Split End", which is a much more reserved track than "Banished" that does call to mind softer Surfers and Rising Tide songs, but with more of an alternative rock bent, almost like it was written with rock radio in mind. The louder and fuller chorus does feel more distinct from his bigger bands in particular, and the drumming is really good throughout! A solid change of pace if you wanted to hear a Dustin-fronted band with less of an emphasis on folk or punk, so don't bypass it on this stacked compilation disc!
The Varsity Street Kids' second song is next, namely "Deep Breaths", and this is a much faster and shorter song than "On The Cusp", but still harbours Pat's somewhat maudlin and low singing. There is definitely more of a punk influence here (I was kinda reminded of Husker Du a bit), and the song definitely feels more at home with its discmates than the previous, complete with a brief guitar solo, but the vocals will be an acquired taste compared to the music. Good stuff though! The last song on this CD from a credited band is Love & Rehab's third and final song, namely "The Ruiner", which takes a lot more cues from Brad's solo music than their first two, with a country-inspired guitar riff and pacing. While not ideal for my musical preferences, this song has by far Mike's clearest vocals, so that counts for a lot! At the same time, his higher vocal range is not a clean fit on a classic country/blues number.
"The Ruiner" is just aching for Brad's gravelly delivery, and I wouldn't be against hearing him do a solo version of it nowadays. Not a bad song for genre fans, but aside from the better vocal mix, it's not really for me. The last credited song is the album's title track "Junk In The Trunk", which was recorded by a supergroup of then-Tidal Records artists who appear elsewhere on this CD. The three credited writers are Dustin Jones, Mike Theriault, and Al Watson, but the credited performers are simply given as "Many". Gauging this against the nine full-band songs is pointless because this is an extremely loose and carefree acoustic jam with performers simultaneously singing on this casual acoustic jam. This would play well as a night-ending song to have a beer or two with, and you really have to take it for what it is, so it's fun in that way! Lots of cross-talk and background discussion too, but the song does probably run a minute or two too long, as it kind of loses its way late.
Still, this is a pleasant closer that fans and friends of the original Tidal Records and Surfers-adjacent bands will definitely enjoy at base level! A 63 seconds-long bonus track rounds out the CD and is not advertised on the physical copies. It has an answering machine message of what sounds like a sped up song played by an ice cream truck while someone interjects with brief dialogue, saying what sounds like "You won't" a few times, and ending with "That's right". I really don't know what to make of this, and I assume I'm missing some type of inside joke from 2003, but look for the bonus track at the end of the disc!
So, what are my final thoughts on "Junk In The Trunk"? I liked it for the most part, and it captures a window in time into what The Inner City Surfers were up to in other bands and projects during their early run! The original Tidal Records didn't last very long (they first fell inactive in 2005 before Dustin relaunched the label with a less punk-centric focus in 2013), but they had a strong core talent roster at the time, with all five included bands offering up entertaining original music for this compilation. Room 206's skate punk song was my favourite, while Sideblinder will definitely be a fun listen for fans of Dustin's bands, Brad & The Role Models kept things familiar for fans of Brad's modern Atikokan-era solo music, Love & Rehab showed good diversity on their three cuts, and The Varsity Street Kids put Pat's unique vocals to good use on two very different songs, so there's a lot to like from these five bands!
The title track is a fun little farewell/summative number for fans of this era/rotation of bands too, but don't rate it 100% against the preceding cuts. In terms of issues... the vocal mix on Love & Rehab's first two songs was far from ideal, "On The Cusp" was way too long, I really didn't get the bonus track at all, and I'd have tried to have more of an even split of bands on the final copy (as in, have everyone perform two songs, or give one of Love & Rehab's slots to Room 206 or The Role Models). At the same time, a Surfers song may have helped the retrospective awareness of "Junk In The Trunk", but the focus was put on newer and reunited bands, and it was a good idea (even if the liner notes don't have full credits). This now-rare compilation is a strong album of cuts from the early days of Tidal Records, so definitely give it a listen at the above links, and I hope you liked this month's CD review!
Next month, we will we will return back to 2025 for a brand new album review, as we'll next look at HeadFirst's second album "Road Trippin'", which comes out at its release party on May 3rd! Look for that next month, and for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
Next up, here's some news on two new/upcoming local metal albums, starting with a brand new release, as local industrial metal act The Realignment Project released their new EP "The Frustration Sessions" on Monday! According to their Facebook page, it is "now available everywhere", and by "everywhere", they mean Bandcamp once again, as well as YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple Music, and even the Taiwanese streaming service KKBox, all of which now host T.R.P.'s debut EP "Afterthought" as well. "The Frustration Sessions" can be bought in mp3 format on Bandcamp on a "name your price" model, and on iTunes for $5.94, so consider buying it to support Matt's work! As well, the first song "Rocketship" got a lyric video for the project's official YouTube channel, as four songs from "Afterthought" also got at the time. Matt had also teased a lyric video for "Static" in this Facebook "Reel", but it has yet to be made public.
Also, here's the latest from Sault Michigan metal solo project X's & Y's, who have confirmed that their second studio album "Ruination Coactive" will be released to major streaming services and in limited CD copies on Friday, June 13th! The track listing reveal from last month may have hinted towards this release timeframe, as one song is named "The Gemini Machine". Technically, the album's name is "Яuiᴎдтюᴎ Koдcтive" given the faux Cyrillic, but spell that at your own peril. To go along with the impending album release, X's & Y's have launched a BigCartel page to sell extant CD copies of their debut album "The Obsidian Dream", stickers of both albums' cover artwork, and even "Ruination Coactive" keychains. Keep all this in mind to support X's & Y's and original E.U.P. metal! Yes, the URL references Werehold Records, project leader Jason Mills' old indie label that he used as an imprint for "The Obsidian Dream" (hint for future plans?)
Finally, here's the latest from Sault Ontario crossover thrash quartet Hails, who are on a new CD release of their own! While its official public on-sale date is June 7th, the cross-Canada compilation album "Punk Canada Vol. 4" (featuring covers of domestic Canadian punk bands) is available early from Ha!ls members for $20, and it features them covering Toronto punk legends The Almighty Trigger Happy's song "Meathook". As best as I can gather, this cover isn't available yet for streaming, but if you want to hear it, former Saultite Ash Richtig's Windsor band Avoid The Comment Section, and more right away, give Hails a shout! In terms of an embeddable video to send things out with, guitarist Carmen Muto is the focus of this new video from Ha!ls' Facebook page of him playing some sweeps on his guitar for 14 seconds. Why this horizontal landscape video was uploaded in pillarboxed vertical dimensions, I don't know, but Carmen shows his skills nicely here!
