Paradox Intact is the band's first release since 2020 I believe. This is when their remarkable The Perfect Candidate LPcame out. So if I'm counting correctly, this would make it Miscalculations sixth long player since their debut dropped back in 2013. I mention this not because the band is starting to sound trite or dull after so many releases, quite the opposite in fact. Shaun Clark and Marco Palumbo Rodrigues jump back into the melee head first with fists tightened and teeth clenched.
On this much anticipated new record, the band's resolve appears herculean, vision seems clearer, and direction is locked in and focused. Like urban nocturnal hunters honing in on their prey in the darkest of moonless nights. The band continues to take us down a rainy, dimly lit, neo-futuristic world with songs that evoke only the most ruinous of human emotions. Most of the time the tracks on this record have the bass guitar guiding the way through the murky waters like Charon through the river Styx. Meanwhile, the guitars fade in and out, swirling all around the unlighted, driving rhythms like restless apparitions. The vocals howl and wail desperately like a regretful soul, trapped in a spiritual prison of their own making. These hymns of psychosis featured here range from fast, hard driving blasters to mid tempo numbers that remind me a bit of early Killing Joke or Rozz Williams era Christian Death with a dystopian twist. Miscalculations aren't a goth or death rock band though. They do however stay on the shadowy side of punk, post punk and new wave, mixing a new sinister elixir of their own.
Make no mistake, Miscalculations are not here to hold your hand through a break up, or to try to make sense of your small, petty world for you. They simply hold a mirror to the dark and desperate lands in which we now dwell in or will soon come to pass. And that right there may be the most unnerving approach to an art form there is. Album is available now digitally with vinyl careening our way soon from No Front Teeth records.
Shock Treatment: Let’s start out by going way back to the 1990’s! How did the band first meet and get together to play?
Tom: Me and Steve were in a couple of bands in high school (Faces of Death and others.) Steve played guitar and I played bass. Those bands played a few shows/parties etc. We lived in the same neighborhood. Albert and I went to an all boys Catholic school for high school (which may explain most of our personal problems) and knew each other there. I think occasionally in a basement we would attempt to get Albert to sing. Victoria and I went to college together and I was in a different band and she then formed her own band. Both of us played bass. Steve and I continued to play in basement bands together but never did anything significant. At the same time I was making goofy tapes with a friend on Tascam recorders and we got Albert to sing a song. That guy, Jeff, was a drummer and at the same time Victoria and I were living together and decided to try and start a band with Albert singing but Jeff did not want to be in a band with a couple (which I do understand). I had switched to guitar and when we did not have a drummer I asked Steve who agreed if we could get him a set for $50. We bought that off another guy we knew from college and then started practicing in his attic with the plan to write 9 songs about random celebrities. This was Tascam 90s shit that was really just for us with no plan to do anything. Steve was playing guitar in a band with his roommates on guitar who had a show and offered us a show opening a really crappy club in Somerville called Club 3. We did that and suddenly started getting other offers. That was 1993 I think. We played the first few years with the most random collection of bands but eventually ran across other bands who were in parallel universes like Fat Day and he August Spies who were both fantastic and also from completely different worlds. Fat Day were WHRB DJs and Harvard students doing DIY things in their basement and through the station while the spies we’re doing basement shows in Allston and really I don’t give a fuck punk rock. There were other great bands I’m forgetting but once we met those two bands and started playing shows with them it made the shows we played way better.
The classic debut LP Appetite Of Kings came out in 1996 on the label Elevator Music. Can you tell me how the recording process went for that record?
We recorded that record twice. The first time was with a guy named Bill T. Miller who we did the Xmas single and Drano song with. Those came out pretty well so we went with him to this studio in Revere, Euphoria, which I think had not been updated since the 80s, lots of dead rooms etc.. It wasn’t Bill’s fault but it came out really flat/some songs were just wrong and we did not play well. Given we recorded everything we ever did in incredibly short sessions.1 day recording, 1 day vocals and any extras w/ a few hours to mix. At the same time this guy we know Shred had us do a live on radio thing with WBCN, which was the big rock station that did a local sunday night thing. The guy Eric who recorded us and the studio we went to just worked better so we re-recorded it with him again in about 2 days it came out better so there you go. We were all learning to play as you can hear throughout our recordings. There are a lot of things I would do differently with that record but I think the energy is great. The guitar is thin and there are minimal if any overdubs but it’s a punk record. Energy> Quality
I could be mistaken, but you guys didn’t tour a whole lot outside the East Coast area during the 90’s right? Were you guys just not interested? Not a ton but being from Boston we traveled between Maine, DC and out to Ohio a good amount. Our first actual tour was with the New Bomb Turks from Philly through the south (east coast). We were lucky enough to open for them in at the Middle east in Cambridge We had played with Gaunt, one of the great forgotten 90’s band, at this outdoor thing for WMBR the MIT radio station…where I remember Jerry Wick (RIP) swearing at the cops and hiding when it was getting shutdown…anyhow they were pals with the Turks who then asked for us to open for them at the middle east (club here) . (The booking agent actually said to us well I’ll put you on the show but your not really a punk band…what the fuck?) Anyhow the Turks watched us and thought we had a certain what the fuck factor which I know what they mean and were nice enough to ask us to tour with them. They were and are the best live band ever and great guys. I think we may have never done much if not for that tour. It was so much fun and we came out of it as a much better band. Otherwise we toured the Midwest w/ Blanks 77 who also became very good friends and we did a full US loop with the Twerps from Ohio (one of the greatest unknown bands truly insane). (We did a split with them on 702 which is now called Slovenly) We also toured Spain and Portugal with the Tedio Boys another great band some went on to the Parkinsons who had a moment in the UK….that tour was was amazing playing communist halls and random places where they would give us all the wine we wanted and take us out to dinner. I recommend this. Otherwise we did tons of trips up and down the east coast on weekends. We all had jobs, Victoria was in grad school and we really had one agenda: put out records we like and have fun. We were interested in doing more but it just didn’t happen. I think we all wanted to go to the UK and Montreal and Europe but never figured that out.
Some of the show flyers I’ve seen of the bands you did play with in and around the Boston area must have been absolutely insane! Can you tell me about any of the shows you guys played back in the day that still stick in your memory? We played in Lansing Michigan once at a show w/ an all female band called the Fags who were great then we played maybe 10 minutes and the show was shut down because a neighbor was throwing dynamite at the punks at the show. There was also a red laser this lunatic kept pointing at different people. I think this was foreshadowing of militias. We were super lucky to play with a ton of bands. We were fans of the Toy Dolls, The Business (who we became good friends with), Chelsea, Peter and the Test Tube Babies etc... There were also some really great shows in Carteret NJ with bands like the Mean Mistreaters, Bone Meal basically house parties that were insane but really fun. The first time we played there one of the kids in the Mean Mistreaters parents were away so he had us play in his backyard. His grandmother who was pretty deaf kept coming out to see what was happening and he kept shuffling here off. It was summer and there were neighbors in the over ground pools that kept looking over the fence then Bone Meal started chanting “Fuck the Neighbors!” It was great. Lots of North Jersey shows with the Blanks, Wretched Ones, Headwound, the Bristles at the Court Tavern or the Pipeline. Those bands are really under rated. I put the Wretched Ones up against any other punk band. Top tier.
Sophomore slumps be damned! In 1999 you guys released the absolute stunner of a second full length Permanent Stains on Damaged Goods records. In my opinion one of the best punk records of the decade! How did you guys hook up with Damaged Goods to release it?
Thank you. I think why that came out well is we connected with Jim Seigal who ran a studio called the Outpost. He was a really great engineer and could get the sound we wanted. We were connected to them by Surefire distribution who used to sell our records. We were fans of a bunch of their bands particularly the Armitage Shanks plus a lot of the punk re-releases they did. Victoria met the guy when she was in London visiting her family and they sorted it out.
And it was not long after that, that you guys kind of dropped off the map at least for a lowly fan way out in Phoenix, Arizona! Did you guys go your separate ways soon after that?
We did play out there I think Arizona or New Mexico I can’t really remember no trees, hot desert ?. What I remember is that the Twerps booked it through one of the guys in FYP who split town before we arrived and were playing in some coffee shop that was never told about the show. I know this shit happens but oof that sucked. Maybe you were the one guy there?? Anyhow, we broke up in May 2000. It was not really acrimonious but things weren’t working as well in terms of fun. Some of us wanted to take a break, some didn’t. It was a conversation and suddenly it was over. No real reason to go through all that now. Anyone that has been in a band for 7 years knows how things can go sideways. One thing that there was always an implicit agreement on was that Showcase Showdown was the 4 of us. We were not interested in replacing members. Personally, I’m a bit of a purest that way. It can really ruin a band. There are so many examples. It’s not like there is money in this shit so I’m always wondering for bands that do that “Is it really worth it?” Get a job and start another band.
You guys released a lot of your music in the 90’s on 7” and split EP’s. Have you guys ever thought of doing a “singles and rarities” compilation? In other words, can you PLEASE make a singles and rarities compilation? I love the Pissing Out The Poison thing the New Bomb Turks did. I have thought of this but does anyone out there want to pay for it?? Let us know, we have Venmo.
If I’m not mistaken, you guys have reunited from time to time before, right? Tell me about how this newest reunion for The Dropkick Murphy’s “Spirit of ‘96” show coming up in March came about?
No we never played another show, this will be the first one aside from our practices leading up to this. Ken called us and he nailed the timing. I think we first crossed paths with the DKM in 95 or 6 back very early when Jeff Erna was their drummer. I remember Ken calling us to get on a show which I think was Showcase Showdown, Fat Day, the Goons from DC the Pissed Officers (find that record that turns into a rocket ship) and DKM. I think Ken and Mike are my age but Rick and Jeff were older and from older punk bands (the Outlets ect). Needless to say they had their shit together. It was a pretty cool collision of bands all punk but with completely different interpretations and attitudes. Back to the question…. Steve, Victoria and I have been in touch over the years and a mutual friend came out to Boston this summer and first me and Albert spent time together then w/ Victoria as well. There have also been some funerals of family and friends that put us in the same room. A couple of other personal things were hanging out with the New Bomb Turks this summer and having a really great time and conversation with Jim Weber that made me think way more positively about Showcase Showdown. We are also good friends with The Pist and they had just reformed and have been awesome but then sadly Bill died which sucked but what would have sucked more is if they did not get back together. Anyhow, Ken asked and we reached out to each other gave a tentative yes and then me and Vic flew to Colorado to see if Steve could still play and he could so it was a go.
Is this reunion the beginning of something more for The Showcase Showdown? Could there possibly be new music coming out from the band? No idea we are just having fun doing this.
I want to personally thank you for taking the time out and doing this, it really does mean the world to me. Where can people go online to follow the band, listen to your music, etc.? No problem. Thanks for asking
Mod Lang - Borrowed Time LP - (Just Add Water Records)
There is something so wonderfully refreshing about the ten songs here on this record that Detroit's Mod Lang and Just Add Water Records have masterfully collected and decided to gift the undeserving world. This record's got mid 70"s stomp and roll with thick heel drum beats and melodies so bright you can almost feel the warmth of the sun shining on your face. Like on a long, carefree summers day when you and your friends decide to drive to the local Dairy Queen with the top down. And the biggest priority in your life is how you're going to get noticed by that one person you want to notice you. And you keep debating weather or not to go to that lame ass party across town that you normally wouldn't go, but you heard they might be there. And that changes everything. Mod Lang remind me musically of early 70's bands like the Scottish band Middle Of The Road. Since we're on the subject of 70's and Scotland, maybe a little Bay City Rollers but without the cheese. Mod Lang do offer a bit more sophistication, especially in the lyrics. Like in the style of John Phillips or John Sebastian. But you've got to add in the obvious Big Star influence as well.
Mod Lang
Oh and by the way, did I mention that Borrowed Time is the band's debut LP! Just Add Water put out their debut 7" late last year with the amazing A-Side song "TV Star" that appears on the LP and the fantastic guitar roaring non LP B-Side track "3 + 1" which is absolutely essential! So what we have here is a Bubble Gum, Glam Rock, Power Pop sensation that comes around maybe once in generation, if we're lucky. Mod Lang may borrow a bit of the best qualities from past eras of rock n roll, but in no way can they be considered a retro rock band, that would just be a lazy comparison. The band is so much more nuanced in their song writing and are clearly students of pop music. Their unique sound resonates so deeply and profoundly that it anchors their voice in the here and now.
Two bands that I've been really digging lately have been London's Los Pepes and Philly's Dark Thoughts. For whatever reason, when I hear one, I am instantly put in the mood for the other and both band's new LP's have been following the other for months now. It's like both bands have such a complimentary (or if it was 2000 I'd use the word "simpatico") sound to one another. Is it the fact that they are both melodic punk bands? Or dare I say "Pop Punk" bands? I would prefer the former over the latter in this case. No disrespect to the proud pop punkers, I mean it.
Dark Thoughts
To me, when someone says the term "pop punk" an instant image forms in my head of a 16 year old kid with baggy shorts, and a backwards baseball hat singing about the squishy thing they found in their shorts. When I hear the term "melodic punk" I picture bands like Moral Crux or The Hex Dispensers. Is one better than the other? No, not necessarily. Do I sometimes have a hankering for hearing someone singing in a forced nasally voice about that squishy thing that fell out of their shorts? Absolutely! But to me, Dark Thoughts and Los Pepes are melodic punk bands that I have come to love dearly. Both bands released amazing LP's in 2025. Here's a quick look back at both of them and what makes them so special to me.
Los Pepes - Out Of The Void LP Wanda, Spaghetty Town, Beluga Music, Ghost Highway Recordings
Los Pepes have been dubbed "the loudest power pop band on earth" by a writer far more clever and astute than me. However, I can certainly get behind that statement! On the band's 6th LP, guitars burst out of your speakers like a bucking rodeo bronco right out of the gate! And you better be listening to this record loud or just put it away until you have the room to yourself because quiet is something this band doesn't do! Ben Perrier's vocals are a smooth chaser in contrast to the loud guitars and catchy ass riffs that he and Gui Rujao ram down your ear hole on both sides of this record! With this much weight bearing down on the pleasure centers of your brain, you need a solid rhythm section to tether the tunes down so they don't get too light and airy and that's exactly what you get here with Seisuke Nakagawa's punchy bass work and Kris Hood's solid drumming! Los Pepes are one of the best bands out there, no matter what label you want to slap on them. They serve up melodic rock n roll delivered with punk rock fists to your face.
Dark Thoughts - Highway To The End LP (2025) Drunken Sailor, Stupid Bag Records
Dark Thoughts approach to their music definitely comes at us like a rock n roll Ramones bazooka! Oh and you better believe these songs are bubble gum in your hair catchy, and they're being played something close to what I believe to be cheetah speed! This is the band's fourth LP and it only appears that Dark Thought's songs are actually gaining in momentum like a comet's trajectory on a crash course with your very soul! Lead singer and guitarist Jim Shomo pounds one song out after the other in a speed strumming delivery, those guitar stings are most surely bending and straining to maximum test capacity. Meanwhile bass player Amy Opsasnick and drummer Daniel Cox provide a solid wall for these songs to bounce off of and really take flight. Think of the vocals and guitar as the bullet train and the rhythm section as the tunnel and the rails. All units must operate at peak performance for the songs to really blast off and imbed themselves into the slimy folds of your undeserving brain. All 11 songs on this record do that thoroughly and effectively. Your slimy brain is your problem.
Interview conducted with Nadine Muller, Drummer and Vocalist in Loose Lips
Shock Treatment: Can we start off by telling me who all is currently in the Loose Lips rock n roll express and what everyone does to keep the train rolling?
Nadine Muller: I play the drums, Josh is on guitar and Ethan plays bass and we all do vocals!
In our real lives, I work as a freelance hair and makeup artist.
I’ve been running my own business for a while now. Ethan has worn many hats in the 2 years that I've known him but he is currently putting up gig posters and Josh is a fulltime rock dog.
ST: Tell me a bit about how you all met and decided to form Loose Lips?
Nadine: Josh and I met on a tour my other band (The Prize) did supporting his other band (The Chats). We hit it off straight away and became good pals.
We were putting a split 7” with our respective bands and decided to write a song together which we never actually got time to record before the split 7’ was due to come out. The song ‘One More Chance’ became the first Loose Lips song we released.
Ethan and Josh had met under similar circumstances- On tour. Ethan played in a UK band called Chubby and the Gang and he and Josh had toured and hung out so when Ethan moved to Melbourne and we all bumped into each other at the pub one night, Loose Lips was formed.
ST: As a kid or teenager, how did rock n roll find you and sink its hooks in your ears? What bands and/or records really made a lasting impression on you back then?
Nadine: I was lucky enough to grow up with rock’n’roll parents so I always had access to great records and my dad is a drummer so there was always a kit around to bang on.
I fell in love with the Ramones at a young age which has carried through my life.
I was also very heavily inspired by Joan Jett and Debbie Harry of Blondie.
My dad came home with a Shangri-Las record for me when I was a teenager and I played that to death.
The Shangri-Las has been one of the predominant inspirations for Loose Lips.
We all share a deep love for 60s groups such as the Ronettes and Martha and The Vandellas.
ST: What bands did you have in mind when starting Loose Lips? Did you have a particular sound in mind from the start?
Nadine: We wanted to do something that had a different feel to our other bands which are probably more classic power pop. We were keen to lean into a more New York Dolls glam thing but with our 60’s influences.
ST: Loose Lips did a tour of Japan last year where you got to play with some other pretty killer bands out there! How did those shows go?
Nadine: We had a blast! Everyone was so lovely and all of the bands we played with were amazing. The Fadeaways, The Highmarts, Peanuts and Barbed Wire are just a few worth checking out!
ST: All of you are either currently or have been in some other really great bands like The Prize, The Chats, and Chubby & The Gang. What makes playing with Loose Lips a special, unique or just different of an experience than playing with your other bands?
Nadine:It’s always exciting and fun to create music with new people when you really click and share the same vision. Loose Lips is a very uninhibited band and we really don’t overthink anything.
For me, the Prize takes a different approach to writing and working on songs. There’s a lot more people to add their layers during the writing process and it’s maybe a bit more intricate. Whereas this band is probably more carefree and LOOSE!
Photo by Danysha Harriott
ST: You guys just released your absolutely stunning debut LP Last Laugh last year. Can you tell me a bit about how the experience was making it?
Nadine: Thank you. Josh was given an 8 tack tape machine a few years ago so we decided to have a go at recording everything ourselves. We went to my parents house in the country and recorded it over a weekend. After we got all of the tracking done we spent a few days back in Melbourne in my loungeroom, with a tambourine or cowbell and did all of the overdubs.
We had written most of the songs prior to the recording process but I think ‘Too Late to Call’ and ‘Tonight We Go’ Josh pulled out on the day!
ST: And speaking of Last Laugh, it was released on the great Dig! Records here in America. How did you hook up with that label?
Nadine: We love DiG! Josh had hung out with Tim when he toured America with the Chats I believe and they had stayed in touch. I can’t remember who reached out to who but he expressed interest in doing a Loose Lips release and the feeling was mutual.
If you’re a Rock'n'Roll and Power Pop lover make sure to check out the DIG catalog!
So many great bands on that label.
ST: What lies ahead for Loose Lips in 2026?
Nadine: Well! We actually just recorded 4 tracks (on the 8 track tape machine again) a few weeks ago and are going to be putting out a split 12” with Fast Kids! It will of course be coming out on DIG. TBC on the dates but hopefully in the next few months!
ST: Where can people go to hear your music or buy your records either online or in person?
Nadne: You can buy directly through our Bandcamp in Australia or DIG Records in America and hopefully in most of your cool, local record stores!
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