One of the more traditional-sounding of California's punk revival bands, Swingin' Utters formed in the late '80s around a first-name-only lineup of vocalist Johnny, guitarists Max and Darius, bassist Kevin, and drummer Greg. Originally based in Santa Cruz, these street punks later moved to San Francisco and recorded for several different labels, including Side One, IFA Records, and New Red Archives. The group first released 1992's Scared as Johnny Peebucks & the Swingin' Utters, but things really started to happen for them three years later with their full-length The Streets of San Francisco. The album garnered the band much attention, including Best Debut Album at the Bay Area Music Awards, and Swingin' Utters soon found themselves on the first annual Vans Warped Tour. They later also toured with Rancid before signing to Fat Wreck Chords (run by NOFX's Fat Mike); Swingin' Utters released A Juvenile Product of the Working Class in 1996 and Five Lessons Learned two years later. The Sounds Wrong EP from 1995 was re-released by the label in 1998, with the Brazen Head EP following the next year. Around the same time, the guys also lent six tracks to a split with Youth Brigade as part of the BYO Split Series. The band's self-titled third-studio effort was released in fall 2000, and national tours with the Damned and Dropkick Murphys further heightened the group's popularity among punk rockers. Their debut full-length, produced by Lars Fredericksen, was re-released in October 2001. The next Swingin' Utters studio effort, Dead Flowers, Bottles, Bluegrass, and Bones, was issued in February 2003; a live album in the Live in a Dive series surfaced in summer 2004. By this time, the group was comprised of founding members Johnny Bonnel, Darius Koski, and Greg McEntee, along with bassist/vocalist Spike Slawson (Me First and the Gimme Gimmes) and guitarist Jack Dalrymple (One Man Army). Teen Idol Eyes appeared in April 2006. John Bush & Corey Apar, Rovi
P**R
Wistful: 1) Full of wishful yearning. 2) Pensively sad; melancholy.
As someone who has been a fan since the Scared 10" I feel somewhat qualified to throw an opinion in the ring about the Utters' latest disc. And one thing I will not do is heap mindless praise on this just because they've been around forever. There are plenty of awful bands that don't know when to quit. The Utters are not an awful band, and I'm glad they're sticking around. BUT this is NOT Streets Of SF, this is NOT Juvenile Product, and this is NOT Dead Flowers. My opinion is they pretty much perfected their "Fat sound" with Dead Flowers, so mining that territory again would be treading old ground. As would driving the pace and cranking the amps in an attempt to relive Streets Of SF, which they don't do here either (thankfully.) What's going on here is still the same confrontation of life that they've always done so well, just a little further down the road.The first thing I noticed on this album was the almost jangly guitar and comparitively sparse instrumentation. The halcyon Fat years were great, and part of it was the thick, multi-tracked, crunching guitars and blown-out backbeats that propelled almost every song (except the ones for girls) that created very little space in any given song. Contrast that to where they are now, with a downright Johnny Marr-esque jangly guitar lead and less suffocating noise. There is a stark contemplation here that exists without the gut-busting gusto of times-past. This means that some will be sad at the lack of fist-pumping anthems or hopalong pogo-punk. And if you're looking for uber-catchy, the opener (Brand New Lungs) is about as hooky as it gets here. The poetic "what to do with this life" attitude remains, but it's shifted down the line a bit. It's not about teenage rage, or the melody of being twentysomething, because these guys are now fortysomethings. So there's a bit of "resigned to my fate" going on here which explains the wistful point-of-view going on. Kinda pointless to rage, no need to sugarcoat it, just tell it like it is and how you've found this place where you're at. Even the album title is indicative of the reluctant mood ("here under protest.") The punk-rock has dwindled decidedly in favor of just rock. None of us should really say we're surprised, and it's preferable to descending into Rolling Stones style self-parody at this stage.The Utters have done their thing. They aren't gonna stop playing Teenage Genocide, and they aren't gonna stop playing Windspitting Punk, but they are going to weave these songs in as a nice coda to kinda sum it all up and see how things shook out. I may be wistful myself for the days when they outdid themselves with every buzzsaw release, but I like to think I'm mature enough to enjoy where they go from here. Giving a little insight and looking inside to see how we all got here, and how it's all turned out.
S**A
Classic Swinging Utters
I'd lost my copy of this cd so had to order another one. It's a requirement to have a tangible actual cd (as opposed to mp3 download) for those albums and bands that I LOVE and listen to over and over again. One of my favorite Swinging Utters albums and just classic, good punk.
A**M
Loved It!
I bought this as a gift, and it arrived in perfect condition and the recipient loved it!
S**E
Great album!
Just downloaded and gave it a listen and I must say It is an awesome Utters album. The overall sound reminds me a lot of the Utters late 90's material minus the folksy stuff. Yes there is only one folk song on this album, a little disappointing but hopefully the FTB will be putting out a new album soon. If your thinking about buying this, do it! Its another Swingin Utters gem. May be their best yet
M**7
Same Swingin' Utters
Same old band but this one sounds like they are moving and starting to try new things, which leads to the Poorly Formed cd. Still a good buy if you love SU..
M**7
Five Stars
A favorite!
K**I
Another great album from the boys by the bay!
The Swingin' Utters have done it again! Here, Under Protest definitely ranks among their best albums! Thanks Johnny and the boys for this great album!! Can't wait to see you guys live again!
A**R
Ein Stück Punkgeschichte
Sehr gute Platte die man rauf und runter hören kann.Für alles fans des Punks ist es ein muss. Daher:KAUFEN!
ミ**ル
超クール
このアルバムは今までで一番かもしれない。従来のアッタース節はキープしつつも、元ワン・マン・アーミーのジャック・ダリンプル加入でさらに表情豊かなアルバムとなった。Kick it Over 今までこんなクールな曲アッタースか？ まさにチナベスキーさんのいうとおりだよ！ 素晴らしい。俺達パンク狂ガイにとってながく愛聴盤になるだろう。
ﾁ**ｰ
Welcome back !!!
アッターズが帰ってきたぜー!!!相変わらずのアッターズ節で思わず顔がほころんだよ〜しかも最後の曲でONE MAN ARMYのジャックが歌ってるんだよ〜このアルバムを聴いてとても幸せな気持ちになっているのは決してオレだけじゃないはずだ!!!
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