Album Reviews
Not to be confused with the electronic, experimental & freestyle music project going by the same name, Cosmic Joke is an LA-based hardcore punk meets skate punk band that will be releasing their debut album on Jan 19 on HardLore Records, the newly formed label that got its start as a podcast.
While the title track takes you back to ‘Rohnert Park’ era Ceremony, Cosmic Joke are also influenced by legends like Bad Religion, Circle Jerks, and Descendents among others, resulting in nine songs that are so in your face, you can almost feel vocalist Mac Miller’s spit hitting your cheek. Cosmic Joke may pay hommage to the LA punk of yesteryear, they do manage to make it all sound fresh again. The result? A memorable album that packs plenty of melodic punch and crunchy riffs along with pop-punk sensibilities.
Lyrically, the record deals with consumerism, always wanting more and it never being enough. Kinda like the feeling I’m left with when the last notes of ‘Morphine’ ring out.
Cosmic Joke track list:
- Kamikaze
- Empty Nesting Doll
- Throwing Stones
- Tempered Expectations
- Cosmic Joke
- Howard Beale
- Hedonic Treadmill
- Leave It Alone
- Morphine
Lacking the talent to actually play in a band, Tom decided he would write about bands instead. Turns out his writing skills are mediocre at best as well.
