Was anybody else aware that a new Spider Bags 7″ was upon us? I certainly had no idea until I received an e-mail yesterday about their brand new 7″ from Churchkey Records. It’s still not due out for a good chunk of time – until about midway through October on the 19th – but that doesn’t mean we can’t talk about it! This is their first release since their second full-length effort, “Goodbye Cruel World, Hello Crueler World”, and as the e-mail claims (and rightfully so!), “Take It Easy Tonite continues the quality output.” Two awesomely produced and new ramshackle punk-rock-country throw downs (just like the Spider Bags you know and love) put out on beautiful blue and violet swirled vinyl in a limited edition of 100, and then some on the traditional black vinyl. Now you just gotta wait til October 19th…

According to this e-mail, the song on the A-side (“Take It Easy Tonite”) is about the Spider Bag’s undying love for partying while they’re on tour. Normally when the band pulls in late to their next stop on tour, they claim that they’re gonna “take it easy” for the night. Unfortunately for the Bags, it never seems to work out this way. You might be able to figure that out by their music, too, because once you get to the bar, it’s kind of difficult to just “take it easy”. Lead singer and guitarist Dan McGee had this to say about the nature of the song, “It sounded kind of fun to write a hard-rocking pop song around the idea of ‘taking it easy.'” So as you can see, they just basically took this idea and ran with it. The result? This wonderful track “Take It Easy Tonite”, which was carefully mixed for over an entire month. You can hear it in the recording too – epic, eyebrow-searing guitars, echoing drums, and an attitude that’s sure to make you want smash everything in sight – check it out below!

Then the B-side, “Shaunda (What’s My Sign?)”, kind of goes off in a not-so-similar direction. They slow things down for a dirge-like feel, and as it’s said perfectly in this e-mail, “it’s a singeing breath of strung-out fire that’s sure to leave a mark – a late-night rock ‘n’ roll slow-burner.” Normally I’d come up with my own description, but whoever wrote this shit totally nailed it. Props! They even went as far as including overdubs of backwards drumming, which if you’re paying attention close enough, you can certainly hear it. Now I’m curious why they would want to do that. And I almost completely forgot to mention that this B-side features the singing of Bryan Schmitz – a dude you might remember from The Golden Boys. The Bags take control of the instruments while Mr. Schmitz sings away. Normally I’d stream this track for ya as well, but it’s out of my hands this time. October 19th isn’t that far away!

PS – Titus Andronicus and Free Energy tonight @ the Church

Take It Easy Tonite –

My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Country, Punk, Garage Rock
Take It Easy Tonite 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Take It Easy Tonite
2.) Shaunda (What’s My Sign?)

THE BAGS on Myspace
A nice little write-up about the Spider Bags on the Churchkey website
No links to buy this 7″ just yet – just wait a bit closer til Oct. 19th
Check out this awesomely insightful interview w/ Dan McGee @ The Chronicle
Spider Bags – A Celebration of Hunger previously posted on the Drone
Spider Bags – Hey Delinquents 7″ also previously posted on the Drone

It’s been a good chunk of time since this last one came out, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good one! This little gem of a 7″ came out over a year ago now (I think), which means it’s been sitting in my shoebox of 45’s for quite some time. I’m not exactly sure why I’ve failed to get it up here up until this point, but that doesn’t really make a difference.

If you’ve heard Dan McGee and his Spider Bags already, then you probably know what to expect – and you’re probably already a big fan of this 7″. But if not, then let me fill you in real quick. Dan McGee is the frontman, and his band plays heavy, shambolic, rootsy punk music that’s got a tinge of the country twang mixed in, along with a bit of that traditional garage rock sound you already know and love. And let me tell you one more thing, although you’re going to figure it out for yourself in just a minute: this stuff is good.

The 7″ kicks off on the A-side with the song “Hey Delinquents”, and my description of the music above pretty much covers this track. It’s about as twangy as a country song gets, with short little guitar licks coming up throughout the song that give it that country feel. Dan McGee howls about not being able to pay the rent without the ransom, which definitely makes me giggle a bit. Towards the end of the song he tells his girl to shut up multiple times, which again makes me giggle a bit. This guy is great – he’s not afraid to do anything. If you haven’t listened to anything else from the Spider Bags, I highly recommend you get on that…right now.

Now we’re flipping over to the B-side. This song is called “Professionals”, and it’s just a little bit different than the A-side, mostly due to the production quality. This song has this increasingly scuzzy, lo-fi sound, and I’m sure that has something to do with the note they left on the description page of the record over at Daggerman Records. Apparently it was produced by a guy named Camero Werewolf? They whip out the harmonica in this song, and there’s also a quick little keyboard solo in there somewhere towards the middle of the track. So why not head on over to the Daggerman Records store and snag up the 7″ before it’s gone? There’s only 100 copies, so I’m sure it’s bound to be sold out any day. And if not, you can just listen to the songs below! Enjoy!

Hey Delinquents –

Professionals –

My Rating: 7/10
Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Country, Punk
Hey Delinquents 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Hey Delinquents
2.) Professionals

Spider Bags on Myspace
BUY the 7″ directly from Daggerman Records
Spider Bags – A Celebration of Hunger previously posted on the Styrofoam Drone