Epitaph Records: 35 Essential Tracks

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essential Epitaph Records tracks DEPThe Dillinger Escape Plan – “Pig Latin” [featuring Mike Patton] from Irony is a Dead Scene (2002)

During the brief period after vocalist Dimitri Minakakis left The Dillinger Escape Plan and before Greg Puciato joined as his full-time replacement, The Dillinger Escape Plan used that time to explore a little bit, and recorded a four-song EP with legendary Faith No More and Mr. Bungle vocalist Mike Patton. It’s about as perfect a match as you’re likely to hear in extreme music, Patton’s bizarre, superhuman vocal abilities meshing brilliantly with the band’s hyper-complex mathcore. “Pig Latin” is the highlight on the Irony is a Dead Scene EP, although you can take your pick of the four songs and find a winner. What sets this one apart is the level of technical prowess that everyone brings to the track, juxtaposed with even more of a melodic sensibility than we’d ever heard from DEP before. This is next-level hardcore, experimental and technically mesmerizing all at once. – JT


essential Epitaph Records tracks Hot Water MusicHot Water Music  – “Remedy”
from Caution (2002)

By the time Florida post-hardcore outfit Hot Water Music signed to Epitaph, they had already perfected their spunky, abrasive take on emo. So their fifth LP Caution kicks off with a perfectly satisfying track in the form of “Remedy.” Between its layered vocals, energetic guitar work and the dynamic key change at the track’s end, it’s less than three minutes of beautiful, brutal forward momentum. Lyrically, it’s a broad metaphor for the need to heal after emotional trauma, with hints that this particular remedy might lean on the side of self-destruction. The track leads up to the cathartic belting of “There’s no worry/ It’s only simple therapy” before a tom roll closes things out as quickly as they began. – ATB


essential Epitaph Records tracks Ikara ColtIkara Colt – “At the Lodge”
from Chat and Business (2002)

Espousing what might be the most punk philosophy of any band on this list, Ikara Colt were bound by the concept that they would exist for five years, and break up once they hit that date. That actually happened: They released two albums, the second of which—Modern Apprentice—was never officially released in the U.S., and called it a day shortly thereafter. But the UK-based Ikara Colt made good use of those five years, barreling out of the gates with debut album Chat and Business, an album owing equally to classic Wire and ’90s-era Sonic Youth. Picking a highlight from that album, which was picked up by Epitaph after its UK release, is a little tricky, though “At the Lodge” stands a little taller than the rest because of its rumbling and percussive build-up, its explosive bursts of power chords and simple but dissonant riffs. It’s the rare song that sounds like a hit from a band that couldn’t give two shits about having one. – JT


essential Epitaph Records tracks AtmosphereAtmosphere – “Cats Van Bags”
from Seven’s Travels (2003)

The title of the first single from Atmosphere’s breakout album (and sole Epitaph release) Seven’s Travels doesn’t make much sense—nor do most of its lyrics. It’s pure lyrically-acrobatic battle-rap surrealist nonsense, but incredibly enjoyable. The bits that are coherent convey the struggles of the touring life, coming from two rappers (Atmosphere’s Slug and guest Brother Ali) who knew that struggle well back in 2003. It’s somewhat strange that this didn’t find some mainstream radio play—suburban kids were starting to realize they could listen to rap without it being weird, and you’d think the fuzz-guitar/boom-bap hybrid production would catch on in that format. It didn’t and Atmosphere returned to their smaller label Rhymesayers, where they remain. – LG


essential Epitaph Records tracks Death by StereoDeath By Stereo – “Beyond the Blinders”
from Into the Valley of Death (2003)

Metal/hardcore hybrid act Death By Stereo mostly do one thing, but you have to admit that they do it better than almost anybody. Into the Valley of Death features thirteen thrashing, smashing tracks, but “Beyond the Blinders” comes out as the most cathartic, blending metal riffs with a sing-along punk anthem that would leave Bad Religion beaming with pride. In fact, the themes here are very much up Greg Graffin’s alley, if a little more dramatic. Death By Stereo are quick to point out hypocrisies and back stabbing from the side of the U.S government: “If you read between the lines/ it’s not very hard to see/ that our very own existence/ isn’t really ours to be.” – ATB


essential Epitaph records tracks Dropkick MurphysThe Dropkick Murphys – “Fields of Athenry”
from Blackout (2003)

Before becoming the national signifier for that guy you know who takes his Irish heritage waaaayyyy too seriously (trust me, I’m qualified to judge), Dropkick Murphys were one of Epitaph’s flagship bands—a punk wrecking crew that could rip through Friday night drinking anthems as easily as they’d handle intricate Irish traditionals. Sometimes it was hard to tell which was which, as with “Fields of Athenry,” and not just because they included pipes and accordion on the ragers as well as the slower tunes. While “Athenry” certainly wasn’t their first (or last) take on a standard, it may be the Dropkicks’ best example of the form. Ken Casey’s gruff voice can soar when it needs to, as on this song’s hook, and it doesn’t sacrifice punk muscle for melodic power. – LG


Weakerthans essential Epitaph Records tracksThe Weakerthans – “Plea from a Cat Named Virtute”
from Reconstruction Site (2003)

The Winnipeg band’s third LP and first for Epitaph was a loosely constructed concept album on the stages of and relief from grief, hopscotching between a story of a hospital patient and other related points-of-view. One of those tangents belongs to Virtute, a cat owned by lead singer John K. Samson. Against a crunchy, nearly punk backdrop, Samson sings Virtute’s words and thoughts as she desperately, almost angrily tries to help him out of a fit of depression. Her solution? A house party with family, neighboring pets, and famous friends (referencing bands like Cold War Kids and Arcade Fire), “and I’ll cater with all the birds that I can kill.” – AB


Converge discography You Fail MeConverge – “Last Light”
from You Fail Me (2004)

Epitaph is a punk label, but what that means is open to interpretation. In the ’90s, the label earned a reputation for being an outpost of Southern California skate punk, with bands such as NOFX, Pennywise and especially The Offspring growing in stature with their backing. But that era was also fairly short-lived in terms of being wholly representative of Epitaph’s aesthetic. Over time the label incorporated a wide variety of different interpretations of punk, including hip-hop and metal, and Converge is about as far down the spectrum of the latter as Epitaph ever got. The Salem, Massachusetts group’s first for the label, You Fail Me, is a white-knuckle mixture of blistering two-minute hardcore explosions and complex, extremely dark post-hardcore tracks with more than a little of Swans’ apocalyptic pall in the atmosphere. “Last Light” is its towering triumph, an emotional highlight that finds Jacob Bannon screeching his guts out while guitarist Kurt Ballou guides one of the band’s most intense arrangements. It’s breathtaking. It’s brutal. – JT


essential Epitaph Records tracks DangerDoomDangerdoom – “Sofa King”
from The Mouse and the Mask (2005)

About as close to a corporate sellout as Epitaph ever reached, Danger Mouse (on just his second post-Grey Album production, following Gorillaz’s Demon Days) collaborated with MF Doom on a wildly entertaining rap album loaded with samples from Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim programming block of animation for mature audiences. This was the big hit from it, with Doom riffing off of a joke from Aqua Teen Hunger Force and ultimately transforming the punchline from a slur to street lingo for dominating the microphone. – AB


essential Epitaph Records tracks Sage FrancisSage Francis – “Sea Lion”
from A Healthy Distrust (2005)

After releases on Anticon and his own Strange Famous label, this slam poetry veteran out of Rhode Island became Epitaph’s first rap signing in 2004. His debut for the label came the following year, and his signature track rests early on it. It’s an epic takedown of his mother (“Sea Lion” being a subtle suggestion of “she lyin’”), using imagery from the Bible, fairy tales, Billy Joel, and the Wild West to lay the blame at her feet for his everyday emotional distance. Supported by a hook from Will Oldham (!) and bars from Saul Williams going after a similarly absent father, it suggests Sage Francis has scant competition in hip-hop literacy. – AB

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