Blast from the Past: Pennywise's Wildcard/A Word from the Wise

I think it's time we took a serious look at Pennywise, a band that probably straddles the line between pop-punk and actual punk as any band in history and who gets praised and derided almost equally for straddling that line. Back in 1989 when they released their two EP's back-to-back I was not listening to them, I was barely breaking into the punk rock scene thanks to my Dad's copies of The Ramones and The Clash but I was starting to see the allure of listening to faster paced, hook driven music with lyrics that truly spoke to me as a pretty awkward adolescent. By the time the two EP's were paired together and released as one in 1992 I was starting to really fall for the punk style of music and then Green Day struck and I was hooked.

So yes, it took Green Day's Dookie for me to ever pick up Wildcard/A Word from the Wise but I think that's okay because I once I found it I was hooked for life. The songs were so fast paced and hook driven that it was difficult not to find yourself addicted to the songs. Tunes like "Wildcard" and "Final Chapters" just hooked me from the get go, but it was definitely the cover of Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" that hooked me the hardest. Starting off with the soft sing of the famed song and suddenly launching into a fast version of it with furioous guitars and a couple of "fucks" thrown around was all it took for a teenaged kid to like this stuff and that has sort of held true to this day. I still adore punk covers of classic songs and this one definitely ranks towards the top of the list. Anyway, the 8-songs packaged together was the perfect welcoming to the Pennywise world it was short, hit hard, and definitely stuck inside your skull. Even listening to the songs today you'll probably find yourself singing some of the choruses for the next few days after listening (you have been warned).

I know some of you will be apt to say that this is sugar coated punk rock that couldn't hold a torch to the original bands of the genre, but lighten up folks it's punk rock music not life and death we're talking about here. This music is good regardless of if it might be better then The Clash or Black Flag (its not) or not. Take a listen to the tunes below, dust off your copy, and start listening and see if these quicky ditties don't make it right back into your brain as soon as you turn it off.
Pennywise - "Final Chapters"
Pennywise - "No Way Out"
Pennywise - "Wildcard"
Pennywise - "Stand By Me"