Descendents- I Don’t Want To Grow Up (Circa:1985)

SST Records

If the Descendents didn’t invent pop punk with “I Don’t Want To Grow Up”, then they certainly reinvented it. This album was the most solid Descendents release to date with their “Cheap Trick goes punk” sound and Milo’s youthful and snotty voice. This album ranges from fun and melodic (‘I Don’t Want To Grow Up’) to absolutely ridiculous (‘No Fat Beaver’) and almost brooding (‘Christmas Vacation’). And just like a group of Saturday morning superhero cartoon characters, they have their own theme song. This is a genuine punk classic.          CS

The Clash  : London Calling (Circa: 1979)

Epic Records 1979

This album is one of my favorites and is a collection of sounds you rarely hear anymore. From Punk to Rock and Roll with Dub and Swing influences all done in a time where, if it was on the radio it's because It was musically good, and The Clash were no strangers to radio play. Something that connects me with the album every time I hear it is the clashing of vocals and music. With Strummer, Jones and Simonon mumbling and sneering all over the mic while simultaneously creating this smart and catchy bed of music. Truly one of the greatest albums of all time.      JD

Operation Ivy- Energy (Circa: 1991)

Lookout Records

This was one of the albums that changed the game for me. Operation Ivy combined the gritty edge of punk rock and the bouncy enthusiasm of ska with the upbeat rhythms of reggae that completely moved and invigorated my fifteen year old mind. Every time I hear songs like ‘Sound System’, ‘The Crowd’ and ‘Knowledge’ it takes me back in time to when punk rock was new and exciting. This album is infectious beyond all belief and is crucial to every punk rock record collection.          CS

Fifteen- Lucky (Circa: 1999)

Sub City Records

Listening to a Fifteen album is like watching a shark attack documentary-fun and educational. Not only do you get to jump around to some of the finest pop-punk ever created, you also get educated through the subject matter of their socially conscious and political lyrics. Their songs tackle everything from AIDS and clean needle programs to addiction and tons of matters that run the gamut of political awareness. Jeff Ott is forever the older dude here to teach us young people what’s up, and although the guy just can’t fucking sing…that’s really part of the appeal of it all. It’s not traditional…it just fits.          CS

Millencolin-  Life On a Plate (Circa: 1996)

Epitaph Records

"21, feel'n down." What else needs to be said to describe a great era of adolescence and skater punk music. This album will withstand another ten years as a test of punk rock's timeless value.  Life On a Plate must be fourteen of Millencolin's best tracks aside from the album For Monkeys.

I wonderful album for me from a time when it was alright to smoke joints, skate all day, and maybe even lay down a few "tags" in the train-yard.    PM

Snapcase- Progression Through Unlearning (Circa:1997)

Victory Records

Snapcase were the most important hardcore band of the nineties. Not satisfied with just providing a furious hardcore onslaught, they also added a progressive element into their music, continuously pushing the boundaries of what hardcore was supposed to sound like. This whole album is nothing short of brilliance but the absolute stand-out songs on “Progression Through Unlearning” are ‘Caboose’-an inspirational song about being yourself and the final track, ‘Breaking And Reaching’. One of the most important albums of all time.          CS

Husker Du- Flip Your Wig (Circa: 1985)

SST Records

90% of the alternative bands you’ve heard from the early and mid nineties are either heavily influenced by Husker Du or just blatantly ripping them off. This band perfected the mixture of brutality and melody with “Flip You Wig” with the searing guitar and Bob Mould’s master song crafting skills. Most fans will claim that “Zen Arcade” or “New Day Rising” have the honor of being their best record, but to me this is the quintessential Husker Du album, if only for ‘Divide And Conquer’ and ‘Makes No Sense At All’. Kids, you may not know this, but you should go find out for yourselves that Bob Mould is a fucking genius.         CS

Bad Religion- Against the Grain (reissue Circa: 2004, 1991)

Epitaph Records

Aside from their greatest hit release "All Ages", Bad Religion broke the mold when producing "Against the Grain." The album was released back in 1990, when I was in the first grade. All 17 songs are still challenging what punk rock music is today and forever. Bad Religion has not changed  much over the years and this is the album that I believe initially set them on that track to success. And of course, the remixed and enhanced reissue is even more enjoyable now then it was 17 years ago. This is the cornerstone of any solid record collection.        PM

Jawbreaker- 24 Hour Revenge Therapy (Circa: 1994)

Tupelo Records

Unlike a bunch of people, I don’t consider Jawbreaker “emo”, although they certainly paved the way for that genre of music. The music is melodic, the tone of the album is a bit depressing and Blake’s scratchy voice is amazing. These guys were the mellow punk rock kids that thought up weird stuff and read Kerouac, and to this day I would classify Jawbreaker as a “thinking man’s band”. These songs will be permanently imbedded into your synapses after the very first listen, and with an album this good, that’s not such a bad thing. If you don’t like this album, then I don’t like you.           CS

JFA- We Know You Suck (reissue Circa:2003, 1983)

Alternative Tentacles Records

"We Know You Suck" features their earliest recordings on Placebo Records: the Blatant Localism EP (1981), and the Valley Of The Yakes album (1983), as well as a dozen songs lifted from compilations etc... We Know You Suck contains over 30 songs! This is for the truly gritty of the grit. The best way to describe this outfit is raw and unrehearsed. The pioneers of skate rock, JFA (Jodie Fosters Army) have kept true to their underground skateboarding roots for more than 20 years. You see, JFA knew 20 years ago that Jodie Foster would still be a hottie today.       PM