Happy Friday! Alternative New Music Friday #Happens With Me First And The Gimme Gimmes releasing their first album in 7 years. The punk rock supergroup’s 12th album, Blow it…at Madison’s Quinceanera! is out today via Fat Wreck Chords. It’s the band’s first release in 7 years. Enjoy the fun covers from Me First And The Gimme Gimmes.

New Music this week from Dexter And The Moonrocks, Mondo Cozmo, and Sum 41 is now available for airplay on Happens.vip Alternative Downloads.

Ratings Love! Huge month for KXRK (X96)/Salt Lake City, which soars 3.7-4.8 in the Nielsen May ‘24 PPM 6+ Ratings. X96 is #2 25-54 and #1 35-64. Radio From Hell is #1 in four demos: 6+, 18-49, 25-54, and 35-64! 

PD Todd Nuke ’Em told me, “X96 is fortunate to have a long heritage in the market with the Radio From Hell in the mornings with Kerry Jackson, Bill Allred, and Gina Barberi. They are the longest lasting morning show in the market (36 years and counting) and are the framework of our success. We specialize in playing an eclectic mix of alternative music that spans 40 years with an incredible variety. You’ll hear U2, The Police, The Cure, and Depeche Mode mixed with Green Day, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and The Killers, Imagine Dragons, and Twenty One Pilots. We play it all!”

Other Alternative stations posting increases in the last batch of May ‘24 PPM 6+ Ratings include: WEND (106.5 The End)/Charlotte 3.0-3.1, WNWV/Cleveland 2.7-2.9, WQMP (FM 101.9)/Orlando 1.6-2.0, WOLT (INDY 103.3)/Indianapolis 4.4-4.8, WLUM (FM 102/1)/Milwaukee 2.4-2.7, and WOKV-HD2 (X99.5)/Jacksonville 1.4-1.6. 

Speaking of Nuke ‘Em, he has added Content Director/midday duties at Alpha Media’s Classic Alternative WERV (95.9 The River)/Aurora, IL. Get the 411 in The Latest Alternative News. 

Bonnaroo kicked off yesterday and it’s being streamed on Hulu. The set times are HERE. 

Lots of buzz on the just announced lineup for Riot Fest 2024. Also, Pale Waves announce their fourth album. Find the details in Music Info.

Brian Garris from ALT 101.5/Palm Springs checks in with a photo from acoustic show with The Driver Era. Take a look on Alternative Photos. 

Looking for radio & records contact info? Check out the Alternative Industry Rolodex on Happens.vip HERE. 

ALTERNATIVE NEW MUSIC DISCOVERY  

Dexter And The Moonrocks “Sad In Carolina”  (Severance/Big Loud Rock) 

Listen & Download HERE.

Abilene, TX 4-piece Dexter And The Moonrocks released their single “Sad In Carolina” on June 10th via Severance/Big Loud Rock. Produced by Ryan Hewitt (Noah Kahan, The Lumineers, Red Hot Chili Peppers), “Sad In Carolina” starts with a clean, captivating guitar intro, drawing listeners into its poignant narrative before exploding into a powerful, anthem-like chorus. This melodic earworm is paired with a sharp narrative that states fear of broken communication, abandonment, and the insecurity of feeling undervalued with a distance preventing its rectification. 

Dubbed, “Western Space Grunge,” Severence Records Co-President Steve-O Robertson had this to say about Dexter and The Moonrocks: “In an industry that seemed to have momentarily turned away from rock, we felt a strong undercurrent – a shift back towards the authentic sounds of guitars and raw attitude. Dexter and The Moonrocks struck a chord with us immediately. While being influenced by greats like Nirvana and Kings Of Leon, they’re a bridge to the future of rock, blending influences from rock legends and contemporaries like Rainbow Kitten Surprise and Colter Wall. Their sound is the DNA of Severance Records – rediscovering and redefining rock with a fresh perspective, especially with a nod to Southern roots.”  

They have another round of tour dates leading up to Bourbon & Beyond and South Star Music Festival in September. Find the tour dates HERE.

Mondo Cozmo “Wild Horses” (Lang Gang/MNRK)

Listen & Download HERE.

Philadelphia’s Mondo Cozmo released “Wild Horses” on June 12th. It’s the lead single from his upcoming fourth album, It’s PRINCIPLE! out August 30th. It’s the first release since This Is For The Barbarians To Feel in 2022. 

Recording under the moniker Mondo Cozmo, Josh Ostrander connected with Mark Rankin (Queens Of The Stone Age, Iggy Pop, Weezer, Florence + The Machine) over social media. They zapped files back-and-forth before working together in Ostrander’s studio near Lake Arrowhead, CA. 

The new single “Wild Horses” was co-written with Dan McDougall (Liam Gallagher) with a riff that’s reminiscent of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and industrial beat that was written in 10 minutes. The songs on the album were inspired by the thee impending death of his dog, Cozmo. Mondo Cozmo had a #1 Alternative Radio single “Shine” in 2016. 

Sum 41 Dopamine” (Rise/BMG)

Listen & Download HERE.

Canadian 5-piece Sum 41 released their second single “Dopamine” on June 12th. It’s the follow up to the band’s #1 Alternative Radio single “Landmines.” “Dopamine” is from the band’s final album Heaven :x: Hell double album released on March 29th. 

The two Alternative singles are from the Heaven (punk) side of the album. At the beginning of 2024, Sum 41 announced a headline world tour, “Tour Of The Setting Sun”with a final hometown show in Toronto, Ontario, at Scotiabank Arena on January 30, 2025. The U,S. run with The Interrupters opening begins September 3rd in San Francisco. Find the tour dates HERE.

New Music Friday #Happens With Me Firsts And The Gimme Gimmes

San Francisco punk rock supergroup Me First And The Gimme Gimmes release their 12th album, Blow it…at Madison’s Quinceanera! today via Fat Wreck Chords. It’s the band’s first release in 7 years. 

Frontman Spike Slawson said, “It was really tense for me going out to no applause—and to people actually walking away when we were playing. A Quinceañera is a very celebrated and important event, not just in a young girl’s life, but in the whole families. Mom and Dad were great, but it took the uncles a little while to warm up to me and our off-color jokes, though I think eventually they got it. Our process is to cast the line out and bring people to the point of—and beyond—outward expressions of displeasure like booing, and then hopefully reel them back in by the end of the set.”

On the 13 song live collection, Slawson introduces “Changes” at the beginning of the first of the band’s two sets. “This is a Black Sabbath song,” he says. “If you know it, feel free to sing along.” Recorded on July 15th, 2023, at The Soap Factory in San Diego, on this live outing, Me First And The Gimme Gimmes consist of Joey Cape (Lagwagon) on guitar, CJ Ramone (Ramones) on bass, Swami John Reis (Rocket From The Crypt) on guitar, and Andrew “Pinch” Pinching (The Damned) on drums. They also add a horn section for the first time, courtesy of Keith Douglas and Jason Crane. Swami John Reis’ father, John Reis Sr., even played accordion on the penultimate song, “Before The Next Teardrop Falls,” the track made famous in 1975 by Freddy Fender. 

“I would like this to be considered indicative of what a live show by the Gimme Gimmes can be,” said Slawson. “The only difference is that there would be people that wanted to hear us specifically and came to see us. What happened at this show, to me, is better than unfettered, unconditional applause from a lot of people. Golf-claps from about five people is how I want to hear a live record. It’s funny, and it doesn’t stop being funny. Not only do outward displays of disapproval not scare me, but I might even crave them a little bit. I don’t necessarily want to leave with people booing, but fawning praise makes me cringe. The girl had a good time, her mom and dad had a good time, her abuelo had a good time. And then when the DJ music finally played, her friends had a good time, too.”

The group’s past releases are Rake it In: The Greatestest Hits (2017), Are We Not Men? We Are Diva! (2014), Go Down Under (2011), Sing In Japanese (2011), Have Another Ball (2008), Love Their Country (2006), Ruin Jonny’s Bar Mitzvah (2004), Take A Break (2003), Blow In The Wind (2001), and Are A Drag (1999), and Have A Ball (1997).

Me First And The Gimme Gimmes will begin a 2 week run of U.S. tour dates on August 14th in Sacramento. Find the tour dates HERE. 

More New Music Friday Albums Out Today

The Decemberists – As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again (YABB/Thirty Tigers)

Hockey Dad – Rebuild Repeat (Farmer & The Owl/BMG)

Moby – always centered at night (Mute)

MORE ALT ALBUMS HERE

GOING FOR ADDS

Impacting Songs Next Week (6/18):

311 “You’re Gonna Get It” (SKP) 

Culture Wars “Heaven” (Pool Toys Worldwide)