Ten Years, Twenty Records

It's hard to believe that we are approaching the end of another decade. Punk rock is now well over thirty years old and the momentum just never seems to stop. The past ten years have been about rebuilding, redefining, and recreating hardcore while also getting back to our roots. Some of the best records to come out since 2000 build strength from the fact that they are truly timeless or at times even based on nostalgia. For instance Career Suicide and Total Fury shine through as bands who remind us of how great hardcore can be when it's stripped down to its most basic form and returns to its roots. Other great bands who fit into this category but did not quite make it on the list include the Regulation and Last In Line. Similarly the initial crop of bands who took their main influences from 80's thrash/hardcore crossover music were great because they were a reminder of some great bands from the past. We can thank Municipal Waste, Bones Brigade, Holier Than Thou?, and What Happens Next? for filling this role.

However some of the most phenomenal hardcore music of the past ten years was completely original, innovative, and showed that there were still ways to reinvent the wheel. Fucked Up of course are the most notorious for blowing people's minds with an unpredictable and experimental take on hardcore. Tragedy, who did not quite make it on the list are also well known for their innovative music, along with Modern Life Is War and the Suicide File. All of these bands have been inspiring in their creativity and willingness to shake things up. They will be known as bands that defined the decade and created a distinction between hardcore of the 2000's and the 1980's/1990's.

With everything that happened in the United States and the world abroad within the past decade, it was inevitable that some bands were going to write songs that took on more topical or political issues. A highly controversial president with an equally controversial administration led us into two controversial wars, and created controversial domestic policies under the Patriot Act while also redefining foreign policy. If bands like MDC and the Dead Kennedys thought they had material to write about, they should have tried growing up after 9/11/01. Current events were reflected in songs like Deadfall's "The Worst Four Years," Criminal Damage's "The Power Of Fools," and "The World Is Not Enough." Suicide File certainly wasted no time on subtlety with song titles like "W," "Ashcroft," and "Fuck Fox News."

Still while a lot of heavy issues were brought up in punk rock lyrics, there also was no shortage of songs about pizza, parties, smoking weed, skateboarding, 1980's movies, and hanging out. Municipal Waste may have inspired a lot of the more fun loving burritocore thrash zombies, but they certainly didn't do it alone. Unfortunately these jokes got stale pretty quickly and lost their cleverness with time, but I digress.

The following are what I consider to be twenty essential and definitive records of the '00 decade- not quite a "best of" list and also not quite a "most influential" list, but it lies perhaps somewhere in the middle. Also of course a good dose of my own tastes are implanted in this list, rather than a more universal view point.

Ten Years, Twenty Records:


"You ruined life for us- We'll ruin life for you"
1. Fucked Up- Hidden World

Early on in their career Fucked Up made their name as a band who put out great singles. The first batch of seven inches were all phenomenal with songs like "Baiting the Public," "Police," "Litany," and "Circling the Drain." Already they were known as a unique and special band and a record label pitch called them a "cross between Negative Approach and the Who." However no one could have predicted where Fucked Up were going with "Hidden World," which was their first proper full length (previously they had released a collection of singles and alternate versions called "Epics In Minutes"). In true mind blowing fashion, "Hidden World" was a double L.P. with many of the songs exceeding the four minute mark. When you fact or in that this record has violins and songs about the influence on politics and science from secret societies and the world of the occult, you have to figure that this record is pretty unusual. But make no mistake- Fucked Up still sound killer on songs like "Crusades" and "David Comes To Life." All of Fucked Up's records are extraordinary,  but "Hidden World" is more innovative than their earlier material and a little less out there than "The Chemistry of Common Life."

 

"And so I say to all the young wild one/For you on your way up/The world isn't against you, my dear, it just doesn't care"
2. Modern Life Is War- Witness

MLIW had a huge guitar sound that distinguished them from other bands. Prior to "Witness" their live sound had never really been captured well in the studio and their previous recordings did not do justice to their massive sound. With some great production techniques, Modern Life Is War finally succeeded in creating a great record. Their sound was intense, heavy and atmospheric. The lyrics on "Witness" are intensely emotional, honestly depicting what it was like to grow up in the Mid West with vivid imagery describing both a physical and emotional landscape.  "D.E.A.D. R.A.M.O.N.E.S." is the most talked about song on the record and it is certainly a fast rocking tune, but there are some equally great songs on "Witness" that are a little further to the left of the dial, such as "Marshalltown," "Young Man Blues," and "I'm Not Ready."

 

"I might have to fight my friends/If they stand in my way/That's the price that I'll have to pay"
3. Annihilation Time- II

If Fu Manchu are hard rock's answer to Black Flag and BL'AST then Annihilation Time are basically punk rock responding back to Fu Manchu. Call it stonercore or psychedelic punk. All that can be said for sure is that Annihilation Time totally kills it. "The Worm," "Imaginary Mirror," "Panic," and "Dogends" all have the perfect combination of Sabbath riffage and punk rock energy. Just look at the cover of "II" and you will get the idea with its references to Thin Lizzy, Motorhead, and Rich Kids on LSD. Well someone's on LSD. That's for sure.

 

"If what it boils down to is 'You're either for us or against us' I guess I've got a tough, tough choice to make"
4. Suicide File- Twilight

Suicide File's "Twilight" showed the band transforming from a catchy mid paced hardcore Punk band to an intense powerhouse. Featuring members of No Reply and The Hope Conspiracy, the Suicide File were a tough force to reckon with. The songs on "Twilight" seamlessly blend the personal with the political by showing how our individual life decisions reflect society's expectations. The music is haunting and original. The lyrics are heart wrenching at times. It was the album that needed to be made when we were all trying to figure out what our roles were in strange and complicated times.

 

"I'm going to strengthen my action with thought /Make use of the gift that I got and walk fearless because I'm armed with a mind"
5. Have Heart- The Things We Carry

Just when it seemed like straight edge hardcore had gone completely stale, Have Heart gave it a fresh face with optimism, hope, and intelligence. What was great about Have Heart's songs was that they didn't ignore the negative things in the world, but instead just said that there were ways to rise above them on a personal level. Have Heart's music was equally great with power and passion that had otherwise seemed to have vanished from hardcore all together.

 

"I don't believe in sanity"
6. The Vicious- Alienated

Featuring members of Regulations and Gorilla Angreb, Sweden's The Vicious played a tuneful blend of creepy melodies that resembled those of the Adverts with the energy of the Middle Class. Every song on "Alienated" is catchy as Hell and The Vicious showed up all of us Americans with their superb song writing abilities. "Dead Town" features a great vocal performance especially.

 

"That won't stop the radio from telling us 'We know what you need, but we don't care'"
7. Criminal Damage- Criminal Damage

Criminal Damage's debut L.P. is the perfect mix of No Future Records (Blitz, Partisans, Violators) style Oi/street punk and the pure energy of American hardcore. With members of Tragedy and His Hero Is Gone, this isn't typical boots and braces chanting over two chords. Rather these songs go back and forth between well thought out political diatribes and introspective looks at every day life. The music is melodic and catchy but also angry and intense.

 

"This Is a lifestyle, not a career/We will create as much as we destroy"
8. What Happens Next?/Life's Halt- Start Something

"Start Something" might be the most epic split since Faith/Void. Both What Happens Next? and Life's Halt were amazing bands playing a modern take on West Coast thrashcore. Life's Halt rocked us with songs like "No Estoy Loco" and "Public Enemy Is Right. . . Burn Hollywood Burn" while WHN? contributed some great songs like "Weak Dogs Bark More" and "Positive Youth (Not Just for Kids Anymore)." Words to live by.

 

"We're in your fucking face!"
9. Shark Attack- Blood In the Water

While just about every other band was playing safe, clean cut varsity hardcore, Shark Attack were ugly, creepy, nasty, and in your fucking face! These guys were on a total Antidote (NYC) trip and totally changed the way that people looked at hardcore in 2000.

 

"Do you get off on my pain?"
10. The Prowl- Misery

The Prowl played a unique version of punk rock, which mixed influences from early death rock with the raw intensity of early hardcore. Imagine TSOL, Samhain, and the Adolescents having some kind of weird cult ritual together. The Prowl were that weird, creepy, and amazing. The band had members of Last In Line and Cops and Robbers but they were way darker and more mature than either of those bands.

 

"Thrash? Don't mind if I do"
11. Municipal Waste- Waste 'Em All

While Municipal Waste inadvertently started the trend of idiots running around in flip up hats and pretending to be Jeff Spicoli, "Waste 'Em All" is a killer record. Early Municipal Waste takes cues from COC, DRI, and Exodus. Super fun and super fast. Much more rocking than their later stuff that doesn't have as many hardcore influences.

 

"If I could I suppose I would/If I could change I would"
12. Out Cold- Goodbye Cruel World

Unfortunately after twenty years Out Cold have recently called it quits, but at one point they were getting better with every record, which flies in the face of all that we know about hardcore. "Goodbye Cruel World" was the pinnacle of their career and has a killer Negative Approach/Poison Idea vibe. "Misanthrope" in particular is awesome along with "Take As Needed For Pain." Out Cold were perhaps the most consistent band in the history of hardcore.

 

"Goodbye, my love/Hello, my friend"
13. Kill Your Idols- Funeral For a Feeling

KYI always managed to transcend sub genres and attract all sorts of different punks, straight edge kids, and skinheads. "Funeral For A Feeling" was probably their best record with fast and sometimes melodic hardcore punk songs. The lyrics on this record were pretty mature, kind of like a more sentimental version of Sheer Terror. The title track stood out along with their cover of Poison Idea's "Made To Be Broken."

 

"You're an easy target!"
14. Triple Threat- Into The Darkness

Featuring members of Mouthpiece and Hands Tied, Triple Threat's music is part BL'AST, part Flag, part Chain of Strength, and part COC. "Into the Darkness" is an intense record and showed vocalist, Tim McMahon looking at the darker side of life but staying positive nonetheless. "Man On Fire" and "Time To Disconnect" are perfect examples of the band's sound.

 

"Too much of everything"
15. Holier Than Thou?- The Hating of the Guts

Holier Than Thou? were kings of speed and the vocals on this record are punk as fuck. Another great example of more modern music with some great crossover/thrash influences. This is excellent skatecore stuff. "Too Much of Everything," which also appeared on the band's 7" is the best song. There's also a great cover of Stalag 13's "Conditioned."

 

"Let's go skate and ditch the show"
16. Bones Brigade- Focused

After their original vocalist. Andrew Jackmuah left the band to concentrate on singing with Cut the Shit, Bones Brigade recruited a young gun named Brian on vocals and despite some nervousness from fans he really fit the bill perfectly. "Focused" shows Bones Brigade moving on from the pure skate rock of their earlier efforts to adding some subtle metal influences. Nonetheless the energy was through the roof at this point and this record really stands the test of time/

 

"I still believe in the power of saying no"
17. Over My Dead Body- Sink or Swim

Over My Dead Body played melodic straight edge hardcore punk with a sound that was distinctly Southern Californian. Somehow they managed to stick out as the best band playing this style at the time and over all this is a feel good, positive hardcore record with no complications or lame distractions.

 

"I'm on a rampage/I'm fucking outraged"
18. Vitamin X- Bad Trip

Angry political straight edge fastcore from Amsterdam of all places. These guys totally rip and this is one of the most intense records in the fastcore style. Twenty one raging songs.

 

19. Career Suicide- Invisible Eyes

Career Suicide were one of the first modern bands to emulate the late 70's hardcore sound and to this day no band has done it faithfully. Clean guitars, great songs. "Boredom Boredom Boredom" sticks out on "Invisible Eyes" which shows the band perfecting their art.

 

"Street smart!"
20. Total Fury- 13 Songs

Japanese dudes who worship Minor Threat and all things Dischord related. Need I say more?

 

 

-Ditch-
Big Wheel Asst. Editor

 

 

 

What else would I be doing …if

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I was obsessed with something other than Punk rock. It would be very convenient if I could apply the same amount of devotion to going to shows and collecting records to something more lucrative, such as accounting or selling real estate. Instead I spend most of my energy on a lifestyle that drains my time and money at a sometimes alarming rate.

When I think about how much I have invested into going to punk shows it actually gets to be pretty pathetic. For example one winter in New England a group of friends and I planned a road trip to go see Bad Brains and Murphy's Law playing in Vermont. As if the six hour drive to the show wasn't going to be a big enough inconvenience we decided that we also should find a camping site and sleep in a tent after the show. It took about a month to organize the show/camping trip and we ended up taking two car loads of people. We got to the show three hours early and walked the streets of Burlington, freezing our asses off. Murphy's Law delivered as always, but of course Bad Brains were just sort of ridiculous at that point in their career. To make matters worse our car broke down and we were stuck in Vermont in the Winter with no idea what to do. We got some sub par assistance from a rookie cop who was obviously a little freaked out by us. Giving up on the idea of camping, we asked him where we could find a cheap hotel and after telling us that the cheapest hotel in the area was fairly sketchy, he reflected, "Well you guys are four big dudes. You could probably do whatever you want." While our friends in the other car headed back to Massachusetts I shared a bed with two other close mail friends. We taped a picture of a naked woman over the bed to protect our heterosexuality. By morning it had fallen down.

The following Winter my band got offered a show in Vermont and we reassembled most of the crew from the first Vermont trip and set out determined to have a successful camping trip after the show. Obviously we were completed out of our minds as anyone who has ever spent a night in Vermont in the Winter could tell you how cold it gets. That night twelve of us crammed into an eight person tent, but we were still cold and miserable. Our friend, Enrique, who grew up in Puerto Rico probably considered suicide. Nevertheless we toughed it out and made it through the night. I woke up in the morning and left the tent to take a pee and a hunter was waiting outside of the tent and pointed his gun at me. He then informed me that we were trespassing in a park since it wasn't camping season and gave me a long speech while I desperately held my pee in. All of this again was just so we could go to a show and be able to say that we camped in Vermont in the Winter.

Story after story, it all just becomes more evident that I chose the wrong obsession. If I had learned to focus in school or on advancing in some kind of well paying career instead of constantly thinking about what band I'm going to see play a twenty minute set I would be living quite a different lifestyle. If I spent money on stock investments rather than hunting down obscure records I might not have to live pay check to pay check, but in the end this is what I love and I don't think that's changing any time soon.

 

-Ditch-
Asst. Editor

 

 

 

What records is Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl buying these days?

Recently Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters frontman and former Nirvana drummer stopped by Amoeba Records in Hollywood to get some records (yes vinyl!), check out what he picked up. Some of his picks and references included Boredoms ,No Means No, L7, Bad Brains, Alice Donut , Alternative Tentacles and Scream.

Check out the video as Dave takes you through each of the records he picked up and why they are one he has to have.

 

 

 

I always thought that I’d die at 27

You ever listen to a band well beyond the just the music and actually focus on the words? Sometimes lyrics can be just filler sounds to compliment the music and other times there is actually something solidly said, albeit in a satirical way. Which brings us to this cutting little diddy by Los Angeles band Pussy Cow. The song was just so funny, but such a burn at the same time that we had to ask some questions to find out the origin of this song, which by the way can be heard on the band's MySpace HERE. Well beyond the irreverent lyrics, you do have to admit that there is plenty of truth to the song.

Here is the disclaimer part of this, Joe Dana the singer of Pussy Cow is a writer of this site, cool guy and friend to all, just so there is full disclosure on this. Ok, so we get on to asking Joe about the song and this is what the genesis was for it and this is what he had to say.

"I wrote the lyrics after I turned 28. When I was a kid, I always thought that I'd die at 27. That is the rockstar death age. When you are a kid you romance the idea of "Live fast-die young, etc." and then one day, you realize you're alive and well. hahahah.

I guess I was sort of saying that since I'm not dying young and since I'm not the rockstar death age, then I totally have license to sell out and flog a dead horse. hahahah.

It was meant as sort of tongue in cheek but,..ya know... I'm not going to be Jimi Hendrix, but at least we can be The Stones and tour every year or more accurately, be like Motley Crue. They are a band who break up every few years and get back together and do another tour. They aren't voices of their generation. They just sing songs about drugs and chicks and release behind the music's and autobiographies and are selling machines who are having a shitload of fun doing it... and people have a shitload of fun buying into it too.

It was also written around the time of the Dead Kennedys reunion and a few other reunions without key members of bands that would release horrible new albums chock full of every guest star you could think of to get more people to pay attention to it."

That is the story behind it, read the lyrics, draw your own conclusion and whatever you do, Don't die at 27.

 

 

27 by Pussy Cow

Drank like Janis but I'm not genius
Shot myself like Kurt but I'm not hurt
Did more psychedelics than Jim and Jimi combined
I guess it just wasn't my time

Not the voice of generation
Not gonna die at 27
Rockstar death age no more
Gonna be a joke and a dinosaur

Live the rock n roll dream yeah yeah yeah
Lose the money in scheme yeah yeah yeah
Lots of drugs lots of chicks yeah yeah yeah
My own behind the music

Albums with current guest stars on it
Never gonna choke on my vomit
Gonna be entrepreneurs
Mother daughter groupies farewell tours

I'm not the voice of generation yeah yeah yeah
Not gonna die at 27 yeah yeah yeah
Rockstar death age no more yeah yeah yeah
Another reunion tour

Replace all the members but one
Still pretend its lots of fun
Fuck the fans - give me cash
Tell integrity to kiss my ass

I'm not the voice of generation yeah yeah yeah
Not gonna die at 27 yeah yeah yeah
Rockstar death age no more yeah yeah yeah
Gonna be a joke and a dinosaur

Drank like Janis but I'm not genius
Got shot like Kurt but I'm not hurt
Where did i go? where am i now?
I'm still playing in Pu$$y-Cow

 

One Ticket and No Ride

They say when you fall in you dreams you wake up right before you hit the pavement. Not me. Oh, God, not me. I was stuck in that hell every step of the way. I was still there when I landed. I witnessed the horrible surgeries, the rehabilitation and the long hours of mind-numbing therapy in the cold, fluorescent lit dystopia of an institution with Dr. Jones, the bastard. There was a point where I did realize how surreal this place was.



It was somewhere mid-surgery and I was thinking “Surely I shouldn’t be awake when the asshole is sewing my intestines back in. Yes…this has to be some sort of crazed nightmare. And I promise not to call you surely anymore.”

The whole thing had done me on both ends. It made me the fool of my own subconscious. And the terrifying vistas of reality were skewing endwise from my psyche. It was madness. Black was white. Up was still up, but in what context? Left was neither here nor there and when I finally made it out of that crazed loony bin I found that my next door neighbor had now resembled some kind of lemon flavored jellyfish. I don’t even have a fucking neighbor. I don’t think I even had a fucking house to live in.

Just when I thought I had fully adapted to this backwards assed Hades the lights turned on and I was being kicked awake by Eddie’s brother.
“Hey man, its street sweeping day. The truck just passed by your car, you’d better get off the couch and go move it”.
    “Move? From where?” I jolted. “I don’t have a house! You can’t put me back in that God-Fearing institution with those monkeys! I’m well, I tell you!”
    That didn’t seem to phase him any. I don’t think he knew about the murderous disease-like dream world that was festering in my head pocket all night. He repeated again, “Move your car before you get a ticket, dude. I’m just trying to help you”.
    “…Oh yea. Right. Ok, uhh. Where are my keys?”

But it was too late. A parking enforcer had already parked behind the Beast and I witnessed through Eddie’s window him pulling out his pen and ticket pad just as I had stepped outside the door. “Play it cool,” I thought, “Open the door like it’s not your car, get inside and make a dash for it”. I opened the driver side door and left it open. This was a good gesture showing that he had nothing to fear. I slowly turned the key one click just to turn the radio on and began fidgeting around for what I wanted the man to believe was my toothpaste. Make him believe that you don’t care where you’re parked because you’re the cock of the fucking walk. Then, when he least suspects it, blast off out of there like a bat outta Scottsdale, Arizona. Leave the bastard in your rear view mirror and be done with this mess.

Things were going well at first. The pig hadn’t seemed to catch on to my plot yet. But once I got the engine going he walked right up to me and looked me right in the eye. He was a tan, skinny little bastard. Totally flunked out of a REAL police academy, this I can tell you. “What a piece of shit” I thought. “I want to laugh at him and his stupid little badge that reads ‘Parking Officer’, but he may call for backup. He’ll probably stick that pen in his thigh and start shouting “OFFICER DOWN! OFFICER DOWN!” and there would be nothing I could do about it except sit there and wait for the meat wagon to take me away. So there we were, face to face. Myself holding back some drowsy, hung over giggles and him in a really pissed off looking mood.
    “If you drive away, I’m just going to mail it to you”.
      “Good luck with that,” I said, “I lost my house after I jumped. Can’t you see I’m a man who’s just been rehabilitated?”
That didn’t seem to move him any. I was too strapping of a lad to have looked like I just jumped 15 stories. Maybe if I had slashed my face up a little with a steak knife before I went out to meet him he would’ve believed me, so I tried another approach:
“Listen. Piggy-…Parking-…What do I call you, anyways?”
“You can call me Officer,” he says.
“No…No, I’m not going to call you that. You didn’t win my vote, that’s for fucking sure. I wasn’t even aware of any election to make you an officer of the Parallel Arts. Anyways, how about I just get my hose and water down this whole mess your street sweeper seems to have missed? It doesn’t have to come out of anybody’s pocket. I can just pick up my things and leave. I’ll clean up the pile behind me, I swear.”

That, of course, didn’t seem to arouse his appetite for mercy either. The Piggy was steaming now if I pleaded my case the way I did to the system, the court would definitely be in his favor. He wanted to prove to me how big his pecker was, so he handed me his ticket and walked away. I greeted the ticket with a fresh loogie and proceeded to curse and stammer in a ravage and crude fashion: “You treat a rehabilitated man with a $32 street sweeping ticket!? What an asshole you must be! You’ll never achieve the rank of Sergeant in this day and age! You’ll be old and withered and your balls will shrivel up until there’s nothing left of you and you’ll never see your parents again, twig boy!”

I suppose that’s how things go these days. The law can’t be stretched, bended or twisted into a fashion where you can get out of a jam if you say the right words to the right kind of jury. You can no longer bite the law, but merely suckle it’s hard, jagged knob and ask the Judge and the TV to give you 3 years instead of 5. All the while, we’ve got pinhead cops throwing around their badge like it was daddy’s new gun and throwing kids into the flames before they can even light up. Lawyers are no longer professional speakers anymore but a vague shadowy figure who recites the law for you. And he always has to muddy up the fucking words so that everything sounds like you’re negotiating a record contract with some two-bit ass fuck from Argentina who can’t quite speak English. He knows the words, but he can’t understand what his own cases are. He doesn’t defend anymore. Instead he’ll negotiate with the system which prison is shitty enough for you. And down you go, like a sack of worms. You’re the asshole. You got played. You’re the miserable bastard who endangered so many lives in the process. One simple parking ticket and it’s all downhill from here. Shit, they’ve got you in the slammer the minute they take your driver’s license picture at the DMV. To hell with all that and to hell with the badge.

So I threw the foul-smelling piece of paper on my passenger side floor and there it will lie until they send me a 3rd notice of overdue payment. With a little luck, that ticket might not even make it to the bureau and any record of me ever being in Fountain Valley will have never existed. I went back into Eddie’s house to crash out for a few more hours on that leather couch of his. The liquor hadn’t quite left my kidneys yet and I wasn’t prepared to tackle the day. Now is the time to go back. Back to the dream of loathing and misery in the Nth Dementia, where incessant a-bombs loom in the distance and crudely drawn space-hippies regale you of their travels through the outer rim of the 1960’s. Maybe in the dream I return to they’ll find good use of my story and know when to tear up a parking ticket.

-Leo-
 

Big Wheel Magazine presents – 10 Things Going Extinct

Since time is linear we often showcase the new and remember the old, but what about the things that we haven’t quite left behind completely? These things are what we will  bring to light and make you say “oh yeah, that’s right!” These items or places still exist today, but are slowly fading away only to be replaced with something more convenient or modern. Here is the first installment of  ten things that are fading away.

 

 

1. Telephone Booths
Remember these? The telephone booth has been a staple of American communication for over 100 years. They took residence on street corners inside buildings and were often the target for attempted world records to see how many people you could stuff in one. Depending on where they were they could be in pristine condition or smell of urine. They afforded us a degree of privacy when we needed to make a call. Take notice and ask yourself “Where have all the phone booths gone?” the answer is that you and I destroyed them with cellular phones.

 

 
2. Tube Televisions
Many people still have tube televisions, but with the upcoming conversion to a digital signal we may soon start to see less and less of these sets. Take a trip to an electronics store. You won’t see many tube televisions left, but LCD and Plasma televisions are definitely in abundance. Do you remember the smell of your old tube television? Do you remember what it was like to turn off your old tube television; the picture folding into a single white line across your screen before finally disappearing into a dot, and then oblivion? The days of the tube television are definitely numbered with repair shops disappearing in favor of simply replacing your broken electronic item. 

 

3. Film Cameras
Do you remember going to a party, family event, or taking a trip and taking your camera with you? Many of us still do today but we no longer fill our cameras with 35mmfilm. Though you can still quite readily purchase film from your local grocer or drug store, I believe the appeal is mainly as a novelty, or someone who appreciates photography as an art. Gone is film in favor of a memory card. Gone also is the quality of a developed photograph in favor of a quick and easy printed photo.

 

4. Address Book (little black book)
You needed to find a date or needed to call a friend; you checked your address book, sometimes referred to as your “little black book”. Open it up. If you still have yours it still has all your old numbers; some crossed out, some changed. Different color inks or all one uniform color if you are that type of person. Why did you ever stop carrying it? It’s that cell phone again! Why carry a book of numbers when you have it all stored in your cell phone’s memory. However, don’t drop your phone in water or else your little digital black book is toast. At least when you got pushed in a pool all you had to do is let your old paperback dry out and you were good to go!

 

5. Ashtrays in public places
Take a look at the outside of elevator doors, public toilet stalls, lobbies, and on the tables at a restaurant. Where have all the ashtrays gone? Its no doubt that if you live in a smoke free state many of these things have been gone for quite some time, but what about the permanent ashtrays that were installed in walls or as a fixture? Many of those had to stay, sometimes being converted into a trash can or a planter. However, more and more of these fixtures are being removed and patched over as if in an attempt to help us forget that smoking had ever existed indoors. Don’t forget, remember. Remember when a department store had the faint smell of a cigarette?

 

6. Hand written letters
Who hand writes letters anymore? We live in a time defined by speed and ease; hand written letters just don’t fit the bill. Though they do take more time, patience and are harder to correct, a hand written letter is much more personal than something typed up on the computer and sent by email. Along with the decline of the letter comes the decline of penmanship. How much longer till the ability to write ends up on this list?

 

7. Checks
Very few are the instances now when a check can be more useful than a modern ATM check card or direct deposit. Once only used as a pass to get cash out of an ATM, the check card acts as a direct link to ones bank account allowing the user to pay for goods or receive cash back. Credit card ease without the fees! Looks like the only time you will see checks is when you receive a birthday card from grandma.

 

8. Stand alone bowling alleys
All the rage in the 1950s and 60s; stand alone bowling alleys are commonly marked by classic mid-century modern architecture. For a while falling out of popularity, many have been torn down to be replaced by shopping centers or big box stores. The silver lining that may be in store for the long neglected stand alone lanes is that the new millennium has brought about a rekindled interest in bowling with the swanky “Lucky Strike Lanes” opening up in high traffic, upscale locations. This could help resurge interest in the old stand alone lanes or perhaps put the final nail in the coffin for the lonely neighborhood stand alone bowling alley.
 

9. Car hood ornaments
Up until about 20 years ago the hood ornament was something that you saw on many mid to high grade cars on the road. We aren’t denying that the hood ornament has been long gone for many years; however seeing it disappear from the road is what we are experiencing now.  With many of the older cars finally going into retirement for a number of reasons many of the cars leaving the road have hood ornaments, or at least used to have them. Another factor in the disappearance of the hood ornament is theft. Sure, there still a few out there, but having a hood ornament is just about as out of style as wearing a stolen one on a chain as a piece of jewelry.

 

10. Coffee Shops (Diners)
Don’t worry, your local Starbucks isn’t going anywhere. We’re talking about REAL coffee shops, the places where you could get a decent meal and a cup of black coffee for a reasonable price. Still not sure what I mean? Sometimes referred to as “old people restaurants” or “diners”. There was a time when fast food wasn’t the first option to eating an economic meal. A few examples of the coffee shop are Norms, Bobs Big Boy or even Denny’s, but don’t let the quality of the modern coffee shop fool you, at a true coffee shop you can get a chicken dinner, soup, bread, and desert for under $10. Seek these places out and get it while you can! 

 

 

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