Tomi Milos
The Silhouette

In these tough economic times, the majority of students struggle just to scrounge up money for textbooks. When asked to consider paying for music, most balk at the proposition, citing their already empty wallets.

But even those who feign poverty can be seen clutching a coffee from Tim Hortons a few times a week. By my estimation — I’m no mathematician — a small double-double costs something like $1.40. In comparison, All Dogs’ debut cassette will only run you $1 on Bandcamp (should you wish to enjoy it in digital rather than analog form), offering you the perfect soundtrack for this autumn.

All Dogs is composed of three mainstays on the burgeoning independent music scene in Columbus, Ohio: Maryn Jones (vocals/guitar), Amanda Bartley (bass) and Jesse Withers (drums). They’ve lingered in self-imposed obscurity for a while with a few videos from shows popping up on YouTube on the odd occasion. But their self-released split-tape with Slouch has lit a fire under music fans, and for good reason. This is very much the best take on pop-punk I’ve heard in years.

The album opener, ‘Farm’, is the clear standout. It opens with Jones singing “Mid-autumn, the sun rise, opens up, your eyes” in a lilted tone so sweet that it’ll break your heart. Someone on Tumblr reblogged my audio post of the song and added “This is so 90’s lol”. It’s a fair evaluation if by “90’s” they meant, “fucking awesome to listen to while walking through campus at noon and being nostalgic”.

“Love Song” will have you ruefully reflecting on your embarassingly earnest high school love life, or lack of one. Melancholy lyrics like “I want you, and you want me, but I will fuck it up, just wait and see” combine with an exuberant mix of garage rock riffs to have you drowning in a sea of teen angst.

‘Annoying’ is far from it. It’ll have you playing air guitar while getting dressed and joining in on the simple but cathartic chorus of “let it out, let it out, let it out”. ‘Dumb’ is the perfect opportunity to indulge in your anxious self-loathing (and maybe feel a bit better by the end).

As if the tape couldn’t get any better, it closes out with a ridiculously good cover of The Muffs’ ‘Every Single Thing’. THE MUFFS! So 90’s! Their saccharine take on the pop-punk classic will have you feeling all of the feels (shoutsout Yung Lean, repping #sadboys at all times). All Dogs have caught the well-tuned ear of Salinas Records, who will be releasing their 7-inch this November. Should you be so inclined, you can listen to one song from it on their Bandcamp now.

If I hadn’t made it clear, this’ll be the best dollar you ever spend.