Tom Wisniewski - MxPx - Greatest Hits

[sunvalleylaw]

I am the only one to list this guitarist (on the 15 Most Influential Thread), and I truly enjoy what this band does. This guy does plenty of traditional punk rock rhythm, and throws in some pretty cool guitar sounds and tricks, and some fun leads here and there. Definitely lots of Ramones and Clash influences here, and a dash of Social Distortion thrown in. If I were to suggest one album, it would be "MxPx At the Show", a live album. Many of the tracks I suggest below should be checked out via this album. So, their greatest hits for me:

1. Tomorrow's Another Day
2. Chick Magnet
3. KKK took my Baby Away (great cover!)
4. Invitation to Understanding (maybe my favorite, at least sometimes)
5. Live series of "Middlename", "I'm Ok, You're Ok", "The Theme Fiasco"
6. Small Town Minds (all of 1:06 long live)
7. G.S.F. (punk old school rock and roll style)
8. Wantad. (pretty much all the above from the Live album).
9. Move to Bremerton (a popular one, and it mentions Bremerton)
10. Bad Hair Day (great lyrics - . . don't go blaming me for your bad hair day . . . )
11. Another Song About T.V.
12. Wrecking Hotel Rooms
13. Responsibility
14. Secret Weapon


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFxLoVnq5_Q

[Fretcruiser]

I've always liked MxPx.

[sunvalleylaw]

Oh, and Viking Power, the vid I posted above shows an example of a punk using a semi hollow.

[Viking Power]

Oh, and Viking Power, the vid I posted above shows an example of a punk using a semi hollow.

Thanks for posting this SVL!

He must not be very fond of the sound it was giving him for punk though since he bashes the instrument against a brick wall at the end of the video!





I've always been a bit of a fan of MxPx. Did you know they started as a hardcore punk christian band? Very interesting combination! I have seen them live a few times back in the mid-late 1990's. They put on a pretty good show. Especially at the smaller venues before "Move to Bremerton" came out.

[sunvalleylaw]

Yeah, I was aware of that. I almost mentioned it, but ended up not. If you listen carefully to the Live album, (and others, that is just the one I play most), you hear very definitely the Christian messages in some of the songs. I personally enjoy it, and overall, just like listening to their music when I am in the mood. I think they do a good job.

[Brian Krashpad]

By chance, I got their first album (Pokinatcha) years ago, and although the songwriting showed talent, the playing was actually terrible, and uniformly so. Fortunately, they've come a long way.

Their album The Ever Passing Moment is a fave of mine, and one of the few punk albums I can let my kids listen to without having to do an f-word check.

[sunvalleylaw]

Some of the "Pokinatcha" songs are performed on the live MxPx "At the Show" album I reference above. I became aware of the songs from the live album first, and ended up with a Pokinatcha copy later. The live performances are way better in my opinion.

A lot of their music is not specifically Christian, but it is clean, and deals with stuff like girlfriends, parties, and the occasional Ramones cover, and therefore I can let my kids listen to some fun tunes without worrying about the "Explicit" stuff.