It’s not very often that you come across an absolutely indispensable band, but for many the Carbonas were one. Managing to create their own brand of garage-punk out of the moving parts that their forefathers discovered, they are still deservedly revered today years after their breakup. Like many of the former Carbonas’ new bands, much of the online discourse surrounding Shocked Minds mentions their deep connections to these crown princes of punk rock n’ roll, as well as their connections to other punk royalty, in the forms of Gentlemen Jesse and His Men, GAMES, Ex-Humans, and many more. Combine that with the fact that Shocked Minds’ debut came out on Hozac Records and you have an nearly perfect punk rock pedigree, as lame as that sounds. Obviously, with a history like this, Shocked Minds have built up some insanely high expectations. We all knew that the album would be good, but would it be good enough to crawl out of the shadow of these former bands? The good news is yes, yes it is, and it is most definitely going to be one of the best albums that have come out this year. In lesser hands, garage-punk can seem like an almost played-out genre, but given the right band, can also become something new and magical again. The album is packed with taut gems that, at first glance, are created out of all the standard characteristics of classic, gritty punk (many reviews have compared Shocked Minds to The Heartbreakers, Dead Boys, Testors, KBD, etc.) but with the help of nuanced, experienced songwriting transcend the sum of their parts to become a formidable album. Believe me, it’s not easy to pick highlights from an album this strong across-the-board, but among the tracks that stood out to me the most is the opening track “Along For The Ride.” With it’s melodic intro, vocal harmonies, and driving beat, it clues you in to what your in store for when you put on this album: dirty, classic, garagey punk that, while clearly influenced by the early classic bands, has enough interesting and more “modern” touches to avoid the tedium of pretending that it’s still 1977. Another of the best tracks on the album is “Confusion,” which has a more of a KBD vibe to it. Pick this killer album up from Hozac Records.