Pleasant Screams

Queers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 19, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Asian Man
• ASIN: B000PFUAB4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,529 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

The Queers got together at a time when punk rock was irreverent, sometimes shocking but always fun and they've ever abandoned that approach. But the Queers have never stagnated either. From early proto-Angry Samoans- style songs like "We'd Have A Riot Doing Heroin" to the 60's pop harmonies of "Little Sidewalk Surfer Girl" the Queers have continued to develop and refine their own unique kind of punk. Formed in 1982, this New Hampshire group ambled their way through the 1980s, recording a few singles and compilation tracks along the way, many of which were collected on Lookout!'s "A Day Late and a Dollar Short." Before recording their first full-length studio album, "Grow Up," the group finally settled on a permanent lineup consisting of singer/guitarist Joe King/Queer, drummer Hugh O'Neill and B-Face on bass.

Grow Up was released on a small English label called Shakin' Street, which promptly went belly up after only 1, 000 copies were pressed. Screeching Weasel frontman Ben Weasel got Lookout! label owner Larry Livermore to sign the Queers, and in 1993 Lookout! released the Ben Weasel-produced "Love Songs for the Retarded." "Love Songs..." was followed by a yearly salvo of bubblegum-punk, from 1994's "Beat Off" to 1996's magnum opus, "Don't Back Down," the best late-'70s-era Ramones album the Ramones never recorded. After a long bout with brain cancer, O'Neill died on January 21,1999; "Later Days and Better Lays," issued that spring, collecting unreleased Queers material recorded during his tenure with the band.

In 2001 The Queers returned to Lookout! with a brand new EP, "Today" produced by Ben Weasel marking a renewed energy for the band. Now, the band have followed up last year's EP with "Pleasant Screams," a full-tilt full length of classic Queers' styling with revved-up and revamped attitude. "Pleasant Screams" features leader Joe King's own version of the Wrecking Crew, a crack team of punk stars that help realize his own brand of punk rock. Ben Weasel and Joey Ramone are both contributing writers to the latest album. Philip of The Teen Idols and Mass Giorgini of Squirtgun, Common Rider and Screeching Weasel handled the production. And last but not least, Dan Vapid and Matt Dreschl join the band on the recording too. Still touring incessantly and still loved by kids all over the world, The Queers truly won't back down!

Product Description

"Pleasant Screams" is a non-stop punk and pop-punk affair, produced by Mass Giorgini at Sonic Iguana, and featuring the usual gang of contributors and guest stars. The lyrics are frank and insightful, and the music is the patented QUEERS blend of buzz-saw RAMONES-fueled guitar punk and Joe King's trademark whine. "Pleasant Screams" features guest vocals from Gretchen of the Smears on the track "You Just Gotta Blow My Mind." Another song, "I Wanna Be Happy," was written by Joe King and Ben Weasel around an unfinished Joey Ramone demo, and drum and second guitar duties are handled by Matt Drastic (TEEN IDOLS) and Dan Vapid (MOPES, SCREECHING WEASEL) respectively. THE QUEERS are one of the few bands that effectively blend classic rock'n'roll elements - think doo-wop, Phil Spector, THE BEACH BOYS - with punk rock's energy, power and attitude. They deserve your ears, eyes and hearts!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best Queers CDs, June 11, 2008

By 

Theresa L. Lane "EnglishUnicorn" (Winchester, MA, USA and Swindon, Wiltshire UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pleasant Screams (Audio CD)

This is one of my personal fave Queer's CDs.
One song to the next...all heros no zeros!

5.0 out of 5 stars great, January 21, 2007

By 

Gregory A. Ash "bam" (san diego & miami) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pleasant Screams (Audio CD)

this is a really good record sounds clean and flows very well. i love it!

5.0 out of 5 stars This proves that The Queers are still going strong!, January 9, 2007

By 

Heath Benson (Stevensville, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pleasant Screams (Audio CD)

Who would of thought that a band about 20 years old would still make music as good as it was when they were younger? The first time I listened to this cd, every song sounded excellent to me. Of course there are a few weaker ones but they are still pretty good and catchy, and that's what I love about The Queers. The best songs on here are, "See You Later F*ckface", "Psycho Over You", "Danny Vapid", "I Never Got The Girl", "Tick Tick Tock", and "I Don't Want You Hanging Around". The only bad thing I can really say about this cd is that there aren't enough original Queers songs. Most of them are covers and some are co-written with other people such as Ben Weasel. But other than that, It's an all around great cd. Lookout for the re-issues and new album coming out soon. The Queers don't dissapoint!