This is a semi-review/best song picks of the Punk-O-Rama compilation series. The series ran for 10 releases between 1994 & 2005. Shame the series came to an end but for all you punk lovers out there you’ll find plenty to keep you busy for a while and maybe discover some new bands along the way. Some of the well known bands featured are NOFX who are present on releases 1 through 9 & still going strong 35 years into their existence. Pulley featuring vocalist Scott Radinsky who appears on all 10 compilations with Ten Foot Pole & Pulley. Bad Religion, Pennywise, Rancid & Dropkick Murphys are 4 more who appear many times & are still going strong today.
Punk-O-Rama Albums
Jump list
Punk-O-Rama 1 (1994)
My Rating: 
(3 / 5)
The 1st in the 10 series of compilation releases. There’s a limited number of tracks and bands on offer here with most bands featuring twice. This does essentially split the offering in half band wise so if you don’t like 2-3 of the bands you’re really going to have to dig deep to find anything on here. I personally struggled to find much on here that I would add to any playlist. That being said don’t let my taste steer you away. The best track for me on here is “My Wall” by Ten Foot Pole. Those who know of Ten Foot Pole will likely be fans of the band Pulley as it features the same vocalist as Ten Foots early days. There is plenty of Pulley tracks in later compilations. NOFX is a staple on the majority of these comps & if you like Sum 41 you’ll like NOFX as Sum 41 basically ripped them off having started out as a NOFX cover band.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1. “Do What You Want” Bad Religion 
(3.8 / 5)
2. “Don’t Call Me White” NOFX (3.8 / 5)
3. “Hyena” Rancid
4. “Session” The Offspring
5. “Dying to Know” Pennywise
6. “I Wanna Riot” Rancid
7. “Riot City” Total Chaos
8. “Crooked Bird” Gas Huffer
9. “We’re Back, We’re Pissed” RKL
10. “Jennifer Lost the War” The Offspring
11. “Bright Green Globe” Down by Law
12. “Open Door” Pennywise
13. “Crack in the Universe” Wayne Kramer
14. “Liza and Louise” NOFX
15. “My Wall” Ten Foot Pole 
(4 / 5)
16. “Reality Is a Ride on the Bus” SNFU
Punk-O-Rama 2 (1996)
My Rating: (3 / 5)
There’s a good assortment of bands on here.. The biggest disappointment for me is the inclusion of “Coffee Mug” by Descendants. The song is only 34 seconds long and is more of a filler between songs! There are far better Descendants songs that could have been used here like “Caught” or “Rotting Out”. Elsewhere “Bullion” by Millencolin is an absolute gem of a song. “Thought Control” by Dead Fucking Last sounds like the punk baby of the Stooges & Fu Manchu. “Don’t Have The Cow” by SNFU is a song about the Mad Cow Disease period during the mid 90’s and the lyrics are even more relevant today with ever increasing numbers of people turning Vegan.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1. “Coffee Mug” Descendents 
(3.5 / 5)
2. “Perfect People” Pennywise
3. “Cashed In” Pulley (3.8 / 5)
4. “Only the Good Die Young” Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
5. “Mutate With Me” The Humpers
6. “Sidekick” Rancid
7. “Bullion” Millencolin 
(4.5 / 5)
8. “El Coo Cooi” Voodoo Glow Skulls
9. “Hate” The Joykiller
10. “Code Blue” T.S.O.L.
11. “Whatever Didi Wants” NOFX
12. “Gruesome Gary” Down By Law
13. “Just to Get Away” Poison Idea
14. “Thought Control” Dead Fucking Last (3.8 / 5)
15. “Don’t Have the Cow” SNFU (3.5 / 5)
16. “Give You Nothing” Bad Religion
17. “Jukebox Lean” New Bomb Turks
Punk-O-Rama 3 (1998)
My Rating: (3 / 5)
This one kicks off with NOFX with one of the longest song titles out there (I shortened it so it would fit). The short lived punk band Osker appear for the 1st time here with the song “Alright” & their album “Treatment 5” is a fantastic album worth checking out. “If” by Pulley is a highlight on this one.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1. “Stumps for Arms and No Eyebrows” NOFX
2. “Everybodies Girl” Dwarves
3. “World’s on Heroin” All
4. “Say Anything” Bouncing Souls
5. “Delinquent Song” Voodoo Glow Skulls
6. “Everready” H2O
7. “Greed Motivates” Straight Faced
8. “Telepath Boy” ZEKE
9. “Never Connected” Union 13
10. “Gotta Go” Agnostic Front
11. “Defiled” New Bomb Turks
12. “Haulass Hyena” The Cramps
13. “Rats in the Hallway” Rancid
14. “Steel-Toed Sneakers” Humpers
15. “Bad Seed” Wayne Kramer
16. “Rotten Egg” Gas Huffer
17. “Poison Steak” Red Aunts
18. “No Equalizer” Down By Law
19. “Alright” Osker (3.8 / 5)
20. “A.D.D” Ten Foot Pole (3.8 / 5)
21. “Lozin” Millencolin 
(3.7 / 5)
22. “You” Bad Religion
23. “Ordinary Fight” I Against I
24. “If” Pulley (4 / 5)
25. “Wake Up” Pennywise
Punk-O-Rama 4 (1999)
My Rating: (3.8 / 5)
I love it when albums tear straight out of the gate with a hard hitting song, they put you on alert and excited to hear what’s next.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1.“Fight It” – Pennywise – (3.8 / 5)
2. “Second Best” Pulley
3. “Faster Than the World” H2O
4. “1998” Rancid
5. “The Will the Message” Bombshell Rocks
6. “Hopeless Romantic” The Bouncing Souls
7. “The Getaway” Ten Foot Pole
8. “Think the World” ALL
9. “Snap Decision (At Rope’s End)” New Bomb Turks
10. “Generator” Bad Religion
11. “I Will Deny” Dwarves
12. “Let’s Do This” Straight Faced
13. “It’s My Life” Agnostic Front
14. “Weakend Revolution” 59 Times the Pain
15. “Summerholiday Vs. Punkroutine” Refused
16. “They Always Come Back” Voodoo Glow Skulls
17. “Twisted” Zeke
18. “Don’t Panic” Gas Huffer
19. “Big in Japan” Tom Waits
20. “Someone to Love?” Gentleman Jack Grisham
21. “A Life’s Story” Union 13
22.“Picture This” – 98 Mute – 
(3.4 / 5)
23.“Lucky” – Osker – (3.8 / 5)
24. “Mr. Clean” Millencolin
25. “Kids of the K-Hole” NOFX
Punk-O-Rama 5 (2000)
My Rating: (4 / 5)
Almost 30 songs here to sift through and it is a good varied collection. Any punk fan will easily be able to pluck 4-5 songs they consider “Great” out of this lot. Right off the bat NOFX has you wanting to get up and move around. Highlights on this for me are probably “Pump up the Valuum” by NOFX, “No Cigar” by Milloncolin & “Gone” by Pulley. The Hives appear for the 1st and only time in the series, they would go on to become superstars with their new age 3 chord punk-rock assault. Having started out on a Punk record label they soon moved to Universal Music in a reported $50 million dollar deal.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1. “Pump up the Valuum” NOFX (4 / 5)
2. “Problematic” All
3. “No Cigar” Millencolin (4 / 5)
4. “Smash It Up” The (International) Noise Conspiracy
5. “Close Minded” Vision
6. “Poison” Rancid
7. “”Secure Horizons” Guttermouth 
(3.9 / 5)
8. “Panic” Osker (4 / 5)
9. “Better Be Women” Dwarves
10. “Slow Motion Riot” 98 Mute
11. “We Have to Figure It Out Tonight” Beatsteaks 
(3.6 / 5)
12. “Guilty by Association” H2O
13. “Hold It Down” Madball
14. “Happy” Straight Faced
15. “Refused Are Fucking Dead” Refused
16. “Lookin’ Out for #1” Death By Stereo (3.8 / 5)
17. “1.80 Down” Bombshell Rocks
18. “Good Rats” Dropkick Murphys
19. “Kid” The Bouncing Souls
20. “What Ever” Satanic Surfers
21. “Badge of Pride” Pennywise
22. “Gone” Pulley (3.8 / 5)
23. “The Game” Union 13
24. “Stranded in the Jungle” Voodoo Glow Skulls
25. “Introduce the Metric System in Time” The Hives
26. “Automatic Teller” New Bomb Turks
27. “Evil Dead” Zeke
28. “Riot Riot Upstart” Agnostic Front
Punk-O-Rama 6 (2001)
My Rating: (4 / 5)
This is actually the 1st Punk-O-Rama compilation I ever owned & at the time you didn’t really listen to music online so this one became a staple in my cd player for a few months. It is still one of my favorites. Highlights for me haven’t really changed since I 1st heard it. “Bath of Least Resistance” by NOFX, “Original Me” by the Descendents & “Strangled” by Osker are probably my favorite tracks here.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1. “Can I Borrow Some Ambition?” Guttermouth
2. “Come With Me” Deviates (3.8 / 5)
3. “Bath of Least Resistance” NOFX (4 / 5)
4. “Blackeye” Millencolin (4 / 5)
5. “Jack of All Trades” Hot Water Music (3.8 / 5)
6. “True Believers” The Bouncing Souls
7. “We’re Desperate” Pennywise with Exene Cervenka
8. “Strangled” Osker (4.5 / 5)
9. “It’s Quite Alright” Rancid
10. “Holding 60 Dollars on a Burning Bridge” Death by Stereo
11. “The Gauntlet” Dropkick Murphys (3.5 / 5)
12. “Original Me” Descendents (4.5 / 5)
13. “Runaway” Pulley
14. “She Broke My Dick” ALL
15. “Different But the Same” Raised Fist
16. “Pure Trauma” Downset (3.5 / 5)
17. “Let Me In” Beatsteaks
18. “Innocence” Union 13
19. “I Want to Conquer the World” Bad Religion
20. “Only Lovers Left Alive” The (International) Noise Conspiracy
21. “Say Goodnight” Voodoo Glow Skulls
22. “Tonight I’m Burning” Bombshell Rocks
23. “Takers & Users” The Business
Punk-O-Rama 7 (2002)
My Rating: (3.5 / 5)
Wasn’t that taken with this release upon 1st listen as I was really into previous Punk-O-Rama 6 so was hoping for something equally as good. There are some good bands here nonetheless & it took a few repeat listens to find the value & come up with a couple of tracks worth mentioning. That’s not to say you won’t have a better experience! I was particularly taken with “Wayfarer” by Hot Water Music. I 1st came across that band in 2001 on the Punk-O-Rama 6 compilation and didn’t really pay much attention to them until I heard “Wayfarer” on this one. Goes to show how easy it is to overlook a great band! Elsewhere on this one “God Knows” by the Beatsteaks is probably my 2nd favorite track.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1.“Fingers Crossed” Millencolin (3.8 / 5)
2.“Wayfarer” Hot Water Music (4.5 / 5)
3.”Up for Sale” The (International) Noise Conspiracy
4.”The World” Pennywise
5.”Black City” Division of Laura Lee
6.”Olympia, WA” NOFX
7.”Addicts of Communication” Randy
8.”Hooray for Me” Pulley
9.”The Something Special” The Bouncing Souls
10.“God Knows” Beatsteaks (3.8 / 5)
11.“The Defense” Bad Religion (3.7 / 5)
12.“The End” Deviates (3.6 / 5)
13.“Heroes from Our Past” Dropkick Murphys (3.8 / 5)
14.“Bob” Rancid (3.8 / 5)
15.”Wasted Words” Death by Stereo
16.”Love to Be Hated” Agnostic Front
17.”Outside Looking In” 1208
18.”M.A.D.” 98 Mute
19.”My Girlfriend” Guttermouth
Punk-O-Rama 8 (2003)
My Rating: (3.8 / 5)
Big release this time with 30+ tracks to sift through. Highlight for me is “Bowmore” by Millencolin which according to the lyrics is a song about Bowmore Whisky.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
Disc 1
1.”I Am a Revenant” The Distillers
2.”Don’t Call It a Comeback” Motion City Soundtrack
3.”Trusty Chords” Hot Water Music
4.”As Wicked” Rancid
5.”New Day” The Bouncing Souls
6.”The Greatest Fall (Of All Time)” Matchbook Romance
7.“The Idiots Are Taking Over” NOFX (3.8 / 5)
8.”Who We Are” Bad Religion
9.”Trapped In” Division of Laura Lee
10.“Sink Venice” Ikara Colt (3.7 / 5)
11.”Sweating Blood” F-Minus
12.”Makeshift Patriot” Sage Francis
13.”A New Morning, Changing Weather” The (International) Noise Conspiracy
14.”Welfare Problems” Randy
15.”Thickfreakness” The Black Keys
16.”Wasted Words” Death By Stereo
Disc 2
1.”Unstoppable” Death By Stereo
2.”Coup d’Etat” Refused
3.”Holiday in the Sun” Pennywise
4.”Gonna Be a Blackout Tonight” Dropkick Murphys
5.”Quick Death” Transplants
6.”Bird Sings Why the Caged I Knows” Atmosphere
7.”Train of Flesh” Turbonegro
8.”Incorporeal” Tiger Army
9.“Bowmore” Millencolin (4 / 5)
10.”The Ocean Song” Pulley
11.”Contribution” Guttermouth
12.”Warpath” Bombshell Rocks
13.”Get This Right!” Raised Fist
14.”Lose Another Friend” No Fun at All
15.”Roll Around” U.S. Bombs
16.“Shattered Faith” Bad Religion (3.7 / 5)
17.”Quick Death [Remix]” Error
Punk-O-Rama 9 (2004)
My Rating: (3.5 / 5)
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1.“Social Suicide” Bad Religion (3.8 / 5)
2.”Ride the Wings of Pestilence” From First to Last
3.”Sick Little Suicide” The Matches
4.”The Keys to Life vs. 15 Minutes of Fame” Atmosphere
5.”Now I Know” Pennywise
6.”Throw Down” Motion City Soundtrack
7.”Tropical London” Rancid
8.”The Dirty Glass” Dropkick Murphys
9.”Plea from a Cat Named Virtute” The Weakerthans
10.”Promise” Matchbook Romance
11.”City in the Sea” Scatter the Ashes
12.”Liberation Frequency” Refused
13.”Struck By a Wrecking Ball” Nekromantix
14.“Bad Reputation” Pulley – (3.9 / 5)
15.”Fall Apart” 1208
16.”Sing Along Forever” The Bouncing Souls
17.”Seein’ Diamonds” Hot Water Music
18.”Life Goes By” The Special Goodness
19.”Miss Take (Radio Edit)” HorrorPops
20.”Temptation” Tiger Army
21.”Dirty Love” Division Of Laura Lee
22.”Burn in Hell” Error
23.”Now” Eyedea & Abilities
24.”The Plague (live)” Death By Stereo
Punk-O-Rama 10 (2005)
My Rating: (3.5 / 5)
The last release in the series but it wasn’t the final release as there was 1 more in 2006 under a new name “Unsound”. This was done to reflect the wide range of music now appearing on the compilations. There’s songs below which just don’t belong on a series titled “Punk-O-Rama”.
Tracklisting: = Fav Tracks
1.”When “You’re” Around” Motion City Soundtrack
2.“Lovers & Liars” Matchbook Romance (3.9 / 5)
3.”Shoot Me in the Smile” The Matches
4.”Failure By Designer Jeans” From First to Last
5.”Sun Vs. Moon” Sage Francis
6.”News From The Front” Bad Religion
7.”Mixin’ Up Adjectives” This Is Me Smiling
8.”Shadowland” Youth Group
9.”From the Tops of Trees” Scatter the Ashes
10.”I Need Drugs” Some Girls
11.”Mince Meat” Dangerdoom
12.”Mission From God” The Offspring
13.”Black Cloud” Converge
14.”Last Goodbyes” Hot Water Music
15.”Anchors Aweigh” (Live) The Bouncing Souls
16.”Farewell My Hell” Millencolin
17.”The Warrior’s Code” Dropkick Murphys
18.”Dead Weight Falls” The Unseen
19.”White Knuckle Ride” Rancid
20.”Falling Down” Pennywise
21.”No Fun in Fundamentalism” NOFX
22.”Bloodstain” Pulley
23.”Not the Way” The Special Goodness
24.”Ghostfire” Tiger Army
25.”Riot, Riot, Riot” Roger Miret and the Disasters
26.”Laugh/Love/Fuck” The Coup
Hope you liked my selections & discovered some new bands to listen to along the way!
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