The punk rock quartet from Indiana have released their debut album and it's a rattling, rockin', frazzled ride through punk and grunge!
There’s a whole slew of impressive debut albums coming out of the indie punk scene at the moment and we can now add the debut by Neon Straightjackets to that list!
Their 13 track debut- ‘Ex Girlfriends and Ecstasy‘- is an eclectic mix of raw, lo fi, energetic punk songs with the spirit of punk forebears coursing through, mixed in with grungy, melancholy, dreamy tracks that completely change course.
And it is all kinda thrown in together so we go from the sweet lull of tracks like ‘Nightmares and Nosebleeds‘ straight into a grizzled riff of ‘Lady Lazarus‘ that is just pure rawk with it’s ominous bass riff and pounding drums. It will certainly keep you on your toes.
We then segway into a Nintendo-esque synth-y interlude for ‘Insert Coin‘ before the bass of ‘I Hate Humanity‘ starts and vocalist Larry Stahl declares “I love humans but I hate humanity”.
Tracks like ‘Scatterbrain‘ and ‘See You Soon‘ are the tracks that will scratch your punk itch, with a distinctly 1970s punk sound.
Lead single from the single is ‘$#!7canned‘ that has an echo of New York Dolls about it but there’s certainly a lot of variety throughout the whole LP so get ready for some twists and turns.
According to the band, the album as a whole presents itself as a catalogue detailing relationships and various experiences in life.
There’s a central theme of heartache and loss, with tracks like ‘Heavy’ about a blossoming crush, while ‘Stargazing‘ details the challenges associated with young adulthood.
‘Ex-Girlfriends And Ecstasy’ also highlights more meaningful relationships, as the song ‘See You Soon’ was written for lead vocalist Larry Stahl’s grandmother.
The band- Larry Stahl (vocals), Johnny Hopkins (guitar), Mikey Cramer (bass and vocals) and Colton Lloyd (drums)- have been together since 2021 and have made quite the name for themselves playing shows wherever they can.
This is their first full length release and has brought together the various elements of their varied sound and influences in one place.
‘Ex-Girlfriends and Ecstasy’ is out NOW and you can stream HERE.
$#!7CANNED
HEAVY
STARGAZING
HAVE A NICE FALL
NIGHTMARES AND NOSEBLEEDS
LADY LAZARUS
INSERT COIN
i hate humanity.
worryworryworry.
SCATTERBRAIN
TERRIBLE!
See You Soon
Distance (Bonus Song)
Follow Neon Straightjackets on Their Socials
Need more Punk In Your Life?
Shake Some Acton gig #112, London Hope & Anchor, 9th Sep 2025
Teo Wise and his band have come all the way from Italy, and from the start, it’s clear that they’re having a ball, with the
Interview: Alex gets to know UK punk trio Everyone Lies
Miss the glory days of Epitaph and Fat Wreck Chords-style skate punk? It’s safe to say that Southampton trio Everyone Lies do too, as they’re
EP review: Club Brat – ‘4 Songs’
Sure, there are elements of great bands like Fugazi, Refused, At The Drive-In and Les Savy Fav, but Club Brat have taken those influences and
Live review: WitchDoktors, Kingston Fighting Cocks, 5th Sep 2025
Of all the many great punk and rock n’ roll bands that Witchdoktors recall, Rocket From The Crypt are forefront in our minds tonight; not
Shake Some Acton gig #111, London Hope & Anchor, 2nd Sep 2025
Not only do the French quartet turn in a belter of an 18-song set, sounding like a bunch of garage-punks who’ve broken into Devo’s practice
Book review: ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’ By Charlie Harper
Punk legend Charlie Harper recounts many escapades and amusing moments from throughout his long life in his autobiography ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’. It will appeal
I’m Molly Tie- I Love punk! I play drums (badly), write a lot about punk (not as badly) and I’m particularly interested in issues relating to women in the music scene.
Did you know that we are 100% DIY? We run our own game. No one dictates to us, and no one drives what we can or cannot put on our pages – and this is how we plan to continue!
