Album Review: The Raging Nathans – Cheap Fame

The Raging Nathans are punk rock collective out of Dayton, Ohio that features members of The Queers, The Dopamines and The Slow Death. The band originally met back in 2007 at an all ages show, they started discussions that night about forming a new punk rock band, the day after they got together and wrote two songs, which went on to be the foundations of The Raging Nathans. Now eleven years later The Raging Nathans are set to release their second album, Cheap Fame in Europe via Plasterer Records, and the band will be taking to the road across the continent this April with their new label mates Wonk Unit, before returning to Europe again in the Summer.

 

Cheap Fame was released in the US last year via Rad Girlfriend Records and is now set to get a new lease of life with it’s European release, Cheap Fame hits you right between the eyes with thirteen tracks tracks of melodic upbeat punk rock, that to me sounds exactly what you’d hope for from a mixture of The Dopamines, The Queers and The Slow Death. Cheap Fame contains all the best elements of punk rock, the hooks of pop punk, the attitude of old school punk rock and the ragged heartfelt approach of the DIY scene that are combined perfectly to create a stunning sophomore that hits the spot on every track, with my personal highlights being Teenage Amnesia and Bartending The Funeral.

 

As a starting point it’s worth noting that the cover art for Cheap Fame was crafted by legendary collage artist Winston Smith, best known for his work with Dead Kennedys, Jello Biafra and Green Day, and if the first bite is with the eye then as far as I’m concerned this is a pretty good starting point. Cheap Fame is a record inspired by real life and personal loss, but true to the punk rock spirit it’s an album that also maintains a constant underlying stream of positivity. The Raging Nathans are a true and honest punk rock band that have created a sophomore album that will be a welcome release on this side of the Atlantic for fans of early Green Day and The Methadones, as well as the trio of bands whose members make up The Raging Nathans.

 

Cheap Fame can be pre-ordered in Europe via Plasterer Records here and purchased stateside via Rad Girlfriend Records here