Rockin’ Out celebrates birthday with a look back

Rockin’ Out turns three this week. In dog years, that’s 21. Which means we’re legal (that’s the royal “we,” in the parlance of our times).

In lieu of going out and celebrating this rite of passage the way many a hapless young adult does – taking eight Jagermeister shots in a row and forgetting how to spell your own name – we’re starting out with a less blatantly ridiculous tack and playing catch-up with some bands we’ve written about over the past year.

Consider this a primer on the local scene. And if you see Rockin’ Out on the town this weekend, passed out in the snow, with obscenities written on our forehead in black Sharpie, you’ll know why.

. Orono’s Wood Burning Cat, Maine’s finest power-pop duo, is rumored to be recording a follow-up EP to last year’s “Cars and Trucks and Things That Go.” They’ve also been turning in some truly excellent live shows – catch them if you ever get the chance.

. Blue Collar Product, a hardcore band from Sanford, beat out a whole bunch of other bands for the coveted local band slot on the Rockstar Taste of Chaos tour stop in Portland on March 18. Congratulations to them!

. Hampden heroes The Killing Moon have had new songs up on their MySpace (myspace.com/thekillingmoonrock) for awhile now. No word yet on a release date for a new album, but according to inside sources (aka the band themselves) they’re workin’ on it.

. A few months ago we ran a column about recording studios in eastern Maine. Well, we have a brand-new addition to the list: Freek Spealy, run by one Daniel Brown of Stonington, just opened on the Bangor waterfront. In addition to recording, Brown offers CD duplication, marketing and promotions for bands interested in the full package, as well as his own record label, also called Freek Spealy. Brown also intends to start a songwriter’s group every Monday night at Woodman’s Bar and Grill in Orono. The studio is located on 60 May St.; for more information, call 942-8863.

. Gristlestick, purveyors of fine, locally-made folk-funk, won the WTOS-FM sponsored Battle of the Bands at Sugarloaf in January. The Farmington boys continue to play seemingly every bar in Maine, and will make their third annual trek to Alaska this summer to play for their rabid fan base there.

. Fire on Fire, comprised of former members of Portland avant-weirdos Cerberus Shoal, released an EP a few months ago on Young God Records. It’s spooky acoustic indie rock, and there were only 1,000 copies of the album pressed, so log onto younggodrecords.com and snap one up before it’s gone.

. The Quasi-Men are (almost) done recording a full-length album! The garage-surf-horror-punkers will release the hotly anticipated “The Creeping Horror of the Quasi-Men” in mid-May. The band promises “black magic, devil worship, aliens, voluntary demonic possession and pure evil.” Sign me up!

. Flophouse Records keeps busy with a whole bunch of new projects for 2008: rapper Affiliate’s “10 Days” and local soul man Nigel Hall’s “The Last Straw” are both slated for spring releases. The Flophouse crew also now hosts the “Sunday Cypher” from 6-7 p.m. every Sunday on B97.1-FM, showcasing Maine and New England hip hop and R&B.

. Holy crap! Rustic Overtones’ new album “Light at the End” is out on March 18! It’s like it’s 1999, except it’s 2008! And Rustic still rules! Keep checking myspace.com/rusticovertones for more Maine shows, and visit your local Bull Moose to pick up a copy of the new album.

Emily Burnham can be reached at eburnham@bangordailynews.net. Check out her blog, Rock Blogster, at www.bangordailynews.com.