MxPx
Let it Happen (Tooth & Nail)
by Scott Hefflon
This is one of those “everything we ever did that you may not’ve heard” releases. Much like Better Days and Better Lays by The Queers, Greatasstits by the Nobodys (only they didn’t just get signed to a different label), or any of the many that’re released to clear out (some might say cash in on) the archives. Regardless, Let It Happen is over 70 minutes of punkpop melody and mayhem as only MxPx and a few hundred other bands can deliver. Thirty-two songs, each usually about 2 and a half minutes, ranging from swaying love songs, to peppy love songs to songs about small town life, the universe, and everything you ever wanted to know about the hunks in the band but were afraid of their 7″s. Each song is lovingly catalogued down to what recording session it was a part of and what album it never made it onto. There are also dozens of pages of close-up shots and rockin’-out shots, all black and white, and all credited like conscientious punkers. Many previously unreleased songs, demo versions, and songs from various 7″s, 10″s, and comps. For those who’ve heard all their friends talking about these cutie-pies but don’t have any of their records, here’s a chance to hear (and see) the whole history of the band at once. Be the first on your block and lord it over all your friends!
(PO Box 12698 Seattle, WA 98111)