Is It Bandcamp Friday? 7 Punk Recommendations

After a long week, there's nothing quite like sitting down with a record from your favorite band or maybe even try out some artists you might not be familiar with. After the coronavirus pandemic first struck in March, streaming service and music site Bandcamp started holding "Bandcamp Fridays" to help artists make some extra money.

If you're not familiar with Bandcamp, it allows people to purchase albums, EPs and singles directly from artists. Artists can set prices or allow fans to pay what they want with a large portion of the proceeds going directly to the artists. Even if prices are set, people can still pay more if they so choose.

Bandcamp usually takes a part of profits that artists make, but on Bandcamp Fridays, which fall on the first Friday of the month until the end of the year, all profit goes directly to the artist.

With many tours on hold, many musicians have taken to releasing exclusives on the platform to earn a little extra cash. A few people have also put together compilations from artists with money going to non-profit organizations. Some artists have also pledged to donate any sales from Bandcamp to non-profits for certain releases.

These are seven albums, songs and EPs—mostly of the punk variety—to pick up for Bandcamp Friday.

The Menzingers, "America Pt. 2"

The Philadelphia-by-way-of-Scranton punks shared a sequel to their 2019 song "America (You're Freaking Me Out)" back in June with proceeds going to community bail funds and Campaign Zero. While the track is an acoustic reworking similar to those found on their From Exile album released in September, the sequel features new lyrics that mention George Floyd's death and the protests that followed.

Bad Time Records, Ska Against Racism

While the average listener may associate ska with a bygone era, the scene has continued to grow and give birth to a bunch of excellent bands that carry on traditions of '90s ska-punk bands like Less Than Jake and Reel Big Fish. New faces like Kill Lincoln and We Are the Union join vets like Tim Timebomb (of Rancid) and The Suicide Machines for this comp that benefits The Movement for Black Lives, The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, The Alpha Institute, The Conscious Kid and Black Girls Code.

Out of Love, Compilation of Love for Women Against Abuse

Created by Modern Baseball and Slaughter Beach, Dog bassist Ian Farmer and podcaster Dan Casarella, this compilation features 24 musicians writing songs responding to the word "Love" and boasts songs by artists like Chris Farren, Thin Lips and W.C. Lindsay. The profits from the comp go to Philadelphia's Women Against Abuse.

Kevin Devine, No One's Waiting Up for Me Tonight

The Brooklyn singer-songwriter released these three tracks, which were recorded in quarantine, in October. The songs are sleepier than Devine's often punchy and punk songs, but still enjoyable for those looking for hypnotic ballads.

Jeff Rosenstock, 2020 DUMP

After the release of his excellent album No Dream in May, Rosenstock showed he had a little more in the tank and recorded a few more songs for this EP. Rosenstock said any money given to him for this EP through Bandcamp would be donated to charitable causes, but "less money will get taken out if you just do that directly on your own."

Don't Stop Now: A Collection of Covers

In May, the third edition of Don't Stop Now dropped with artists like The Gaslight Anthem's Brian Fallon covering Bob Dylan; Captain, We're Sinking's Bob Barnett covering Abner Jay; and Cave People covering No Doubt. While this compilation's Bandcamp page did not say which charity would receive donations, previous installments had donations made to RAICES (II) and the ACLU (I).

Soul Glo, Songs to Yeet at the Sun

While this EP is also available on streaming services, the Philly hardcore group's latest effort is an exciting and often chaotic release that truly speaks to the moment, addressing issues like white supremacy and income inequality in songs that have been released earlier, like "(Quietly) Do the Right Thing."