In my monthly column Fear Of A Punk Decade—which coincidentally wraps up its yearlong run today—I’ve been revisiting the ’90s punk scene, year by year. Naturally, the giants of the decade like Green Day and NOFX required plenty of attention. But some of my favorite groups of the ’90s weren’t famous enough to have gotten more than a brief mention in Fear Of A Punk Decade; case in point, Plow United. The trio’s self-titled debut album from 1995 is getting reissued, as well it should: Sloppy, ragged, catchy, and bristling with the kind of post-adolescent angst that’s both goofy and gutsy, the record is the epitome of mid-’90s, mid-fi pop-punk. The album’s standout track, the bittersweet anthem “Spindle,” is being streamed here, and it sums up everything Plow United—and the era—was really all about. The band is back together and even put out its first new album in 15 years, the excellent Marching Band, in 2013. A well-earned maturity has crept into the Plow United’s playing and songwriting since the ramshackle days of 1995, but the heartfelt grit remains.
The reissue of Plow United will come out July 10 via It’s Alive Records; the label will also release the group’s new single, “Delco,” on the same date.
Plow United tour 2014
July 18—Asbury Lanes—Asbury Park, New Jersey
July 19—Boot And Saddle—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania