Diyno Mixtape: the best of April 2025 releases – our suggestions
April 2025 releases selected for our monthly column Diyno Mixtape
As usual, also in April we discovered and listened to a lot of stuff, selecting for you the releases you find in Diyno Mixtape. As always ample space for different subgenres and bands from various countries around the world. Happy listening!
Be curious and if you have advice or opinions to give us on April releases, feel free to contact us on our social media or via email!
If you’re interested in the physical copy of any of these albums you can write to info@radiopunk.it. Some are in our catalog, some could be available on demand.
Ska Punk
Jet8 – Break the silence (DIY | 12” LP)
“Breathe in the fresh air, let yourself be guided by your dog’s steps”: in this sentence is summed up the meaning of ‘Break the Silence,’ the magnificent new album by the Prague-based band that has been active for 20 years already and which, as it is also well illustrated in the cover artwork, invites us to a path of liberation. Envy, greed, addictions, fears, anxiety to excel, imprison us and threaten to destroy ourselves and the world. We can free ourselves only by rediscovering our most authentic and instinctive part, the beauty of nature and values such as friendship, respect, equality. The 11 tracks of ska-core bordering on melodic hardcore, in which horns soften the screaming vocals, take us by the hand along this path, yes arduous, but – hopefully – with a positive outcome, as suggested by the final phrase: “I still believe.” Masterpiece!
Gabriela Penka – Take me back to 1999
Penca is the leaf of the agave, and the music of this band, although it resides in California, has a taste of mezcal and tequila. Its goal, in fact, is to fuse Mexican cumbia with ska-core to awaken consciences about social and political justice. The 4 tracks on this EP, sung in Spanish, are a hurricane of overwhelming energy, for lovers of Maldita Vecindad, Voodoo Glow Skulls and Tijuana No.
Punk Rock
R3VIVRE – Victoire (Guerilla Asso | 12” LP/CD)
Guerilla Asso doesn’t miss a beat, and this month presents us with the splendid debut album by the quartet from Angoulême, western France. Stylish but solid punk rock with engaging choruses and catchy refrains, it sits “somewhere among Justin(e), Against me!, Uncommonmenfrommars and Bad Religion.” The well-edited lyrics cast a disenchanted look at the world and the absurdities of the behavior of human beings, who sow death and destruction in order to have more and more and then build virtual alter egos to make them live instead. But there is a way out, and it consists in breaking down barriers and freeing ourselves from limiting thoughts, social pressures, and fear of failure: “vivez libre… restez libre (live free… stay free).” A must-have!
Dead Pioneers – Po$t American (Hassle Records | CD, 12″ LP)
Second album by the Dead Pioneers from Denver, Colorado. Like the first album, an absolute blast. This album has more music and a little less spoken word from Gregg Deal (the band’s frontman), but the political criticism that permeates the lyrics remains powerful and sharp, punk at its most rebellious and angry form, the Dead Pioneers have something for everyone. As with the first album, most of the songs revolve around highly topical and important issues: starting with Native American self-determination, they touch on racism, class struggle, the damage of capitalism, the damage of patriarchy, up to more specific topics concerning problems in American society; such as school shootings and the Second Amendment.
In summary: artwork 10/10, music 10/10, lyrics 11/10, note that you should listen and read the lyrics carefully otherwise you will miss a big part of this great album. We leave you with a quote from the title-track, Po$t American, as a preview of the record.
America so star-spangled awesome
A nice place where the Empire blossoms
Killing Natives, built on slave labor, too
When you bleed you bleed red, white, and blue
Debt Neglector – Kinda Rips (Smartpunk Records | 12” LP)
From Orlando, Florida, comes this quartet devoted to visceral, energetic and gritty punk rock. The lyrics unflinchingly outline a lucid and merciless portrait of America and the world today, of the drift toward authoritarianism in the general indifference of those who are victims of media manipulation. This sociopolitical scenario, apocalyptic but tragically real, is reflected in individual anxieties and the frustration of not being able to give answers to the new generations (splendid is a father’s letter to his son in “Tough Luck, Kid!”). A thought-provoking record with a strong emotional impact, don’t miss it!
Pubic Enemy – Pulling Hard
Rhythmic and sparkling punk rock enhanced by very pleasant vocal harmonies: this is the musical proposal by Alex, Giovanna, Irene and Nidia from Madrid, aka Pubic Enemy. The album consists of an instrumental intro plus eight tracks, two of which are sung in Spanish and six in English. The lyrics, which are direct, forward, cheeky and ironic, help create the perfect combination for a charge of energy to listen to on a loop!
Flèches – S/T (Coeur Sur Toi, Dirty Slap Records | Cassette)
Released on cassette, this splendid album by the Breton band contains 9 tracks that delight us with a punk rock always full of twists, sudden changes and some crazy melodic and never cloying riffs. The rhythms and singing are also exciting and cool. This record sounds like a greatest hits, a top mix of amazing songs, one after the other!
Crust Punk
Apoptosi. – Per Tutto Il Male Che Avete Fatto.
10 short, fast and incisive songs on both the (anti-)music and the political level are the new step in the work of this very young band, which started in 2023. The cover art, the hatred and anger that oozes from the lyrics, which are well composed, and not least, the music itself, are truly sensational. Very high-level and crystal clear ideas. An impressive crust / hardcore record!
Dispyt – Från Melankoli till Meningslöshet (Elitbolaget Records | 10″)
Post-Punk
Viagra Boys – Viagr Aboys (Shrimptec Enterprises | 12” LP, CD)
Our dear friends from Stockholm released their fourth album, which is increasingly delirious, irreverent and sometimes pleasantly nonsense. The Viagra Boys need no introduction and with this album they reconfirm themselves to be really crazy assholes. A whirlwind of words, sounds and cleverly layered instruments creates a journey (or rather, a trip) inside the band’s crazy collective mind. What can I say? This record is also a masterpiece, like its predecessors. A real bomb, already on the list of the best records of 2025! A must!
Killer Kowalski – Vicious Reptile Goes to Market (Megasloth Records)
Caustic and ironic, with roots in new wave and post-punk but with an original and innovative sound, Killer Kowalski from Oxford present us with a 4-song EP that will delight you if you love Clash and Talking Heads or, in more recent times, Idles and Squid. Remarkable cover artwork in which you can have fun looking for details present in the lyrics!
Hardcore Punk
Dynamite – Settle The Score (Scheme, Northern Unrest | 7”)
The London band reminds us that speed, anger and power are the core of old school hardcore punk, and everything else is just boredom! Five speed-light songs in the style of Youth Of Today that will make you want to mosh wildly!
S.S.I.K. – Inferior Health (Neon Taste Records, Slow Death Records | 7″)
From Canada’s West Coast comes to our ears the band’s second EP. Seven songs that go straight to the point, no frills, with clanking guitars, screaming, scratching vocals and a blazing rhythm section. Almost 9 minutes of great 80s hardcore punk!
Plasma – Mua Et Voi Omistaa (Sorry State Records, The Little Jan’s Hammer Records, Nunchakupunk Records | 12″ LP)
Finland has been a hotbed of rabid punk since the 1980s, with seminal bands such as Kaaos, Riistetyt, Terveet Kädet and even in more recent times with bands like Putkipommi or Kohti Tuhoa – it has proved to be still the furnace of this genre. So, it is with no surprise that Plasma pulls out a hardcore punk record that is as simple as it is charismatic in almost twenty minutes over ten tracks. The singing in Finnish is powerful, the riffs are direct and primal, and the songs stick in your head. The sound and the cover art are the icing on the cake. Great record!
Cheap Heat – Blank Void (Brain Slash Records | 7″)
Ready to headbang for 10 minutes?! Squeezed into these six tracks, we find a deflagrating mixture of the sound of Zeke and Motorhead and the hardcore punk of Poison Idea. The New York line-up seems to be perpetually racing against the clock with these crazy riffs and harrowing, screaming vocals. Both the sounds and the cover are great. This EP is truly remarkable!
Oi!
Ultra Razzia / Armistice (Longshot Music, Primator Crew | 12″ LP)
Ultra Razzia, a band with members of Prowlers and Force Majeure from Montreal, release this split album with Dutch band Armistice, with members of Savage Beat, Reapers, Crown Court and DayDrinker. The three dark and pissed off punk oi! tracks of Ultra Razzia sung in French with sprinklings of Sax mix great with the three energetic and vigorous street rock’n’roll/oi! songs of Armistice. An awesome split!