Photo: Phoebe Fox

The dream of a counterculture defined by zines, skate videos, and days spent just hanging around pursuing whatever creative outlet peaked your imagination may be a time of the past for many, but it still feels alive and well in SWMRS’ infectious style of punk. Comprised of Cole and Max Becker, Joey Armstrong, and Seb Mueller, the Oakland-formed quartet has been keeping the punk torch burning with a series of releases that have consistently brought something new to the genre of rock. “Trashbag Baby,” the band’s latest release, is no different.

“Trashbag Baby,” which marks SWMRS’ third single from the band’s forthcoming sophomore album, Berkeley’s On Fire, sees co-frontmen Cole and Max Becker striding through an electrifying surf punk soundscape. The blistering just-shy-of four-minute single moves at breakneck speed, while retaining SWMRS’ penchant for crafting an inescapable California vibe. It is a difficult juxtaposition to pin down but one SWMRS is making a career of pulling off exceptionally well. Like any song that deftly captures the sound of California’s counterculture history, “Trashbag Baby” feels like it would be perfectly at home scoring a DIY skate video. So, SWMRS did just that.  

Shot and edited by Cole Becker, the video for “Trashbag Baby” enlists LGBTQ+ skater Cher Strauberry to deliver a bout of VHS-era punk nostalgia. The DIY video has all the trappings of a video that anyone with a terribly cool friend could make and begins to explain SWMRS’ innate charm. SWMRS is a band not trying to present a grandiose picture of themselves as savers of rock but is a band simply presenting a raw and straightforward sound that just so happen to be just what rock needs right now.

Watch the video for “Trashbag Baby” below and keep an eye out for Berkeley’s On Fire, due out Feb. 15 via Fueled By Ramen:

Be sure to catch SWMRS as they embark on a massive UK and US tour. Beyond getting the chance to see SWMRS live, as a part of the newly established SWMRS Fund, $1 from every ticket sold will be donated to organizations working on the frontlines of climate, racial, economic, and gender issues.