For me, punk was never really about the politics or looking the part, there was certainly no studded leather jackets, bondage pants, or mohicans. It was far more about having fun, being honest and drinking far too much warm beer for our age. As such, Sham 69 never spoke to me the same way Screeching Weasel did, and I far preferred listening to NOFX over Never Mind the Bollocks. And it's for that reason that I found Phoenix, AZ's Moovalya so endearing. It's not music that wants to smash the state, it's music that wants to get smashed and skate.

Whilst it wouldn't be far to call the band derivative, they definitely wear their influences like a badge of honour. There's definite elements of bands such as Suicidal Tenencies, later Casualties and plenty of the aforementioned NOFX.That said, skate punk has been a long overlooked genre, and it's refreshing to hear it done so faithfully, though arlier releases might have felt a little empty sounding, especially if you make your way backwards from the band's most recent release Sixer.

Tracks like 'Overdrive' (from 2010s First Degree) suffer from muddy production, though to their credit also come off sounding like The Movielife. Thankfully, the promise and potential manifested beneath the production is something that has, given the four years between that and their most recent release, deservedly reached the surface by now and by comparison, 'Straight in to You', the opening to Sixer, is a far snottier affair in which the production has been cleaned up to such an extent that the breakneck fretwork is far more discernible, allowing their skills to really be brought to the fore.

The difference between the band's earlier and later recordings here really is the difference between Moovalya being a band who can go places, and another punk band destined to spend their lives opening shows in their hometown. It's as if, with their later releases, they've gone back to the roots of the genre; there's far more abrasion at play than with later iterations of the genre, it's a matter of broken bones instead of broken hearts, and it's for that reason, that Moovalya seem like they're a band who could easily kick start the scene again.

The second of our featured artists discovered via Reverbnation are Pittsburgh quartet The Show, who've been plying their trade for the better part of the last seven years and released their debut album Here’s To Your Jigsaw in 2009.

Fronted by the fantastically named Johnny Saint-Lethal the band are back in the studio working on new material having been forced to take a break in 2012/13 due to serious issues with Saint-Lethal's vocal chords (at one time his prognosis was as low as a 10% chance of recovery).

Having in the past supported. amongst others, School Of Seven Bells it's immediately clear to see why acts of that calibre and in that vein have found them taking to the stage on the earlier part of their live bills - The Show deploy a melodic and expansive brand of rock that, whilst not maybe quite of the sort you could describe as anthemic, pushes emotional buttons and easily bridges the intimacy gap between them and their audience.

Tracks such as 'Lie After Lie' share similar territory to that of the slower output of the likes of The Verve, albeit of a more mainstream bent whilst the likes of 'Black And Blue' show off their more raucous capabilities for the most part.

Coming smack up to date the band have recently self-released their latest EP, entitled …until you know what it it’s like to stand where there is no ground and have begun working on songs for their next full-length effort.

They've a few shows in the US at the end of the summer too so check them out if you get the chance:-

…until you know what it it’s like to stand where there is no ground is available from iTunes.