 | A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject.(May 2023) |
Dollar Signs | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2009-2025 |
| Labels | Pure Noise Records, A-F Records, Possum Heart Records, Scaredy Cat Records |
| Members |
|
Dollar Signs is a punk rock band from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. The band has released four full-length records as well as several EPs.
Dollar Signs started as an acoustic project of Erik Button and Luke Gunn. After performing for several years in the North Carolina region, the band was joined by Dylan Wachman and Arion Chamberlain. Dylan Wachman and Erik Button would go on to create the local record label Scaredy Cat Records, which is where the band released much of their early material. In 2015, the band released their album "Yikes". [1]
After the release of "Yikes", the band changed course and started changing direction into pop punk. [2] The release of "Life is Ruff" saw the band pressing their own vinyl via their imprint Possum Heart Records. It was also the first time the band was pressed to vinyl. [3] Additionally, this was the start of the band's touring history, where they embarked on their first major United States tour, which covered the east coast and the midwest. [4]
In 2018, Dollar Signs signed to A-F Records, which saw the release of This Will Haunt Me. The record was introduced to the world by Dan Ozzi via Noisey. The lead single "Waste My Life Away" featured puppets that looked like the band members having a night in Las Vegas. [5]
Dollar Signs surprise released their EP "I Need Some Space" on Acrobat Unstable Records in early 2019. The band took the opportunity to breathe new life into older songs by re-recording them with their new lineup.
In December 2020, Dollar Signs released the song "Negative Blood" alongside their signing with Pure Noise Records. [6] In January 2021, they announced their debut record for the label, Hearts Of Gold, with a music video for the track "Bad News". [7]
In January 2025, the band announced on Instagram that they would be ending the band at the end of 2025. [8]
Musically, the band has evolved out of folk punk over time and into more of a party punk sound, akin to Jeff Rosenstock and Direct Hit (band). While the band started as just a two piece, the added members and time passing added a lot of elements to their more recent songs [9]
Lyrically, the songs frantically dissect the woes of living life as a young person in the modern time. Erik has said,
"Our music is written about these transitional phases in life. Usually, when you’re in your early or mid-twenties, the transitional phases are always because you’re in between relationships or jobs or moving different places. Whereas [Hearts of Gold] is more about having all of the tools that you need to change yourself and fix yourself and then how difficult it is to change. Putting in the energy to work on yourself is extremely difficult and instead of making a record that’s like ‘oh, I went through this transformation and now I’m a great person’…it’s more about doing the hard work on yourself to hopefully become a better person and not just make the same mistakes over and over again." [10]
Studio albums
| Album | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| The Death of the Party | 2014 | Self Released |
| Yikes | 2015 | Death To False Hope Records |
| This Will Haunt Me | 2018 | A-F Records |
| Hearts of Gold | 2021 | Pure Noise Records |
EPs and other
| Name | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| The Wonder Beers (Compilation) | 2012 | Self Released |
| Life Is Ruff | 2017 | Possum Heart Records |
| I Need Some Space | 2019 | A-F Records |
Alkaline Trio is an American punk rock band from Chicago. The band's current members are Matt Skiba, Dan Andriano, and Atom Willard (drums).
Timothy Ross Armstrong is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup Transplants. Prior to forming Rancid, Armstrong was in the ska punk band Operation Ivy.
Senses Fail is an American rock band formed in Ridgewood, New Jersey, in 2001. Founded by vocalist Buddy Nielsen, drummer Dan Trapp, guitarists Garrett Zablocki and Dave Miller, and bassist James Gill ; the band has seen many lineup changes, with Nielsen being the only consistent member. The band has released eight studio albums, two EPs, and one live album. Discovered by their first manager, Heath Miller of Excess dB Entertainment, booked them on a show opening for Catch 22 at Rexplex, where the owners of Drive Thru Records saw them live for the first time and offered to sign them on November 30, 2002.
Static Prevails is the second studio album by American rock band Jimmy Eat World, released on July 23, 1996, through Capitol Records. Following the release of the band's self-titled debut album (1994), they signed to Capitol in mid-1995 for further releases. Carrier member Rick Burch replaced bassist Mitchel Porter, who left to become a Mormon missionary. Recorded at Sound City in Los Angeles, California, and at Big Fish, in Encinitas, California, Wes Kidd, Mark Trombino, and Jimmy Eat World acted as producers for the album.
The Artist in the Ambulance is the third studio album by American rock band Thrice. It was released on July 22, 2003, through Island Records, becoming their first release on a major label. The band released their second studio album The Illusion of Safety in March 2002; by July of that year, they were writing material for their next album. Recording sessions were held with producer Brian McTernan at Bearsville Studios in Bearsville, New York; Salad Days Studios in Beltsville, Maryland; and Phase Studios in College Park, Maryland.
Jimmy Eat World is the debut studio album by American rock band Jimmy Eat World, released in December 1994 through Wooden Blue Records, limited to 2,000 copies. In 1993, musician Jim Adkins joined a band with his childhood friend and drummer Zach Lind. With guitarist Tom Linton and bassist Mitch Porter in the line-up, the band named themselves Jimmy Eat World. They made their live debut in February 1994, but as their hometown of Mesa, Arizona lacked a music scene, they started their own with their friends. With a tape demo made in early 1994, Adkins and school friend Joel Leibow started a promoters company, Bring Me the Head Of Productions.
Helen Love are an indie band from Wales whose music is a combination of punk rock, bubblegum pop and disco dance music. The band was formed in 1992 by Helen Love with Sheena, Roxy, and Mark (keyboards). Current members are Helen, Sheena and Ricardo Autobahn.
Teenage Bottlerocket is an American rock band formed in Laramie, Wyoming in 2000. The rock band was formed by twin brothers Ray and Brandon Carlisle, following the dissolution of their previous band, Homeless Wonders. The band's music is heavily influenced by guitarist and co-vocalist Kody Templeman's other band, The Lillingtons, and punk rock acts such as Ramones, Screeching Weasel, Green Day, The Bouncing Souls, and Misfits; Their music has been referred to as "Ramones-core", "Weasel-core" and "leather jacket punk".
Gouge Away is an American hardcore punk band based in Florida that formed in 2012. The band is influenced by post-hardcore and noise rock bands such as Pixies, The Jesus Lizard, Fugazi, Unwound, the Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower and Nirvana. Gouge Away released its debut album , Dies in 2016 to underground acclaim, and released its second album Burnt Sugar through Deathwish Inc. in 2018.
Dear You is the fourth studio album by American punk rock band Jawbreaker, released on September 12, 1995, through DGC Records. While promoting their third studio album 24 Hour Revenge Therapy (1994), Jawbreaker was approached by a representative from Geffen Records. After securing management, they had meetings with various label representatives, before circling back to Geffen. Eventually, they signed to them and started recording their major label debut at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, with producer Rob Cavallo. While bassist Chris Bauermeister and drummer Adam Pfahler recorded their respective parts within a few days, frontman Blake Schwarzenbach did his parts over six weeks in February and March 1995.
24 Hour Revenge Therapy is the third studio album by American punk rock band Jawbreaker, released on February 7, 1994, through Tupelo Recording Company and Communion Label. Before the release of their second studio album, Bivouac (1992), frontman Blake Schwarzenbach developed a polyp on his vocal cords. While on tour in Europe, he went to a hospital; upon returning to the United States, the band took up day jobs. Recording sessions for their next album were held at Steve Albini's house in Chicago, Illinois, across three days in May 1993. While on tour, they listened to tapes they made of the sessions; Schwarzenbach was unhappy with the recordings. Three songs were subsequently recorded in a single day at Brilliant in San Francisco, California, in August 1993 with Billy Anderson.
The Wonder Years is an American rock band from Lansdale, Pennsylvania, formed in July 2005. The band currently consists of Dan "Soupy" Campbell, Casey Cavaliere, Matt Brasch, Josh Martin, Nick Steinborn and Mike Kennedy. They have released seven full-length albums, two EPs, and several splits/compilations. The group is currently signed to Hopeless Records. Their name originates from a paper that Campbell read that was written by one of his after-school educators titled "The Wonder Years."
Real Friends is an American rock band from Tinley Park, Illinois. To date, the band has released seven EPs and four studio albums. Previously signed to Fearless Records and Pure Noise Records, the band independently released their most recent full-length album, Blue Hour, on October 11, 2024.
Cayetana were an American rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The band was formed in 2011 by Augusta Koch on vocals and lead guitar, Kelly Olsen on drums, and Allegra Anka on bass. They released two studio albums, Nervous Like Me (2014), and New Kind of Normal (2017), as well as three EPs before breaking up in 2019.
Glocca Morra was an American indie rock band from Miami, Florida who later moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Knocked Loose is an American hardcore punk band from Oldham County, Kentucky, formed in 2013 and currently signed to Pure Noise Records. The band released their debut studio album, Laugh Tracks, in September 2016 through Pure Noise Records, which was followed by A Different Shade of Blue in 2019. Their 2021 EP ATear in the Fabric of Life incorporated elements of death metal and was released to widespread critical acclaim. They released their third album, You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To, in 2024, earning high praise from critics, and topping the UK Hard Rock & Metal chart for the first time.
Hot Mulligan is an American emo band from Lansing, Michigan.
State Faults are an American post-hardcore band formed in Santa Rosa, California in 2010. Noisey included their album "Resonate/Desperate" as one of the records that best captures the last decade of hardcore punk. In 2019, they were listed at number 16 on Kerrang's 50 Best American Hardcore Bands Right Now list.
Spanish Love Songs is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, that was founded in 2013. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Dylan Slocum, guitarist Kyle McAulay, drummer Ruben Duarte, and keyboardist/acoustic guitar player Meredith Van Woert. Slocum and Van Woert are married. Since their formation, Spanish Love Songs has released four studio albums: Giant Sings the Blues (2015), Schmaltz (2018), Brave Faces Everyone (2020) and No Joy (2023)
Capstan is an American post-hardcore band from Orlando, Florida. To date, the band has released six EPs and three studio albums. The band was formerly signed to Adventure Cat Records, and is currently signed to Fearless Records.