The guys from Convict Class just sent me their latest album Not The Enemy directly from Australia, and on an Amsterdam morning I "clicked play" and suddenly it felt like I had been transported to a sweaty Warrnambool pub. There was not a single moment when I was able to resist as from the opening chords to the final feedback, this record mesmerizes its listener completely, a real streetpunk monster that oozes life, honesty, and is also full of that raw working-class fire that inspired the scene in the first place.

I downloaded the new NOi!SE album Fate of the Union on bandcamp and hit play. From the very first notes, I was hooked – transported straight into the heart of Tacoma, Washington’s streetpunk scene.

If you don’t already know who these guys from Houston are, you’ve really been living under a rock this last few years. Liberty & Justice takes the musical foundations built by bands like The Templars and 4-Skins, but immediately demolishes all that is the tradition with hardcore power like that of Sheer Terror.

The Clench are a Scottish Oi! outfit that hit the scene in the early 2020s and quickly carved out a strong identity: raw, melodic street punk with working-class bite, singalong choruses, and enough hard-rock swagger. Both of these six-track mini-LPs (around 17 minutes each) feel like two chapters of the same story—energetic, no-frills Oi! that sounds best cranked loud with mates or on a long drive. Listening to them back-to-back, as I did, really highlights how consistent and solid the band is while showing subtle growth.

Gimp Fist hit back with a statement release in the form of a twelve-track album, 'Take the Power Back' and, as veteran punters will know, these Dundee lads have been treading the boards in the UK's street punk scene since time immemorial and that pedigree really shines through here. Gimp Fist still carry their distinctive working-class fury, mixed with their renowned rhythmic and sometimes infectious foot-stomping verve, when the band veers into their signature reggae and ska influences. And as the title suggests, this one hits hard.

Mess serves a no-frills crash course in the classics-classic street punk and Oi!-culled from the streets of Guadalajara, Mexico, via their Somos Mess compilation (out May 2026). The 16-track collection packages up the band's 2020-2022 output-EPs, singles, rarities, split 7-inches-freshly remastered and on a single LP. 

Heathen Peaces second album, Total Fucking War, is a solid record that is a fast, aggressive mix of black metal and Oi! punk that actually works. If you like the speed of bands like Marduk or Darkthrone but also enjoy the raw, shouty energy of street punk, this record hits that spot. 

Justice Served is a no-nonsense American Oi! band from the East Coast, delivering straight-up working-class anthems rooted in the classic sound of the genre. Their EP/album Against You, released March 23, 2026, builds on their 2025 demo with six tracks of aggressive, chant-ready punk energy.

Boston’s Badterms have finally dropped their long-awaited full-length debut, and it delivers a knockout punch that feels both overdue and perfectly timed. After years of building anticipation through sharp 7-inches and punchy EPs, Nest of Vipers arrives as a lean, ferocious eight-tracker that clocks in at just 21 minutes yet leaves a massive impression.

Shaved for Battle deliver another punchy slab of no-nonsense American East Coast Oi! with Unbreakable, their latest full-length. Twelve tracks in just over half an hour, this album wastes zero time getting to the point: straight-ahead street punk with roaring gang vocals, driving rhythms, and that classic boot-stomping energy.

While the world spins faster with its endless noise and plastic promises, Carry No Banners from Dresden remind us what real streetpunk still sounds like: raw, pissed off, and built on the same bricks as the old estates. Their new EP Some Things Change... Some Things Don't clocks in at a tight 10 tracks and under 27 minutes – exactly how long it should take to remember why you got into this in the first place.

Some bands stay with you for a lifetime. For me, that band has always been Backfire!. From the first time I heard their raw, uncompromising sound, they became the undisputed godfathers of Eurocore in my eyes — the band that defined what European hardcore could and should be. Thirty-two years after forming in Maastricht, they have now closed the chapter with The Last Confession, a five-track mini-album released on March 20, 2026, via WTF Records. Holding this final release feels like saying goodbye to old friends who shaped who I am.