Foot-Pounds

Foot-Pound Force:

The foot-pound force, or simply foot-pound (symbol: ft·lb_f or ft·lb), is a unit of work or energy (a scalar) and also a unit of torque (a vector)

• Goodbye, Lookout! Records: A Tribute in 10 Songs

  So here is an(other) article about the demise (NOOO!) of the infamous Lookout! records… now, I am a much bigger fan of Alternative Tentacles, who actually sent me my first collage poster at the tender young age of 16, but Lookout! has always had a soft spot in my heart. Kerplunk was a damn fine record, as was that OpIvy one. Anyway, somebody did much more research than I will ever do and you get to see it. FUCK OFF, PUNK!

  By Rae Alexandra, SF Weekly

  You may have heard over the last few days that Berkeley’s Lookout! Records — one of the world’s most treasured punk rock labels, and the place that Green Day got its start — is closing for good, back catalog and all. If you were a punk rocker in the ’90s, this news feels a little bit like losing an old treasured friend — possibly an old, treasured friend you’ve not really hung out with much lately, but one who’ll always have a special place in your heart nonetheless. To mourn the end of this hugely important label, we wanted to pay tribute with a selection of our favorite Lookout! Records songs (in no particular order).

  “I Wanna Be A Homosexual,” Screeching Weasel
  
  
  
  We’re pretty sure this is one of the greatest punk rock songs ever written. This snotty, melodic slice of absurdist aggression called out every closet homophobe in the scene (“Why don’t you admit you don’t have the balls to be a queer?”), laughed at them, then loudly declared punk rock a gay-friendly zone. Screeching Weasel didn’t just say homosexuality was to be accepted, they said it was to be aspired to — and they put a smile on everyone’s faces while they were at it. Absolutely brilliant.

  
  
  

  “Eating Toothpaste,” Bratmobile
  
  
  
  By Christ, we miss riot grrrl.
  
  “Unity,” Operation Ivy
  
  
  
  It’s hard to remember sometimes that ska-punk was genuinely fucking cool at one point. And the genre owed a lot of its early street cred to Op Ivy — the first band to shine a light on the talents of the always charismatic Tim Armstrong. His current band, Rancid, still covers this track in their live sets, and Green Day covers Op Ivy’s other most-remembered song, “Knowledge,” in theirs. Literally, a classic.
  
  “Butterflies,” Crimpshrine
  
   
  
  

  Sloppy as all get out, but beloved by a multitude, Aaron Cometbus played drums in this band when he wasn’t handwriting tales of punk rock woe in his now-renowned fanzine. Gutter punks love this stuff.
  
  “Punk Rock Girls,” The Queers
  
  
  
  We know it’s stupid and flippant, but if “Punk Rock Girls” doesn’t make you want to dance like an eight-year-old at a birthday party who’s high on cake, there’s something wrong with you. It’s just so… cute!
  
  “Scuffle Town,” Avail
   
  
  Witnessing this raucous ode to Avail’s Richmond, Virginia hometown, live, is one of the most joyful experiences a gig-goer can ever have. Didn’t matter where, didn’t matter how many people were watching, Avail kicked ass live in a manner that is fondly remembered all over the world — and they always kicked it up an extra notch for “Scuffle Town.” Sure, you came out of it with two black eyes and and a broken wrist, but you didn’t care because you just saw magic happen. We miss you, Avail. Very, very much.
  
  “Do You Wanna Hit It?” The Donnas

  
  
  
  Once they quit going on and on endlessly about the fact that they were teenage girls, The Donnas got really eff’n likeable. All solid riffs and unshakeable sass and we-can-play-just-as-good-as-the-boys attitude (and they sure could). Thanks for bringing them to us, Lookout!.
  
  Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
  
  
  
  It’s unlike anything else Lookout! Records ever put out, but gosh darn it, The Tyranny Of Distance is gorgeous.
  
  “Isolation Burns,” Spitboy
   
  
  
  Articulators of female struggle, hatred of patriarchy, and the ongoing fight for equality, Spitboy were a fucking godsend for alternative women everywhere and absolutely terrifying for almost everyone else. Thanks for never sugar-coating anything, ladies. We love you.
  
  “2000 Light Years Away,” Green Day
  
  
  
  

  Imagine for a moment what might have happened had Lookout! Records not released the first two Green Day records. What if no one else had signed them? What if they hadn’t been picked up by a major to release Dookie? What if Green Day was removed from the last eighteen years in music? What if American Idiot had never happened? *Shudder*. Doesn’t bear thinking about, but the musical landscape (especially the punk one) would look very different indeed. Thank you Lookout!. 
  
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  Follow us on Twitter @SFAllShookDown, follow Rae Alexandra @Raemondjjjj, and like us at Facebook.com/SFAllShookDown.
  20 Jan 2012 / 17 notes