DWAR: The Bouncing Souls - How I Spent My Summer Vacation

DOG WALK ALBUM REVIEWS: where I walk the dog and listen to an entire album. my mind is free to wander, and I like reviewing shit. don’t expect these to be “good,” or even to totally make sense. sometimes I take notes while I walk, sometimes I don’t.

album: The Bouncing Souls – How I Spent My Summer Vacation (2001)

one time during Music Video Theatre (MVT), I put “Gone” by the Bouncing Souls right after “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse. I turned to my best pal Jason and asked him if he understood why I did that. he didn’t. but in the interest of not being a smarmy prick who talks over a movie like one of those great parodies in the Barbie movie, I told him I’d share it later. that was 13 months ago.

I remembered what I wanted to tell him while walking Birdie. it was that the word “gone” usually indicates sadness or longing or loss. but the Bouncing Souls’ “Gone” is about casting out darkness and finding joy in the triumph over struggle. it’s fucking beautiful. it’s probably their best song. my brain’s favorite Bouncing Souls song is “New Day.” but my heart’s is “Gone.” that seems like it should win. especially in 2026, which has been a bad year for heart.

anyway, if Amy Winehouse could have internalized something like “Gone” more frequently, maybe she could have overcome her addictions. maybe she’d still be making music. maybe she’d find fulfillment. instead she’s gone (there’s that word again). she succumbed to her body’s worst betrayals, and we no longer have her. “Gone” is what I like to think of as the alternate ending for “Rehab.” I carried it with me… until that darkness was GOO-OOOONE!

this song is an anthem. this band is all anthems. this is a band that every time I hear it, my mood improves by like a full letter grade easily. pick a song! it doesn’t even fucking matter, it’s going to touch your… oh god… soul.

I’m so sorry. when I tell you I try to write these particular pieces stream-of-consciousness, I’m not lying. I’d totally change that sentence if I was writing this for money. that’s awful. that’s hack. that pisses me off to leave in there because it’s true and perfect, but also that type of writing feels so OBVIOUS.

so would Amy Winehouse still be alive if she listened to the Bouncing Souls more, and in particular the song “Gone?” I mean, probably! I think that’s safe to assume because why not? am I jumping to conclusions too easily with too small a data set? yeah. but have you noticed how 2026 is ALL like that? it fucking sucks. so why not use this shitty tool for good, like writing some historical fiction about how listening to the Bouncing Souls ultimately saved Amy Winehouse’s life? that’s way more fun than the dumbest guy in your high school nodding along when RFK Jr says something like “vaccines make you receive 5G radiowaves moar.” god I hate this timeline.

the first 3 songs on this record are as strong a 3 song run on virtually any album not created by Elton John. this was EXACTLY what I wanted my punk rock to feel like in 2001 when it came out, and I listened to this album again and again and again and a-fucking-gain. I had a 2-door honda civic at one point, a car I fucking loved and drove the absolute shit out of, including over Wolf Creek Pass at least twice.

the CD changer was in the trunk. it was a huge pain in the ass. so you really had to be strategic about which 6 discs were in there to accommodate your many moods and whims. this is probably why I thought about Dilated Peoples while walking the dog. ha! interesting!

but How I Spent My Summer Vacation was one that would just LIVE in there. I’d listen to it over and over again. and then when I’d remember to switch out some discs, often that one would stay in there.

I think the Bouncing Souls write punk ballads better than just about anyone. a lot of bands don’t have that gear. that’s a hard gear now that I’m thinking about it! because, at least for me, if I’m thinking about rock ballads, I’m thinking about 80s hair metal power ballads. and while I fucking love that shit too (especially if you, like – I don’t know – get yourself in the mood to feel what it was like to be a horny chick in the 80s. that’s very specific, but I think (hope) you get it), there’s a high degree of cheese associated with it. like: oh I have so many deep feelings! but I didn’t let that get in the way of me putting a hole in the ozone with my fucking aqua net or working out and oiling up so this low cut tank top looks the sexiest. also: I’m sad!

they make ballads that still feel punk, but are almost like a downshift. “Break-Up Song,” “Streetlight Serenade (To No One)” and “Late Bloomer” all feel like ballads to me. a lot of feels in the back half of this album. maybe that’s why it’s so fulfilling to listen to AN ALBUM. it’s a whole journey. a long form story. with emotional peaks and valleys. and this one is so fucking good, I want to listen to it.

that’s what you should go do right now. listen to this fucking album. this band is top 5 for me.

a million billion stars forever.