By Bob Makin
originally published: 03/03/2023

“When Pigs Lie,” the latest single from Public Serpents’ forthcoming LP, “The Bully Puppet,” is the Makin Waves Song of the Week. PHOTO COURTESY OF SBÄM RECORDS
At the end of the month, the Jersey Shore-based ska-core band Public Serpents will release “The Bully Puppet,” their debut LP for the Austrian SBÄM Records.
“When Pigs Lie,” their latest single from the 13-song LP, is the Makin Waves Song of the Week.
As the Makin Waves Song of the Week, “When Pigs Lie” also can be heard between 6 and 8 p.m. on March 3 on “Radio Jersey” at ThePenguinRocks.com. If you miss it, you can tune in any time in the archives at The Penguin or MixCloud.
The single deals with founding front man Skwert Gunn’s prison stint on drug and gun charges.
A succession of professional and personal setbacks also include the end of his marriage, as well as another state of homelessness, which he endured throughout his youth, leading to his joining fellow squatters in the infamous ska-core band Choking Victim in 1993.
"My whole life is invested in this (album),” Skwert says. “Artistically, physically and mentally, I’d probably die without it. There literally would be no point in living at this point."
Fortunately, Skwert has a lot to which to look forward, including an incredible amount of label support, a record release party on April 28 at The Meat Locker in Montclair, and a second European tour in as many years.
“The Bully Puppet” follows several releases on Skwert’s own Tent City Records, most notably the 2008 debut LP, "The Feeding Of The Fortune 5000.”
For more about Public Serpents, click https://linktr.ee/PublicSerpents
Bob Makin has produced Makin Waves since 1988. Follow Makin Waves on Facebook and contact Bob at [email protected].
About the author:
New Jersey Stage is proud to be the home of Bob Makin's Makin Waves column since 2017. His Song of the Week column comes out every Friday. He also writes an Album of the Month and Interview of the Month as well.
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