But for some reason, all I want to listen to these days are bands that sound like Black Sabbath or The Wipers—and newer bands that grew up listening to these bands.

Jeff the Brotherhood are two brothers (neither of whom are named Jeff) from Nashville. They have been zig-zagging the country on a national tour. They play a guitar with only four strings. I am very into the guitar-and-drums only sound, which is popping up in lo-fi bands everywhere.

Witch is a stoner metal band from Vermont started by the Dinosaur Jr. guitarist. They sound straight out of the 70s. This is probably my favorite new band I’ve heard in a while.

Death was a punk band from Detroit in the early 1970s that prefigured Bad Brains by five years and was completely forgotten until their demos were re-released in early 2009. Part of the appeal is this posthumous excavation (like a punk rock Van Gogh), as well as the fact that they’re your traditional white guy lineup. They were definitely a huge part of the soundtrack to my summer.

Dead Moon is a punk band from the late-80s with a classic southern rock meets garage/punk-rock feel. I love bands with female back up vocals, especially when the woman is not just singing but also playing an instrument. They remind me of the Misfits in just how many of their songs are pure gold.

Here’s a video of one of my favorite of their songs.