The Waterford, Ireland based oi! band Sympos formed a bit before COVID-19 started to shutter public gatherings and gigs. They released their self-titled debut album in 2021, followed by the More Sympos and Hard As Nails Punts EPs in 2023. To The Dogs is their second full length LP, which comes out on March 28th.

As before, the band continues to straddle the line between being serious and having a sense of humor. There’s no filler here and I imagine it would be a blast to see them live among their friends, family and hometown crowd. There’s a lot of choruses (“Stout & Porter”) to shout along to while spilling some of a pint on your Sambas or on the flight jacket of the person next to you.

I always appreciate bands writing songs about where they are from, the characters they know, how things have changed and types of people who have disappeared, so “Where Have All the Winos Gone” and “To The Dogs” checked those boxes for me.

“Boots & Ballads”, no doubt a reference to both the Running Riot album as well as the band connected zine, is a standout track. But “f/bank punks not dead” is really excellent and maybe the Sympos at their best so far. It’s an almost melancholy tribute to the punks and skins who got them into the subcultures. The lyrics don’t indicate it, but the music makes me think they were thinking of some who have passed on and are no longer with us.

Overall, one of the best oi! releases in 2025 so far.

Streaming: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/sympos/to-the-dogs-2
Vinyl will be available through Distor-oi! Records, TAE Records, Primator Crew, and Mister Face Records.