Did y’all know I used to release under the artist name “Rebel Prom Queen?” I did. You can find those releases on their own BandCamp page, and on Justin H.K.’s Spotify.
Rebel Prom Queen, or RPQ is my first “era” really releasing from 2013 to 2016, during which I produced 19, mostly folk and singer songwriter releases. I didnt really play shows, save a farmers market and a few open mics, but I did do quite a bit of busking. They not only vary in genre, but in size, production, theming and quite frankly, quality so I’ve found a way to undergo some musical reflection, promote my back catalogue, and milk myself for content all in one so, here we are, Ranking All 19 “Rebel Prom Queen” Releases. This is probably the harshest you will ever see my critique music, so keep that one quote in mind.
19. “The Slow Wi-Fi Blues” Aug 2015
How do you sound both bored and rushed at the same time? Ask me in August 2015. There are some alright songs on this one, including one I have a personal soft spot for: “I Eat Dirt.” Unfortunately it’s just not a very good version of it. Not really any theming for this one either so, it gets last.
Best Track: “I Eat Dirt”
18. “Decaf” Apr 2016
I guess “Decaf” (the single) is fine, just like the decaf (the coffee). Decent use of the mandolin, and some alright songwriting, but I find myself wishing my final release as Rebel Prom Queen wasn’t just so, “alright.”
Best/Worst Track: “Decaf”
17. “Bargain Bin” Oct 2013
First isn’t the worst, but its far from the best. There are actually quite a few great songs on this one. It’s pretty clearly I was eager to start out strong, and big. Maybe too much focus on big. “Bargain Bin” has 25 songs and sounds in at 1hr 16min. It’s kind of the opposite of a no skip album, but debut’s plenty of great tracks (with lots of rough edges), including “Dirt Wizard,” which showed back up on my recent album “Blood & Dirt.”
Best Track: “Dirt Wizard”
16. “Bland!” Sep 2014
“Bland!” is indeed, just a little bit bland but I find myself enjoying the second half quite a bit with some interesting guitarwork on “In The Absence Of Possession,” and “Keep Your Ears Clear.”
Best Track: “In The Absence Of Possession”
15. “Tall Towers With Little Support” Apr 2015
“Tall Towers With Little Support” isn’t bad, but is probably the least successful of my forays away from Folk as Rebel Prom Queen, and includes too many re-hashes. I enjoy my weird little funk numbers like “Get Yo’ Ass Down Here,” and “Final Song” as we asthe dope ass backwards solo on “Man Of Many Words”
Best Track: “Man Of Many Words”
14. “Gross” May 2014
And immediately to the second least successful foray away from Folk, “Gross.” I pretty much like all the songs on this album, and it was likely pretty important to be as far as developing my music, I just wish it had produced more memorable tracks.
Best Track: “Darlin’ Don’t You Hear Me”
13. “Cliché” Sep 2015
I don’t know what I was thinking giving something a title that has a special character in it, and honestly I’m ranking this album lower because of it. Some good songs with a strong theme, and good use of humor.
Best Track: “Traditional Wisdom (Read Silently)”
12. “Infinite Staircase” Dec 2014
This is a surprisingly angsty one with tracks like “Fate,” and “With Harmony and No Melody” contrasting heavily with the goofiness and fingerstyle guitar of the titular “Infinite Staircase.” Maybe a bit overblown in certain places, but satisfyingly Lo-Fi.
Best Track: “Infinite Staircase”
11. “Bad Pixel Art” Jul 2014
Ahh yes, the chiptune album. I made it using FamiTracker (Famicom Tracker as in Famicom which is the original NES), which I still have and barely know how to use. Does it make sense it my discography? No. Do I still l like it? Yes.
Best Track: “N00btendo”
10. “Random Article” Jan 2016
My dumbest best idea. From the BandCamp page:
“This album was created from a project where I would write a song out of any non-stub article that came up from Wikipedia’s random article function. I made 12 songs total, and these were the 5 that didn’t suck.”
Lot of mandolin in this one and some more complicated songs as far as multiple overlay instruments and what not. I was really starting to get a hang of my DAW at the time.
Best Track: “Henry Berry”
9. “Songs About Space, and the Human Body, Which Have Little To Do With Each Other But Weren’t Substantial Enough On Their Own” Aug 2015
It may be a dumb joke title, but it’s one that I still find a bit funny. I guess this counts as a double EP, I’m not really sure, but it’s honestly got stronger theming than a lot of my full albums, and six fully enjoyable tracks ranging from serious folk tunes like “The Skin” to jokey pop like “Beam Me Up Scotty, Right To Your Heart.”
Best Track: “The Skin”
8. “Kids Songs For Adults” Nov 2014
I think this one is my mom’s favorite, and it’s got some great tracks on it like “Morning Breath Blues” and the educational track “Unit 3 Song (Interactions Of Living Things),” as well as some genuinely cringeworthy stuff like “Ode To A Way Of Knowing” and the overly melodramatic “Get Away Clean.” Definetely the most teacher of any of albums, but I think in an endearing way.
Best Track: “Morning Breath Blues”
7. “Mushroom” Jul 2015
I probably love this indescribable five minute micro-album more than it deserves, but it’s the first time I ever let myself go full goof with my music, and for that alone it will always a hold a special place in my heart.
Best Track: “Mushroom” (but seriously just listen to the whole thing, it’s 5 minutes)
6. “Cut Without The T” Mar 2015
I really didn’t think I’d be placing this album this high, but on re-listen I find it pretty fascinating. “Copper” is a weird punky, folk track where I play drums by hitting the mic. There’s a completely mesmerizing fingerstlye riff on “Forget That Smell” that I have no idea how I played. “844” is so fully experimental I thought Spotify had started auto-playing other music for the first 15 seconds. Its, neat.
Best Track: “Copper”
5. “The Most Direct Approach” Apr 2015
This EP is a real sad-boi vibe, and the first time I really used slide guitar. Probably the first time I admitted to myself I sort of make country music. Pretty much peak Lo-Fi to me as well.
Best Track: “Impatiently Your Patient”
4. “What?” Jan 2014
My sophmore release and my first real effort at constructing a release as something other than a collection of songs. When I think back on my Rebel Prom Queen “Era” so to speak, this is probably the release I think of first. Full of great songs, if a bit rough around the edges production wise.
Best Track: “Wages”
3. “Picture Of Health” Oct 2014
I mostly remembered this album as the one with “Kiss Me” on it, but going back this might be my most successful attempt at fusing folk with something else, I personally identify this album as “Fuzz Folk,” as well the RPQ album the really nails the “Bedroom” vibe. Also probably the only RPQ album to achieve some sort of song success with “Kiss Me” doing pretty decent on Youtube for a bit.
Best Track “Kiss Me”
2. “Cold Dark Expanse” Jul 2014
My first and only real concept album in the RPQ era. Similar to “Mushroom” I value this album heavily for how it developed me musically, and the new ways it allowed me to think about making music. It also produced the phrase “You Can’t Go Out For A Cigarette In Space” which inspired me to write a choose your own adventure style short story at the time, and an adaptation/rewrite of that more recently with the short story “You Can’t Go Out For A Cigarette In Space.” Even more still, I’ve got a sort of spiritual successor to this album called “King Of The Derelict” releasing this July.
Best Track: “Cold Dark Expanse”
1. “Might.” May 18 2014
Before I started re-uploading my Rebel Prom Queen stuff I had completely forgotten about this album, and now I consider the definitive Rebel Prom Queen album. If you only listen to one of my old releases, this is the one, listen to “Might.” This album has my favorite RPQ song period, “But I Will” about finding a future love, and the almost equally romantic “Someone To Help Me Spend The Time.” I dropped this album unknowingly on my wife’s birthday in 2014 and it just feels like I knew in ways. Also contains one my favorite versions of the classic RPQ track (and one that was easy enough to learn how to play again) “Dirt Wizard.” Just kind of a no-skip album, which is hard for me to say about my old stuff, and an album that managed to nail the Lo-Fi balance.
P.S. This feels braggy, but the song “What Did I Say?” off this album also brought me one of my best musical performance moments, with a gentlemen coming to me afterwards specifically wowed with the guitarwork (and just how busy it was) on this song.
Best Track: “Might.”
As always, I beg of you. BUY MY BOOK!
Dirt Witch Records 
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