Union Strike is an energetic, powerful three piece punk rock band from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania . With folk and ska infusions through-out. Comprised of Jamie Sharkey (guitar and vocals), Jake Compton (bass and vocals) and Caleb Compton (drums and vocals). With the positive outlook of Minor Threat, the musical styling of The Clash, the battle cry of Operation Ivy, and the in-your-face attitude of Rancid, Union Strike pays respect to their roots without being a blatant rip-off of any of the above.
Union Strike has released a six song EP on Kill The Middle Man Records and has put out a split CD with False Profit on Pillage Records that sold a thousand copies on the 2003 Warped Tour. Most recently Union Strike took another step forward by releasing “Built to Last,†a twelve song full length, on their own label. In addition to Producing, engineering, mixing, and mastering Union Strike also designed the custom artwork for the album and it kicks off the next chapter of Union Strike. Their March 22 2008 Cd Release show that they hosted themselves at the Dillsburg Firehall, free to all, was featured in a article in the partriot news, and was promoted as "the best punk rock show of 2008"( the article is in our press album in pixs.)
Union Strike has been playing together for seven years and playing out for five years, and they show no sign of letting up. Since their inception, they have shared the stage with bands such as The River City Rebels, The Street Dogs, The Briggs, The Code, The Aka’s, Headnoise, One-21, 8 Bucks Experiment, Officer Negative, Sixer and The Dead Pets.
Bass Player Jake Compton described their music like this:
So much of the music business has nothing to do with music. It’s all about the money. Union Strike is about music, and all that music can be if it ceases to be about profit margins and demographics. We play music we love, not what we think will sell. To us it’s all about fun shows, good catchy songs, and lyrics that actually mean something."Review of "Built to Last" our new album
"To many "punk" bands have these overproduced cd's nowadays and it sounds more like rock n' roll. Union Strike don't fall for that. They go to the roots with songs like "Brandi" about a girl who knows the band and sings all the songs at all the shows. Sounds pretty simple to me. Thats punk. This is a great punk record that should have you thinking about going to the park and skateboarding the night away with this disc on."
-The Doctors Office
myspace.com/mydoctorsofficeBuy the "Built to Last" album NOW $6.99 Free shipping!
"Raw rock n roll the way its supposed to be."
Joe from Shrunken Head Records
myspace.com/shrukenheadrecords"It’s funny how some things never change. As I picked up my battered old notebook to write my first CD review in years, the first thing I saw on the inside cover were the notes I’d scribbled 5 long years ago while listening to Union Strike’s first EP. Words like “catchyâ€, “funâ€, “honestâ€, “relatableâ€, and “heartfelt†were circled, and these terms apply just as much to their recently released full-length record “Built to Last†as they did on the band’s earlier effort. While sitting down to pen this review, I had to ask myself- is it possible to write an unbiased review of an album that has a song about you on it? After all, I was a fan of the band long before I was a friend. From the first time I saw them play at Crash’s Deli in Hanover and they covered a Specials song, I was hooked. While the band has seen a line-up change since that fateful show, and the remaining members have gone from carefree teenagers to working adults with families and 9-to-5 jobs, the spirit of their youth and themes from younger days still remain. Drawing heavily on the Operation Ivy influence, Union Strike plays mid-tempo punk rock mixed with some ska and a tinge of folk, and delivers honest songs about friendships, family, growing up, and making the best of what you’ve got. Songs like “Built to Last†and “The New Song†show their long-standing loyalty to their music and each other, while the tune “Better Off Without Me†shows a maturity for the band with their first ever love song that’s seemingly reminiscent of later Bouncing Souls. Songs like “Seriously You’re Too Serious†and their cover of George Thoroughgood’s “Get a Haircut†prove that these guys play music for fun and not for fame, which is all too rare in punk rock these days. While everyone around them is growing old and jaded, selling out and abandoning their roots, Union Strike never forgets where they came from, and won’t be jumping on the latest trends any time soon. Look for Union Strike to be playing shows all summer long in their hometown of Harrisburg and surrounding areas."
-Brandi of Hanover Shows myspace.com/hanovershows
It all started when I was about 15 years old. That's the year 2000. My little brother and his friend invited me over to "rock out" with them. I can remember it so clearly Caleb strummed those three chords to "Ball and Chain" by Social Distortion. Jamie came in on the bass. Then I sang "It's been ten years...." Well for us it's been 8. So much has changed, but in a lot of ways we're just like those three kids who wanted to rock out together. We spent 2 years in Jamies basement playing covers and hanging out. Jamie moved to guitar, I moved to bass, and we forced Caleb to play drums. Then in the spring of 2002 we wrote our first few songs. (Just Sittin', Uniformed Chaos) Later that summer we hooked up with Josh Slusher and found a name. Union Strike. We started playing out, and realeased two 6 song discs. As far as shows goes the pattern over the last 5 years for us has gone like this; Step one: A place opens to have shows. Step two: Slowly but surely word gets out until totally sweet shows start happening. Step three: Some incident or something happens and the place gets shut down. Venues this pattern applies to; Crash’s Deli, Grangeville Firehall, The Why’re, Monroe township building, Voodoo SkatePark, Remy’s, and The Hanover Library. In 2003 we parted ways with Slusher and are a three piece. We played with adding a bass player, but have not found one so we’re still a three piece. Basically we’re just three kids who love to have fun and play music. We’re all about all ages shows, but aren’t opposed to playing 21+ we just think it should be open to anyone who wants to go. Right now we just released our first full length cd. We will play anywhere anytime for gas money and maybe some food. Hope you like our stuff. JCC
P.S. Message us with your email to join our mailing list! We will tell you about shows coming up and cool stuff. We will not spam you.If you are a venue or a fan and know of shows or places to play please help us out and let us know. We could always use the help booking shows!!! We are always down for show trades.Contact:
[email protected]
Booking:
[email protected]
cell:717-798-6973 -Somers Compton, Agent
Myspace Layouts at Pimp-My-Profile.com /
PLEASE READ AND SPREAD THE WORD!!!!! Help build the local scene!!! Be a part of something!
WE WILL BE HOSTING FREE PUNK ROCK SHOWS @ THE DILLSBURG FIREHALL MONTHLY AND WE HOPE TO ALWAYS HAVE THEM FREE OR CHEAP SO PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DONATE BELOW. IT SUPPORTS LOCAL MUSIC AND GIVEs YOU AND EVERYONE AN AWESOME DIY VENUE THATS CHEAP, TO SEE GREAT SHOWS. DONATE NOW OR MESSAGE US TO SEE HOW ELSE YOU CAN HELP!
LOVE UNION STRIKE
