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Almost more than any other genre, being a punk band is a declaration, a commitment. But the very thing that makes it respectable is the same thing that can make it a straitjacket. Orlando’s Porch Coffin, however, have chosen not to be bound by it.

Porch Coffin are a punk band. Their first two EPs — 2022’s Porch Coffin and 2023’s Oblivion — were solidly punk rock, the kind that could easily rock any crowd at Fest. But on their new Dogs Bite EP, they’re proving that they’re more than that. 

Porch Coffin’s music has always had the kind of melodicism that lends itself to a wide horizon. But Dogs Bite is their most reaching release yet, and it’s a gambit that yields some very noteworthy results. While there’s plenty of sonic substance here, the band exchange punk charge for emotional heft. 

Like indie rock made by punks, these new songs run deeper with heavier rock currents into emotive post-hardcore waters. In fact, their palette’s now open enough to tap good 1990s alt-rock veins. The title track could’ve been Elastica had they grown up in Seattle, and “Pocketknife” sounds like a lost grunge-era hit. Meanwhile, “Family Portrait” and the excellent “Jody Lee” are painted in long strokes of mood, melody and muscle.

But all this talk of genre minutiae is secondary. The cardinal point is that this is a good record. It’s proof positive of a band that cares more about songs than stripes. Even without any of their previous punk jolt, Dogs Bite is Porch Coffin’s most poignant batch of songs to date. It shows that not only can they transcend punk, but they actually shine more when working between the tribal lines.

Dogs Bite now streams everywhere and is also available on CD via Bandcamp. You can catch Porch Coffin in concert in the new year with Bad Luck, Northbound and Camp Trash (7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 3, Will’s Pub, willspub.org, $20-$25).

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This article appears in Dec. 17-23, 2025.

Music columnist.