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The punk band for thinking headbangers
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Posted by: admin | 11/17/2007 at 21:11
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Bad Religion has been around ? in one form or another ? for 27 years.
Members have exited and come back to the fold. The band has experimented with pharmaceuticals (individually) and Todd Rundgren (collectively).
One member, Greg Graffin, is a UCLA life-science professor with a Cornell University Ph.D. in evolutionary paleontology. Another, Brad Gurewitz, owns and runs the band's legendary indie-punk label, Epitaph.
But before you call the SoCal godfathers of hard-core punk "geezers," consider this: They know it, don't care and could probably stomp you silly for saying it.
Bad Religion is the thinking headbanger's angry, uncompromising militant punk band. And ? bonus! ? you can sort of sing along to their music.
Young skate punks still love 'em. And rather than rest on the love the underground still gives its 14-album catalog of tunes, Bad Religion released one of its finest CDs this year, "New Maps of Hell."
"Bad Religion is still dope," said 19-year-old Ellie Martinez, a Honolulu fan and regular at local indie band shows. "They've had some tough times and some seriously crappy albums. But with (members) all fully in again, the music is as relevant as ever."
Consider yourself a Religion zealot? Here are five discs no fan should be without, and two to avoid.
'SUFFER' (1988)
Bad Religion's first great album happened only after guitarist Gurewitz and bassist Jay Bentley briefly split, then returned inspired. It's one of the underground SoCal punk scene's most revered recordings.
Essential track: "Do What You Want" '80-85' (1990)
Collects all the essentials ? "We're Only Gonna Die" and three versions of "Bad Religion" ? from discs recorded before "Suffer." It's a great introduction to the band ? out of print, but available on iTunes.
Essential track: "(Expletive) Armageddon ... This is Hell"
'STRANGER THAN FICTION' (1994)
Still the band's top seller ? moving more than a half-million in the U.S. ? and most "hit" filled. At the peak of grunge, Bad Religion defiantly sticks to its hard-core roots and creates a landmark modern punk manifesto.
Essential track: "21st Century" (Digital Boy)
'THE EMPIRE STRIKES FIRST' (2004)
The Bush administration's deepening quagmire in Iraq inspires an unhinged rage in Graffin's vocals and lyrics that was largely absent or unfocused during the band's post-"Stranger" years on Atlantic. Back on Epitaph, Bad Religion is at its modern melodiously indignant best.
Essential track: "Los Angeles is Burning"
'NEW MAPS OF HELL' (2007)
Though busting out guns blazing with even more rage against the current political machine, the band keeps its attack remarkably intelligent and focused as always. Three decades after it began, hard-core punk's best still makes all that thrash sound fresh.
Essential track: "New Dark Ages"
'NO SUBSTANCE' (1998)
The worst of the band's discs for Atlantic sounds rambling and uninspired. Bad Religion's usually tight sociopolitical lyricism is mind-numbingly pointless and bloated. The title speaks for itself.
'THE NEW AMERICA' (2000)
Graffin hero/'70s pop genius Todd Rundgren produced it but didn't get along with the band. If someone "saw the light," this would've gone unreleased.
[Source]
Members have exited and come back to the fold. The band has experimented with pharmaceuticals (individually) and Todd Rundgren (collectively).
One member, Greg Graffin, is a UCLA life-science professor with a Cornell University Ph.D. in evolutionary paleontology. Another, Brad Gurewitz, owns and runs the band's legendary indie-punk label, Epitaph.
But before you call the SoCal godfathers of hard-core punk "geezers," consider this: They know it, don't care and could probably stomp you silly for saying it.
Bad Religion is the thinking headbanger's angry, uncompromising militant punk band. And ? bonus! ? you can sort of sing along to their music.
Young skate punks still love 'em. And rather than rest on the love the underground still gives its 14-album catalog of tunes, Bad Religion released one of its finest CDs this year, "New Maps of Hell."
"Bad Religion is still dope," said 19-year-old Ellie Martinez, a Honolulu fan and regular at local indie band shows. "They've had some tough times and some seriously crappy albums. But with (members) all fully in again, the music is as relevant as ever."
Consider yourself a Religion zealot? Here are five discs no fan should be without, and two to avoid.
'SUFFER' (1988)
Bad Religion's first great album happened only after guitarist Gurewitz and bassist Jay Bentley briefly split, then returned inspired. It's one of the underground SoCal punk scene's most revered recordings.
Essential track: "Do What You Want" '80-85' (1990)
Collects all the essentials ? "We're Only Gonna Die" and three versions of "Bad Religion" ? from discs recorded before "Suffer." It's a great introduction to the band ? out of print, but available on iTunes.
Essential track: "(Expletive) Armageddon ... This is Hell"
'STRANGER THAN FICTION' (1994)
Still the band's top seller ? moving more than a half-million in the U.S. ? and most "hit" filled. At the peak of grunge, Bad Religion defiantly sticks to its hard-core roots and creates a landmark modern punk manifesto.
Essential track: "21st Century" (Digital Boy)
'THE EMPIRE STRIKES FIRST' (2004)
The Bush administration's deepening quagmire in Iraq inspires an unhinged rage in Graffin's vocals and lyrics that was largely absent or unfocused during the band's post-"Stranger" years on Atlantic. Back on Epitaph, Bad Religion is at its modern melodiously indignant best.
Essential track: "Los Angeles is Burning"
'NEW MAPS OF HELL' (2007)
Though busting out guns blazing with even more rage against the current political machine, the band keeps its attack remarkably intelligent and focused as always. Three decades after it began, hard-core punk's best still makes all that thrash sound fresh.
Essential track: "New Dark Ages"
'NO SUBSTANCE' (1998)
The worst of the band's discs for Atlantic sounds rambling and uninspired. Bad Religion's usually tight sociopolitical lyricism is mind-numbingly pointless and bloated. The title speaks for itself.
'THE NEW AMERICA' (2000)
Graffin hero/'70s pop genius Todd Rundgren produced it but didn't get along with the band. If someone "saw the light," this would've gone unreleased.
[Source]
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12/07/2007 at 11:54
social suicide - agent orange- voices in the night.
wow. wow. wooo. same song |
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11/29/2007 at 21:39
LOL
Yeah Jay, I seem to recall from the early press releases for NS, that you talked about going into the studio and hung out listening to stuff that inspired you - "And kids, what can we learn from that?" But who is to blame for Into The Unknown? Brett, for buying that damn keyboard, or you for not staying to safe the project? LOL |
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11/27/2007 at 20:42
No way! For me RFH is the last album of the great BR momentum! Fresh sounds, great personal perspective, it's just a great, thoughtful, exciting album. I think they backpeddled sonically on STF a bit because punk was being shaped for radio, and then of course the remaining Atlantic years were spent trying to hold it together. That dynamic made for some superfun moments, and Brett's return made POB so thrilling; I just wish they'd get back to the sort of fuck-all freedom they had when making RFH. I think it might be their most creatively honest moments on record. Thank you, guys!
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11/26/2007 at 15:00
i liked the new america... the real weak link was recipe for hate
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11/25/2007 at 10:10
haha.. yeah. i actually called steve soto (bass player for the adolescents) and apologized for that one. baker did too..
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11/24/2007 at 07:38
LOL, libidoanger, try listening to The Adolescents' "No Way" and then listen to "Hear It". Just listen to the first 20 seconds of each song. And yes, No Way is from waaaaay before Hear It.
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11/23/2007 at 16:38
Now I had to check AllMusicGuide in case I was wrong about the title or something. But no. Im talkin about the verses. Is it just me? I dont think I've smoked anything yet...
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11/23/2007 at 11:44
"Cats in the cradle"?? what the hell are you smoking up north, henchman??
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11/22/2007 at 19:53
I don't see the promblem in some simalarities in guitar or bass riffs. Hell, thats practically inevitable!
What matters more is simalarities in song melody. Like 'Hear it' and 'cats in the cradle'. What is the one and only matter with NS |
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11/22/2007 at 14:13
Hehe. Yeah, admit it - all of your songs are cover songs! LOL
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11/22/2007 at 09:17
9.6 haha
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11/21/2007 at 12:31
Thanks Jay - on a scale from 1-10 how close would you say it is to the later Bad Religion song? ;)
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11/21/2007 at 11:28
the u.k. subs song is called warhead...
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11/20/2007 at 23:48
Cheers! No rush, I'm just curious. ^_^
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11/20/2007 at 16:26
ah yes, that is the annoying part - my hard disc crashed a while back so I lost it.
Will make it a priority to find it again to tell you. And trust me, it is nothing like Dads Bad News - it is so similar in structure that it ruined Shades of Truth for me :S will try to find it again, so as to back up my claim LOL (and no, I am not on a mission to discredit Bad Religion at all!) |
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11/20/2007 at 12:24
What UK Subs song is it?
I know NOFX had a song (Possibly Dad's Bad News) on So Long and Thanks for all the Shoes which had a similiar intro to Shades of Truth. |
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11/20/2007 at 05:00
Heres my hat off to Steve for sharing pretty much my exact sentiments of the songs on NS and NA - Is anyone else aware that the UK Subs made a song with a bass lead and structure pretty much identical to "Shades of truth"? Since the did it before Bad Religion it killed me on Shades of truth - fortunately it is the only time I can recall Bad Religion exercizing plagiarism...
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11/19/2007 at 21:44
Yes, modernman.
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11/19/2007 at 21:43
this article is shit.
is anyone else having trouble accessing the message board? |
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11/19/2007 at 21:38
Thats the fuckin worst speel of shit review, article, whatever you wanna call it, ive ever read.
Im sick to shit of hearing peoples opinion on no substance, or any of their albums, like what you like and leave it alone if you dont, not to mention getting band members names wrong Why would this even get posted on here. On a more positive note, B.R blessed N.Z with a wicked show last week!! Thanks heaps for the only show i assume we will get! |
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11/19/2007 at 20:10
Thanks for posting that, daniel, I just got my ticket.
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11/19/2007 at 04:55
NEWS Bad religion playing california atleast 2 nights in feb and march house of blues in anahiem fri feb 29th and hob on sunset tuesday march 4th!! 08 of course ha i already got my tickets im sooo stoked finally a california non festival show!!!
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11/19/2007 at 02:03
I really like No Substance and The New America but they are surely BR's weakest albums. Although these two albums contain some of BR's best songs (In So Many Ways, Believe It, Shades Of Truth), other tracks like Mediocre Minds, Raise Your Voice, It's A Long Way To The Promise Land and A World Without Melody would have never got remotely close to warrant inclusion on any albums before The Grey Race or any albums from The Process Of Belief onwards.
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11/19/2007 at 01:12
how many of the members have actually done drugs, know Brett and Jay have, but has anyone else? I Read that Greg G did pot but I don't rember wear and since he talks about how he wanted to be a rock-star that "didn't drink on stage or take Drugs" I'm Guessing that was inaccurate. Just wondering
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11/18/2007 at 22:41
New America wasn't as good as other recent albums, but I'm still glad it was released, and No Substance was a great album.
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11/18/2007 at 19:19
The only interesting part of this article was the experimenting with drugs and Todd Rundgren. From what I have heard I would say the drugs sound the most fun (dont do em though, kids!) :D
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11/18/2007 at 17:03
+ Punk In Drublic
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11/18/2007 at 15:19
1994, peak of grunge? More like 1992, in 1994 it was already declining (Kurt Cobain died in 1994. The only huge grunge album from that year was Soundgarden's Superunknown). 1994 was in fact the peak of 90's punk with Stranger Than Fiction, Dookie and Smash being released.
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11/18/2007 at 14:12
one nine nine four trailer. www.onenineninefour.com
bad religion is in it. |
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11/18/2007 at 13:05
New America was so much better! Yes it was more 'poppy', but I still think it had some very good songs on, and no bad ones. No Substance had only a couple good songs, with a few average, and some even bad!
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11/18/2007 at 09:18
wow I didn't know that the word dope was still used. I liked no substance I don't care what jay, this artical or watcho says!
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11/18/2007 at 06:13
This article seems to insinuate that punk and grunge were adversarial in some way, and is obviously oblivious to the fact that they'd already recorded with Eddie Vedder.
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11/18/2007 at 02:32
ROCK ON BRAD... WE LUV U!!!
jajajajajajaja |
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11/18/2007 at 01:51
I honestly liked No Substance better than New America. New America, in my opinion, was the worst due to it being way too mellow for a BR album. At least No Substance was still a punk album to a certain extent. Sure it wasn't excellent, but it was better than New America.
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11/18/2007 at 00:27
This is a lame article. I think the last five albums are the best. And someone else probably thinks the first couple of albums were the best. This is an endless conversation.
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11/17/2007 at 23:12
Pfft. No Substance and New America are just as fantastic as any other BR album.
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11/17/2007 at 23:03
music writing is hard, but not that hard. if you're not a fan of a band it just requires a bit more research. this is lazy and amateur night. and headbanging? wtf?
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11/17/2007 at 22:39
Finally! An article that got my name right!!
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