Bad Religion
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 Left to Right: Greg Graffin, Jay Bentley, Greg Hetson, Brett Gurewitz, Brooks Wackerman, Brian Baker
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| Background information | ||
| Origin | Simi Valley California United States |
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| Genre(s) | Punk rock Melodic hardcore Hardcore punk |
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| Years active | 1980-1984 1986–present |
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| Label(s) | Epitaph (1980 – 1994, 2001 – present) Atlantic (1994 – 2001) |
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| Associated acts |
Bad4Good Black President Circle Jerks Daredevils Dag Nasty Infectious Grooves Minor Threat Suicidal Tendencies The Vandals |
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| Website | Official Website | |
| Members | ||
| Greg Graffin Brett Gurewitz Greg Hetson Brian Baker Jay Bentley Brooks Wackerman |
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| Former members | ||
| Jay Ziskrout Davy Goldman Tim Gallegos Pete Finestone John Albert Lucky Lehrer Bobby Schayer |
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Bad Religion is an American punk rock band that was originally formed in Southern California in 1980 by Jay Bentley (bass), Greg Graffin (vocals), Brett Gurewitz (guitars) and Jay Ziskrout (drums). This band is often credited for leading the revival of punk rock during the late 1980s, as well as influencing a large number of other punk and rock musicians throughout their career.
They are known for their socially conscious lyrics and the ability to express their ideology with the use of metaphor, an advanced vocabulary and vocal harmonies known as the "oozin aahs." Bad Religion songs deal with matters of personal as well as political responsibility, and despite the band's moniker, deal more with freedom than atheism.
Bad Religion continues to record new material and tour.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Early career and hiatus (1980-1985)
Bad Religion was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1980 by high school students Greg Graffin (vocals), Jay Bentley (bass guitar), Jay Ziskrout (drums), and Brett Gurewitz, also known as "Mr. Brett" (guitar). The band's major influences stemmed from earlier punk acts such as The Adolescents, Black Flag and The Germs. Outside of the punk scene, their influences ranged from Elvis Costello, The Jam and Nick Lowe to authors like Jack Kerouac.[1] Greg Graffin called his influences "pop sounding rock tunes that were not necessarily commercial."[2]
In 1981, the band released their eponymous debut EP on their own newly-formed label, Epitaph Records, which is managed and owned by Gurewitz. 1982 saw the release of their first full-length album, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, gaining the band a sizeable following. During the recording of How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, Jay Ziskrout left the band and was replaced by Peter Finestone.
In 1983, the band released Into the Unknown, a keyboard-driven progressive rock album that was enormously unpopular with the band's core fanbase. It is now officially out of print, after almost all of the 10,000 copies were unintentionally sold out of the warehouse they were being stored in by Suzy Shaw, an ex-girlfriend of Gurewitz.[3] The record has since become a collectors item, and has also gained acceptance from some fans. It can be seen going for more than 100 dollars on eBay, but is often pirated. A common sign of a pirated version of the LP is the blueish hue on the cover, instead of the reddish hue.
In 1984, Greg Hetson of Circle Jerks fame, who had played the guitar solo for "Part III" on How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, joined to replace Gurewitz, who had gone into rehab for his drug problem. Bad Religion returned to a somewhat mellower, rock and roll version of their original sound with the Back to the Known EP, but disbanded temporarily soon after.
[edit] Reunion (1986-1992)
The band slowly reformed out of the 1984 Back to the Known lineup when Greg Graffin called Jay Bentley and asked him to return. Bentley's response was tentative, but after being assured that the setlist consisted mostly of tracks from How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, he agreed to return for one show, and ended up staying on because he had so much fun. A freshly rehabilitated Gurewitz was eventually convinced to come back aboard, and with Pete Finestone returning on drums and Greg Hetson on second guitar, Bad Religion was back.[3]
The reunited band released Suffer in 1988, cementing their comeback in the punk community. Not only is this album often cited as one of their very best by fans, but it is credited with "saving" the Southern California punk rock scene by fans and Bad Religion's contemporaries alike.[5]
No Control (1989) and Against the Grain (1990) further increased the band's popularity, followed by Generator (1992). Before recording sessions for Generator commenced, drummer Pete Finestone left Bad Religion in 1991 to focus on his other band, The Fishermen, which had signed with a major label, and Bobby Schayer joined the band as his replacement.
In 1991, Bad Religion released a compilation album, 80-85, a repackaging of their debut album, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, their two EPs, Bad Religion and Back to the Known and the band's three track contributions to the Public Service EP. This compilation did not include Into the Unknown. 80-85 is now out of print and has been replaced by the 2004 re-issued version of How Could Hell Be Any Worse? with the same track listings.
[edit] Mainstream success (1993-1995)
With alternative rock and grunge breaking into the mainstream, Bad Religion left Epitaph Records for Atlantic Records and quickly re-released their seventh full-length studio album Recipe for Hate (1993) on the major label. Also in 1993, the band recorded the song "Leaders and Followers" for the soundtrack for the Kevin Smith film, Clerks. 1994's Stranger Than Fiction followed, but Gurewitz left the band shortly following its release. Officially, he cited the increasing amount of time he was spending at Epitaph's offices as The Offspring became one of the biggest bands of the mid-1990s, but it was well known that his departure was not on good terms. Gurewitz, along with many fans, accused the band of selling out for leaving Epitaph to seek greater financial success despite the fact that Gurewitz was making millions off of The Offspring alone.[6]
As tensions increased, Graffin would sing alternate lyrics during concerts such as "I want to know where Brett gets his crack" or "I want to know why Gurewitz cracked," on the song "Stranger Than Fiction".[7] These barbs referred to Gurewitz's struggles with crack, heroin and other addictions which plagued him for years. Brett discussed his drug use in an interview on the band's Suffer tour documentary, Along the Way, and is now clean and sober. In response, Gurewitz recorded a song with his new band The Daredevils entitled "Hate You", reportedly directed towards Jay Bentley.
Gurewitz was replaced as a guitarist by Brian Baker, a former member of bands such as Minor Threat and Dag Nasty. Since Greg Graffin and Gurewitz had split songwriting duties, Graffin was now Bad Religion's primary songwriter.
On March 4,1998 "Stranger Than Fiction" would become Bad Religion's first RIAA certified gold record for sales of over half a million in the U.S.
[edit] Post-Gurewitz period (1996-2001)
Bad Religion continued on without Brett Gurewitz and released three more albums for Atlantic. The Gray Race (1996), produced by former Cars frontman Ric Ocasek, would find the band charting fairly well despite the fans' disapproval of Gurewitz's absence. The album would score Bad Religion a minor U.S. radio hit with the song "A Walk" as well as the European release of "Punk Rock Song" [sung in both English and German].[citation needed] The band would find it's greatest success in Europe where the album would reach the German music charts at #6 and score the band their first European gold record for sales in Scandinavia alone.[citation needed]
Their next album, No Substance (1998), was not as well recieved by the critics or fans alike.[citation needed] For The New America (2000), Todd Rundgren, an early musical inspiration for Graffin, was brought in to produce. "Todd was kind of an underground sensation back in 1974. Here's a guy who was making pop music but in a way that you wouldn't hear on the radio. So much of my early musical identity was wrapped up in the way he conducted himself." In the summer of 1999 they set out on a three month US arena tour opening for Blink 182.[8] Unfortunately, the experience might not have been all that Greg and the rest of the band might have hoped. Interest in recording the record waned, due to Rundgren's poor attitude. Jay Bentley reflects on this by saying, "I didn't feel we were going anywhere and so did Greg. Todd didn't like Greg and that made Greg so mad! He met his idol and he was a jerk! I don't think Todd gave a shit about anything."[9] Meanwhile, Bobby Schayer left the band following a serious shoulder injury and was replaced by Brooks Wackerman (Suicidal Tendencies).
Bad Religion departed from Atlantic Records in 2001 and returned to Epitaph.
[edit] Gurewitz rejoins (2002-present)
Brett Gurewitz rejoined the band in time to record The Process Of Belief (2002). Graffin states, "there was a little bit of disappointment on my part when he left the band, but we never had any serious acrimony between the two of us. I can't say the same for the rest of the band. But he and I, being the songwriters from way back, we really wanted to try again."[10] The return of Gurewitz helped create the album's unofficial title The Process of Relief, as the original Bad Religion sound seemed to have returned.
Their next album, The Empire Strikes First, was released in June 2004. Both albums are widely regarded by fans and critics as a return to form for the band, as opposed to their time on Atlantic.
The band also re-released digitally-remastered versions of several of their early albums on Epitaph Records, including How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, Suffer, No Control, Against the Grain, and Generator. The How Could Hell Be Any Worse? re-issue, though reclaiming the original title of the band's debut LP, contained all of the same material as the previously issued 80-85 compilation, including their first EP, the Public Service EP (with different versions of the songs Bad Religion, Slaves, and Drastic Actions than the self-titled EP) and the "Back To The Known" EP.
On March 7, 2006, a live DVD, Live at the Palladium was released. This DVD featured a live show performed in late 2004 at the Hollywood Palladium, as well as extensive interviews, several music videos, and a photo gallery. During one of the interview segments, guitarist Brett Gurewitz says the band's next album might be a double length release.[2]
Greg Graffin released his second solo album, Cold as the Clay, on July 11, 2006.
The new Bad Religion album, titled New Maps of Hell, will be released on July 10, 2007.[11]
On November 21, 2006, the band confirmed they would be part of the 2007 Warped Tour.[12]
Guitarist Greg Hetson formed a supergroup band called Black President, consisting of Charlie Paulson (from Goldfinger), Jason Christopher, Wade Youman (both from Unwritten Law) and Christian Black (from Dee Dee Ramone).[13]
[edit] Lyrics and ideology
The majority of Bad Religion's lyrics are written by either Greg Graffin or Brett Gurewitz. Only on rare occasions will they co-write a song together. Other band members, such as Jay Bentley, also contribute songs, but these constitute only a small percentage of the Bad Religion catalog.
Brett Gurewitz acknowledges attempting to emulate The Germs singer Darby Crash early on in Bad Religion's lyrical style. "He wrote some intelligent stuff, and didn't shy away from the vocabulary, which I thought was cool."[14] In addition to their use of atypically complicated vocabulary for a punk band, Bad Religion is also known for their frequent use of vocal harmonies, which they refer to in their album liner notes as the "oozin aahs". They took their cues from The Adolescents, in the way that they used three-part harmonies. Bassist Jay Bentley says, "Seeing The Adolescents live, it was so brilliant. So, in a way, the Adolescents influenced us into saying we can do it too, because look, they're doing it."[3][15]
[edit] Social and political issues
Many of Bad Religion's songs are about different social ills, although they make attempts not to ascribe the causes of these ills to any single person or group. Greg Graffin believes that the current political situation in the United States can make it difficult to voice these concerns, as he doesn't want to feed the polarization of viewpoints.[16]
The band doesn't always restrict political commentary exclusively to metaphor. Brett Gurewitz pulled no punches when he attributed his anger towards US President George W. Bush as the major inspiration for The Empire Strikes First. "Our whole album is dedicated to getting Bush out of office. I'm not a presidential scholar but I don't think you'll find a worse president in the history of the United States. He's probably one of the worst leaders in the history of world leaders. I just hate the guy."[16]
[edit] Religion
Faith in your partner, your fellow men, your friends, is very important, because without it there's no mutual component to your relationship, and relationships are important. So faith plays an important role, but faith in people you don't know, faith in religious or political leaders or even people on stages, people who are popular in the public eye, you shouldn't have faith in those people. You should listen to what they have to say and use it.
– Greg Graffin[17]
Despite the name of the band, the members do not consider themselves antitheist. Singer Greg Graffin states that more often than not, the band prefers to use religion as a metaphor for anything that doesn't allow for an individual's freedom to think or express themselves as they choose. In this way, their songs are more about anti-conformity than anti-religion.[18]
[edit] Line-Ups
[edit] Discography
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Date of release Title Record label 1982 How Could Hell Be Any Worse? Epitaph Records 1983 Into the Unknown Epitaph Records November, 1988 Suffer Epitaph Records November 2, 1989 No Control Epitaph Records November 23, 1990 Against the Grain Epitaph Records March 12, 1992 Generator Epitaph Records September 21, 1993 Recipe for Hate Epitaph Records / Atlantic Records August 30, 1994 Stranger Than Fiction Atlantic Records February 27, 1996 The Gray Race Atlantic Records May 5, 1998 No Substance Atlantic Records May 9, 2000 The New America Atlantic Records January 22, 2002 The Process of Belief Epitaph Records June 8, 2004 The Empire Strikes First Epitaph Records To be released on July 10, 2007 New Maps of Hell Epitaph Records
[edit] External links
- [http://www.badreligion.com/ Official Website.
- Bad Religion at MySpace.
- The Bad Religion Page Fan website, established 1995.
[edit] References
- ^ Sandy Masuo (September 1994). Bad Religion's Punk Prosody.
- ^ a b Greg Graffin. Bad Religion Live at the Palladium [DVD]. Epitaph Records.
- ^ a b c Jo-Anne Greene. "Addicted to the Opiate of the Masses", May 23, 1997.
- ^ Bad Religion at IMDB.com.
- ^ Bad Religion Homepage. Suffer.
- ^ Neal Rogers (May 9, 1996). The Higher Calling.
- ^ The Bad Religion Page. Stranger Than Fiction.
- ^ The Atlantic Records Bad Religion Bio Page.
- ^ Keith Carman (2002-07-19). Bad Religion: The Process of Labels.
- ^ Jennifer Vineyard (May 11, 2000). The New State of Bad Religion.
- ^ Bad Religion to release "New Maps Of Hell" on July 10th (March 16, 2007).
- ^ Bad Religion Sign On For Warped Tour (November 28, 2006).
- ^ In the January issue of the magazine Alternative Press,it was revealed that there 14th album will be released in late spring 2007. Greg Hetson, Charlie Paulson form Black President (November 6, 2006).
- ^ Matt Taylor and Mateo Rojas (September 27, 1996). A Conversation with Mr. Brett.
- ^ Trent McMartin (November 3, 2005). Acting Their Rage.
- ^ a b Dennis Lyxzen (June 29, 2004). Brett Gurewitz Interview.
- ^ Gabriella of nyrock.com (April 1998). NYRock Interview with Greg Graffin.
- ^ Kelly E. and Cathy D (October 15, 1993). Graffin Interview.
Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since April 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Musical groups established in 1980 | 1980s music groups | 1990s music groups | 2000s music groups | Bad Religion | Bands with only one constant member | California musical groups | Epitaph Records artists | Hardcore punk groups | Later punk groups | Los Angeles musical groups | Pop punk groups | American punk rock groups | American rock music groups
