Ever watched
that X-Files episode where the guy commands lightning and thought to yourself,
"Blockbusters generates twenty percent of its revenues through late fees? Who let THESE GUYS play over the credits?"
Stumped as to how
Gwen Stefani suddenly got a sense of humor and "
wrote" that catchy tune about
a skinhead and Johnny Quest`s sidekick putting aside their differences in the name of the holiday spirit?
Played
a certain skateboarding game, then spent hours searching on maps for the elusive "
Kick-your-ass-a-dor?"
If you answered
something affirmative to any of the above, you may be ready to discover the exciting world of -
The Vandals
Currently consisting of:
David Quackenbush - Vocals
Joe Escalante - Bass Guitar (The man with hookups to
Chris Carter, and an avid
bull fighter)
Warren "Mutant Boy" Fitzgerald - Lead Guitar (but he`s been known to
sing as well)
Josh Freese - Drums (also the butt of a few
inside jokes)
And formerly/sometimes featuring this guy:
Brooks Wackerman - Drums (presently with
another famous So-Cal Punk Band)
What are they?A
rather funny and energetic
punk band from
Orange County, best described in their own words:
"
18 years (more like 26 at this point),
I`m still punk; going back and forth, you silly little fuck!"
What do they sound like?Lyrically:
Imagine if
Jello Biafra directed his sardonic wit at
G.E. Smith,
MTV`s "
Rock The Vote," and
weekend anarchists.
...instead of gassing country clubs, MTV in general, and using neutron bombs on the homeless.Or if a
passive-
aggressive,
paranoid,
cannibalistic,
all-around screwed up guy wrote
love songs.
Or a
nihilist with a
sense of humor had a band.
Generally speaking, the sound divides into two groups:
Before Live Fast, Diarrhea:
Noisy, high-pitched guitar, fast drums, and catchy lyrics full of sarcasm and humor - sometimes sung, sometimes shouted.
After Hitler Bad, Vandals Good:Slightly slower, with more harmony and less squealing guitars than before, but the content remains more or less the same.
An example of each era:
Before:
Tastes Like Chicken, from
The QuickeningAfter: Fourteen, from
Look What I Almost Stepped In
Band history:
Together in their current lineup since 1989, the
Vandals came out of the
same area that produced
The Offspring,
No Doubt, and
Apocalypse Hoboken, amongst others. Officially forming in 1981, the permanent members came along gradually - starting with
David Quackenbush and
Joe Escalante in `85 (actually, Joe just got moved from drums to bass in that year), followed shortly by
Warren Fitzgerald (1987) and
Josh Freese (1989). After that got taken care of, they had a four-album stint on
Nitro Records, before
Joe and
Warren set up
Kung-Fu Records in 1996, to which they (the
Vandals) naturally signed.
A (*partial)
discography:
*
"Partial" in the sense that only full albums are listed - i.e. no EPs or compilation tracks - like their 30 second doowop song, "To All The Kids").