MUSIC
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Pennywise lives, loves punk rock By KELLI FADROSKI Daily Titan Staff
Being in a band for more than one album is a major accomplishment in today’s music scene. If a band is able to truly focus on its music and hurdle the pressures of labels, marketing and publicity, the band might be lucky enough to last a decade. To tough it out for more than 15 years and still be touring, writing, recording and selling albums proves gut instinct prevails over conforming to what’s popular. With each album, Pennywise becomes more intense, more passionate and definitely more furious. The Hermosa Beach punk legends have unleashed their all-out musical assault on the problems of society today. The Fuse, the band’s 10th album, was released in August and takes Pennywise back to its fast-paced roots, as the album was recorded in a 41-day whirlwind. Vocalist Jim Lindberg, guitarist Fletcher Dragge, drummer Byron McMackin and bassist Randy Bradbury took a cue from their punk forefathers – Black Flag, Bad Brains and Minor Threat – and decided collectively to push through the process and release their most raw album in years. As the pressure was applied, the band squeezed out 15 tracks without looking back. “We worked on it like the old school punk albums we grew up on,” Dragge said. “Those were recorded in, like, days and the sound might be shitty, and stuff is out of tune and there are problems technology wise ... but the passion of those albums is what’s moving. We were trying to get a hold of some of that but at the same time ... we had to have a good sound.” Pennywise didn’t head into the studio with any particular direction, just a slew of songs that had been brewing in the guys’ minds. “Everyone starts writing songs and you don’t really find a direction for it until you start picking at your songs and you have five or six songs that you like and you start finding a theme of the album,” Dragge said. “[The new album] is all over the place thematically. We’re a little politics, a little bit of hope and a little bit of negative images in life.” The band’s previous album, From the Ashes, was recorded in twice the time it took to record The Fuse. The guys found themselves just “letting it go” and trusting that the energy they packed into each day would carry the album. “It was really enlightening to just do it and go, ‘Wow that sounds good,’ and then move on,” Dragge said. “I really liked the album and thought it turned out really good ... We were willing to let it go. It was an easier and more fun process than
it had been in previous years.” and it’s our biggest song.” “‘Disconnect,’ the first single, re“Bro Hymn” is Pennywise’s sigceived constant play on rock radio nature. Released on 1997’s “Full in Southern California. Circle,” the band has yet to com“Jim wrote that one and in my plete a set without playing that eyes it’s such a fast paced world song. with cell phones and palm pilots, “It’s a hit song, but it was never a blackberries and laptop computers, hit song,” Dragge said. “People feel you can’t imagine life without a cell so strongly about it and they just go phone,” Dragge said. crazy. There can be a mediocre show The underlying message isn’t to and it’s not going crazy, but then completely bash technology and re- you play ‘Bro Hymn’ and, boom, vert to the days of stuffing change it’s nuts ... It’s a secret weapon. into socks just in case the need to Other bands say, ‘We’re not playing use a pay phone presented itself. after Pennywise; we’re not playing “We’ve become so reliant on e- after ‘Bro Hymn.’’ I’m just like, mail and we are constantly bom- ‘You’re Bush, you’re Gavin from barded,” Dragge said. “Before, Bush, don’t worry about it.’ These when you were driving from L.A. huge, big bands say they don’t want to San Diego it was quiet time, but to play after us, especially after that now you have 13 business calls. song and it’s funny.” Sometimes you just want to unplug Pennywise isn’t out to win any and go back to when it was more awards or keep up in the Billboard peaceful and quiet, when you didn’t pop-race. The guys are satisfied have ‘You’ve got mail’ popping up with their situation and their music. in the background or 10 missed “Everything has become so done calls. You want to just disconnect and played out,” Dragge said. “The and go back to the simple life but bands are add-water these days. you can’t because we’re moving ‘I’ve got my instruments and I’ve that fast and without it you are to- made a recording in my bedroom tally screwed.” with my Pro Tools rig and now I’ve Although only 15 tracks appear got a Myspace page and 10,000 lison the new album, the guys created tens, and I don’t have a record label nearly three times that before they and I’ve got my tight pants on and recorded the new disc. fingernail polish and my tight shirt “If you want to go the political on’ … nobody is original, and nothroute, we could write 50 albums,” ing seems passionate. It’s so hard to Dragge said. “We’re never going hear something that sounds real and to run out of topics. We’re about ... original now.” having songs that we think are all Although the pop music scene good. We try to put out an entire al- has become rather cookie-cutter, bum of good songs and we actually Dragge refuses to dismiss it totally. fight until the end to “There’s a make sure that evmillion other ery song is a good bands that are All I know is that I song.” super into what Now that the they do that like the music we secret is out that are good, but play, I like to listen there are so many it’s not someto our albums and extra songs floating thing that you around, the true fans go, ‘Wow-must I like playing live. continue to wait for have,’ like when a B-side album to you put on Fletcher Dragge emerge. Rage Against Guitarist for Pennywise “There are literthe Machine ally hundreds of or Nirvana’s songs,” Dragge said. Nevermind, “We talk about doing a B-sides re- something that just goes, ‘Wow.’ lease, but we never get around to it. When’s the last time we’ve had We have a ton of songs that are in that,’” Dragge said. “System of a their early stages and even some in Down: They are different and they the finished stage but they’ve never have a crazy singer and an original gotten heard and probably never flavor and they are one of the bigwill.” gest bands in the world and I’m not With years worth of material, giving out any secrets when I say the band has to narrow their live that they are a good band. You have set down tour after tour to accom- to dig pretty deep and in your own modate the classics as well as new back yard and find people that are material. The band does have their doing it because they love it, and favorites to perform live. not because they want to be rock “There are a couple that really stars and on a major label and have stand out,” Dragge said. “‘Every 24-inch rims on their Hummer.” Single Day’ has one of those break The allure of money can be downs and an ending that goes strong, but when the passion is completely crazy. With ‘Fuck Au- deeply rooted, it’s hard to break thority,’ the energy of the crowd is away from what is cherished and huge because they can relate to it not become an industry robot. and they just cut loose. ‘Bro Hymn’ “At this point we can’t really really has the most emotion to it change,” Dragge said. “We could
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KELLI FADROSKI/Daily Titan
Pennywise frontman Jim Lindberg delivers a verbal lashing to fans. be a pop-punk band and we could write some ska songs and shift to whatever is popular, but we’ve kept a certain integrity in our music for all of these years and we’ve survived pop-punk, nu metal and we’ll survive the emo-screamo thing. The scene has kinda separated the troops a little bit, but we just keep doing what we do.” When Dragge attempts to predict what the next trend in music will be, endless possibilities blow his mind. “I think once everyone takes a good hard look around and realizes that everyone looks the same and plays the same style of music and realizes that they don’t want to be robots, then they’ll move on to something else,” Dragge said. “I don’t know what it will be; I can’t imagine what will be shocking or fresh at this point because everything’s just been played to the gills. I mean maybe we’ll have rap-punk rock or rap music with super fast infused punk or country-rap.” If rap-punk or country-rap takes off in the next few years, it’s safe to bet that Pennywise will once again not conform to the new “popularnorm” and continue to play the punk they set out to play more than a decade ago. “All I know is that I like the music we play, I like to listen to our albums and I like playing live,”
Dragge said. “I like all kinds of music but this is what I’m passionate about.” Pennywise is not big on taking long breaks, so rest assured that if they’re not seen around town, they’re writing new songs or in the studio preparing for a new album. The guys plan on continuing to tour and will enjoy their downtime. “Everyone has got different things,” Dragge said. “Byron hangs out and goes to a lot of events ... We’ll go to the drag races or Indy car races, skate or surf contests. Randy spends a lot of time with his family, writing songs. Jim writes songs, spends time with his family, surfs, goes to bars and gets drunk. I’ve been skating a lot lately and working on old cars and giving some people tattoos if they bother me enough.” With no plans of slowing down, and members already working on new material, Pennywise will continue to ride the tide of The Fuse. “We’ve always had the underlying message of no matter what you do, you can get what you want out of life if you’re willing to put the effort in and no dream is unreachable. We’re living proof of that,” Dragge said. Pennywise will be performing at the House of Blues in Anaheim on Dec. 14 and 15.
