In the early '80s you’d get your ass kicked for riding a skateboard or being a punk rocker. Back then, the world was not ready for Social Distortion. If you liked this kind of music, you were a rebel, an outcast, one of maybe a handful in your city. But these days, being a punk is as normal as being a preppy was back in the '80s. It seems like everyone rides a skateboard, wears a crooked trucker cap or proudly displays a plethora of ill-advised tattoos. Punk rock has found its way to mainstream radio and penetrated our high schools and shopping malls. It baffles me how so many whiney pseudo-punk bands of today attain such a high level of mainstream success while bands like Social Distortion go relatively unnoticed. It's been 25 years since their inception, eight long years since the last record and five years since the tragic death of founding guitarist Dennis Dannell. I was starting to wonder if we'd ever see another Social Distortion release. But punk rock survivor and fiery frontman Mike Ness and his pals have come through with another uncompromising, solid and hard-rocking record full of genuine, reflective and heart-felt songs that rival the Social D classics.
Adelaide Adelaide (self-released)
Mellow and spacey, when listening to this I feel like I’m an astronaut floating endlessly through uncharted territory. Clearly, these boys from Portland, Ore. have as much talent as they do a predisposition toward illicit means of mind-alteration. Check out their soothing, psychedelic, multi-sense stimulation at the Launchpad on Wednesday, March 30, for a performance that includes 16mm film projections, electronics and live instrumentation. Also performing are favorite local space-cadets the Oktober People along with the Build and Appogee.
