Gimme Something Better: The Profound, Progressive, and Occasionally Pointless History of Bay Area Punk from Dead Kennedys to Green Day
On last week’s list, I mentioned this oral history of the Bay Area punk scene. Having just finished it last night, I’ve been thinking about and listening to some of my favorite music from that scene and era. Though I love many of the late ’70s and early ’80s bands listed, the second half of the book is devoted primarily to the bands that came out of the late ’80/early ’90s Gilman Street scene. Here’s a list dedicated to it.
Also, Happy Labor Day weekend everyone. Next week, I’ll return with a more “regular” list.
Jawbreaker – 24 Hour Revenge Therapy (Tupelo/Communion)
Any list like this will always start with Jawbreaker as they’re one of my favorite bands of the ’90s in any genre period. I could’ve picked any of their records to list here, but this one is the most “Gilman St” ish as all of their members were living in the Bay Area at the time and as such the lyrics of “Boxcar” and “Indictment” feature some poignant attacks on the doctrinaire punk politics of the day.
Tribe 8 – By the Time We Get to Colorado EP (Outpunk)
It should come as no surprise that San Francisco is the birthplace of what came to be known as “queercore”. The name is deceptive, though, as Tribe 8 were most definitely queer but not really a hardcore band. They were, however, a great punk rock band that mixed serious political themes with raunchy humor and this 12” EP was their finest hour.
Pansy Division – “Fem in a Black Leather Jacket” EP (Lookout!)
Again, I could’ve picked any of their early releases here, but this debut 7” from 1992 still packs a solid punch. Know more for its other songs rather than its A-side, this one also contains the hilarious “Homo Christmas” and a cover of NIRVANA‘s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” entitled “Smells Like Queer Spirit”. Again, while classified as “queercore”, this is really just straight-up power pop.
Green Day – 1,039 Smoothed Out Slappy Hours (Lookout!)
I’m not gonna lie here. I was a huge Green Day fan in high school and was fortunate enough to see them play twice, both times in 1993 after their second album Kerplunk! had come out and before they got huge. Regardless, I think their Lookout-era output still holds up really well. This CD, of course, contains their first album 39 Smooth, early singles “1000 Hours” and Slappy and a track from Flipside’s compilation The Big One.
Spitboy – “True Self Revealed” EP (Ebullition)
An all-female punk band that existed in the early to mid ’90s, Spitboy were angrier, more passionate and way more intense than any of the more well-known bands associated with the “Riot Grrl” scene/subgenre. This is straight-up “in your face” hardcore punk with feminist themes that doesn’t skimp on the catchiness and I think this record is their best.
Various Artists – Maximum Rock and Roll Presents Turn It Around (Maximum Rock and Roll)
Long out-of-print, this double 7” compilation from 1987 was put out by the still-running Maximum Rock and Roll magazine. Whatever you think of the magazine, this is great stuff. While mostly known (if at all) for introducing the world to OPERATION IVY and NO USE FOR A NAME (totally unrecognizable from the band they’d later become), aside from those tracks there are fine contributions from the likes of other early Gilman St bands like ISOCRACY, SEWER TROUT, SWEET BABY JESUS, CRIMPSHRINE, YEASTIE GIRLZ, STIKKY, NASAL SEX and my favorite, BUGGER ALL‘s “Two Taps”.
Operation Ivy – Energy (Lookout!)
Do I even have to comment on this one?
Stikky – Where’s My Lunchpail? (Lookout!)
This is proto-power violence from 1988 featuring CHRIS DODGE, the founder of Slap-A-Ham Records and later of SPAZZ. The songs are super fast, shorty and very silly.
Rancid – “I’m Not the Only One” EP (Lookout!)
By no means their finest hour, I’m including this on here because of their East Bay roots and because this, their debut release, is their only release on Lookout. They’d get much better later (particularly when LARS FREDERICKSEN joined; of their early records, their debut release with him, the “Radio Radio Radio” 7” is particularly good) and of course are still around all these years later, but despite the fact that some folks dismissed this record in the Gimme Something Better book, I’ve always liked it.
John Henry West – “Ten Thousand Words” EP (Gravity)
One of the first releases on the San Diego-based Gravity label (probably best known for launching the career of THE RAPTURE), this 1993 7” is seriously out-of-control hardcore that still manages to combine catchiness with its passion and distortion. It’s also one of guitarist MIKE KIRSCH‘s many projects. As it’s long out-of-print and a promised discography on Ebullition has never come to fruition, you can find it here.
