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The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in
Manhattan Beach, California Manhattan Beach is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, on the Pacific coast south of El Segundo, west of Hawthorne and Redondo Beach, and north of Hermosa Beach. As of the 2010 census, the population was 3 ...
, by guitarist
Frank Navetta Frank Navetta (March 6, 1962 – October 31, 2008) was an American musician who was the original guitarist of the punk rock band the Descendents, which he co-founded. He formed the band in Manhattan Beach, California with Dave Nolte in the late 1 ...
, bassist
Tony Lombardo Tony Lombardo (born c. 1945) is an American musician who was the original bassist in the punk rock band the Descendents. He joined the band in 1979 and played on their debut single, the '' Fat EP'' (1981), and the albums '' Milo Goes to College ...
and drummer Bill Stevenson. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
as a singer, and reappeared as a punk rock band, becoming a major player in the
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
scene developing in Los Angeles at the time. They have released eight
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
s, three
live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
s, three
compilation album A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...
s, and four EPs. Since 1986, the band's lineup has consisted of singer
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
, guitarist Stephen Egerton, bassist
Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the '' Enjoy!'' album fr ...
, and drummer Bill Stevenson.


History


Early years, ''Fat EP'', ''Milo Goes to College'', and first hiatus (1977–1984)

In 1977, friends
Frank Navetta Frank Navetta (March 6, 1962 – October 31, 2008) was an American musician who was the original guitarist of the punk rock band the Descendents, which he co-founded. He formed the band in Manhattan Beach, California with Dave Nolte in the late 1 ...
and David Nolte began writing songs on
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
s with the intention of forming a band. They initially called themselves "The Itch", until Navetta came up with the name "Descendents". By the end of the year they had failed to attract any more band members, so Nolte left to join
The Last The Last may refer to: *The Last (band) The Last is an American, Los Angeles-based, early pop/punk band, formed in 1976 by Joe Nolte with high school bandmates Vitus Matare and Dave Harbison. By 1978 the band included three brothers: Joe (guitar ...
with his brothers. In late 1978 Navetta, joined by drummer Bill Stevenson, and with Nolte switching from guitar to bass, revitalized the Descendents project. Nolte sang with the group at several of their early performances, but by the Spring of 1979 The Last were becoming more active and he left the Descendents again, being replaced by bassist
Tony Lombardo Tony Lombardo (born c. 1945) is an American musician who was the original bassist in the punk rock band the Descendents. He joined the band in 1979 and played on their debut single, the '' Fat EP'' (1981), and the albums '' Milo Goes to College ...
. The singerless "power trio" lineup of Navetta, Lombardo, and Stevenson recorded the band's debut single at Media Art studios and released it on their own label, Orca Records, named after Stevenson's fishing boat.Blush, p. 310. Navetta sang "Ride the Wild" while Lombardo sang "It's a Hectic World". Nolte produced and mixed the session, and his brother Joe turned the lead guitar level up, resulting in the guitar being very loud in the mix. The band's music at the time was described by Stevenson as a "coffee'd-out blend of rock-surf-pop-punk music ..The sound consisted basically of Lombardo's hard-driving, melodic bass lines, Navetta's tight guitar riffing, and my 'caffinated' surf beats."
Steven Blush Steven Blush is an American author, journalist, record collector and film maker who is best known for his book ''American Hardcore'' and the movie of the same name. Blush has written five books, is the founder of ''Seconds'' magazine and has w ...
, author of '' American Hardcore: A Tribal History'', describes the single as "a blend of
Devo Devo (, originally ) is an American Rock music, rock band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs (Mark Mothersbaugh, Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh, Bob) and the Casales (Gerald ...
-style new wave and
Dick Dale Richard Anthony Monsour (May 4, 1937 – March 16, 2019), known professionally as Dick Dale, was an American rock guitarist. He was a pioneer of surf music, drawing on Middle Eastern music scales and experimenting with reverb. Dale was known a ...
-like surf." Ned Raggett of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
describes it as surf-inspired
power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, an ...
with a New Wave edge: "Not quite Devo if they grew up on the coast, but there's something to that comparison." After a six-month trial with a female singer, Cecilia Loera, they recruited
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
as their new vocalist. The addition of Aukerman and the consumption of large amounts of coffee led the band to write shorter, faster, and more aggressive songs in a
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
style. They later released the
Fat EP The ''Fat EP'' is an EP by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1981 through New Alliance Records. It was the band's first recording with singer Milo Aukerman and established their presence in the southern California hardcore ...
in 1982. It was a record which established the band's presence in the southern California hardcore punk movement with its short, fast, aggressive songs. For the recording of their first album in June 1982, the band worked at
Total Access Recording Total Access Recording is a recording studio located in Redondo Beach, California, owned and operated by founder Wyn Davis and Steve Ornest. Total Access opened for business in December 1980. The first clients of the studio were bands signed wi ...
in
Redondo Beach, California Redondo Beach (Spanish for ''round'') is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located in the South Bay region of the Greater Los Angeles area. It is one of three adjacent beach cities along the southern portion of Sa ...
with
Spot Spot or SPOT may refer to: Places * Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States * The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia * South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse People * Spot (produ ...
, who had also engineered and produced the ''Fat EP''. While still short and fast, the songs on ''Milo Goes to College'' were also melodic. Aukerman later reflected: "It's interesting: we started very melodic, then moved to hardcore, but melded the two at a certain point and became
melodic hardcore Melodic hardcore is a broadly defined subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on melody in its guitar work. It generally incorporates fast rhythms, melodic and often distorted guitar riffs, and vocal styles tending towards shouting and ...
." The album's title and cover illustration referenced Aukerman's departure from the band to study biology at the
University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is ...
. The illustration was done by Jeff Atkinson, based on earlier
caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
s by a high school classmate of Aukerman's named Roger Deuerlein, who had drawn comic strips and posters depicting Aukerman as the class
nerd A nerd is a person seen as overly intellectual, obsessive, introverted or lacking social skills. Such a person may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, little known, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly tec ...
. A note on the back of the LP read "In dedication to Milo Aukerman from the Descendents", and was signed by the other three members. Aukerman later recalled that the band took his departure in stride:
When I decided to go to university, the guys in the band were pretty hip on it because they knew how big of a nerd I was. Like, "What else would you expect him to do but to go off and be a geek?" I mean, I've got a Ph.D in
biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
— how uncool is that?
The band continued performing for a time with Ray Cooper on vocals, who would switch to
rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...
, when Aukerman made return visits to Los Angeles. At the same time, Stevenson had also joined Black Flag, intending to be in both bands at once but soon finding it too difficult due to Black Flag's touring and recording schedule. With Aukerman in college and Stevenson in Black Flag, the Descendents went on hiatus from 1983 to 1985. During this time Navetta burned all of his equipment and moved to
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, while Cooper and Lombardo performed as the Ascendents.


Reformation, ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'', ''Enjoy!'', ''All'', and second hiatus (1985–1995)

In 1985 Stevenson left Black Flag and he, Aukerman, Cooper, and Lombardo reconvened as the Descendents for ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'', recorded that April at Music Lab studios in
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictur ...
with producer and
engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considerin ...
David Tarling and published by
New Alliance Records New Alliance Records was an independent record label founded by American musicians D. Boon and Mike Watt (of The Minutemen) and longtime friend and associate Martin Tamburovich. They were inspired by the example of their friends in southern Califo ...
. Lombardo was unable to tour with the band due to his job with the
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...
, and was replaced by
Doug Carrion Doug Carrion (born November 9, 1964) is an American musician, audio engineer, record producer, and music editor. He played bass guitar in the punk rock bands the Descendents and Dag Nasty during the 1980s, and in the hard rock band For Love Not L ...
, who performed on their three tours in support of ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'' After three tours in support of ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'', the band recorded ''Enjoy!'' in March and April 1986 at Radio Tokyo studios in
Venice, California Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed by ...
.
Drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer's ...
Bill Stevenson acted as producer of the album, working with
recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproductio ...
s Richard Andrews and Ethan James. The lyrics of "Hürtin' Crüe" derived from a high school classmate of singer
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
who had earned a score of 1420 on the SAT, gaining him entry into the
United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
. Gloating about his accomplishment, he sang a taunt with the lyrics "I am better than you / You are a piece of poo / 1420". Aukerman incorporated these lyrics into "Hürtin' Crüe". The cover artwork for ''Enjoy!'' was drawn by guitarist Ray Cooper under the
pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...
"Scoob Droolins". Rather than printing the song titles on the reverse of the album's sleeve, the band instead replaced them with various
euphemism A euphemism () is an innocuous word or expression used in place of one that is deemed offensive or suggests something unpleasant. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the user wishes ...
s for
feces Feces ( or faeces), known colloquially and in slang as poo and poop, are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. Feces contain a rela ...
. The band supported ''Enjoy!'' with a tour through the Summer of 1986. Following the tour both Carrion and Cooper left the band, and were replaced by
Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the '' Enjoy!'' album fr ...
and Stephen Egerton, respectively, from the Utah band Massacre Guys. In 1987 New Alliance was sold to
SST Records SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was formed in 1966 by Ginn at age 12 as Solid State Tuners, a small business through which he sold electronics equipm ...
, who re-released ''Enjoy!'' on cassette and
compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in O ...
. The cassette and CD versions added two additional tracks: "Orgofart" and "Orgo 51". "Orgofart" consists entirely of the band members cheering each other on as they fart into recording equipment, a technique also used in "Enjoy", while "Orgo 51" is a heavy metal-influenced
instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...
track. One week later, on Stevenson's birthday of September 10, Stephen Egerton and
Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the '' Enjoy!'' album fr ...
moved from
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...
to fill the vacant guitar and bass positions. ''
All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...
'' was recorded in January 1987 at Radio Tokyo studios in
Venice, California Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed by ...
with
recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproductio ...
Richard Andrews and was produced by Stevenson.
Dez Cadena Dez Cadena (born June 2, 1961) is an American punk rock singer and guitarist. He was the third vocalist and later rhythm guitarist for hardcore punk band Black Flag from 1980 to 1983. Cadena played guitar with Misfits from 2001 to 2015, init ...
sang backing vocals, while Stevenson created the album's cover graphics and Alvarez provided illustrations for the sleeve and liner notes. The album was themed around the concept of "All", which had been invented by Stevenson and friend Pat McCuistion during a fishing trip on Stevenson's boat ''Orca'' in 1980. According to singer
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
: "While drinking all this coffee in the midst of catching mackerel they came up with the concept of All — doing the utmost, achieving the utmost. The more they got into it the more it turned into their own religion; it's partly humor, but it's also an outlook on how to conduct your life: to not settle for some, to always go for All." Stevenson described the concept of "All" as "the total extent", and he and McCuistion had quickly written several short songs that would later be recorded by the Descendents, including "All" and "No, All!", written "in a fit of Allular frustration. The songs were only seconds long, but that was all the time we needed to make the point." McCuistion also shared writing credit on "All-O-Gistics", a musical set of commandments for achieving All, including lyrics such as "Thou shalt not commit adulthood", "Thou shalt not partake of decaf", and "Thou shalt not suppress flatulence". In a June 1987 interview with ''Music'' magazine, Stevenson elaborated on the "All" concept:
I'm really into "ALL"' and I've waited a long time to unleash the whole concept on people. And now I'm going to do it ..It's just a way of thinking, in which there are extremes and there is this goal called 'ALL.' It's a way that I created in dealing with achievement and satisfaction and how the two relate. Basically just to avoid stagnation... going for "ALL" and never being satisfied and just wallowing in your own sameness.
Aside from the concept of "All", other songs on the album such as "Coolidge", "Pep Talk", and "Clean Sheets" dealt with themes of broken relationships, while "Iceman" was loosely based on the play ''
The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...
'' by
Eugene O'Neill Eugene Gladstone O'Neill (October 16, 1888 – November 27, 1953) was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into the U.S. the drama techniques of realism, earli ...
. The album was released through
SST Records SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was formed in 1966 by Ginn at age 12 as Solid State Tuners, a small business through which he sold electronics equipm ...
, who had purchased the Descendents' previous label
New Alliance Records New Alliance Records was an independent record label founded by American musicians D. Boon and Mike Watt (of The Minutemen) and longtime friend and associate Martin Tamburovich. They were inspired by the example of their friends in southern Califo ...
that year and also re-released all of their previous albums. ''All'' was released in LP, cassette, and CD formats, the latter two containing the additional tracks "Jealous of the World" and "Uranus". The band supported the album with a 60-day Spring 1987 tour, followed by the 50-day Summer "FinALL" tour, so-called due to Aukerman's decision to leave the band to pursue a career in
biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
. Recordings from these tours were used for the
live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
s ''
Liveage! ''Liveage!'' is a live album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1987 through SST Records. The band's first live album, it was recorded July 13, 1987 at First Avenue in Minneapolis during their summer 1987 "FinALL" tour, ...
'' (1987) and '' Hallraker: Live!'' (1989). Following Aukerman's departure the band added singer
Dave Smalley Dave Smalley is an American musician, best known as the lead singer for the hardcore punk bands DYS, Dag Nasty, and All and as lead singer/guitarist with Down by Law. He is known for his influence on pop punk music and his early contribution ...
of
Dag Nasty Dag Nasty is an American punk rockGreenwald, p. 14. " Ian Mackaye was such a huge Rites of Spring fan that he not only recorded what was to be the band's only album in 1985 and served as a roadie for them while on tour, but his own new band, ...
and rechristened themselves
All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...
, a change Stevenson claimed he had wanted to make for eight years. "Well, basically, I've been wanting to work with David for a long time; but at the same time, Milo has stuck with me for almost nine years now, so I wouldn't exactly feel right about just continuing to call us the Descendents. In a sense that would be kind of like discrediting Milo's nine years worth of effort. It's kind of like, 'Let the Descendents be my and Milo's sacred thing,' or whatever. Who knows, at some point later on we might decide that we want to get together and record something. On December 16, 1987, during the recording of the first All album ''
Allroy Sez ''Allroy Sez'' is the debut album by the American punk rock band All, released in March 1988 through Cruz Records. Following the departure of singer Milo Aukerman from the Descendents, the remaining members—bassist Karl Alvarez, guitarist Step ...
'', Pat McCuistion died when his fishing boat sank during a storm. Stevenson remarked that "He had 15,000 pounds of fish onboard, so I guess you could say he died in heated pursuit of All. He was always the '5th member' of the band, besides being my best friend, next to Milo." With Smalley and later singers Scott Reynolds and
Chad Price Chad Price is the lead singer for the melodic punk band ALL and alt-country band Drag the River. He is currently the lead singer for A Vulture Wake. He joined ALL in 1993 as the band's third singer, after Dave Smalley and Scott Reynolds. He has ...
, All released eight albums between 1988 and 1995, with Aukerman contributing occasional songwriting and backing vocals.


Second reformation, ''Everything Sucks'', and third hiatus (1995–2003)

In 1995 Aukerman expressed a desire to return to recording and performing, so the band members decided to work with him as the Descendents while continuing to work with Price as All, in order to "make room for Milo without pushing Chad out." Stevenson explained that the arrangement did not cause any resentment between the two singers: " 's all totally good, it's just that when we are playing, Milo couldn't be All's singer, cause Chad is All's singer. So, we decided that we could be Descendents with Milo, and All with Chad. It's not really a reunion, we've been together the whole time." Aukerman described his decision to rejoin the band as "really just my re-entry into the song writing, I had been away for so long and I just wanted to make music which is what I love to do." ''Everything Sucks'' was recorded in June and July 1996 at
The Blasting Room The Blasting Room is a recording studio in Fort Collins, Colorado. Founded by members of the punk rock band All in 1994, it is owned and operated by musician Bill Stevenson (Descendents, Black Flag, All, Only Crime) and Jason Livermore. Th ...
, a studio built and run by Stevenson in
Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 169,810 at the 2020 census, an increase of 17.94% since 2010. Fort Collin ...
. Original Descendents members Tony Lombardo and Frank Navetta made appearances on the album: Navetta wrote the song "Doghouse" and both he and Lombardo played on it, marking the first recording by the original Descendents lineup of Aukerman, Lombardo, Navetta, and Stevenson since ''
Milo Goes to College ''Milo Goes to College'' is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Descendents, released on September 4, 1982 through New Alliance Records. Its title referred to singer Milo Aukerman's decision to leave the band to attend college, ...
'' in 1982. Lombardo also played on "Eunuch Boy", a song he and Aukerman had written fifteen years earlier. According to Aukerman: Eunuch Boy' is the first song I ever wrote, really. When we formed, Tony Lombardo, the original bass player said, 'Dude- you need to write some songs,' and I had never written a song before so I just wrote down some words and brought it to him. He made the music for it." Lombardo also wrote and played on "Gotta", which was left off of the album but released as a
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
on the " When I Get Old" single. Chad Price sang backing vocals on the album, while Stevenson and Egerton produced and engineered it. All had previously been signed to major label
Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner ...
for 1995's '' Pummel'', but were dissatisfied with the experience. Both All and the Descendents signed to
Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most acts signed to the label were punk and pop punk acts, while there are many post-hardcore and emo ba ...
, who released ''Everything Sucks'', the subsequent All albums ''
Mass Nerder ''Mass Nerder'' is the seventh album by the punk rock band All. It was released on Epitaph Records in 1998. Background and recording In mid 1996, All began working on their next, then untitled, studio album. At the same time, Milo Aukerman wa ...
'' (1998) and '' Problematic'' (2000), and the All/Descendents double live album ''
Live Plus One ''Live Plus One'' is a live album by the American punk rock bands All and the Descendents, released in 2001 through Epitaph Records. A double album, it includes one disc by All recorded in 2001 on their '' Problematic'' tour, and a second disc by ...
'' (2001). It was rumored that Epitaph would not sign All without getting the Descendents as well, but Stevenson explained that the arrangement was made because Epitaph head
Brett Gurewitz Brett W. Gurewitz (born May 12, 1962), nicknamed Mr. Brett, is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of Bad Religion. He is also the owner of the music label Epitaph Records and a number of sister labels. He has produced albums f ...
would allow both bands to make albums at their discretion:
When we signed with Epitaph it was for both bands. It was a thing of knowing Brett forever, and so I just sat down and said, "Well, we want to make records!" At the time we were leaving Interscope. We weren't happy with Interscope at all. So we sat down and told them we wanted to make both All and Descendents records whenever we want, at our choosing. Brett and I worked out a deal like that, so it was really flexible and we could basically do whatever we wanted.
The Descendents supported ''Everything Sucks'' with a series of tours from September 1996 to August 1997 covering the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Europe, touring with
Swingin' Utters Swingin' Utters (often typeset as $wingin' Utter$, and originally called Johnny Peebucks and the Swingin' Utters) is a Californian punk rock band that formed in the late 1980s.Bush, JohnSwingin' Utters Biography, Allmusic, retrieved September 30 ...
,
The Bouncing Souls The Bouncing Souls are an American punk band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 1989. By the time of their acknowledgment by the national punk rock scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast light-h ...
,
The Suicide Machines The Suicide Machines are an American punk rock band formed in March 1991 in Detroit, Michigan. During the course of their career, the band has released seven full-length albums on the labels Hollywood Records, Side One Dummy Records and Fat Wre ...
,
Shades Apart Shades Apart is an American alternative rock musical group from Bridgewater Township, New Jersey. They are best known for their US radio hit "Valentine", "Stranger by the Day" and their cover of the hit song "Tainted Love." History The band fo ...
,
Guttermouth Guttermouth is an American punk rock band formed in 1988 in Huntington Beach, California and currently recording for Rude Records. They have released nine full-length studio albums and two live albums and have toured extensively, including perfor ...
,
Less Than Jake Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainesville, Florida, formed in 1992. The band consists of Chris DeMakes (guitars, vocals), Roger Lima (bass, vocals), Matt Yonker (drums), Buddy Schaub (trombone), and Peter "JR" Wasilewski (saxop ...
,
Handsome Handsome may refer to: *Physical attractiveness *Human physical appearance Music *Handsome (band), an American rock band Albums *Handsome (EP), ''Handsome'' (EP), 1989 EP by American band Tar *Handsome (Handsome album), ''Handsome'' (Handsome al ...
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Electric Frankenstein Electric Frankenstein is an American punk revival band from New Jersey, founded by Sal Canzonieri in 1990. The band relocated to North Carolina in 2021. Their style is a mixture of punk rock, hard rock, garage rock, glam, and heavy metal. It is ...
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Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead vocals, lead guitar), Jonny Wickersham (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Brent Harding (bass, backing voca ...
, Pennywise, H2O, and others. Music videos were filmed for " I'm the One" and " When I Get Old", and both songs were released as singles in Europe.


Fourth reformation, ''Cool to Be You,'' reunions, ''Filmage'', and ''Hypercaffium Spazzinate'' (2004–2017)

In the early 2000s, Aukerman took a break from biochemistry and reunited with the Descendents to record a new album. The recording sessions for ''
Cool to Be You ''Cool to Be You'' is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 2004 through Fat Wreck Chords. It was their first album of new studio material since 1996's '' Everything Sucks'', which had been released t ...
'' took place with Aukerman in February 2002 at
The Blasting Room The Blasting Room is a recording studio in Fort Collins, Colorado. Founded by members of the punk rock band All in 1994, it is owned and operated by musician Bill Stevenson (Descendents, Black Flag, All, Only Crime) and Jason Livermore. Th ...
in
Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 169,810 at the 2020 census, an increase of 17.94% since 2010. Fort Collin ...
, with additional recording done in April at Planet of Sound in
Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Unami language, Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North ...
, and were produced by Stevenson. The band recorded the music for the songs live in the studio with minimal
overdubbing Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...
, and Aukerman's vocals were recorded over the instrumental tracks. However, these recordings were not released for another two years. Stevenson explained that the gap of eight years between Descendents albums was due to the band members having children and to his father's death. For the release of ''Cool to Be You'' the Descendents signed to
Fat Wreck Chords Fat Wreck Chords (pronounced "Fat Records") is a San Francisco, California-based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by NOFX lead singer Michael Burkett (better known as Fat Mike) in 1990. The label has released mater ...
. Label head and musician
Fat Mike Michael John Burkett (born January 16, 1967), known professionally as Fat Mike, is an American musician and producer. He is the bassist and lead vocalist for the punk rock band NOFX and the bassist for the punk rock supergroup cover band Me F ...
was a longtime fan of the band, and his enthusiasm for working with them was a major factor in their decision to sign to the label. Stevenson commented that "If you've got the owner of the label saying he wants to put out a record by what is probably his favorite band of all time, that's rad. That's the best possible position for a band to be in." The album was preceded by the ''
'Merican ''Merican'' is an EP by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released February 10, 2004. It was the band's first release for Fat Wreck Chords and served as a pre-release to their sixth studio album ''Cool to Be You'', released the follo ...
'' EP in February 2004, followed by the full-length album in March. ''Cool to Be You'' was released in both CD and LP formats, with a cover illustration drawn by Chris Shary depicting the band's Milo
caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
drawn on
graph paper Graph paper, coordinate paper, grid paper, or squared paper is writing paper that is printed with fine lines making up a regular grid. The lines are often used as guides for plotting graphs of functions or experimental data and drawing curves ...
. In October 2008, founding member Frank Navetta died after "becoming ill over the course of a few days". The official website of the Descendents gave its grief to Frank, "We're very sorry to announce that founding member of The DESCENDENTS, and close friend Frank Navetta died on October 31, 2008 after becoming ill over the course of a few days. This is obviously a huge loss for the DESCENDENTS family. His contribution to the band, and to music in general can not be overstated. Frank will be truly missed." In 2010 the Descendents reunited again for a series of gigs. According to Milo, the reunion is not an official reformation. He classified these as "one-off shows", usually occurring when he is able to take advantage of vacation breaks as working as a biologist to perform with the Descendents. A documentary called
Filmage ''Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All'' is a 2013 independent documentary film chronicling the history of the American punk rock bands the Descendents and All. It was written by Matt Riggle, who produced and directed it with Deedle LaCour. The ...
documenting the story behind the Descendents and All premiered at Bloor Hot Docs cinema in Toronto on June, 15th 2013 as part of the NXNE Music and Film festival. Directed by Matt Riggle and Deedle LaCour, Filmage had a limited theatrical run in Los Angeles starting September, 26th 2014 and was released in the US and Canada on VOD, Digital and Blu-ray/DVD September, 30th 2014. In May 2015 it was announced by Stevenson that the band had been working on some demo songs for a new album, which could possibly be released mid-2016. On April 22, 2016, it was announced that the band's next album, ''
Hypercaffium Spazzinate ''Hypercaffium Spazzinate'' is the seventh studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released on July 29, 2016, through Epitaph Records. It is the band's first album since '' Cool to Be You'' in 2004. This was their highest-ch ...
'', along with an accompanying EP with 5 bonus tracks from the recording sessions entitled '' Spazzhazard'' would be released through Epitaph in July. On June 7, the debut single from ''Hypercaffium Spazzinate'' "Victim of Me" was released on all streaming services. In July 2016, Milo announced he would be leaving his scientific career to pursue the Descendents full-time, citing burnout with biochemistry and getting laid off from DuPont. In April 2017, the band released a standalone single titled "Who We Are", a highly political song that laments the
presidency of Donald Trump Donald Trump's tenure as the 45th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican from New York City, took office following his Electoral College victory ...
and repudiates the bigotry, violence and divisiveness that the band feels he has caused.


New singles and ''9th & Walnut'' (2018–present)

In a March 2019 interview with '' OC Register'', Aukerman revealed that Descendents were working on a new album: "When we put out the last record we thought, 'OK, I bet we could put out another record after this one and not wait a decade to do it.' It was such a rewarding experience and you know what? Our fans deserve better. They deserve more than a record every decade or so. We started writing almost immediately after that record was done. I have been writing and Stephen (Egerton) has really picked up the mantle, too. Between us I think we have like 20 songs written and Bill (Stevenson) and Karl (Alvarez) have been writing songs as well. We've done some basic tracking, but it's still a work in progress but I hope we'll have something out by the end of the year." In 2020, they released a single to streaming services, entitled "Suffrage" and including two songs, "On You" and "Hindsight 2020". On May 4, 2021, the band put out a single called "Baby Doncha Know" and announced their eighth album that would be released on July 23 titled '' 9th & Walnut,'' named after the intersection in
Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...
where their first rehearsal space was located. The album was recorded primarily during a 2002 session featuring the original lineup of Stevenson, Frank Navetta, and Tony Lombardo, with Milo Aukerman recording his lead vocals for the album at home in
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...
during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. It contains eighteen songs written by the band between 1977 and 1981, including re-recorded versions of "Ride the Wild" and "It's a Hectic World". The album serves as the band's first recording since ''Everything Sucks'' to feature this "classic" lineup.


Lyrical and musical style

Over the years the Descendents style of music has changed from short under a minute hardcore style songs to average length 2–3 minute punk rock songs. The lyrical content of the Descendents made them being cited at the time as one of the most significant punk bands of the 1980s hardcore punk movement. Critics have cited that their earlier music style which reflected
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
being influential to modern day
skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skater subculture and punk rock subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, skate punk evolved into a mo ...
and
pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...
.
Steven Blush Steven Blush is an American author, journalist, record collector and film maker who is best known for his book ''American Hardcore'' and the movie of the same name. Blush has written five books, is the founder of ''Seconds'' magazine and has w ...
, author of '' American Hardcore: A Tribal History'', remarked that their "cheeky love songs disguised as hardcore blasts became the most aped formula in rock." Ned Raggett of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
in his review of ''Milo Goes to College'' called it "an unpretentious, catchy winner. The playing of the core band is even better than before, never mistaking increased skill with needing to show off; the Lombardo/Stevenson rhythm section is in perfect sync, while Navetta provides the corrosive power. Add in Aukerman's in-your-face hilarity and fuck-off stance, and it's punk rock that wears both its adolescence and brains on its sleeve." Bill Stevenson attributed the change of their sound to the band's invention of the "Bonus Cup": "We took ⅓ of a cup of instant coffee grounds, added some hot water, threw in about 5 spoonfuls of sugar, and proceeded to play 10 second songs. The Bonus Cup became a part of everyday Descendents life." Aukerman later recalled: "We started drinking too much coffee; 'cause of that and the addition of me, the music became very quick and all about bursts of energy. It's interesting: we started very melodic, then moved to hardcore, but melded the two at a certain point and became
melodic hardcore Melodic hardcore is a broadly defined subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on melody in its guitar work. It generally incorporates fast rhythms, melodic and often distorted guitar riffs, and vocal styles tending towards shouting and ...
." During the band's first reformation, the songs got longer, darker, and experimental. ''Enjoy!'' was marked by the use of
toilet humor Toilet humour, or potty or scatological humour (compare scatology), is a type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation, diarrhea, constipation, urination and flatulence, and to a lesser extent vomiting and other bodily functions. It sees sub ...
, with references to
defecation Defecation (or defaecation) follows digestion, and is a necessary process by which organisms eliminate a solid, semisolid, or liquid waste material known as feces from the digestive tract via the anus. The act has a variety of names ranging f ...
and
flatulence Flatulence, in humans, is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed enviro ...
in its artwork, the title track, and "Orgofart". It also displayed a darker, more heavy metal-influenced sound in songs like "Hürtin' Crüe", "Days Are Blood", and "Orgo 51", with other songs recalling the pop-influenced punk of the band's previous efforts. The songs on ''Everything Sucks'' and ''Cool to Be You'' address topics including love and relationships, sociopolitical commentary, the death of parents,
nerd A nerd is a person seen as overly intellectual, obsessive, introverted or lacking social skills. Such a person may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, little known, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly tec ...
iness, and
flatulence Flatulence, in humans, is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed enviro ...
. Merican", their first overtly political song, addresses positive and negative aspects of
American history The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many saw transformations in the 16th century away from more densel ...
, celebrating cultural figures such as
Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
,
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was bas ...
, and
Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...
while condemning
slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
,
Joseph McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican United States Senate, U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarth ...
, the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and Cat ...
, and the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. Stevenson wrote "One More Day" about the death of his father, who he had taken in and cared for throughout the last year of his life: "He and I always had a terrible relationship. We spent a good part of my adult life being somewhat estranged from each other. He became ill and I took care of him for a little while. And then he died. That song is just about his and my relationship. Just to get that out of me and not holding it inside anymore, is a huge relief for me ..Every single time I hear that song, it just freaks me out. I've never, ever written a song that's freaked me out that much."


Milo character

A
caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
of singer
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
has been a
mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as ...
for the Descendents since the early 1980s, appearing on the covers of five of the band's seven studio albums. The character was created by Rodger Deuerlein, a classmate of Aukerman and drummer Bill Stevenson's at Mira Costa High School who taunted Aukerman by drawing comic strips and posters depicting him as the class
nerd A nerd is a person seen as overly intellectual, obsessive, introverted or lacking social skills. Such a person may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, little known, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly tec ...
. "He usually used me to make campaigns for people running for class office. ..I remember him making one that said 'Don't be a nerd like Milo, vote for Billy!' or something like that." For the cover of the Descendents' first album, ''
Milo Goes to College ''Milo Goes to College'' is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Descendents, released on September 4, 1982 through New Alliance Records. Its title referred to singer Milo Aukerman's decision to leave the band to attend college, ...
'' (1982), Stevenson asked friend Jeff "Rat" Atkinson to draw his own interpretation of Deuerlein's Milo character: "I go 'Roger does the drawing, recalled Atkinson, "He goes 'No, you gotta do it.' I said 'Okay, what kind of Milo do you want?' So I draw him a Milo. First was the
crew neck A crew neck (crewneck or crew-neck) is a type of shirt or sweater that has a round neckline and no collar, often worn with other layers. The name dates back to 1939 and was named after a type of sweater worn by rowers. The T-shirt crew neck was ...
T-shirt, then I drew the
polo shirt A polo shirt, tennis shirt, golf shirt, or chukker shirt is a form of shirt with a collar. Polo shirts are usually short sleeved but can be long; they were used by Polo#Players, polo players originally in India in 1859 and in Great Britain durin ...
Milo, then I drew the Milo with a tie, because he goes to college. Bill goes 'Oh, that's it', and it becomes the cover of the first record." For the band's 1985 album ''
I Don't Want to Grow Up ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'' is the second studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1985 through New Alliance Records. It marked the end of a two-year hiatus for the band, during which singer Milo Aukerman had atte ...
'', the character was reinterpreted as a baby. When the band's name was changed to
All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...
upon Aukerman's departure in 1987, bassist
Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the '' Enjoy!'' album fr ...
created the character Allroy to serve an equivalent function for the new band."Bonus Cut". ''Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All''. Event occurs at 11:39. In addition to appearing on much of the Descendents' merchandise and promotional materials, the Milo character has been reinterpreted by other artists for all of the band's releases since 1996: *Reading a newspaper on the cover of '' Everything Sucks'' (1996). The full illustration, used for the lyric sheet and the " I'm the One" single, depicts the character sitting atop the tank of an overflowing toilet as it floods the room around him and a
mushroom cloud A mushroom cloud is a distinctive mushroom-shaped flammagenitus cloud of debris, smoke and usually condensed water vapor resulting from a large explosion. The effect is most commonly associated with a nuclear explosion, but any sufficiently ener ...
forms outside the window. This illustration is credited to "Grey Stool", though Aukerman notes it was created by "the kind people at Epitaph ecords. *As an elderly man in a wheelchair on the cover of the " When I Get Old" single (1997) *Dressed as
Uncle Sam Uncle Sam (which has the same initials as ''United States'') is a common national personification of the federal government of the United States or the country in general. Since the early 19th century, Uncle Sam has been a popular symbol of ...
, in two versions, on the cover of ''
'Merican ''Merican'' is an EP by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released February 10, 2004. It was the band's first release for Fat Wreck Chords and served as a pre-release to their sixth studio album ''Cool to Be You'', released the follo ...
'' (2004), as drawn by Jeff Hagedorn *Drawn on
graph paper Graph paper, coordinate paper, grid paper, or squared paper is writing paper that is printed with fine lines making up a regular grid. The lines are often used as guides for plotting graphs of functions or experimental data and drawing curves ...
on the cover of ''
Cool to Be You ''Cool to Be You'' is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 2004 through Fat Wreck Chords. It was their first album of new studio material since 1996's '' Everything Sucks'', which had been released t ...
'' (2004), as illustrated by Chris Shary. Shary also drew the character as an old man for the cover of the Descendents
tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
''Milo Turns 50'' (2013), published by ''
Filter Filter, filtering or filters may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Filter (higher-order function), in functional programming * Filter (software), a computer program to process a data stream * Filter (video), a software component tha ...
'' magazine, and a more detailed depiction of the character as the promotional artwork for ''
Filmage ''Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All'' is a 2013 independent documentary film chronicling the history of the American punk rock bands the Descendents and All. It was written by Matt Riggle, who produced and directed it with Deedle LaCour. The ...
'', a 2013
documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
about the Descendents and All. *As an Erlenmeyer flask on the cover of ''
Hypercaffium Spazzinate ''Hypercaffium Spazzinate'' is the seventh studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released on July 29, 2016, through Epitaph Records. It is the band's first album since '' Cool to Be You'' in 2004. This was their highest-ch ...
'' (2016)''.'' *As a ballot box on the cover of Suffrage (2020), the full illustration also depicts a hand with a spiked wristband depositing a vote into said ballot box''.''


Legacy and influence

The Descendents have been cited as hugely influential to a large number of modern-day
pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...
and
skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skater subculture and punk rock subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, skate punk evolved into a mo ...
bands such as
Blink 182 Blink-182 (stylized as blink-182) is an American rock band formed in Poway, California in 1992. Their current lineup consists of bassist/vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. Though their sound has ...
,
MXPX MxPx () is an American pop punk band from Bremerton, Washington, founded in 1992 as Magnified Plaid. As of 2016, current members include Mike Herrera on lead vocals and bass guitar, Yuri Ruley on drums and percussion, Tom Wisniewski on lead g ...
,
NOFX NOFX () is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1983. Vocalist/bassist Fat Mike, guitarist Eric Melvin and drummer Erik Sandin are original founding and longest-serving members of the band, who have appeared on ever ...
,
Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a ...
, Pennywise,
Propagandhi Propagandhi is a Canadian punk rock band formed in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba in 1986 by guitarist Chris Hannah and drummer Jord Samolesky. The band is currently located in Winnipeg, Manitoba and completed by bassist Todd Kowalski and guitar ...
,
Rise Against Rise Against is an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. The group's current line-up comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Tim McIlrath, lead guitarist Zach Blair, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes. Rooted in hardc ...
,
The All-American Rejects The All-American Rejects is an American rock band from Stillwater, Oklahoma, formed in 1999.The Bouncing Souls The Bouncing Souls are an American punk band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 1989. By the time of their acknowledgment by the national punk rock scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast light-h ...
,
The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guit ...
, and
The Ataris The Ataris are an American punk rock band from Anderson, Indiana. Formed in 1996, they released five studio albums between 1997 and 2007. Their best-selling album is ''So Long, Astoria'' (2003), which was certified gold. Their high-charting s ...
. "Everything about how I sing and play guitar came from this band ..Blink is absolutely a product of The Descendents," said Blink-182 vocalist/guitarist Tom DeLonge in 2011, while vocalist/bassist
Mark Hoppus Mark Allan Hoppus (born March 15, 1972) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer best known as the bassist and co-lead vocalist for the rock band Blink-182, being the only constant member and the only one to appear on every album ...
called "Silly Girl" from ''
I Don't Want to Grow Up ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'' is the second studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1985 through New Alliance Records. It marked the end of a two-year hiatus for the band, during which singer Milo Aukerman had atte ...
'' (1985) "the first song that really altered my life. ..It spoke to me in a way that nothing did." In 2014, ''Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All'', a documentary on the band, premiered. The film features interviews with Hoppus,
Dave Grohl David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He is the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters, in which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. Prior to forming Foo Fighters, he was the drummer of gru ...
of
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lamp Richard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colomb ...
and
Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) ...
, and
Mike Watt Michael David Watt (born December 20, 1957) is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter. Watt co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo ...
of
Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...
. ''Milo Goes to College'' has been included in several lists of noteworthy punk albums. ''
Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally ...
'' has listed it several times, ranking it No. 74 in a 1995 list of the best
alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...
albums and No. 20 in a 2001 list of "The 50 Most Essential Punk Records", and including it in a 2004 list of "Essential Hardcore" albums. In these lists, critic
Simon Reynolds Simon Reynolds (born 19 June 1963) is an English music journalist and author who began his professional career on the staff of ''Melody Maker'' in the mid-1980s. He has since gone on to freelance and publish a number of full-length books on musi ...
described the album as "Fifteen Cali-core paroxysms that anatomize dork-dude pangs with
haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a '' kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a '' kigo'', or ...
brevity", while Andrew Beaujon called it "Super clean, super tight, super poppy hardcore about hating your parents, riding bikes, and not wanting to 'smell your muff.' In 2006 ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication '' Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a on ...
'' ranked it as the 33rd greatest punk album of all time. The German edition of the ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
''s
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...
ranked it at 349. In 2016, a Descendents branded
IPA IPA commonly refers to: * India pale ale, a style of beer * International Phonetic Alphabet, a system of phonetic notation * Isopropyl alcohol, a chemical compound IPA may also refer to: Organizations International * Insolvency Practitioners A ...
entitled "Feel This Coffee" was released by the
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
branch of Mikkeller Brewery. It is named after a track from their 2016 album Hypercaffium Spazzinate.


Band members

Current members * Bill Stevenson – drums (1978–1983, 1985–1987, 1995–1997, 2002–2004, 2010–present), vocals (1979–1980, 2002) *
Milo Aukerman Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American vocalist, songwriter, and former research molecular biologist. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead singer of the punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to b ...
– vocals (1980–1983, 1985–1987, 1995–1997, 2002–2004, 2010–present) *
Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the '' Enjoy!'' album fr ...
– bass (1986–1987, 1995–1997, 2002–2004, 2010–present) * Stephen Egerton – guitar (1986–1987, 1995–1997, 2002–2004, 2010–present) Former members *
Frank Navetta Frank Navetta (March 6, 1962 – October 31, 2008) was an American musician who was the original guitarist of the punk rock band the Descendents, which he co-founded. He formed the band in Manhattan Beach, California with Dave Nolte in the late 1 ...
– guitar (1977–1983, 2002), vocals (1977–1980, 2002); died 2008 *David Nolte – vocals (1977-1979), guitar (1977-1978), bass (1978-1979) *
Tony Lombardo Tony Lombardo (born c. 1945) is an American musician who was the original bassist in the punk rock band the Descendents. He joined the band in 1979 and played on their debut single, the '' Fat EP'' (1981), and the albums '' Milo Goes to College ...
– bass (1979–1983, 1985, 2002), vocals (1979–1980, 2002) *Ray Cooper – vocals (1982–1983), guitar (1982–1983, 1985–1986) *
Doug Carrion Doug Carrion (born November 9, 1964) is an American musician, audio engineer, record producer, and music editor. He played bass guitar in the punk rock bands the Descendents and Dag Nasty during the 1980s, and in the hard rock band For Love Not L ...
– bass (1985–1986)


Timeline

ImageSize = width:1250 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:60 top:5 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1977 till:01/01/2023 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1977 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1977 Colors = id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:ep value:gray(0.5) legend:EP id:single value:gray(0.85) legend:Single id:bars value:gray(0.95) BackgroundColors = bars:bars LineData = layer:back at:05/01/1980 color:single at:01/01/1987 color:single at:01/12/1997 color:single at:06/06/1997 color:single at:11/23/2004 color:single at:06/01/2016 color:single at:06/11/2016 color:single at:04/21/2018 color:single at:10/27/2020 color:single at:01/14/2021 color:single at:05/04/2021 color:single at:06/02/2021 color:single at:06/28/2021 color:single at:04/01/1981 color:ep at:05/01/1997 color:ep at:02/10/2004 color:ep at:07/29/2016 color:ep at:04/25/2017 color:ep at:09/04/1982 color:studio at:06/01/1985 color:studio at:07/01/1986 color:studio at:06/14/1987 color:studio at:09/24/1996 color:studio at:03/23/2004 color:studio at:07/01/2016 color:studio at:07/23/2021 color:studio BarData = bar:Aukerman text:"Milo Aukerman" bar:Cooper text:"Ray Cooper" bar:Navetta text:"Frank Navetta" bar:Egerton text:"Stephen Egerton" bar:Nolte text:"David Nolte" bar:Lombardo text:"Tony Lombardo" bar:Carrion text:"Doug Carrion" bar:Alvarez text:"Karl Alvarez" bar:Stevenson text:"Bill Stevenson" PlotData= width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Aukerman from:07/01/1980 till:09/04/1982 color:vocals bar:Aukerman from:02/01/1985 till:12/31/1987 color:vocals bar:Aukerman from:02/01/1995 till:10/01/1997 color:vocals bar:Aukerman from:04/01/2002 till:08/01/2004 color:vocals bar:Aukerman from:08/01/2010 till:end color:vocals bar:Stevenson from:09/01/1978 till:12/31/1983 color:drums bar:Stevenson from:04/01/1979 till:07/01/1980 color:vocals width:3 bar:Stevenson from:02/01/1985 till:12/31/1987 color:drums bar:Stevenson from:02/01/1995 till:10/01/1997 color:drums bar:Stevenson from:04/01/2002 till:08/01/2004 color:drums bar:Stevenson from:04/01/2002 till:04/30/2002 color:vocals width:3 bar:Stevenson from:08/01/2010 till:end color:drums bar:Navetta from:01/01/1977 till:12/13/1983 color:guitar bar:Navetta from:01/01/1977 till:07/01/1980 color:vocals width:3 bar:Navetta from:04/01/2002 till:04/30/2002 color:guitar bar:Navetta from:04/01/2002 till:04/30/2002 color:vocals width:3 bar:Nolte from:01/01/1977 till:09/01/1978 color:guitar bar:Nolte from:09/01/1978 till:04/01/1979 color:bass bar:Nolte from:01/01/1977 till:04/01/1979 color:vocals width:3 bar:Cooper from:09/04/1982 till:12/31/1983 color:vocals bar:Cooper from:09/04/1982 till:12/31/1983 color:guitar width:3 bar:Cooper from:02/01/1985 till:09/01/1986 color:guitar bar:Egerton from:09/01/1986 till:12/31/1987 color:guitar bar:Egerton from:02/01/1995 till:10/01/1997 color:guitar bar:Egerton from:04/01/2002 till:08/01/2004 color:guitar bar:Egerton from:08/01/2010 till:end color:guitar bar:Lombardo from:04/01/1979 till:12/31/1983 color:bass bar:Lombardo from:04/01/1979 till:07/01/1980 color:vocals width:3 bar:Lombardo from:02/01/1985 till:06/01/1985 color:bass bar:Lombardo from:04/01/2002 till:04/30/2002 color:bass bar:Lombardo from:04/01/2002 till:04/30/2002 color:vocals width:3 bar:Carrion from:07/01/1985 till:09/01/1986 color:bass bar:Alvarez from:09/01/1986 till:12/31/1987 color:bass bar:Alvarez from:02/01/1995 till:10/01/1997 color:bass bar:Alvarez from:04/01/2002 till:08/01/2004 color:bass bar:Alvarez from:08/01/2010 till:end color:bass


Documentary

In 2013 Rogue Elephant Pictures, an Austin Texas-based film company, announced the pending release of '' Filmage: The Story Of The Descendents / ALL'', a film by Deedle Lacour and Matt Riggle. The documentary film has more than 40 interviews with band members past and present and keynote commentary by associated musicians such as Keith Morris of Black Flag,
Mike Watt Michael David Watt (born December 20, 1957) is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter. Watt co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo ...
of the
Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...
, Kira Roessler of Black Flag, members of
Rise Against Rise Against is an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. The group's current line-up comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Tim McIlrath, lead guitarist Zach Blair, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes. Rooted in hardc ...
, and many more. The film was released on June 15, 2013.


Discography

Studio albums * ''
Milo Goes to College ''Milo Goes to College'' is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Descendents, released on September 4, 1982 through New Alliance Records. Its title referred to singer Milo Aukerman's decision to leave the band to attend college, ...
'' (1982) * ''
I Don't Want to Grow Up ''I Don't Want to Grow Up'' is the second studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1985 through New Alliance Records. It marked the end of a two-year hiatus for the band, during which singer Milo Aukerman had atte ...
'' (1985) * '' Enjoy!'' (1986) * ''
All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...
'' (1987) * '' Everything Sucks'' (1996) * ''
Cool to Be You ''Cool to Be You'' is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 2004 through Fat Wreck Chords. It was their first album of new studio material since 1996's '' Everything Sucks'', which had been released t ...
'' (2004) * ''
Hypercaffium Spazzinate ''Hypercaffium Spazzinate'' is the seventh studio album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released on July 29, 2016, through Epitaph Records. It is the band's first album since '' Cool to Be You'' in 2004. This was their highest-ch ...
'' (2016) * '' 9th & Walnut'' (2021) EPs * ''
Ride the Wild / It's a Hectic World "Ride the Wild" / "It's a Hectic World" is the 1980 debut single by the American punk rock band the Descendents. It was the band's first release and displayed a new wave and surf sound. It was recorded at a time when the band lacked a lead sin ...
'' (1980) * ''
Fat EP The ''Fat EP'' is an EP by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1981 through New Alliance Records. It was the band's first recording with singer Milo Aukerman and established their presence in the southern California hardcore ...
'' (1981) * '' Sessions'' (1997) * ''
'Merican ''Merican'' is an EP by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released February 10, 2004. It was the band's first release for Fat Wreck Chords and served as a pre-release to their sixth studio album ''Cool to Be You'', released the follo ...
'' (2004) * '' Spazzhazard'' (2016)


References


External links

* * * * {{Authority control Punk rock groups from California Hardcore punk groups from California Melodic hardcore musical groups from California Pop punk groups from California Musical groups from Los Angeles Musicians from Manhattan Beach, California People from Lomita, California Epitaph Records artists Fat Wreck Chords artists New Alliance Records artists SST Records artists 1978 establishments in California Musical groups established in 1978 Musical groups disestablished in 1983 Musical groups reestablished in 1985 Musical groups disestablished in 1988 Musical groups reestablished in 1995 Musical groups disestablished in 1997 Musical groups reestablished in 2002 Musical groups disestablished in 2004 Musical groups reestablished in 2010