''Adolescents'', also known as ''The Blue Album'' due to its cover design, is the debut studio album by American
punk rock band the
Adolescents
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...
, released in April 1981 on
Frontier Records
Frontier Records is an independent record label, started in 1980 in Sun Valley, Los Angeles by Lisa Fancher, a former employee of Bomp! Records and writer of the liner notes for the first album by The Runaways.
History
Frontier Records first ...
. Recorded after guitarist
Rikk Agnew
Richard Francis "Rikk" Agnew Jr. (born December 9, 1958) is an American musician with a career spanning more than 40 years. He has previously been a member of some of the most influential bands of the Orange County hardcore punk genre, as we ...
and drummer
Casey Royer
Casey A. Royer, (born October 8, 1958), is an American musician. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Royer is best known as the lead vocalist for Southern Californian punk rock band D.I. and as a drummer for the Adolescents.
Early years
...
joined the band, it features several songs written for their prior group, the Detours, including "Kids of the Black Hole" and "
Amoeba
An amoeba (; less commonly spelled ameba or amœba; plural ''am(o)ebas'' or ''am(o)ebae'' ), often called an amoeboid, is a type of Cell (biology), cell or unicellular organism with the ability to alter its shape, primarily by extending and ret ...
", which became two of the Adolescents' most well-known songs. ''Adolescents'' was one of the first
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 punk ...
albums to be widely distributed throughout the United States, and became one of the best-selling California hardcore albums of its time.
The band never toured in support of it, and broke up four months after its release. The ''Blue Album'' lineup of Agnew, Royer, guitarist
Frank Agnew
Francis Thomas "Frank" Agnew (born August 18, 1964) is an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being a member of punk rock band the Adolescents. Frank's brothers Rikk Agnew and Alfie Agnew, as well as his son Frank Agnew Jr., are als ...
, bassist
Steve Soto and singer
Tony Brandenburg reunited several times in subsequent years, but only for brief periods.
Background and recording
The Adolescents formed in
Fullerton, California
Fullerton ( ) is a city located in northern Orange County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 143,617.
Fullerton was founded in 1887. It secured the land on behalf of the Atchison, Topeka and Sa ...
in January 1980.
The original lineup consisted of singer
Tony Brandenburg (who used the
stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
Tony Cadena), bassist
Steve Soto, guitarists
Frank Agnew
Francis Thomas "Frank" Agnew (born August 18, 1964) is an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being a member of punk rock band the Adolescents. Frank's brothers Rikk Agnew and Alfie Agnew, as well as his son Frank Agnew Jr., are als ...
and John O'Donovan, and a drummer who went by the stage name Peter Pan.
They began performing locally and recorded their first
demo tape
A demo (shortened from "demonstration") is a song or group of songs typically recorded for limited circulation or for reference use, rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed for ...
that March.
A second demo tape, recorded that May, included the songs "I Hate Children", "No Friends", "Who Is Who" and "Wrecking Crew".
"I Hate Children" was inspired by a conversation Brandenburg overheard while riding a bus: "It was a snapshot of a man saying to his wife — with his children there crying — that he hated children, can't stand them", he said in 2011. "And this was the same message that my father had given me. When I expressed that, people didn't understand where that was coming from. I wasn't saying this was me. I'm mirroring something that I'm seeing right now. This is what is going on in my life."
O'Donovan and Pan both left the band in June 1980.
Frank Agnew's older brother,
Rikk Agnew
Richard Francis "Rikk" Agnew Jr. (born December 9, 1958) is an American musician with a career spanning more than 40 years. He has previously been a member of some of the most influential bands of the Orange County hardcore punk genre, as we ...
, joined the group, initially on drums, but soon switched to guitar and brought in drummer
Casey Royer
Casey A. Royer, (born October 8, 1958), is an American musician. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Royer is best known as the lead vocalist for Southern Californian punk rock band D.I. and as a drummer for the Adolescents.
Early years
...
.
Royer and Rikk Agnew brought with them several songs written for their previous band, the Detours, including "Amoeba", "No Way", "Creatures", "Rip It Up", and "Kids of the Black Hole".
"Kids of the Black Hole" describes
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 ...
frontman
Mike Ness
Michael Daniel Ness (born April 3, 1962) is an American musician who is the lead guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for the punk rock band Social Distortion, which was formed in 1978.
Early life
Ness was born in Lynn, Massachusetts on April ...
' Fullerton apartment, a
graffiti
Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
-covered drug den that was a hangout for punks and a site for parties, sex, and violence.
"To me, it is one of the greatest punk rock songs of all time", said Soto in 2014, "and of course 'Amoeba' was catchy as fuck, and everybody wants to hear it, but to me, 'Kids of the Black Hole' was like ''
Quadrophenia
''Quadrophenia'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released as a double album on 26 October 1973 by Track Records. It is the group's third rock opera, the two previous being the "mini-opera" song " A Quick One, While ...
'' for us."
Said his brother Frank, "Rikk's songwriting was really adventurous for punk rock. He was writing stuff that was punk but had a
Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...
-esque quality with the guitar harmonies."
He recalled, "With the addition of Rikk and Casey, we'd moved to the next level". They were older and more experienced, so we improved quickly."
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock").
The stat ...
disc jockey
Rodney Bingenheimer
Rodney Bingenheimer (born December 15, 1946) is an American radio disc jockey who is best known as the host of ''Rodney on the ROQ'', a radio program that ran on the Los Angeles rock station KROQ from 1976 to 2017. In the early 1970s, he also ma ...
played the band's second demo tape on his "Rodney on the ROQ" program showcasing local punk acts, giving them the encouragement to record another.
[Spitz and Mullen, p. 260.] They recorded a third demo that July with Chaz Ramirez and Eddie Joseph of local band Eddie and the Subtitles as
audio 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, reproduction, ...
s.
This demo included "Creatures", "Amoeba" and "Self Destruct".
Joseph became the band's manager and began shopping their demo to local record labels.
"He even got us an advance check that he promptly cashed and left town...Thanks Eddie", Soto later recalled.
The Adolescents continued performing locally and gained in popularity.
Bingenheimer approached the band to record a track for his ''Rodney on the ROQ''
compilation album
A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
(
Posh Boy Records
Posh Boy Records is a Hollywood, California-based record label owned by the American-born, British-educated Robbie "Posh Boy" Fields, a sometime high school substitute teacher and former copy boy at the ''Los Angeles Times'' who took an interes ...
, November 1980), which featured other
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
and
Orange County
Orange County most commonly refers to:
*Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Orange County may also refer to:
U.S. counties
*Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando
*Orange County, Indiana
*Orange County, New ...
bands including
Agent Orange
Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide and defoliant, one of the "tactical use" Rainbow Herbicides. It was used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971. It ...
,
Black Flag and the
Circle Jerks
Circle Jerks (stylized as Ciʀcle JƎʀᴋs) are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California. The group was founded by former Black Flag vocalist Keith Morris and Redd Kross guitarist Greg Hetson. To date, Circle ...
.
The Adolescents provided a recording of "Amoeba", which became a hit on KROQ that December and drew the attention of
Frontier Records
Frontier Records is an independent record label, started in 1980 in Sun Valley, Los Angeles by Lisa Fancher, a former employee of Bomp! Records and writer of the liner notes for the first album by The Runaways.
History
Frontier Records first ...
founder Lisa Fancher, who signed the band in January 1981.
Amoeba' by the Adolescents is the song", she later said. "Definitely was a phenomenon. 'Amoeba' is a masterpiece of a single from any era of rock music."
In March 1981, the Adolescents entered Perspective Sound studios in
Sun Valley, Los Angeles
Sun Valley is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California in the San Fernando Valley region. The neighborhood is known for its overall youthful population and moderate racial diversity. There are three recreation centers in Sun Valley, one of which ...
to record their debut album.
Engineered and
mixed by
Thom Wilson
Thom Wilson (died February 8, 2015) was an American punk rock record producer and engineer.
Career
Wilson began his musical career in the mid-1970s, engineering recordings by soft rock artists Burton Cummings and Seals & Crofts. He began working ...
and
produced by
Middle Class
The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...
bassist Mike Patton (not to be confused for the
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. Before settling on the current name in July 1983, the band performed under the names Sharp Young Men and later Faith No Man. Bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist/r ...
vocalist
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
), it was recorded, mixed and
mastered
Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via meth ...
in only four days and featured most of the band's oeuvre at the time, including songs from their demos and Royer and Rikk Agnew's Detours songs.
"L.A. Girl", a new song, was written by Brandenburg in response to being rejected by a new classmate who had come to
Magnolia High School from Los Angeles after her parents divorced.
"She made it very clear that I didn't breathe the same atmosphere as her", he recalled 26 years later. "I was trying to tell her we were on the same page, that I was her only ally. But like pretty much all the girls then, she just thought I was a dork, an insect."
He wrote the song in response to the slight, later calling it an answer to
the Doors
The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...
' "
L.A. Woman
''L.A. Woman'' is the sixth studio album by the American rock band the Doors, released on April 19, 1971, by Elektra Records. It is the last to feature lead singer Jim Morrison during his lifetime due to his death three months after the albu ...
".
The song's music, written by Frank Agnew, incorporates jarring shifts in
tempo
In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...
between fast, brash punk rock and slower
heavy metal, which influenced later California bands.
"No one was doing that," Brandenburg recalled, "and the only reason we did is that we were trying to be middle-class punk, but half the band also wanted to be
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
. Through the years, it seemed to really echo with people. People like
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 every ...
,
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 guita ...
,
Rancid, the drummer in
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, they ...
(
Adrian Young
Adrian Samuel Young (born August 26, 1969) is an American drummer and member of the rock bands No Doubt and Dreamcar.
Biography
When not performing, in the studio or touring, Young likes to spend his time out on the golf course, as he is an ...
) — they have said how much it meant to them."
Album cover
For the album cover, Brandenburg asked Fancher to have someone design a typeface logo similar to
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. The current lineup of the band consists of Zander, Nielsen and ...
's.
Diane Zincavage designed the cover, and its simple composition—a blue field with "Adolescents" in red type—led to it being referred to as ''The Blue Album''.
Release and reception
''Adolescents'' was released in April 1981.
One of the first
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 punk ...
records to be widely distributed throughout the United States, it became one of the best-selling California hardcore albums behind the
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk rock, punk bands during its initial eight-year run.
Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, sa ...
' ''
Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
''Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables'' is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Dead Kennedys. It was first released on September 2, 1980, through Cherry Red Records in the United Kingdom, and I.R.S. Records in the United States. ...
'' (1980), selling over 10,000 copies.
In a retrospective review, Jack Rabid of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
gave the album 4.5 stars out of 5 and remarked that "the debut from these five Orange County kids established the mid-tempo, punk-pop '
Southern Cal sound', led by the long, great, pummeling,
Johnny Thunders
John Anthony Genzale (July 15, 1952 – April 23, 1991), known professionally as Johnny Thunders, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence in the early 1970s as a member of the New York Dolls. He later played with ...
-derived solos of the two Agnew brothers, Rikk and Frank.... they're super-catchy, heavy-riffing
rock & roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
, proving again that punk was the true heir to the likes of
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...
,
Larry Williams
Larry Williams (born Lawrence Eugene Williams, a.k.a. Lawrence Edward Williams; May 10, 1935 – January 7, 1980) was an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer, songwriter, producer, and pianist from New Orleans, Louisiana. Williams ...
,
Bo Diddley
Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, incl ...
, and
Eddie Cochran
Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", " C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire ...
."
Legacy
Though Rikk Agnew had contributed heavily to the album, tensions between him and the other band members led to him quitting the band just a few months after its release.
He was replaced by
Pat Smear
Georg Albert Ruthenberg (born August 5, 1959), better known by his stage name Pat Smear, is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead guitarist and co-founder of Los Angeles-based punk band The Germs and for being a rhythm guitar ...
, formerly of the
Germs, and the band planned their first tour to support the album, intending for it to begin in late summer 1981 and last into the fall:.
Smear did not want to tour, however, and left the band that June after only three months.
He was replaced by Royer's roommate, Steve Roberts, and the new lineup recorded the three-song ''Welcome to Reality''
EP in July, but broke up the following month, two months before the EP was released.
"Oddly enough, we'd never even made it out of California", Frank Agnew later said.
Greg Graffin
Gregory Walter Graffin (born November 6, 1964) is an American singer and evolutionary biologist. He is most recognized as the lead vocalist and only constant member of punk rock band Bad Religion, which he co-founded in 1980. He embarked on a s ...
, whose band
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is an American punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilitie ...
became friends with the Adolescents and played shows with them in 1980–81, became disillusioned with the violence surrounding the Los Angeles punk rock scene of the time and found reassurance in Brandenburg's lyrics to "Rip It Up", which spoke out against fans who used the aggressive music to justify fighting: "''Have you had enough violence? / Just to kill boredom, makes no sense / We're not the background for your stupid fights / Get out of the darkness, it's time to unite / Do you think you're tough when you rip it up?''"
The Adolescents' ''Blue Album'' lineup reunited several times in subsequent years. The first was a reunion show in April 1986 at Fender's Ballroom 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 ...
which led to the band re-forming.
They played more shows and began working on material for a new album, but Frank Agnew and Royer left after a few months.
With further lineup changes, the Adolescents released two more albums over the next two years, ''
Brats in Battalions
''Brats in Battalions'' is the second studio album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in August 1987 on SOS Records, the band's independent record label. It followed a reunion of the band after a five-year breakup, and subse ...
'' (1987) and ''
Balboa Fun*Zone
''Balboa Fun*Zone'' is the third studio album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in 1988 on Triple X Records. Titled after the Balboa Fun Zone amusement area of Balboa Peninsula, Newport Beach, it is the band's only album r ...
'' (1988), then broke up again in April 1989.
The ''Blue Album'' lineup reunited again for a show in December 1989 at the
Reseda Country Club
Reseda Country Club was a nightclub and multi-purpose venue located on Sherman Way in Reseda, California.
The building started off as a Sav-On drug store in the 1950s and later became a music venue in 1980 when Chuck Landis purchased the site. ...
, which was recorded and released eight years later as the live album ''
Return to the Black Hole
''Return to the Black Hole'' is a live album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in September 1997 on Amsterdamned Records. It was recorded in December 1989 during a reunion performance by the band's 1980–81 lineup.
Backgr ...
'' (Amsterdamned Records, 1997).
They reunited again in 2001 for more live performances, but Royer soon left, and Rikk Agnew left as well in 2003.
Frank Agnew left after the band's reunion album, ''
OC Confidential
''OC Confidential'' is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in July 2005 on Finger Records. It was their first studio album since 1988, and followed their reunion in 2001 after a twelve-year breakup. Th ...
'' (2005), and Brandenburg and Soto later continued as the Adolescents with other lineups. Material from ''Adolescents'' dominates the band's live albums, accounting for 13 of 21 tracks on ''
Live 1981 & 1986'' (1989), 10 of 17 on ''Return to the Black Hole'' (1997), and 12 of 19 on ''Live at the House of Blues'' (2004).
Writing for the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' in 1998, Mike Boehm included ''Adolescents'' first in a list of "Essential Albums, '78–'98" giving an overview of Orange County punk and
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
, calling it "an underground classic. The 13 songs defined the O.C. punk experience, back when punk was a beleaguered subculture. 'Amoeba', with lyrics by Royer, is a metaphoric account of a single-celled creature, read punk youth culture, growing in size and self-awareness under the scornful, dismissive eye of adult authority. 'Kids of the Black Hole' was Rikk Agnew's epic tribute to the hedonistic, comradely denizens of a Fullerton crash pad that cradled the fertile North County punk scene during 1979–80. The two songs introduced a massed, harmonized '
octave
In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...
guitar' blitz—an Orange County rock signature."
Covers
In the decades since its release, several artists have recorded
cover version
In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
s of songs from ''Adolescents''. In 2005,
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 every ...
covered "No Way" for their
7" of the Month Club while the
Dropkick Murphys
Dropkick Murphys are an American Celtic punk band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. Singer and bassist Ken Casey has been the band's only constant member. Other current members include drummer Matt Kelly (1997– ), singer Al Barr (199 ...
covered "Who Is Who" for the soundtrack to the video game ''
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland
''Tony Hawk's American Wasteland'' is a skateboarding video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the seventh entry in the '' Tony Hawk's'' series and was released initially for the GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox in ...
''. In 2009,
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. ...
and
Travis Barker
Travis Landon Barker (born November 14, 1975) is an American musician who serves as the drummer for the rock band Blink-182. He has also performed as a frequent collaborator with hip hop artists, is a member of the rap rock group Transpla ...
of
Blink-182
Blink-182 (stylized as blink-182) is an American Rock music, 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 ...
covered "Amoeba" for the soundtrack to the film ''
Endless Bummer'', while
Pulley
A pulley is a wheel on an axle or shaft that is designed to support movement and change of direction of a taut cable or belt, or transfer of power between the shaft and cable or belt. In the case of a pulley supported by a frame or shell that ...
covered "Wrecking Crew" and
the Briefs covered "Who Is Who" for ''
Let Them Know: The Story of Youth Brigade and BYO Records''.
In popular culture
The song "
Amoeba
An amoeba (; less commonly spelled ameba or amœba; plural ''am(o)ebas'' or ''am(o)ebae'' ), often called an amoeboid, is a type of Cell (biology), cell or unicellular organism with the ability to alter its shape, primarily by extending and ret ...
" was featured in the video games ''
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3
''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3'' is a 2001 skateboarding video game and the third installment in the ''Tony Hawk's (series), Tony Hawk's'' series. It was developed by Neversoft and published by Activision under the Activision O2 label in 2001 for th ...
'' (2001), ''
Grand Theft Auto V
''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and ...
'' (2013), and ''
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War'' (2020). The second collected volume of the comic book series ''
Deadly Class
''Deadly Class'' is an American Action fiction, action comic book series written by Rick Remender, illustrated by Wes Craig, colored by Jason Wordie, and lettered by Rus Wooton. ''Deadly Class'' is set primarily in the 1980s and follows students ...
'' was titled "Kids of the Black Hole", a reference to the song of the same name. The title was used again for the 9th episode of
the series' TV adaptation.
Track listing
Writing credits adapted from the album's liner notes.
Personnel
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.
Adolescents
*
Tony Cadena
Anthony Brandenburg (born February 24, 1963) is an American musician best known as the lead singer for the punk rock band the Adolescents. He has used the pseudonyms Tony Cadena, Tony Montana, and Tony Adolescent, and since 1992 has most consis ...
– lead vocals
*
Frank Agnew
Francis Thomas "Frank" Agnew (born August 18, 1964) is an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being a member of punk rock band the Adolescents. Frank's brothers Rikk Agnew and Alfie Agnew, as well as his son Frank Agnew Jr., are als ...
– lead guitar
*
Rikk Agnew
Richard Francis "Rikk" Agnew Jr. (born December 9, 1958) is an American musician with a career spanning more than 40 years. He has previously been a member of some of the most influential bands of the Orange County hardcore punk genre, as we ...
– rhythm guitar, backing vocals
*
Steve Soto – bass
*
Casey Royer
Casey A. Royer, (born October 8, 1958), is an American musician. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Royer is best known as the lead vocalist for Southern Californian punk rock band D.I. and as a drummer for the Adolescents.
Early years
...
– drums, backing vocals
Backing vocalists
*Danny Benair
*Jeff Beans
Production
*
Mike Patton
Michael Allan Patton (born January 27, 1968) is an American singer, producer, film composer and voice actor, best known as the lead vocalist of the alternative metal band Faith No More. Noted for his vocal proficiency, diverse singing techni ...
– record producer, backing vocals
*
Thom Wilson
Thom Wilson (died February 8, 2015) was an American punk rock record producer and engineer.
Career
Wilson began his musical career in the mid-1970s, engineering recordings by soft rock artists Burton Cummings and Seals & Crofts. He began working ...
– audio engineer, mix engineer
*Frank DeLuna – audio mastering
Artwork
*Diane Zincavage – art, design
*Paul Grant – typesetting
*
Glen E. Friedman
Glen Ellis Friedman (born March 3, 1962) is an American photographer and artist. He became known for his activities within rebellious skateboarding and music cultures. Photographing artists Fugazi, Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, Minor ...
– back cover and insert photographs
*Jeri Liolios – insert photographs
*Larry Rainwater – insert photographs
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adolescents
Adolescents (band) albums
1981 debut albums
Frontier Records albums