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 guitarist
Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman and bassist
Todd Morse
H2O is an American hardcore punk band formed in New York City in 1994.
History
Formation and the Epitaph years (1994–2000)
While touring as a roadie for Sick of It All, Toby Morse would sometimes sing with the band during encores. In la ...
. Over the course of their -year career, The Offspring have released 10 studio albums and have also experienced a number of lineup changes, most notably with their drummer. Their longest-serving drummer was
Ron Welty, who replaced original drummer
James Lilja in 1987 and stayed with The Offspring for 16 years. Welty was replaced by
Atom Willard in 2003, who was replaced four years later by
Pete Parada
Peter Parada (born July 9, 1973) is an American musician who has been a member of several bands. Parada's drumming career began in 1995 when he joined L.A. band World In Pain on a recommendation from future Korn drummer Ray Luzier and then Steel ...
, who remained as the drummer for The Offspring until 2021.
Gregory "Greg K." Kriesel (one of the Offspring's cofounders) was their bassist until 2018, when he was fired from the band due to business disputes, thus leaving Holland as the sole remaining original member. Kriesel was replaced by Todd Morse of
H2O, who had been the Offspring's touring guitarist since 2009.
The Offspring is often credited—alongside fellow
California punk bands
Green Day,
NOFX,
Bad Religion and
Rancid—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the 1990s.
They have sold over 40 million records worldwide, making them one of the best-selling punk rock bands in history.
After achieving a local following with their early releases, including their 1989
self-titled debut album and the vinyl-only EP ''
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesipho ...
'' (1991), The Offspring signed with independent label
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 em ...
and released two albums: ''
Ignition'' (1992) and ''
Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
'' (1994). ''Smash'', which contained the band's first major hit "
Come Out and Play", propelled punk rock into the mainstream and holds the distinction as one of the best-selling albums released on an
independent record label, selling over 11 million copies worldwide.
The success of ''Smash'' attracted attention from major labels including
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
, with whom The Offspring signed in 1996; their first album for the label, ''
Ixnay on the Hombre'' (1997), did not match its predecessor’s success, but received critical acclaim and
gold and platinum RIAA certifications.
The band's fifth album ''
Americana'' (1998) regained their previous level of popularity, obtaining support from
MTV and radio and selling over five million units in the US.
The Offspring has since released five more albums: ''
Conspiracy of One'' (2000); ''
Splinter'' (2003); ''
Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' is the eighth studio album by American punk rock band The Offspring, released on June 11, 2008, by Columbia Records., Offspring.com, 04-09-2008 It was the band's first album of new material in five years, followi ...
'' (2008); ''
Days Go By'' (2012); and ''
Let the Bad Times Roll'' (2021).
History
Early years (1983–1987)

The foundations for the Offspring began with guitarist/vocalist
Bryan "Dexter" Holland (who was a drummer at the time) and bassist
Greg Kriesel playing music together in a garage in
Cypress, California
Cypress is a city in northwestern Orange County within Southern California. Its population was 50,151 at the 2020 census.
History
The first people living in the area now known as Cypress were the Gabrieleno, a Native American tribe of the ...
in 1983. After hearing the
T.S.O.L. album ''
Change Today?'' at a party and following a riot at a 1984
Social Distortion show, they decided to form a band called Manic Subsidal.
Holland changed his role from drums to guitar, and the band was rounded out by singer Doug Thompson and drummer Jim Benton. Marcus Parrish briefly joined as a second guitarist; however, no recordings were made at this point.
After Thompson was forced out, Holland took over vocals and Benton was replaced by Clowns of Death drummer
James Lilja. In 1985, school janitor
Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman (also formerly of Clowns of Death) joined as a second guitarist, allegedly because he was old enough to purchase
alcohol for the other members, who were under the legal drinking age.
In 1986, after changing their name to The Offspring (after a B-movie called ''The Offspring: They Were Born to Kill''), the band released their first
single; the 7" "
I'll Be Waiting". They released the single on their self-made Black Label record company, named after the
brand of beer. An earlier version of "I'll Be Waiting" (then known as "Fire and Ice") appeared on the long-out of print ''Subject to Blackout'' compilation tape released the same year.The Offspring also recorded a demo tape in 1986, which received a positive review in
Maximum Rocknroll
''Maximumrocknroll'', often written as ''Maximum Rocknroll'' and usually abbreviated as ''MRR'', is a not-for-profit monthly zine of punk subculture. Based in San Francisco, ''MRR'' focuses on punk rock and hardcore music, and primarily fea ...
magazine. Lilja left the Offspring in 1987 to pursue a medical career in
oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...
and was replaced by
Ron Welty, who was 16 years old at the time.
''The Offspring'' and ''Ignition'' (1988–1993)
After recording another demo in 1988,
the Offspring signed a record deal with small-time label
Nemesis Records. In March 1989, the band teamed up with producer
Thom Wilson (who had worked with
the Adolescents,
Dead Kennedys,
Social Distortion,
the Vandals, and
Youth Brigade) to record their first album, titled ''
The Offspring''.
Nemesis released the album in limited numbers and only on the
12" vinyl and cassette formats; the album was not released on CD until 1995. A six-week national tour followed, but
Noodles was later stabbed during a performance at a
Hollywood anti-nuclear benefit.
In 1991, the Offspring teamed up with Wilson again to produce the ''
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesipho ...
'' 7" EP and a third demo tape. This EP and demo were instrumental to the band's signing with
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 em ...
. In 1992, Thom Wilson and the Offspring returned to the studio to record their second album ''
Ignition'', which was released in October of that year. The band went on U.S. tours with
Pennywise and
Lunachicks, and a European tour with
NOFX.
Mainstream success with ''Smash'' (1994–1995)
When the Offspring returned to the studio in January 1994 to record their third album, the band's relations with producer Thom Wilson had begun to strain. Three months later, The Offspring released what would become their biggest selling album, titled ''
Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
''. The album was initially released to little mainstream attention until its lead single "
Come Out and Play" received airplay from the Los Angeles radio station
KROQ-FM, helping to raise the band's profile and eventually hitting number one on the
''Billboard'' rock charts for two weeks in the summer of 1994.
The success of "Come Out and Play" not only propelled ''Smash'' to peak at number four on the
''Billboard'' 200 and receive simultaneous
gold and platinum certification four months after its release,
but it also helped bring punk rock into the mainstream and is often considered a groundbreaking album for the
pop punk genre.
The album's next two singles, "
Self Esteem" and "
Gotta Get Away", also had similar success to "Come Out and Play" in both chart performance and radio airplay. ''Smash'' has continued to sell consistently well in the years since its release, setting an all-time record for most units sold by an independent label band at over 11 million records
and having sold over six million copies in the U.S. by 2000.
The album also sold very well outside of the U.S., particularly in Australia, where it debuted No. 1 on the
ARIA Charts
The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offic ...
, and remained in that position for three weeks in 1995.
The Offspring toured extensively throughout 1994 and 1995 in support of ''Smash''. In addition to opening for bands like
Pennywise,
Bad Religion, and
SNFU, the band had already graduated to headliner status by the summer of 1994, when they toured North America with
Guttermouth and
Big Drill Car; toured Europe with Desaster Area, and then toured the US in the fall with
Rancid.
Touring for ''Smash'' continued throughout the first half of 1995, playing their first shows in Japan and Australia (including appearances at
Big Day Out) and headlining tour dates with bands like
Weezer,
Quicksand,
No Use for a Name
No Use for a Name (sometimes abbreviated NUFAN or No Use) was an American punk rock band from Sunnyvale, California, United States formed in 1986 by Chris Dodge (guitar), Steve Papoutsis (bass) and Rory Koff ( drums). The band's sound evolved con ...
,
The Vandals, and
Lunachicks. By the end of the album's supporting tour, The Offspring had started playing at larger venues such as theaters and arenas as opposed to the clubs and smaller venues they were previously accustomed to.
That same year (1995) the band decided to buy out the rights to their first album. Holland and Kriesel had created their own record label
Nitro Records
Nitro Records was an American independent record label, founded in 1994 and operated by The Offspring's Dexter Holland and Greg K. Nitro is famous for being an incubator for punk rock artists who have subsequently become successful, most notabl ...
and started signing bands. One of their first releases was a re-release of the band's 1989 debut album ''
The Offspring''. The label also signed a number of punk bands including the Vandals, Guttermouth,
Jughead's Revenge, and
AFI. Soon after,
Nitro Records
Nitro Records was an American independent record label, founded in 1994 and operated by The Offspring's Dexter Holland and Greg K. Nitro is famous for being an incubator for punk rock artists who have subsequently become successful, most notabl ...
became solely Holland's responsibility.
''Ixnay on the Hombre'', ''Americana'', and ''Conspiracy of One'' (1996–2002)

In 1996, after the success of ''Smash'', the Offspring left
Epitaph and signed with
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
. Epitaph retained its rights to release the next album in Europe, while Columbia had it for all other territories. The band's attorney Peter Paterno had issued a letter to Epitaph stating that the band had "substantial and fundamental reasons" for wanting to leave the label and that Epitaph had "breached its contract".
The band began writing and recording their fourth album, titled ''
Ixnay on the Hombre'', in 1996. The album was released on February 4, 1997, which was also Noodles' 34th birthday. This album was not as successful as ''Smash'', although it did sell four million units and spawned five singles. The album saw the band move away from the political-punk themes common to many Epitaph bands and more into mainstream rock with songs like "
Gone Away" and "
I Choose". The video for the last track was directed by Holland himself. Dexter commented that ''Ixnay'' was probably not as well received as ''Smash'' because it was such a departure, and that many fans probably were expecting ''Smash Part Two''.
In 1998 the Offspring released ''
Americana''. Three of the album's singles, "
Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)
"Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" is a song by American punk-rock band the Offspring. It is the fourth track from the band's fifth studio album, '' Americana'' (1998), and was released as its first single in November 1998. The song peaked at numbe ...
"; "
Why Don't You Get a Job?"; and "
The Kids Aren't Alright
"The Kids Aren't Alright" is a song by the Offspring. It is the fifth track from the band's fifth studio album, ''Americana (The Offspring album), Americana'' (1998), and was released as its third single. It became another top 10 hit on the US M ...
", became the band's biggest hits and made the album the peak of the Offspring's mainstream popularity. The former song topped the charts in nine countries including Australia, Japan, Norway, and the United Kingdom. "
She's Got Issues" was also released as a single and was a minor hit.
In 1999, the band appeared as themselves in the film ''
Idle Hands''. They played a cover version of "
I Wanna Be Sedated" (originally by the
Ramones) and "Beheaded" at a school dance before Holland's character is killed. They also appeared at the infamous
Woodstock 1999, where their performance was broadcast live on
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast.
Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program g ...
television.
2000 saw the band release their sixth album called ''
Conspiracy of One''. The band intended to release the entire album online through their official website to show their support for
downloading music on the internet. However, under threat of legal action by Columbia through their parent company Sony, only the first single "
Original Prankster" was released on their official website (the rest of the record was leaked to fan sites). The band also sold T-shirts on their website with the
Napster logo on it and donated money to Napster creator
Shawn Fanning with the profits.
The band also released a single "
Defy You
"Defy You" is a song by American punk rock band The Offspring. It was recorded, along with its own music video, in 2001 after the release of their album '' Conspiracy of One'' for the movie ''Orange County''. The song was also released as a single ...
" exclusively for the film ''
Orange County''.
Ron Welty's departure, ''Splinter'' and ''Greatest Hits'' (2003–2005)
Longtime drummer
Ron Welty left the group in 2003 to play in
Steady Ground
Steady Ground was an American alternative rock group best known for having former The Offspring drummer Ron Welty in its lineup.
On February 26, 2006, Steady Ground released three demos on Myspace, entitled "Everyone's Emotional", "I Can't Contai ...
, a band in which he played drums and co-produced (they broke up in 2007). Neither Welty nor the remaining members have elaborated on the departure. It was later revealed that Welty was fired by Holland and Noodles "without any prior notice". He filed a lawsuit against the band in September 2020 for unpaid royalties.
In 2003, the band released their seventh album ''
Splinter''. The Offspring recruited
Josh Freese to record the drums for ''Splinter'' and later announced that ex-
Rocket from the Crypt drummer
Atom Willard would be the official replacement for Ron Welty. The album's original title was to be ''Chinese Democrazy (You Snooze, You Lose)'', from the name of the
long-delayed album by
Guns N' Roses. As a result, Guns N' Roses frontman
Axl Rose filed a
cease and desist order against The Offspring, but then realized this was announced on
April 1st. The first single "Hit That" enjoyed moderate success on MTV. "Hit That" used a variety of electronic samples, different from what the Offspring has done in the past.
In 2005, the band released a ''
Greatest Hits'' album in both
DualDisc and regular CD editions. ''Greatest Hits'' contains 14 of the band's hits between ''
Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
'' and ''
Splinter'', and two previously unreleased songs, "
Can't Repeat" and "
Next to You" (a cover of
the Police available as a hidden track). The compilation does not include any songs from the band's first two albums. The DualDisc contains video of Dexter and Noodles discussing the band's history and a bonus acoustic version of the song "Dirty Magic". About a month later, the band released a video DVD with all of their music videos and some videos from a live show.
During the summer of 2005, the band played the
Vans Warped Tour for the first time and followed that with a European and Japanese tour. After the "Greatest Hits" world tour, the band took a break from writing, recording, and touring. During the hiatus, Willard was recruited by
Tom DeLonge for his band
Angels & Airwaves and released an album, ''
We Don't Need to Whisper'', in 2006.
''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' (2006–2009)

In November 2006, it was reported that The Offspring were back in the studio recording their eighth studio album ''
Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' is the eighth studio album by American punk rock band The Offspring, released on June 11, 2008, by Columbia Records., Offspring.com, 04-09-2008 It was the band's first album of new material in five years, followi ...
'' with producer
Bob Rock and "a fistful of demos". In July 2007, Dexter announced that the band had finished two more songs and the album was being recorded in Orange County, California.
It was announced on July 27, 2007, that former
Saves the Day drummer
Pete Parada
Peter Parada (born July 9, 1973) is an American musician who has been a member of several bands. Parada's drumming career began in 1995 when he joined L.A. band World In Pain on a recommendation from future Korn drummer Ray Luzier and then Steel ...
had been chosen to be the Offspring's new drummer, replacing Atom Willard, who went on to join
Angels and Airwaves. The band's first shows with Parada were at the Summer Sonic festival in Japan in August 2007. It was during these shows that the band debuted "
Hammerhead
Hammerhead may refer to:
* The head of a hammer
Fiction
* Hammerhead (comics), a Marvel Comics foe of Spider-Man
* ''Hammerhead'' (film), a 1968 film based on the novel by James Mayo
* '' Hammerhead: Shark Frenzy'' a 2005 TV movie starring ...
", which would become the first single from the new album. Parada did not play on the new album however; Josh Freese once again handled drum duties as he did with ''
Splinter''.
The Offspring co-headlined the Australian
Soundwave Festival during February and May 2008 alongside
Incubus and
Killswitch Engage.

On April 9, 2008, Dexter announced that the album would be called ''
Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' is the eighth studio album by American punk rock band The Offspring, released on June 11, 2008, by Columbia Records., Offspring.com, 04-09-2008 It was the band's first album of new material in five years, followi ...
'' and would be released on June 17. The album's first single, "Hammerhead", went to radio on May 6. Additionally, the Offspring's official site provided an
MP3 download of the song to the general public on May 5. The second single from the album, "
You're Gonna Go Far, Kid", had topped the
Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart and stayed there for 11 weeks, a record for the band. It was also the Offspring's only
RIAA Gold song, proving it to be one of the most successful singles the band had released in their over 20-year career. Despite this, ''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' has never received any RIAA certifications.
Also in April 2008,
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 em ...
announced that the label would be reissuing ''
Ignition'' and ''
Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
''; both albums were remastered and ''Smash'' contained a new 24-page booklet. The reissues were released on the same day as ''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'', coinciding with the new album's release.
The supporting tour for the album began on May 16 with a performance at the
X-Fest festival in California. On May 28, it was announced on the band's website that
Scott Shiflett (from
Face to Face) would replace bassist
Greg K.
Gregory David Kriesel (born January 20, 1965) is an American musician known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the rock band the Offspring from 1984 to 2018.
Biography
Greg K. was one of the founding members of the Offspring along ...
on current tour dates due to a birth in the family. Kriesel returned in mid-June. In October, with the addition of touring guitarist
Andrew Freeman, the band embarked on a three-week Japanese tour followed by a South American tour.
On December 13, 2008, the Offspring headlined the nineteenth annual
KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas. In an interview at the Almost Acoustic Christmas show, guitarist
Noodles stated that the Offspring would be taking a break for a month or two and promised a US tour to kick off in 2009. They toured North America on their "Shit is Fucked Up" tour from May through July with
Dropkick Murphys,
Alkaline Trio,
Street Dogs,
Pennywise,
Shiny Toy Guns,
Sum 41, and
Frank Turner.
''Days Go By'' (2010–2013)
In May 2009, the band started doing preliminary work with
Bob Rock in Hawaii for what would be the ninth Offspring album. They recorded sporadically throughout the next year. In June 2010 the Offspring headlined two dates in Western Canada. The Offspring took a break from the studio in order to join
311 311 may refer to:
* 311 (number), a natural number
* AD 311, a year of the Julian calendar, in the fourth century AD
* 311 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
* 311 (band), an American band
** ''311'' (album), band 311's self-titled album ...
on their summer 2010 Unity Tour. The 19-date tour was held in amphitheaters around the U.S. and also featured
Pepper
Pepper or peppers may refer to:
Food and spice
* Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant
** Black pepper
* ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae
** Bell pepper
** Chili ...
as a special guest. Before the 311 and Pepper tour, the Offspring played four West Coast dates in June, which were supported by
Terrible Things. In January 2011, session drummer
Josh Freese (who recorded drum tracks for the band's last two albums) mentioned on his website that he was in the studio working with the Offspring again.
Ronnie King had also confirmed that he would appear as the album’s keyboardist after performing the same role on ''
Splinter''. The band interrupted their work in 2011 in order to tour and took the main stage at the 2011
Reading and Leeds Festivals.
After the tour, the band started recording in earnest and it was later announced that the album was in the mixing stage. They headlined the PunkSpring Festival in Japan on March 31, 2012 in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
and on April 1, 2012 in
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...
with
Sum 41,
New Found Glory, and
All Time Low. At one of the shows, the Offspring performed a new song called "The Future Is Now". They were also confirmed to play at the
Rock am Ring/im Park and
Novarock
The Nova Rock Festival, also just Nova Rock, is an Austrian rock festival that has existed since 2005 and takes place each year in June. It is located in Burgenland, the easternmost federal state of Austria, near Nickelsdorf and the Hungarian a ...
festivals in the summer 2012.
Prior to that, the band would be playing at the 20th annual
KROQ Weenie Roast, which was to take place at the
Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in
Irvine, California on May 5, 2012.
In March 2012, the band announced on their Twitter page that the album was finished. On April 20, 2012,
Kevin and Bean
''Kevin and Bean'' was the morning show on KROQ-FM, an alternative rock-format radio station in Los Angeles, California. It was hosted by Kevin Ryder and Gene "Bean" Baxter. The show was on the air from 1990 to 2019 and interspersed music and ...
announced that the Offspring's new single "
Days Go By" would be premiered on April 27. Three days later, the band announced on their website that ''
Days Go By'' would be the name of their ninth studio album, which was eventually released on June 26, 2012. On April 30, 2012, the band released another song from ''Days Go By'', "Cruising California (Bumpin' in My Trunk)".
In early fall 2012, the Offspring toured with
Neon Trees
Neon Trees is an American rock band from Provo, Utah. The band received nationwide exposure in late 2008 when they opened several North American tour dates for the band The Killers. Not long after, the band was signed by Mercury Records. Thei ...
and
Dead Sara. They were co-headliners of the
Soundwave in Australia in 2013 alongside
Metallica and
Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn and dr ...
. After this, they performed at the 20th annual
WJRR Earthday Birthday on April 13, 2013, and at the Gulfport Music Festival a month later. The Offspring spent much of the spring, summer, and fall of 2013 playing shows in Europe, the United States, and South America. In November and December of 2013, they would play
Warped Tour
The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touri ...
for the first time in eight years, this time in Australia.
On June 20, 2013, it was reported that the Offspring was working on a live album with engineer Ian Charbonneau. Instead of a standard release, the live album (which was recorded in Warsaw, Poland at the Orange Warsaw Festival held at Narodowy Stadium) would have had been released online but to date has not come to fruition.
Touring and Round Hill Music (2014–2016)
The Offspring spent the summer of 2014 on tour commemorating the
20th anniversary
''20th Anniversary'' is The Rippingtons' fourteenth album, which was released in 2006. As the title states, this album commemorates the band's 20 years performing together.
Track listing
Packaged with the album is a DVD which contains a 25-m ...
of their third album ''
Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
''. They headlined the Summer Nationals 2014 tour from July to September with support from their former labelmates
Bad Religion and
Pennywise as well as
the Vandals,
Stiff Little Fingers, and
Naked Raygun. To coincide with the Summer Nationals tour, the Offspring released cover versions of Pennywise's "No Reason Why" and Bad Religion's "Do What You Want" and "No Control" on their
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
account. These cover versions were released on the EP ''
Summer Nationals'', which was released digitally in August 2014. On December 24, 2014,
Radio Contraband announced on their
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin ...
page that they would premiere the Offspring's new single, "
Coming for You
"Coming for You" is a song by the American punk rock band The Offspring. It was premiered on Radio Contraband on January 30, 2015, and posted on YouTube and made available for digital download the same day. ", on January 30, 2015. The Offspring toured in support of the "Coming for You" single and performed their 1998 album ''
Americana'' in its entirety at the
Amnesia Rockfest on June 19, 2015, in Montebello, Canada.
The Offspring reclaimed the rights to their
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
albums in 2014. The band started auctioning off the rights to those albums in August 2015 (as well as their songwriting credits) for around $30 million.
Sony Music Entertainment (the owner of Columbia Records) and
Round Hill Music
Round Hill Music is an American music publishing company founded in 2010 by Josh Gruss, Richard Rowe, and Neil Gillis. The company runs a music publishing division, sync and royalty administration, music production library business, a record ...
were allegedly interested in bidding for the Offspring's music. In January 2016, Round Hill acquired the band's Columbia Records catalogue and their career-long music publishing rights for $35 million. In December 2016, Round Hill signed a distribution deal with
Universal Music Enterprises for the Offspring's Columbia catalog (including the ''
Greatest Hits'' album). By September 2015, the band had finished two to three tracks. On July 20, 2016, a new Offspring song "Sharknado" premiered, which was recorded for the film ''
Sharknado: The 4th Awakens''.
''Let the Bad Times Roll'' and split with Greg K and Pete Parada (2017–2021)
Bassist
Greg K.
Gregory David Kriesel (born January 20, 1965) is an American musician known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the rock band the Offspring from 1984 to 2018.
Biography
Greg K. was one of the founding members of the Offspring along ...
mentioned a possible 2018 release date for the new Offspring album, and revealed that one of the reasons for the album's slow progress was because they have been working on songs here and there. He also stated that the band was in no hurry to finish it. Noodles was absent from the Offspring's summer 2017 tour with
Sublime with Rome due to a "sudden family matter"; filling in for him on dates were
Tom Thacker and Jonah Nimoy.
On December 13, 2017, The Offspring posted Twitter and Instagram photos of their December calendar, with the second and third week of the month labeled "studio", and wrote, "Who's ready for new music in 2018?". In the same month, Noodles told Front Row Live, "We're working on it. We were in the studio all this week. We finished up for the holidays on Tuesday, Wednesday, and then we're gonna get back in the studio as soon as the new year
olls around in January." On February 23, 2018, the band announced via Instagram that they had finished tracking down drums for the album. The Offspring were later asked on Twitter if their new album would be released soon and replied, "We're hoping by summer." On June 9, 2018, the Offspring debuted one song that was expected to appear on the new album, "It Won't Get Better", while performing at the
Greenfield Festival in Switzerland. On July 20, 2018, it was announced the Offspring would release a cover of 311's "
Down
Down most often refers to:
* Down, the relative direction opposed to up
* Down (gridiron football), in American/Canadian football, a period when one play takes place
* Down feather, a soft bird feather used in bedding and clothing
* Downland, a ty ...
" and 311 would release a "reggaefied" cover of the Offspring's "
Self Esteem", which 311's lead singer
Nick Hexum referred to as "probably
isfavorite song of theirs;" the cover versions coincided with the co-headlining Never Ending Summer tour.
On August 30, 2018, Noodles revealed to ''
Music Feeds'' that The Offspring was working on two separate albums. He stated: "We have a whole record or more worth of stuff here — I think we're looking at making two records out of it — you know, like, splitting 'em up and coming out with a pretty straightforward punk and rock record that sounds like us, and then maybe saving some of the crazier stuff for another record." A few days later, he told
WHIO-AM that the album will be released around the beginning of 2019, and added: "We don't have a record deal right now and we're trying to work something out. We don't know what we're going to do with that." Greg K. did not appear throughout The Offspring’s headline Australian and Japan tours in 2018 and was instead replaced by
No Doubt bassist
Tony Kanal.
On February 23, 2019, Noodles confirmed on his Instagram account that the new Offspring album is finished. He wrote, "The album is done. Working on getting it to the fans now. Stay tuned!" A month later, Dexter Holland confirmed that the album was "98% finished" and mentioned a tentative fall 2019 release. In August, Greg Kriesel filed a lawsuit against Holland and Noodles following an alleged decision by the two in November 2018 to ban Kriesel from the band's activities, including studio recordings and live performances.
Kriesel and his lawyers also alleged that the two conspired to "seize the business, business opportunities, and assets" of Kriesel's stake in the band without compensation.
Later, touring rhythm guitarist Todd Morse became a full-time member, replacing Kriesel as the new bassist.
Noodles reiterated that the new Offspring album was ready for release in 2020 and they are in the process of searching for a new record label to release it. On April 21, 2020 the band released a rock cover of
Joe Exotic's
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whil ...
song "Here Kitty Kitty" popularized by the 2020 Netflix documentary ''
Tiger King''. It was recorded while the band was in
quarantine 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 identified ...
. In a June 2020 interview with Download TV, Holland confirmed that the new album was "basically done" but added that its release was "on hold at the moment" because of the coronavirus pandemic.
On September 10, 2020, former drummer
Ron Welty filed a lawsuit against the band for unpaid royalties. On November 4, 2020, The Offspring released their first-ever Christmas song, a cover of
Darlene Love's "
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)". A physical version of this song was released as a 7-inch vinyl single on December 11, 2020, and a description at the band's online store stated that "the single is also the tip of the iceberg for new music coming from the acclaimed group in early 2021".
On November 13, 2020, the band uploaded a lyric video for their song "Huck It!" and announced a vinyl re-release of ''Conspiracy of One'' in honor of its 20th anniversary.
On February 8, 2021, Dexter and Noodles posted a video confirming that the album was finished with an official release date and single announcement coming soon. On February 23, 2021, The Offspring announced that their tenth album would be titled ''
Let the Bad Times Roll'', and released the title track as its lead single through streaming services; the album was released on April 16.
On August 2, 2021, drummer
Pete Parada
Peter Parada (born July 9, 1973) is an American musician who has been a member of several bands. Parada's drumming career began in 1995 when he joined L.A. band World In Pain on a recommendation from future Korn drummer Ray Luzier and then Steel ...
revealed on Twitter he was being fired from The Offspring. He stated the reason for his firing was for declining to take a COVID-19 vaccine on the advice of his doctor, due to suffering from
Guillain-Barre syndrome. In an interview published in November 2021, Holland and Wasserman detailed the "roadblocks" they kept running into when they looked into what it would take to tour with an unvaccinated band member and they said the decision was taken "for the time being"; however, in his tweet in August 2021, Pete Parada admitted he was deemed "unsafe to be around" not only on tour, but also in the recording studio.
Upcoming eleventh studio album (2022–present)
In a September 2022 interview with Brazilian radio station 89FM A Rádio Rock, frontman
Dexter Holland confirmed that The Offspring has begun working on new material for their eleventh studio album: "I hope we can do another single, 'cause there's so many songs that we're so proud of on this album we'd like to do. At the same time, we wanna keep things rolling. We had to take time off in the pandemic and we feel like, 'We're back at it. Let's make the most of it right now.' So we're working on a new album. So it might be another single off of this album or hopefully a new single off a new album coming in the New Year." Holland told ''
Times Colonist'' in November that the band will begin recording their new album in January 2023 with
Bob Rock.
Style and influences
The Offspring has been labeled under multiple genres, such as
punk rock,
hardcore punk,
melodic hardcore,
pop punk,
skate punk,
[ and ]alternative rock
Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
. A signature style of the Offspring are their chorused "whoas", "heys", or "yeahs". The band's former labelmates NOFX poked fun at them for this in their song "Whoa on the Whoas". Several tracks also incorporate elements of Eastern music, which can be heard on the likes of "Tehran", "Me & My Old Lady", "Pay the Man", "Dividing By Zero", and the verse hook from "Come Out and Play". Their lyrics cover a wide range of topics, like personal relationships, such as in their songs "She's Got Issues", "Self Esteem" and "Spare Me the Details", and the degradation of the United States, politics, and society in general with songs like "It'll Be a Long Time", "Americana" and "Stuff Is Messed Up". The lyrics generally reflect a sarcastic viewpoint, which, along with the language, can be offensive to some. This is acknowledged in the opening track from their album '' Ixnay on the Hombre'', "Disclaimer", which is sarcastic itself. Like "Disclaimer", the first track of most of the Offspring's albums are an introduction of some sort; "Time to Relax" (from ''Smash''), "Welcome" (from ''Americana''), "Intro" (from ''Conspiracy of One''), and "Neocon" (from ''Splinter'') are also examples of this. The Offspring's influences include The Dickies, the Sex Pistols, the Misfits, T.S.O.L., Agent Orange, the Adolescents, the Ramones, The Clash, the Dead Kennedys and Suicidal Tendencies.
Impact and legacy
With the mainstream success of ''Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
'', going six times multi-platinum and earning worldwide airplay, the Offspring's impact persists to this day. As one of the most popular punk bands of the 1990s, they are credited with reviving popular interest in punk rock and bringing the genre back into the mainstream, and have influenced younger artists such as Avril Lavigne
Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, '' Let Go'' (2002), is the best-selling album of the 21 ...
and Simple Plan. The Los Angeles modern rock radio station KROQ listed the Offspring at No. 21 in "The KROQ Top 106.7 Artists of 1980–2008" Countdown by Year memorial, with 30 appearances on the station's year-end countdowns as of 2008.
The Offspring's music has appeared in movies, such as '' The Chase'', '' Batman Forever'', '' I Know What You Did Last Summer'', ''The Faculty
''The Faculty'' is a 1998 American science fiction horror film directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Famke Janssen, Piper Laurie, ...
'', '' Varsity Blues'', '' Wanted'', '' Idle Hands'' (which also features a cameo by the band), '' Me, Myself & Irene'', ''Loser
Loser or Losers may refer to:
*A person who experiences failure
*The unsuccessful social class in winner and loser culture
Film and television
* ''Loser'', a 1996 film directed by Kirk Harris
* ''Loser'' (film), a 2000 movie starring Jason B ...
'', '' Tomcats'', '' Bubble Boy'', '' The Animal'', '' American Pie 2'', '' Orange County'', '' The New Guy'', '' Bowling for Columbine'', '' Pauly Shore Is Dead'', ''Click
Click, Klick and Klik may refer to:
Airlines
* Click Airways, a UAE airline
* Clickair, a Spanish airline
* MexicanaClick, a Mexican airline
Art, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
* Klick (fictional species), an alien race in the g ...
'', ''How to Eat Fried Worms
''How to Eat Fried Worms'' is a children's book written by Thomas Rockwell, first published in 1973. The novel's plot involves a boy eating worms as part of a bet. It has been the frequent target of censors and appears on the American Lib ...
'' (for the trailer), '' Sharknado: The 4th Awakens'' and '' Tekken: The Motion Picture''. "Mota", "Amazed", " The Meaning of Life" (all from '' Ixnay on the Hombre'') were featured in Warren Miller's 1997 documentary ''Snowriders II''.
"Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)
"Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" is a song by American punk-rock band the Offspring. It is the fourth track from the band's fifth studio album, '' Americana'' (1998), and was released as its first single in November 1998. The song peaked at numbe ...
" can be heard in the '' King of the Hill'' episode "Escape From Party Island". " Original Prankster" was featured in '' The Cleveland Show'' episode "American Prankster". " You're Gonna Go Far, Kid" was featured in the '' 90210'' episode ''We're Not in Kansas Anymore'', while " Kristy, Are You Doing Okay?" appeared in the episode ''Zero Tolerance''. In the '' Close Enough'' episode "The Weird Kid", a subplot concerned a character accidentally wishing to become obsessed with The Offspring; various references to their work can be heard throughout.
In video games, the Offspring's songs have appeared in ''Crazy Taxi
''Crazy Taxi'' is a series of racing video games that was developed by Hitmaker and published by Sega. The first game appeared in arcades in 1999 and was very successful, prompting Sega to port the arcade version to their Dreamcast consol ...
'', '' Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4'' and '' SingStar Rocks!''. "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" appears in '' Guitar Hero: Van Halen''. "Hammerhead
Hammerhead may refer to:
* The head of a hammer
Fiction
* Hammerhead (comics), a Marvel Comics foe of Spider-Man
* ''Hammerhead'' (film), a 1968 film based on the novel by James Mayo
* '' Hammerhead: Shark Frenzy'' a 2005 TV movie starring ...
", " Gone Away", "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)
"Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" is a song by American punk-rock band the Offspring. It is the fourth track from the band's fifth studio album, '' Americana'' (1998), and was released as its first single in November 1998. The song peaked at numbe ...
", " Self Esteem", " All I Want", "The Kids Aren't Alright
"The Kids Aren't Alright" is a song by the Offspring. It is the fifth track from the band's fifth studio album, ''Americana (The Offspring album), Americana'' (1998), and was released as its third single. It became another top 10 hit on the US M ...
", "A Lot Like Me" and " Days Go By" are downloadables for the ''Rock Band'' series. "Hammerhead" was also featured in the football video game '' Madden NFL 09''. "Days Go By" was featured in '' NHL 13''. From September 20 to October 7, 2019, the band performed a virtual concert in World of Tanks, with a limited-edition tank. The tank has instruments (and skateboards) stacked on top of its hull, "Pretty fly" painted on the side armour, and band members acting as the crew.
"Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" received a parody treatment by "Weird Al" Yankovic as " Pretty Fly for a Rabbi".
Band members
Musicians
Current members
* Dexter Holland – lead vocals (1984–present), rhythm guitar, occasional lead guitar, occasional piano keyboards and synthesizers (1984–present), lead guitar (1984–1985), bass (2018–2020)
* Noodles – lead guitar, backing vocals (1985–present)
* Todd Morse – bass (2019–present), backing vocals (2009–present); rhythm guitar (touring musician 2009–2019)
Current touring musicians
* Jonah Nimoy – rhythm guitar, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals (2019–present; 2017 summer tour substitute for Noodles)
* Josh Freese – drums, percussion (2021–present)
Touring guests
* Ronnie King – keyboards, percussion (2003–2004)
* Warren Fitzgerald – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2008)
* Andrew Freeman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2008)
* Tony Kanal – bass (2018–2019; touring guest following Greg K.'s departure)
* Jamie Miller - drums (2021)
* Phil Jordan
The Music are an English alternative rock band, formed in Kippax, Leeds in 1999. Comprising Robert Harvey (vocals, guitar), Adam Nutter (lead guitar), Stuart Coleman (bass) and Phil Jordan (drums), the band came to prominence with the rele ...
- trumpet (1998)
Former members
* Greg K.
Gregory David Kriesel (born January 20, 1965) is an American musician known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the rock band the Offspring from 1984 to 2018.
Biography
Greg K. was one of the founding members of the Offspring along ...
– bass, backing vocals (1984–2018)
* Doug Thompson – lead vocals (1984; died 2003; only with band as Manic Subsidal)
* Jim Benton – drums (1984; only with band as Manic Subsidal)
* James Lilja – drums, backing vocals (1984–1987)
* Marcus Parrish – lead guitar (1985; only with band as Manic Subsidal)
* Ron Welty – drums (1987–2003)
* Atom Willard – drums (2003–2007)
* Pete Parada
Peter Parada (born July 9, 1973) is an American musician who has been a member of several bands. Parada's drumming career began in 1995 when he joined L.A. band World In Pain on a recommendation from future Korn drummer Ray Luzier and then Steel ...
- drums (2007-2021)
Former touring musicians
* Chris "X-13" Higgins – rhythm guitar, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals (1994–2005)
Touring substitutes
* Scott Shiflett – bass (four shows filling in for Greg K. in 2008)
* Tom Thacker – rhythm guitar (2013 substitute for Todd Morse for two shows; 2017 substitute for Noodles on summer tour)
Lineups
Official member timeline
Touring musician timeline
Discography
Studio albums
* '' The Offspring'' (1989)
* '' Ignition'' (1992)
* ''Smash
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
A ...
'' (1994)
* '' Ixnay on the Hombre'' (1997)
* '' Americana'' (1998)
* '' Conspiracy of One'' (2000)
* '' Splinter'' (2003)
* ''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
''Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace'' is the eighth studio album by American punk rock band The Offspring, released on June 11, 2008, by Columbia Records., Offspring.com, 04-09-2008 It was the band's first album of new material in five years, followi ...
'' (2008)
* '' Days Go By'' (2012)
* '' Let the Bad Times Roll'' (2021)
Awards
* List of awards and nominations received by the Offspring
References
Further viewing
* ''The Offspring: Complete Music Video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...
Collection'' (2005)
External links
*
*
*
The Offspring's 'Smash': The Little Punk LP That Defeated the Majors
(''Rolling Stone'' article)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Offspring, The
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