White Flag (band)
| White flag | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Punk rock |
| founding | 1982 |
| Founding members | |
singing |
Alva "Al Bum" Adams |
guitar |
William "Pat Fear" Bartell († 2013) |
guitar |
Dave "El Fee" Maffei |
bass |
Doug "Doug Graves" McRoy |
Drums |
Jamie "Pick Z. Stix" Brown |
| Current occupation | |
guitar |
Michael "Mike Mess" Glass |
bass |
Marty Martin |
Drums |
Tracy "Trace Element" Harrison |
| former members | |
singing |
Kim "Grace Sick" Shattuck |
singing |
Melanie Vammen |
guitar |
Ken Decter |
guitar |
Eric Erlandson |
guitar |
Greg Hetson |
guitar |
Mats "El Swe" Kiesbye |
guitar |
Jeff McDonald |
guitar |
Kent "Kent Crimson" Norberg |
guitar |
Richie Ranno |
guitar |
Duke "Shawn Lenin" Seino |
guitar |
Michael Lee Smith |
bass |
Ronnie "Lloyd Doheny" Barnett |
bass |
Marty "Jello B. Afro" Martin |
bass |
Steven McDonald |
bass |
Ken "Kim Crimson" Stringfellow |
Drums |
Victor "Victor M. Surrounded" Alfaro |
Drums |
Jim "Jim Tilgiant" Laspesa |
Percussion |
Randy Robbins |
White Flag is a punk band from Los Angeles , California, founded in 1982 . Characteristic for their appearance are the satirizing of the scene of Californian punk bands as well as frequent line-up changes.
history
The band was formed in 1982 in Moreno Valley through the merger of two bands. William Bartell and the future bassist Marty Martin previously played with a metal band called Test Pattern . The other founding members were active in a hard rock band called Tyrant , with the future singer Alva Adams only being their roadie and having no singing experience. The name "White Flag" is based on that of the hardcore band Black Flag and is supposed to satirize the elitism of the hardcore scene. The pseudonyms of the members are partly corruptions of the names of well-known musicians such as Jello Biafra , Mike Ness or Pat Smear . According to guitarist Bartell, the satirizing element should "bring anarchy back to punk music". The first concerts were played as the opening act for Black Flag with their equipment. In 1982 the band recorded two albums, of which the first ( R is for Rocket ) was not released and was only released in 2003 as a special edition with further unreleased titles and live recordings. The second album, S is for Space , was released in 1982 on the Gasatanka Records label, which Bartell was the founder and owner, and sold over 25,000 units. In the course of its existence there have been frequent changes of line-up and instruments; not a single member was in the band throughout its existence. In terms of personnel, White Flag were closely intertwined with other bands on the Californian punk and alternative scene, such as Jim Laspesa also played for The Muffs (and for Dave Davies ), Greg Hetson for Redd Kross , the Circle Jerks and Bad Religion , Jeff and Steven McDonald Redd Kross, Melanie Vammen with the Muffs, Kim Shattuck with the Pixies and The Pandoras , Ken Stringfellow with The Posies and Eric Erlandson with Hole . Drummer Harrison explained the concept behind the line-up changes as follows: " There is no line up. We have this circle of people that all know the songs on different instruments, and whoever wants to play a particular show does, so that's our line up. ". Due to numerous split and live releases, White Flag has an extensive discography. As one of the few US bands, they performed during their European tours in Greenland, the Faroe Islands , Sardinia, the Canary Islands and (as part of an unauthorized concert in St. Peter's Square that was ended by the police ) in the Vatican .
In 1984 White Flag was featured on the soundtrack of the low-budget thriller Desperate Teenage Lovedolls by Dave Markey with three tracks . In 1985, singer Adams suffered a surfing accident that left him paralyzed and left the band. Then the guitarist Bartell took over the vocal part.
Bartell was found dead at his Moreno Valley home on September 24, 2013, aged 52. The post of singer for the band has been vacant since then.
style
White Flag play melodious pop-punk with humorous lyrics. At the beginning of their career the band was still influenced by West Coast hardcore à la Adolescents or Angry Samoans , but over time the pop influences increased significantly. Laurel Greenidge judged Allmusic that White Flag are a "confusing, temporary legend in music history". In an obituary for Bartell, Marc Hogan described White Flag as a "playful response to the Los Angeles punk scene" in Spin magazine . The Punk Vault magazine describes the band as the "Beatles of Punk Rock".
Discography
Studio albums
- 1982: S is for Space (Gasatanka Records)
- 1984: Third Strike (Gasatanka Records)
- 1986: Zero Hour (Starving Missile)
- 1987: Wild Kingdom (Positive Force Records)
- 1989: R is for Rad (EP, Super Seven Records)
- 1998: Empty Heaven (EP, Houston Party Records)
- 1999: Eternally Undone (Houston Party Records)
- 2006: Piangi Con Me (EP, Raro! Records)
- 2010: Keepers of the Purple Twilight (EP, Target Earth Records)
- 2010: Benefit for Cats (Cupcake Records)
Split releases
- 1984: Split EP with Redd Kross (Mystic Records)
- 1986: Split album with Adrenalin OD (Jungle Hop Int.)
- 1986: Peace (split album with F, Starving Missile)
- 1986: Jail Jello (split EP with Necros , Gasatanka Records)
- 1999: Split EP with Baby Demons (Just 4 Fun)
- 2010: Two Pack (split EP with Citramons, Flix Records)
- 2011: Levitate The Listener (split album with Versus You , Long Beach Records Europe)
- 2011: Split EP with Crise Total (Your Poison Records)
- 2011: Extraordinary Renditions (split album with Gods of Gamble, Stampace Records)
- 2011: 2B vs. Lil 'B: The Morongo Redbone / Muldaur Death Match EP (Split EP with The Holy Kings, Down the Drain Records)
- 2013: Og Bo Toyy (split album with BBS Paranoicos, Furia Discos)
- 2013: Split EP with Shoplifters (Rad Girlfriend Records)
Live albums
- 1986: Feeding Frenzy (Bootleg Records)
- 1987: Skate Across Europe (EP, Super Seven Records)
- 1987: Bleedin 'in Sweden (EP, Punish Records)
- 1989: Skate Across America (Mystic Records)
- 2002: History is Fiction ( Tutl )
- 2011: Live at Bohemian Grove (EP with Tony Adolescent, Strange Magic Records)
Compilation albums
- 1985: WFO (Starving Missile)
- 1987: Sgt Pepper. (Wetspots Records)
- 1988: Freedom Fighters (EP, Power Noize Records)
- 1993: Thru The Trash Darkly (Munster Records)
- 1994: Step Back 10 (Just 4 Fun)
- 2002: Dying In The Future, Living In The Past (KAZ)
- 2002: T is for 20 (Soundflat Records)
- 2003: R Is For Rocket - U Is For Unreleased (Artifix Records)
Sampler contributions
- 1984: Desperate Teenage Lovedolls OST (Gasatanka Records)
- 1992: Freedom of Choice ( Caroline Records )
Web links
- White Flag at Discogs (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Bartell obituary on Bazillionpoints.com. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ↑ Vice.com: White Flag. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ↑ Flipside # 37, February 1983, p. 54.
- ↑ Popshifter.com: An Interview With Pat Fear. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ↑ a b band biography on Allmusic.com. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ^ Tesco Vee & Dave Stimson: Touch and Go. The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine '79 -'93, p. 498.Bazillion Points, 3rd edition 2013.
- ↑ Punkglobe.com: White Flag. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ^ Punknews.org: Al Bum and Jello B. Afro to appear with White Flag at Sandy West benefit. Retrieved December 23, 2015 .
- ↑ Bartell obituary TheMusicsOver.com. Retrieved December 24, 2015 .
- ^ Brian Cogan: Encyclopedia of Punk Music and Culture . Greenwood Press, Westport, Connecticut 2006, ISBN 0-313-33340-8 , pp. 248 f .
- ↑ a b Punkvinyl.com: Selections from The Punk Vault - White Flag. Retrieved December 28, 2015 .
- ↑ Spin.com: Pat Fear, Punk Pioneer and White Flag Leader, Dead at 52. Retrieved December 28, 2015 .
- ↑ Only otherwise unpublished articles.