Fat Wreck

A few days ago, Google's algorithm suggested I read an article that NOFX bowed out of the Punk Rock Bowling weekend. While reading it, I heard for the first time about a documentary, A Fat Wreck, about NOFX's Fat Mike's label, Fat Wreck Chords. It was really good. I stayed up late Friday night to watch it on Amazon. I give it 4 out of 5 stars. The doc-makers got access to Fat Mike and major acts on the label. I liked how it wasn't a total puff piece; for example, Propagandhi discussed their song "Rock for Sustainable Capitalism" (2005), which was put out by Fat Wreck Chords and was a reaction to NOFX's "Separation of Church and Skate" (2003). Would have been nice if they would have showed some of the label's questionable behavior; like how they strong-armed J Church into making their Drama and Alienation (1996) sound more like a Fat record that what J Church's Lance Hahn originally envisioned; and how the label hated Lawrence Arms' Greatest Story Every Told (2003) so much, they refused to cough up money for a music video (plus Fat Mike despised that record's cover so much, since then he insists on approving all artwork — I dunno, sounds more corporate than punk rock).

Nonetheless, watching the doc was an enjoyable way to pass 90 minutes. And it inspired me to finally buy the 20th Anniversary Edition of Propagandhi's How to Clean Everything (1993), since my old cassette copy was pretty inferior. I added that album to my Fat playlist, which I listen to regularly and now has 1,136 songs, clocking in at 44 and a half hours.

album review: HOME STREET HOME: ORIGINAL SONGS FROM THE SHIT MUSICAL

Shit musical, indeed.

NOFX's Fat Mike's musical is finally hitting the stage.  His label, Fat Wreck Chords, dropped the soundtrack on February 10.  And it's lamer than the transients lounging on Telegraph Ave.

Most of the songs are about drug-taking and the S&M scene.  I dunno.  I quit drinking three years ago, so my household ain't 420 friendly.  And as far as dating a dominatrix. . . .  Why?  Sex is awesome all by itself.  Why would you want to ruin it by adding torture to the mix?  Consequences of a post-9/11 world, perhaps.

And here's the thing: Fat Mike is a millionaire.  Him writing songs celebrating street life is like Stalin penning an ode to those victimized by empire.

But the million-dollar question is, "Who the hell would invest in this musical?"  Theatre productions are notoriously expensive, hence the astronomical ticket prices.  Maybe it's a vanity project for Fat Mike.  Gotta spend your Knob Hill millions on something, I guess.

The sad thing is what a waste this whole endeavor is (and the money I lost buying it).  Fat Mike has an unbelievable amount of talent rocking around in his drug-addled brain.  A cursory listen to NOFX's catalog proves he has an ear for harmony and melody.

If you're going to do a musical, how about one on the plight of today's working person?  With the 1%'s war on the middle and poor classes, a musical in that key could be what America needs right now.  Art should educate and engage, not simply entertain.  But, no, Fat Mike decided to salute the cult of self, glamorizing the pursuit of pleasure and the annihilation of brain cells.

It's not all bad, though.  Besides a kick-ass soundtrack title, Home Street Home (take that, Mötley Crüe!) has a few half-decent tracks.  "Three String Guitar" has witty wordplay, especially admirable given it's only 93 seconds long.  "Missing Child" is a beautiful ballad told from the perspective of a mother missing her runaway daughter (more songs in that vein would've been nice).  "Because I Want To" has splendid synthesizers straight out of an Epoxies outtake.  And while the last track, "The Agony of Victory", is a little too saccharine for my ears with its cliche "na-na-na" ending, it gives an excellent excuse to pull out NOFX's last great album, Coaster, which featured a far superior version.  Ah, to a better time, before a great American songwriter jumped the shark. . . .

NOFX: "Two on Glue" (1996)

This week I'm gonna feature artists from Fat Wreck Chords. Let's start off with their flagship band, NOFX. This song is from their great 7", Fuck the Kids. Love the melodies on this one!

"Two on Glue"

NOFX: "I Wanna Be an Alcoholic" (2007)

This song cracks me up. Short and to the point.
I Wanna Be An Alcoholic

NOFX: "Dinosaurs Will Die" (2000)

My friend Kevin didn't get a chance to go to that NOFX show I mentioned yesterday; he asked me to write a review. It's been almost two weeks, so let's see what I can remember.

Of course, besides the great music, what's awesome about a NOFX show is the banter of vocalist/bassist Fat Mike and guitarist/trumpeter El Hefe. Here are some of the stuff they said that I laughed at:

Fat Mike: "El Hefe's been doing shots of Michelob all night."

Fat Mike: "Paddy (from opening act Dillinger Four) was really funny tonight, probably the funniest he's been on the whole tour."
El Hefe: "Yeah, not funny ha-ha. Funny queer."

Fat Mike: "We have about sixteen good songs. Tonight we played about eight of them."

All right, that's enough of that. Because comedy's all about the delivery, those jokes aren't half as funny as they were at the show.

Here's the set list from what I can remember:
"Intro"
"Dinosaurs Will Die"
"Murder Will Government" (with new intro of "I want Jenny and Barbara to serve in Iraq / I want to see the White House filled with blacks / I want George Bush to suck Barack's dick")
"Seeing Double at the Triple Rock"
"Eat the Meek"
"Bottles to the Ground"
"Radio"
"Leaving Jesusland"
"Linoleum"
"Kill All the White Man"
"The Brews"
"Whoops I OD'd"

And since it was an all-ages show and a Monday night, they were trying to get off the stage by 11 p.m. Fat Mike's a bit of a babbler between songs, so the drummer, Smelly, around 10:45 started hitting an alarm when he thought Mike was talking too much. You could barely hear it; it sounded like a car alarm. Funny stuff.

"Dinosaurs Will Die"

NOFX: "East Bay" (1995)

Most of the Berkeley stuff this week is gonna be from Lookout Records, since they were the major label in the area in the '90s. But here's something that's Lookout-free: NOFX's live "East Bay", where they make fun of that whole scene. Interestingly, the studio version was called "El Lay" and mocked L.A.'s heavy metal in the '80s.
"East Bay"

NOFX: "Insulted By Germans (Again)" (2005)

It's been a few years since NOFX released this song on a 7", but I still love it as much as the first time I heard it. Great pop-punk song, and I love that riff with a nice accompaniment of the drums! And how can you not smirk at that comedic break?
"Insulted By Germans (Again)"