Not very long ago, in this here galaxy, and on this website, someone said Tom Petty was bad, so I pulled every Tom Petty LP I own off the shelf to discuss. The Spins-travaganza was born. I am happy to say no one has insulted this week’s band, at least not to me directly, I am just in a nostalgic mood. Last week I talked about Bob Dylan’s Blonde on Blonde at length with some Old Crow Medicine Show thrown in for good measure.

This week, I am gonna take everyone back to the early 80s and forward through time. There will be starts and stops, there will be Liveage, and there will be melodic punk rawk. I am rather happy to be covering Descendents, not be confused with the Disney movies. Also, there is no “the” in the name just like there is no “the” in Eagles.

Formed in the late 70s and early 80s, Descendents sparked a wave of what some folks refer to as “pop punk.” When I think pop punk, I think early Fall Out Boy, MxPx, Goldfinger (who are also somewhat a ska-adjacent band), Green Day, and The Get Up Kids, to name a few. Back in my youth I listened to those bands and more at length. Somewhere along this journey I discovered these guys, loved the Milo character and his incorporation into the album art, and proceeded to Sam Goody and/or F.Y.E to buy their CDs. In more recent years I purchased many of my favorite records on vinyl. Those are the LPs I will be covering today.

The Beginning

After the band had formed and achieved mild local success in what was known as the Southern California “Hardcore” Scene, they released what they probably thought was going to be their first and only full-length album. Milo Aukerman, lead singer and model for the Milo band mascot had decided to go to college, hence the album title. It was released in 1982 and Milo was enrolled by 1983.

Milo eventually became a molecular biologist and joined that club of musicians who are also very academic, Brian May (astrophysicist), Dexter Holland (also a molecular biologist), Rivers Cuomo (English degree from Harvard), Greg Graffin (evolutionary biologist), and Tom Morello (Harvard).

The album itself is a classic, the so-called hardcore scene at that time was full of toxic machismo and some racism, Descendents changed all of that by creating a sound that was hard, yet melodic. Their sound would eventually evolve, but one thing that stands out on this album in particular is the rhythm section and the reliance on bass. It is pretty similar to what The Buzzcocks did across the pond. One thing is for sure, these guys can’t really be classified–they aren’t a stereotype.

The Gateway

In 2004, I was heavy into punk and punk adjacent stuff. It was at that time I discovered this album at Sam Goody and/or F.Y.E. Like I said before, I had already heard of the band, maybe from a sampler or in a magazine or what have you. I was a sophomore in high school, man. The good bad old days. Songs like, “Mass Nerder” and “Cool to Be You” were simplistic lyrically and almost a parody. Given how I was feeling at the time, socially, they were great jams. Lots of heartfelt songs and righteous anger, but still had some excellent humor on “Blast Off.”

A lot had occurred with the band before and since this album, they were on hiatus from 1996 until 2004, their sound definitely moved into a more pop territory, but it still had the grit underneath. It’s not quite as legendary as Milo Goes to College or as classic as Everything Sucks, but this album does hold a special place in my heart though since it was my first foray into Descendents and contains one of the best protest tracks of all time.

The Classic

Descendents released their fifth studio album in 1996. Between Milo going to college, a few personnel changes and the formation of All in Milo’s absence–a band that is basically Descendents without Milo. This was the second album of theirs I bought immediately after Cool to Be You. I was somewhat astonished to find that these two records could have been released within 1-3 years of each other not separated by 8 years.

The band explores themes about marriage and relationships, “Doghouse” and “I’m the One,” and definitely brings the humor on “Eunuch Boy” and express the frustration of mundane office work on “This Place.” They even have a 30-second ode to Managing Editor, Andrew Donaldson’s favorite caffeinated beverage in “Coffee Mug.” Drummer Bill Stevenson had open heart surgery and still loves his coffee.

I was listening to the title track the other day which spurred the inspiration for this article.

Liveage

A couple of months ago I was sitting in my office right before lunch and I pulled up The Facebook on my phone. On my feed, my local record shop had listed the new (old) stuff the owner got in. Since the pandemic began, the record store pared back hours to Friday and Saturday only and the owner wasn’t holding anything. So, sped on down there to pick up the OG pressing from 1987 for my collection. The picture may not do it justice, but this thing is pristine!

This album marked and chronicled their first last concert. After this, All was formed and the band did not create a new Descendents album until 1996. You guessed it; Milo went back to college. The recording of this album is really good for a live punk album. It features a spectacular cover, and creative arrangement, of “Wendy” by the Beach Boys.

The Latest

After a 10-year hiatus, the band was back at it again–they began writing new material in 2014-15 and released this album in 2016 to great acclaim. To be honest, I bought it and hadn’t really given in that much of a listen until now. It is definitely an album written to confront aging, and recovery from various ailments. At this point the entire band are now in their late 40s, and today they are in their 50s.

One of their first successful, and fun, track was “I Like Food.” Well, sticking with the humor, the track has now been succeeded by “No Fat Burger” as a bit of a tongue-in-cheek commentary on getting old and needing to change your diet. The same catchy hooks and melodic sounds still persist. It may seem formulaic, but that is their schtick. It’s timeless in my opinion.

The Word

I have always considered Descendents to be an integral part of my teenage years. I hope these guys keep making music well into their golden years, I don’t even care if I have to wait 10 years between each album. It’s interesting that they found a way to all balance their various real-life jobs/hobbies with the dream job of being a musician. Not everyone gets to be that lucky.