Style 43

Yeah, ya heard right. Californian punk legends Pennywise are currently rolling in the success of their recent release and ninth stduio album, “Reason To Believe”. Bass player Randy Bradbury took some time out to chat to Style43 about the album recording, their loyal fans here in Britain, and upcoming tours..

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us! We’ve heard the new record and we love it, how did the recording go? We heard through the grapevine that you guys had recorded 60 tracks overall..
The recording went as smooth as a dirt road in the middle of the rainforest, but we’re really happy with the results. We did have a lot of songs to choose from which really helps us feel confident with the ones that make the final cut.

What bands were you listening to during the time of the recording?
I was listening to Pepper, The Hellacopters and LONG BEACH ALLDAY.

How do you feel the new album compares with previous releases and are there any stand-out tracks that are band favourites?
We all feel that this is one of the best albums we’ve ever made! It’s hard to pick any stand out tracks. We all have different favourites, it just depends what you like.

What made you guys release the album on free download via Textango?
Even though the album was free, it still cost money to make. Someone has to pick up the tab. We just feel fortunate that Textango saw the value in sponsoring our efforts. They seemed like a cool company so we went with them.

We can kinda tell from the lyrics, what this song is about, but can you talk us through the track “Western World”?
“The Western World” shines a light on the superficiality of the American media, especially the paparazzi. The song deals the fact that we as a culture choose to focus on superficial issues like who Paris Hilton is dating, or whether some pop star is wearing underwear or not. It’s a sarcastic jab at the supposed most civilized culture in the world.

I remember Pennywise headlining at the Reading Festival a few years back, when the punk-rock scene was strong enough to have an entire stage (Concrete Jungle) devoted to it. Nowadays you’re hard pushed to find a decent established punk band at any of these festivals here in Britain. Do you still get a warm reception over here?
We are very fortunate to have some of the most loyal fans ever. We are still able to have great shows wherever we’ve been.

It’s been three years since the release of your last LP “The Fuse”. What have you guys been up to during that time?
We did some touring up until last summer, took a few months off and then started on “Reason To Believe”. We’ve been pretty busy since then.

You did a cover of “My Life” for the Sick Of It All tribute record, are there any other bands you’d like to do that kind of thing for?
I personally would like to do a Damned cover. They’ve been a favourite of mine since I was a teenager.

You’ve got tour dates set up for Oz and the US, anything planned for Europe? I know we’re missing you over here in the UK.
We’ll be there in late August, early September.

This latest release is your 8th full-length studio album. Whats next for Pennywise?
Touring as much as we can everywhere we can!!!

If you’re lucky enough to be in the U.S. this summer, you can catch Pennywise on The Warped Tour. We’ve got a review of “Reason To Believe” right here, and the album is still available for FREE DOWNLOAD via Textango.

http://www.myspace.com/pennywise