Between 1994 and 1995, three albums released that put a spotlight on modern punk rock music. First up was Green Day’s Dookie. Then, a few months later, The Offspring released Smash, which changed everything. Not only was that album a commercial success, but it was released on an independent label. Where Green Day opened the door up, The Offspring “Smashed” it down for the rest of the mid-’90s punk bands to come through. That third album in the Holy Trinity I alluded to above was Rancid’s third studio album, …And Out Come the Wolves.
Wolves saw several singles, MTV airplay, and world tours for the Bay Area punks. It even led to a bidding war as several major labels tried to snatch Rancid up for themselves. Thankfully, Rancid decided to stay put, and the rest is history.
Now, almost 26 years old, …And Out Come the Wolves remains as influential today as it did when it was originally released. This year, it inspired a brand new tribute comp called …And Out Come the Lawsuits. Releasing digitally, and as a sold out co-physical release between Lavasocks Records and Sell the Heart Records, this tribute comp has a little bit for everyone. The idea of a Rancid tribute comp isn’t a new one, but what makes this one unique is that it’s a song for song recreation of the ska punk classic.
I am a sucker for a good cover song.
Being able to listen to another artist’s interpretation of an original work is really exciting for me. I was addicted to the BYO Split Series and the old Before They Were Punk comps. The excitement I had listening to them came back immediately upon listening to the opening rendition of “Maxwell Murder” by Stay Wild.
As expected, the comp is a majority ska, punk, and ska punk bands. Makes sense considering the source material. But, there’s also some indie and straight forward rock too! And, I’m happy to announce that the bands involved in this project didn’t phone it in. There’s nothing worse than hearing a band cover a song and having it sound exactly like the original. That doesn’t happen here. One highlight include Matamoska! and their transformation of “Listed M.I.A.” to a full-fledged organ-driven 2-Tone ska song. There’s also the one-two punk of Omnigone and Link 80 providing music, with the Link 80 song being one of their first recorded song in years. I also really enjoyed hearing Omnigone mash up Op Ivy with their Rancid cover. So cool!
I would say the bands that will likely receive the most scrutiny are the ones who covered the singles. They were up to the task though. Flying Raccoon Suit knocks “Time Bomb” out of the park with dual vocals and some really innovative horn work. Pretty Frankenstein offers up a unique take on “Ruby Soho” as well. It sound like an atmospheric, moody lo-fi lounge act cover, and it’s amazing.
Another fun thing about cover albums is learning about new bands.
The source material here is a 19 track album, which means there are 19 opportunities for you to find a new band to enjoy. Full transparency, of the bands on this comp, I was only familiar with five of them before listening to the album. Some of the bands I’m excited about discovering because of this comp are Stay Wild, The Hammerbombs, and Worriers.
Even though you can likely only get the vinyl on the secondary market these days, …And Out Come the Lawsuits is a worthy pursuit by other means. It’s streaming on all the usual suspects, and you can purchase it on bandcamp. There’s really no reason to not seek it out. It’s a love letter to this influential Rancid album that fans of the band will love, just as much as folks who just love great independent music.