Pennywise (band)
Pennywise is an American
punk rock band that was formed in
1988; the name comes from a
Stephen King horror novel,
It, in which
Pennywise the Dancing Clown is a monster.
All Pennywise studio albums have been released by
Epitaph Records, a label owned by
Bad Religion guitarist
Brett Gurewitz.
Early career and rise to fame (1988-1995)
In
1989, in the band's original incarnation, the band consisted of
Jim Lindberg (vocals),
Fletcher Dragge (guitar),
Byron McMackin (drums) and
Jason Thirsk (bass). They released two EPs,
Wildcard (
1988) and
A Word From the Wise (
1989)
Each of the band members had played in other bands in the
Hermosa Beach, California area and attended the same high school. The group signed to
Epitaph Records in
1990 and released
Pennywise in
1991; the album quickly spread throughout the punk community, earning the band some nation-wide recognition. Lyrics in the album endorsed a positive mental attitude, helping promote progressive ideals for
Generation X. Lindberg left the band soon after the debut and Thirsk took his place on vocals, with
Randy Bradbury taking Thirsk's place on bass. Lead singer of The Vandals, Dave Quackenbush also took over on vocals for a brief stint in 1992 while Thirsk remained on bass. Lindberg married but returned to the group in
1992.
With Lindberg back, Pennywise released
Unknown Road (
1993), which was an underground hit and established the band as a force in punk music. By
1995, punk bands like
the Offspring,
Green Day and
Rancid had hit the mainstream and Pennywise was invited to join several major labels. The band refused and stuck with Epitaph Records, releasing
About Time in
1995; the album was another indie hit.
Aftermath of Thirsk's death (1996-2003)
In
1996, Pennywise began recording their fourth album; Thirsk left to try to quit drinking; he was successful but then committed suicide after a relapse on
July 29,
1996.
After Jason Thirsk's death, the band released
Full Circle (
1997) and
Straight Ahead (
1999). This was followed by a live LP,
Live at the Key Club (
2000) and
Land of the Free? (
2001). After that came
From the Ashes (
2003).
Recent history (2004-present)
2004 saw the re-release of their only video called
Home Movies in
2004 for a
DVD version. The video was originally released in
1995 and has been out of print since
1997.
The band's eighth album,
The Fuse, was released in
Europe on
June 27 and in
North America on
August 9,
2005. Also during that year, they released digitally-remastered versions of their older albums:
Pennywise,
Unknown Road,
About Time and
Full Circle on
March 8.
After the release of
The Fuse, there were some rumors of a break up after their Australian tour was cancelled. However, frontman
Jim Lindberg has later denied that statement and decided to keep the band active.
As of
May 2006, Pennywise is currently taking a break and will start/continue writing their ninth studio album, which is likely to be released in
2007. However, at the moment, no details about the album are known and plans to record it have been announced.
Albums
* Did not chart on Billboard Hot 200 Album ChartSingles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |US Hot 100| US Modern Rock | US Mainstream Rock | UK |
| 1993 | "Homesick" | - | - | - | - | Unknown Road |
| 1995 | "Same Old Story" | - | - | - | - | About Time |
| 1997 | "Society" | - | - | - | - | Full Circle |
| 1999 | "Alien" | - | 36 | - | - | Straight Ahead |
| 2000 | "Victim of Reality" | - | - | - | - | Straight Ahead |
| 2001 | "Fuck Authority" | - | 38 | - | - | Land of the Free? |
| 2001 | "Divine Intervention" | - | - | - | - | Land of the Free? |
| 2002 | "My God" | - | - | - | - | Land of the Free? |
| 2003 | "Yesterdays" | - | - | - | - | From the Ashes |
| 2003 | "God Save the USA" | - | - | - | - | From the Ashes |
| 2005 | "Disconnect" | - | - | - | - | The Fuse |
| 2005 | "Knocked Down" | - | - | - | - | The Fuse |
Current lineup
*
Jim Lindberg - vocals
*
Fletcher Dragge - guitars
*
Randy Bradbury - bass
*
Byron McMackin - drums
Former members
*
Jason Thirsk - bass (died July 29, 1996)
* The band rerecorded the song "Bro Hymn" from their self titled LP as a tribute to Jason Matthew Thirsk after his suicide, and released it on the Full Circle LP. The new version features Thirsk's little brother Josh, drummer for 98 Mute, singing one of the verses, in which he says "Jason, my brother, this one's for you!" The band plays this song at the end of each show, and encourage everybody in the crowd to put the arms on each other's shoulders and sway back and forth. They also let audience members onto the stage to help them sing it.
* Pennywise owes its success to Hakim Kebir. He was a former classmate who gave them the idea to start the band. Hakim currently lives in Lomita, a small town near Hermosa Beach.
* "It's What You Do With It" in
About Time, "Homesick" in
Unknown Road, and "Wouldn't It Be Nice" in
Pennywise are featured in Matt Hoffman Pro BMX.
* "Society", in
Full Circle, and "It's What You Do With It" in
About Time are featured in the arcade game
Top Skater.
* "Greed", in
Straight Ahead is featured in
Dave Mirra's Freestyle BMX.
* "Rise Up", in
From the Ashes is featured in the video game
Burnout 3.
* "Stand Up", in
The Fuse is featured in the video game
Burnout Revenge.
* "Knocked Down", in
The Fuse is featured in the video game
EA Sports NHL 06.
* "Competition Song", in
The Fuse is featured in the video game
SSX On Tour.
* "Now I Know" in "From The Ashes" is feat. in video game MTX Mototrax.
* "No Reason Why", "Fun And Games", and "Living for Today" in
Pennywise were featured in skate film
Plan B Skateboards-Questionable Video in the skatepark section, the slam section and
Danny Way's part respectively.
* "Bro Hymn" is the official goal song for the
National Hockey League's
Anaheim Ducks, and is played after each home goal. [
1]
*
The Official Website â€" Official Website
*
The Largest Fansite â€" Fansite
*
The German/Austrian Fansite*
Spanish Fansite*
Pennywise discography from Music City*
All Music Guide entry for Pennywise*
Pennywise Discography at
Discogs*
Pennywise Polish Website*
Pennywise interview on Rockdetector.com
