I loved the Ramones, the Sex Pistols and all that, but there was something about bands from Orange County that I particularly resonated with. The bands that I grew up listening to and admiring were all local bands. He said, “The guy who sang ‘Pretty Fly for a White Guy’ sounded very California to me.” Maybe that’s a result of how we grew up, how we sound, and how we talk. It’s interesting you say that, because I’ve had conversations with Bob about that. The Offspring always sounded like California to me.
I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but things weren’t feeling good. But I just kind of felt like something was bubbling. I finished that song last April and all the social unrest and rioting hadn’t even happened yet. But I was kind of talking more about the rules of justice and equality - not so much following the law, but the idea that we’re not supposed to fuck each other over. I think Americans would agree, or anyone in the world would agree, that there has to be some order. In “This Is Not Utopia,” you sing, “The rules don’t matter anymore.” Does even a punk band acknowledge that some rules are necessary for society to function after all? It’s the idea of, “Whaddya gonna do?” Let the bad times roll. That’s the newest thing: “Double down.” Like, “You don’t like this? Well, this is going to be even worse.” That message was pretty heavy, so we tried to make the chorus almost fun. They’re trying to exacerbate it and they’re trying to stoke the fire.
And although we don’t try to get into politics too much, how could you write about the last few years and not mention what’s been going on? In that song you mention some specific references, but the idea is not that it’s aimed at any particular administration, but at this kind of weird, overarching idea that we have these leaders that, when there’s a problem, they’re not trying to sort it out. I feel like we’re kind of like observers. Yeah, well, I know that you’re taking this in a political context, but I honestly don’t think that we’re a political band. There are some overt political allusions in the lyrics to “Let the Bad Times Roll,” like “lock her up” and “build a wall.” How does the song resonate when we have a new leader at the helm? We asked Holland about the political allusions on the Offspring’s new album, when he thinks the pandemic may get under control, and, as the creator of his own line of hot sauces, how he’d fare eating wings on Hot Ones. It’s just crazy, with all the effort and all the work and the expertise, how unpredictable the whole thing has been,” says Holland, a licensed pilot who volunteers for medical transport flights and received the Covid vaccine for his service. “I’m really interested in virology and it’s been interesting to watch this unfold. 'Silence of the Lambs': 'It Broke All the Rules'Įvery Super Bowl Halftime Show, Ranked From Worst to Best in molecular biology from USC and has been tracking the Covid-19 pandemic from two distinct viewpoints: as a touring musician eager to get back on the road and as a virus expert.
While singer Dexter Holland jokingly chalks up the delay between 2012’s Days Go By and Let the Bad Times Roll to laziness, the reality is that Holland has been a busy dude. Working with producer Bob Rock (Metallica), they set doom-and-gloom lyrics (as heard on the shrug-emoji title track and the prescient “This Is Not Utopia”) to euphoric melodies for a head-spinning listen that’s on par with their Nineties gems Smash and Ixnay on the Hombre. It’s the stalwart California punk band’s first studio LP in nearly a decade, and their first for Concord after a lengthy run on Capitol, but the label change and the departure of their longtime bassist haven’t blunted the Offspring’s edge. “Oh, baby, let the bad times roll,” the Offspring sing on the title track to their new album, resigning themselves to a world in peril.
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