History

Early career (1980-1985)

Bad Religion was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1980 by high school students Greg Graffin (vocals), Jay Bentley (bass guitar), Jay Ziskrout (drums), and Brett Gurewitz, also known as "Mr. Brett" (guitar). In 1981, the band released their eponymous debut EP on their own newly-formed label, Epitaph Records, which is managed and owned by Gurewitz. 1982 saw the release of their first full-length album, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, gaining the band a sizeable following. During the recording of How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, Jay Ziskrout left the band and was replaced by Peter Finestone.

Major career (1986-1992)

The band slowly reformed out of the 1984 Back to the Known lineup when Greg Graffin called Jay Bentley and asked him to return. Bentley's response was tentative, but after being assured that the setlist consisted mostly of tracks from How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, he agreed to return for one show, and ended up staying on because he had so much fun. A freshly rehabilitated Gurewitz was eventually convinced to come back aboard, and with Pete Finestone returning on drums, Bad Religion was back. ^[1]

Mainstream success (1993-1995)

With alternative rock and grunge breaking into the mainstream, Bad Religion left Epitaph Records for Atlantic Records and quickly re-released their seventh full-length studio album Recipe for Hate (1993) on the major label. 1994's Stranger Than Fiction followed, but Gurewitz left the band shortly following its release. Officially, he cited the increasing amount of time he was spending at Epitaph's offices as The Offspring became one of the biggest bands of the mid-1990s, but it was well known that his departure was not on good terms. Gurewitz, along with many fans, accused the band of selling out for leaving Epitaph to seek greater financial success.^[3]

Post-Gurewitz period (1996-2001)

Bad Religion continued without Gurewitz and released three albums, The Gray Race (1996), No Substance (1998), and The New America (2000). The Gray Race in particular was well-received by many fans.

Gurewitz rejoins (2002-2004)

Brett Gurewitz rejoined the band in time to record The Process Of Belief (2002). Graffin states, "there was a little bit of disappointment on my part when he left the band, but we never had any serious acrimony between the two of us. I can't say the same for the rest of the band. But he and I, being the songwriters from way back, we really wanted to try again."^[7] Meanwhile, Bobby Schayer left the band following a serious shoulder injury and was replaced by Brooks Wackerman (Suicidal Tendencies).

Current events (2005-present)

On March 7, 2006, a live DVD, Live at the Palladium was released. This DVD featured a live show performed in late 2004 at the Hollywood Palladium, as well as extensive interviews, several music videos, and a photo gallery.

The new album

During one of the interview segments on the Live at the Palladium DVD, guitarist Brett Gurewitz says the band's next album might be a double length release. On September 11, 2006, Wackerman posted an update on the MySpace bulletin board, stating that the band will begin demoing the songs for the upcoming album:

Lyrics and ideology

The majority of Bad Religion's lyrics are written by either Greg Graffin or Brett Gurewitz. Only on rare occasions will they co-write a song together. Other band members, such as Jay Bentley, also contribute songs, but these constitute only a small percentage of the Bad Religion catalog.

Social and political issues

Many of Bad Religion's songs are about different social ills, although they make attempts not to ascribe the causes of these ills to any single person or group. Greg Graffin believes that the current political situation in the United States can make it difficult to voice these concerns, as he doesn't want to feed the polarization of viewpoints.^[10]

Religion

Faith in your partner, your fellow men, your friends, is very important, because without it there's no mutual component to your relationship, and relationships are important. So faith plays an important role, but faith in people you don't know, faith in religious or political leaders or even people on stages, people who are popular in the public eye, you shouldn't have faith in those people. You should listen to what they have to say and use it.

Influences and tributes

Influence

The band's own major influences stem from earlier punk acts such as the Ramones, Black Flag and The Clash. They took cues from The Adolescents from the way that they used three-part harmonies in their vocals. Bassist Jay Bentley says, "Seeing The Adolescents live, it was so brilliant. So, in a way, the Adolescents influenced us into saying we can do it too, because look, they're doing it."^[1][13]

Collaborations and guest musicians

Throughout a good part of their career, Bad Religion has had many guest vocalists and musicians record their albums with them. The way Jay Bentley puts it, "Nobody can just stop by the studio and just say hi. Anybody that walks in we put them to work immediately."^[16]

Covers

In 1992, the American ska band Sublime released a song cover of "We're Only Gonna Die", titled "We're Only Gonna Die for Our Own Arrogance" (from the album How Could Hell Be Any Worse?) on their debut album 40 Oz. to Freedom. Another cover of this song can be found on Biohazard's album Urban Discipline from the same year. In 1994, both Biohazard and Bad Religion were playing at the "Bizarre Festival" in Cologne (Germany) and they performed the song together.

Musical similarities

Aside from the more direct tribute that comes from covering a specific song, some artists choose to display the musical influences they've taken from Bad Religion in different ways. Sum 41's video of the single "The Hell Song" has a very strong similarity with the video for the song "The New America" (from the album The New America).

Soundtracks

Bad Religion's songs have been included on the soundtracks of video games and movies. "Them and Us", "Inner Logic", "Hear It" and "Ten in 2010", play during the game Crazy Taxi. Those tracks, as well as "Empty Causes" and "Punk Rock Song", also appear in the game's second sequel Crazy Taxi 3.

Discography

External links

• Official Website
• Live Pictures Of Bad Religion In Edmonton
• www.thebadreligionlyricspage.com Bad religion lyrics
• Bad Religion at MySpace
• The Bad Religion Net Bad Religion Tribute Page.
• The Bad Religion Page Fan website, established 1995.
• Exclusive Artist of the Day Interview on ManiaTV! (Video)
• Soundclick.com Bad Religion at SoundClick
• The Bad Religion Podcast Unofficial podcast featuring live bootlegs and Bad Religion related news
• Bad Religion Biography, Discography and Lyrics
• Bad Religion lyrics
• Review of BAD RELIGION's Live At The Palladium ALSO a new interview with BAD RELIGION

Find out more about Bad Religion on Wikipedia