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The original line up coalesced in 1991 originally under the name Jack Kevorkian and the Suicide Machines. This formation included Jason Navarro (vocals), Dan Lukacinsky (guitar), Jason Brake (bass), and Stefan Rairigh (drums). Over the course of the 1st three years the group experienced several line up changes. Rairigh was replaced by Bill Jennings who was in turn replaced by Derek Grant. The position of bass also opened and closed a few times. Jason Brace was proceeded by Dave Smith, but this lasted only brief time until Royce Nunley took up the role. By this point the group truncated Jack Kevorkian from their name and released their split album with the Rudiments, “Shank for Brains”.
1995 saw the band sign to the Walt Disney subsidiary, Hollywood Records and by 1996 they issued their studio debut album, “Destruction by Definition”. Their sound took musical cues from ska pioneers like The Specials, hardcore punk acts such as Bad Brains, and pinnacle new wavers like the English Beat. It was quickly accepted by the punk community and they even scored a moderate hit with their single “No Face”.
Their follow up album “Battle Hymns” came out in 1998 and acted as a continuation of their ska-core sound. It featured songs that exploded with catchy melodic riffs and blasts of punctual brass. The songs rarely hit over the two minute marker, seeming to disintegrate with visceral excitement before one realized it had begun. The album peaked at no. 127 on the Billboard 200 and it’s track “Give” was included in the Disney original movie “Brink!”.
The Suicide Machines released their 3rd self-titled album on 15 February 2005. The album was spearheaded by the single “Sometimes I Don’t Mind” and closed with the Joe South cover “I Never Promised You a Rose Garden”. The latter of the tracks appeared in the 1999 film “SLC Punk” starring Matthew Lillard and Jason Segel. A year later they issued their album “Steal This Record”, which included an R.E.M. cover and in 2002 they put out their compilation album “The Least Worst of the Suicide Machines”.
The group switched over to the label Side One Dummy in 2003 and issued the albums “A Match and Some Gasoline” and “War Profiteering Is Killing Us All”. Navarro also developed a record label of his own entitled Noise Riot Records” and put out the Suicide Machines’ 2nd compilation album “On The Eve of Destruction: 1991-1995” through it.
The group suddenly broke up in 2006, but have since reformed, playing their 1st reunion show in 2009. From 2010-2014 they have played various festivals like the Fest 9 and Riot Fest as well as sporadic gigs here and there. In 2015 they scheduled a two week tour, in which they would perform their album “The Definition of Destruction” in it’s entirety.
I have been a fan of 90’s bands for a long time. Rancid and Goldfinger are two of my favorite bands. A friend of mine knew this and he recommended a band called Suicide Machines. He described them as somewhere between Rancid and Goldfinger.
This made me curious. After listening to the CD, I was immediately hooked. I had to see this band live.They passed through my area a few times as part of a larger tour. I considered seeing them this way, but I always decided against it. I wanted to see them perform a full set, not just a few songs.
I finally got my chance. Suicide machines were scheduled to play a show in my area. I bought my tickets and waited.The day of the show finally arrived. I was so excited. My nervous energy might be helpful at the show, so I didn’t try to control it. When I arrived at the venue, I was ready. I looked at other members of the crowd, and felt solidarity.
We were going to have fun together. The band dove head first into their first song. The crowd went crazy. Over two hours of amazing music and we still wanted more. The band gave an encore and wished us a safe trip home. They were great. I had never had so much fun at a concert before.
My friend actually took me along to a Mustard Plug gig some time ago before I knew any of the ska punk band’s tracks, and I was immediately won over by their organic and individual use of eclectic instruments in their punk sound. The trumpet and saxophone build up the sound incredibly, and when juxtaposed with the guitar and drums, they create a super exciting sound. After seeing their first show live, I knew I had to buy their music, and after listening to it time and time again, I was lucky enough to catch them in concert once again.
Usually, I’d say a band with seven members was a little too big, but the bigband sound that they create is incredible and instantly creates an electric atmosphere. Seeing the band six years on from my first experience with them, I’d say if anything, they’ve just got better and better over the years. They played through their album Can’t Contain It, which was actually funded using a KickStarter campaign, and as no one in the crowd had heard any of the tracks form the album live before, everyone was going crazy, and dancing full out.
From start to finish, the band were totally dedicated to their performance, and Colin and Dave were shouting out to us in the crowd to get involved with the dancing and singing. The way that you could tell that every single band member was there to please the audience made the whole event seem even more special and exhilarating.