Rikk Agnew
ADOLESCENTS
AC
US
by Mike Gitter
The Adolescents are the sound of LA
punk Sparse, screaming leads echo over
hard-assed power-chords fronted by snot-
ty, upstart vocals and backed by a tight,
rhythmic whallop. The Adolescents have
come to define an entire sound.
The release of their self-titled debut in
1981 signalled a turning point for the West
Coast sound, as it pushed the delivery
harder than ever while maintaining a distinct
sense of melody. Formed in 1980, the Adole-
scents picked up on the groundwork of such
seminal LA outfits as the Dils, X and the
Weirdos, while incorporating their own.
"Huntington Beach" approach. Founding
guitarist Rikk Agnew, who also spent time
in Christian Death, and more recently in Dl.
wails heavily with an appropriate flash while
brother Frank keeps the rhythms fast and
direct. Vocalist Tony Cadena is the voice of
a generation. His rantings are up front and
pugnacious, each delivery is given with an
"every kid" brattiness. Bassist Steve Soto
and drummer Casey Royer keep the
rhythms direct, melodic and on-key, roun-
ding out a now classic sound. Their debut
Lp. perhaps one of the best recorded punk
discs to date, as well as their "Welcome to
Reality" Ep. captured a fierce energy, sar-
casm and humor rarely seen in previous
punk outfits.
A break-up in 1982 found the band going
their separate ways with Rikk and Casey for-
ming DI and Tony starting up the Abandon-
ed. After releasing two LP's, DI, which still
exists and is fronted by Royer on vocals, was
quick to climb to the top of the LA scene.
playing larger and larger gigs all the time.
The Abandoned, who are also still active.
released an LP last year and attained some
notoriety for Cadena's vocal work.
Spring 1986 saw the Adolescents once
again gigging around LA, playing to new
and old fans alike. With the album line-up
reunited, they were quick to re-establish the
power that had once defined them as 'the
sound of LA punk." A brief East Coast tour
ensued. after which the band picked up a
new drummer and another Agnew brother.
Alfie. replaced Frank in the axe-slinging
department. A second LP "Brats and Bat-
talions will soon be released by LA's
Rebirth Records.
"It was Rikk's idea to get jamming again."
reveals Tony. "He made a few phone calls
and got it happening. Neither of our other
bands were doing badly; we just wanted to
get playing together again! though we
might fall apart in three months
The three-and-a-half-year split seemed to
be highly beneficial for the band, teaching
them a variety of lessons and giving them
a new outlook on continuing You learn
lessons from everything you do." says Tony
"It's a pain in the ass going from a larger
band to a smaller band since it forces you
to have to live something down. A lot of
clubs and booking agents don't want to deal
with me or the Abandoned because of the
Adolescents. They think I'm a troublemaker,
and since they don't see a huge amount of
money coming in, they don't want to deal.
It's a business. They really don't want to
book smaller bands. It's hard for the Aban-
doned to get shows but DI aren't really hav
ing any problems. Now, going back and do-
ing the Adolescents once more is a total tur-
naround. A lot of people are overly anxious
to talk to us about playing their shows
For many bands, getting back together
after tremendous notoriety tends to invite
criticism along the lines of "need money"
or want to be as successful as they were."
Tony disagrees. "That whole type of
criticism is an attitude. What can you say?
People have confronted me with that, and
I simply tell them that the band sat down,
ironed out our past differences and came.
to the realization that we could make it work
again. Then, after the first practice, we knew
it would work.
What originally broke the band up was
that Rikk and I had a falling out right after
the album was released, so he left. We went
through a couple guitar players, and then
Frank and Steve quit to join Legal Weapon.
Me and Casey wanted to keep the
Adolescents going, but we weren't finding
any musicians. After that, we simply went
our own direction."
Over three years of growth in both per-
sonal and musical terms have led to a rather
changed Adolescents. While maintaining
their trademark approach, an added punch
is delivered in terms of musical and lyrical
development. Tony seems a little more world
wary, forsaking adolescent (no pun) anger
for other feelings and heartfelt emotions.
You turn on the news and see kids being
shot in the head every day. It doesn't mat
ter it it's in South Africa or Lebanon or
wherever. It still affects you. You simply grow
up and see things happen like your best
friends dying. Your outlook on things
changes. A lot of the topics we're writing
about now were hinted at on the first album,
but they're a lot more refined Our new
songs tend to be a lot more political"
As for the future, the Adolescents see
bright signs ahead. With a US tour and the
release of a new. full-length LP. Cadena re-
mains hopeful. "We're happy with what we
are now, and I think it will work out in the
future We have considered changing the
name, though. The Adolescents reflect an
entire period, and I'm not too sure if that is
relevant anymore Still, it makes getting
shows easier. Looking at how the punk
scene has changed, it's gotten a lot more
violent and there are just too many groups
and factions that only seem interested in
beating people up. 1 like a lot of the smaller.
more personal shows myself. It's great to be)
back, though
Tony Cadena
RE