A lot of punk rock icons
from the 1980s and ‘90s have caught hell from diehard fans for softening their
sound over recent years. Many have even signed to major labels or tailored
their image to mainstream media like MTV, iTunes, or Rolling Stone. But California quartet NOFX isn’t much different
than they were back in 1983.
Fat Mike, El Hefe, Eric
Melvin and Erik Sandin still write immature songs about downing copious amounts
of illegal substances. They still thrash, mosh, and kick the shit out of each
other on stage. They still poke fun at organized religion, narrow-minded
politics, and conformist culture. And they still maintain a notoriously prickly
relationship with the media, shunning most interview requests, denouncing commercial
radio, and preferring to let their fiery, comedic brand of old-school
skate-punk do the talking.
But in recent years, NOFX
has elevated their longstanding stereotype as perpetually juvenile punk-rock miscreants.
They entered the political fray with their Punk Voter organization in the early
2000s. They tackled mature songwriting subjects like death, substance abuse,
and depression on their last few records. And yes, they did piss off plenty of
longtime fans when they agreed to film a “Backstage Passport” reality show for
Fuse TV.
But when EasternSurf.com woke Fat Mike up at 5:00
p.m. on a recent Friday afternoon, the 43-year-old father, avid poker player,
and Fat Wreck Chords owner still had some choice words for his current
songwriting mindset, his controversial Cokie The Clown alter ego, and punk
rock’s current state of affairs.
ESM: How’s
it going Mike?
Fat Mike: Well,
I wasn’t planning on coming to Vegas last night, but I did, so you’re my
wake-up call.
ESM: Sorry
about that. I hear you just bought a house in Sin City. Are you excited to be
living somewhere new?
FM: I’m not living in Vegas. I just bought a vacation home here. It’s actually a
super punk house where I can party, all the walls are covered with punk fliers,
there’s a pool table and a putting green… It’s like a vacation house for me,
but I am going to rent it out for $2500 a week.
ESM: Sounds
like the best reason to visit Vegas I’ve ever heard. Your latest release, The
Longest EP, compiles some of NOFX’s best non-album tracks from the last 25
years. Is that a sign that solid old-school punk is back on the rise?
FM: That’d
be pretty cool if it was. Yeah, that last comp was really good. Everyone seems
to like it. Punk rock got real poppy for a while, and it’s kind of coming back
to just being punk.
ESM: Any
special motivation for your upcoming East Coast tour?
FM: No
motivation — every six weeks we go out on a three-week tour. It’s just
kind of what we do.
ESM: You
had a hardcore anti-George W. Bush campaign going on in the early 2000s. Is
today’s politically charged landscape still motivating you?
FM: Well,
it’s always hard to write songs — even when Bush was in office. But I was
only singing a few songs about the guy. I just write about whatever I’m
feeling. I’m off the politics right now.
ESM: Your
last full-length Coaster boasted a lot of personal songwriting. Is your own life
more of a motivator these days?
FM: Actually,
since Coaster, I’ve only written one song, called “He Was A Teenage
Existentialist.” So I really don’t know what my songwriting on the next record
is going to be about. All I know is that I’m not really interested in writing
one right now.
ESM: Give
us the lowdown on your controversial Cokie The Clown performance last March at
SXSW, where you painted your face sad-clown style and performed brutally
honest songs about wrestling with your parents’ deaths. Meanwhile, the media
focused on the fact that you may or may not have served the audience tequila
shots mixed with your own urine.
FM: I
know! It sucks how the tequila thing overshadowed everything else, because the
performance was about telling sad stories… And all anybody wants to talk about
is pee drinking. Plus, if you’re not being brutally honest, what are you doing?
ESM: The
whole idea behind the performance seemed daring — surprising the audience
with this emotional, almost overbearing sense of sadness. I notice a lot of
older bands out on tour are letting their fans pick the set list, perhaps to
increase audience involvement. Any chance of that happening? Or will you be
sticking to new material?
FM: No, we
don’t play that much new stuff. I write the set list every night, so I guess I
do the opposite — I can change the set list, but I can’t have the list
change me. I’m not going do what the fucking crowd says. Fuck that. We give ‘em
what we give ‘em, and they’re gonna love it.
ESM: You
pursued professional poker for a while. Are you still earning money off of that?
FM: Not
really. I spent a couple of years playing professionally, but it takes too much
time and patience to be good. I’m so busy with other shit in my life that I
just play in the occasional tournament now and then.
ESM: That
other shit includes a new bar and restaurant you recently opened in New York
City, the Thistle Hill Tavern. Give us the lowdown on that.
FM: My
friends wanted to open a space, and it was a perfect location, good price,
great chef. So that’s been working out really good.
ESM: Should
we expect more of that type of branching out from you and NOFX in the future?
FM: No, I
don’t want to branch out, but the music business is getting destroyed, so you
have to diversify now. I don’t ever go looking for investments, but if somebody
hits me in the face, then I’m going to look at it.
ESM: Tell
us what you really think about the music business. Have things gone all digital
for you at Fat Wreck Chords, or have the recent compilations you’ve released
that focus on packaging and liner notes turned back the clock a bit?
FM: Yeah,
[those compilations are] more appetizing for people than just music, which
sucks, because it’s all about music. But it’s kind of sad, because kids today
don’t buy albums, they buy songs, and I think that’s bad for music. But you
know, if the music is getting into people’s houses, it’s fine with me.
ESM: As
the head of Fat Wreck, do you have any young bands on the program we should be
looking out for?
FM: I just
signed Old Man Markley, this bluegrass punk band, and they’re blowing everyone
away. Make sure you get to these upcoming shows early, because they’re really
cool. Kind of like a U.S. version of Flogging Molly.
ESM: Do
you advise a band like Old Man Markley to follow NOFX’s lead, doing things
strictly the DIY way?
FM: You
know what? I don’t think there’s any way to do it anymore [laughs]. Just do it
because you love it. Great bands will get lucky sometimes, but it’s not about
success — it’s about making music. That’s the difference from when we
started; it wasn’t about success then, because there wasn’t success. It was
just about making music.
ESM: Did
you ever think NOFX would last this long?
FM: No
fucking way we thought we’d make it this long. We never thought about anything
like that. We just thought, “This is pretty fun. Let’s keep doing it.”
NOFX TOUR DATES:
1/20 House Of Blues………………………
Dallas, TX
1/20 Doublewide (Afterparty)…………….. Dallas, TX
1/21 Backstage Live………………………. San Antonio, TX
1/22 House Of Blues………………………
Houston, TX
1/24 House Of Blues……………………… New Orleans, LA
1/25 Maverick’s……………………………. Jacksonville, FL
1/27 House Of Blues……………………… Orlando, FL
1/28 Revolution……………………………. Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1/28 Original Fat Cats (Afterparty)………. Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1/29 8 Seconds Nightclub & Bar………… Gainesville, FL
1/31 House Of Blues……………………… Myrtle Beach, SC
2/1 Masquerade…………………………. Atlanta, GA
2/3 Valarium……………………………… Knoxville, TN
2/4 The Fillmore…………………………. Charlotte, NC
2/5 Norva…………………………………. Norfolk, VA
For all things NOFX, visit www.nofxofficialwebsite.com
