A punk band formed in early 1991, Rancid, is credited largely for renewing mainstream interest in the punk scene during the 1990's.
Band Members
Rancid was formed in California by Matt Freeman and Tim Armstrong, with Armstrong on both guitar and vocals, Freeman on vocals and bass, and Lars Frederiksen on guitar and vocals. Until recently, Brett Reed was Rancid's drummer, but he left the band in 2006.
Reed was summarily replaced by Branden Steineckert, former drummer for The Used. As such, Freeman and Armstrong are the only 2 remaining original members of the band, as Frederiksen did not join the band until 1993.
History and Success
In 1989, after the breakup of Operation Ivy, Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman came together to form Rancid.
For a time, the current lead singer for Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong, joined the band prior to Frederiksen's appearance. Not only did Billie Joe co-write the song "Radio," he also performed at a concert in 1993.
Originally, Frederiksen had been asked to join the band, but declined due to his committment to the "UK Subs." Billie Joe Armstrong was then asked to become a full-fledged member of Rancid, but chose to stay with Green Day full-time.
Eventually, Frederiksen left the UK Subs to join Rancid full-time.
Throughout the mid-90's, Rancid became widely popular and embarked on non-stop tours from 1993-1998. After the success of "Let's Go," Rancid was approached by several major name record labels but chose to remain with Epitaph Records to release their first 4 studio albums.
In 2000, Rancid's second self-titled album was released on Hellcat Records, and their followup 2003 album was released on Hellcat as well.
Let's Take a Break
From 2004 to 2005, Rancid disappeared from fans' radar, though throughout this time period the band never broke up. Members continued working on side projects, with Armstrong continuing to play in The Transplants.
After their 2004 release of "Indestructible", it appeared the band wanted to do their own thing for a time.
Now...
As of now, Rancid's as-yet-unnamed studio album, whose release date has continued to be pushed back, is not expected to drop until sometime this Fall.
As for Steineckert, who was let go from The Used for undisclosed reasons, he appears happy with Rancid and does not feel bitter about his situation.
Throughout the 90's, California punk band Rancid was undoubtedly a key figure in the punk interest revival with their hard-hitting lyrics and innovative sound.
From "Ruby SoHo" and "Time Bomb" to "Fall Back Down," songs like these and others are easily recognizable as Rancid hits. Whatever happens to Rancid, now or 10 years down the line, their music will always be remembered as an influence to bringing punk music back into mainstream culture.
Denise Shively - I've worked as a freelance writer for two years now, and I've enjoyed having a job that's as flexible as mine. My career has seen its fair ...
