D.O.A.

D.O.A.
Joey Shithead (2004)
Background information
Origin	Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genres	Punk rock, hardcore punk
Years active	1978–Present
Labels	Sudden Death
Members
Joey Shithead Dan Yaremko James Hayden
Former members
Chuck Biscuits Randy Rampage Dave Gregg Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde Wimpy Roy Greg James Dimwit Chris Prohom Jon Card Ken Jensen Ford Pier John Wright Brien O'Brien The Great Baldini Kuba Ohms

D.O.A. is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, BC. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many^[1] to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore. Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history. However, original bassist Randy Rampage has been active in the band in recent years and has played on two of the band's last three albums, although he is not in the current lineup. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Jello Biafra titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.

D.O.A. has always maintained an uncompromising anarchist populist political stance. The band is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk minus Action equals Zero." The band has been active on many issues, including Anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and the environment.

Founder Joe Keithley now spends a great deal of time working with his record company Sudden Death Records which has branched off into many areas of music.

History

D.O.A was preceded by The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk-rock band that included future D.O.A members Joey “Shithead” Keithley, Brian “Wimpy Roy” Goble and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.

When the Skulls broke up, Joey Shithead (guitar/vocals) formed D.O.A with Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums and Randy Rampage on bass and vocals. The band put out a few singles and E.P.'s on Shithead's own Sudden Death label, and toured North America, sometimes with violent clashes with audience members and police. Their early sound was very basic, raw singalong melodic punk rock, with a lot of similarity to early punk bands like The Sex Pistols and the early albums by The Clash and The Ramones.

In 1980, they added second guitarist Dave Gregg, and put out their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records. This was followed quickly by Hardcore '81, which is often credited with being the namesake for the hardcore punk movement. The music, as well, had gotten faster and more powerful and dynamic, a blueprint for the emerging hardcore sound.

After Hardcore '81, both Chuck Biscuits and Randy Rampage left the band, to be replaced by ex-Skulls members Dimwit on drums and Wimpy Roy on bass, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last several years and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued, with Dimwit replaced by Jon Card after Let's Wreck The Party and Dave Gregg replaced by Chris Prohom after True (North) Strong And Free.

1990's Murder featured a return to a rawer production sound, albeit with an almost thrash-metal sound, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedy's singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. After a 1991 live album, entitled Talk Minus Action = 0, the band announced it was breaking up.

However, within two years, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A with new drummer Ken Jansen. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 90's, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 80's with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright of Nomeansno, who also played keyboards on the recordings.

Tragedy struck the band in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire, which spawned the "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals, and recorded The Black Spot with John Wright filling in on drums. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 70's and early 80's output.

The late 90's found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers, managing to release another album of basic hardcore punk-rock style music with Festival Of Atheists. By the early 00's, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by bassist Dan Yaremko.

"Win The Battle" was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, many of which had been out of print for many years.

In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21st to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary.^[2] In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.

The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. ^[3] In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.

D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.

Discography

Studio Albums

• Something Better Change (1980)
• Hardcore '81 (1981)
• War on 45 (1982)
• Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
• True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
• Murder (1990)
• Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (1990)
• 13 Flavours Of Doom (1992)
• Loggerheads (1993)
• The Black Spot (1995)
• Festival Of Atheists (1998)
• Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
• Win The Battle (2002)
• Live Free Or Die (2004)
• Northern Avenger (2008)
• Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)

Compilation Albums

• Bloodied But Unbowed (1984)
• The Dawning Of A New Error (1985)
• Greatest Shits (1991)
• Moose Droppings (1993)
• The Lost Tapes (1998)
• War And Peace (2003)
• Greatest Shits (2005)

Live Albums

• Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)

Singles, 7"s, EPs

• Disco Sucks (4-song 7inch EP on Sudden Death)
• The Prisoner/Thirteen (7-inch on Quintessence)
• Disco Sucks (re-released on Quintessence)
• World War Three/Whatcha Gonna Do (7-inch on Quintessence; Ltd edition on Sudden Death)
• Triumph Of The Ignoroids (4-sing 12-inch EP on Friends Records)
• White Noise Tour (bootleg) (??)
• Positively D.O.A. (7-inch EP on Alternative Tentacles)
• Right To Be Wild (7-inch single feat. Fuck You b/w Burn It Down)
• General Strike/That's Life (7-inch single)
• Don't Turn Yer Back... (Peel Session) (4-song 12-inch EP on Alternative Tentacles)
• Expo Hurts Everyone (7-inch EP with 3 other bands)
• It's Not Unusual (7-inch EP on Alternative Tentacles)
• The Only Thing Green
• Ken Jensen Memorial Single (7-inch EP on Alternative Tentacles)
• Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll
• Split w/ d.b.s.
• Nervous Breakdown
• Beat 'Em, Bust 'Em
• Just Play It Over And Over
• Are U Ready (Split with Thor)

Music Videos

• World War III
• War
• Dance O' Death
• Takin' Care Of Business
• Behind The Smile
• We Know What You Want
• Where Evil Grows
• Death Machine
• Hole In The Sky
• I See Your Cross
• Order
• World Falls Apart
• Driving To Hell And Back
• Mexican Holiday
• Police Brutality
• Human Bomb

Videos

• Best Of Flipside
• Live at the Assassination Club (1984)
• Warrior (1986)
• The End
• Greatest Shits Video
• Smash The State (2007)
• Police Brutality (2009)

Compilations

• Vancouver Complication
• Let Them Eat Jellybeans
• Rat Music For Rat People
• Something To Believe In
• Terminal City Ricochet soundtrack
• More Than A State Of Mind
• Last Call
• Short Music For Short People
• Return of the Read Menace
• You Call This Music?! Volume 1
• P.E.A.C.E./War
• Smells Like Bleach: A Punk Tribute to Nirvana
• Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1
• Canucks Punk Rock
• Guest vocal on "more drugs , more cops, more prisons" from Canadian Prog Punk band Removal

Books

• I, Shithead: A Life in Punk (Arsenal Pulp Press) link

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: D.O.A. (band)

• The official D.O.A. myspace
• Sudden Death records
• ROCKWORLDEAST-DOA's Licensed Merchandise Manufacturer
• Interview with Joey Shithead
• Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
• Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
• Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
• Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
• The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008