The next time you find yourself amidst a swarm of bloodsucking insects, don’t reach for the bright orange can of mosquito repellent, just turn up the volume on hardcore/punk’s newest supergroup, OFF!. If the group’s ferocious tempos and razor-sharp melodies don’t eliminate the winged intruders, you’ll be thrashing too hard to care.
OFF! consists of Keith Morris (Black Flag, Circle Jerks) on vocals, Dimitri Coats (Burning Brides) on guitar, Steve McDonald (Redd Kross) on bass, and Mario Rubalcaba (Rocket From The Crypt) on drums. Back in late ’09, Coats and Morris began penning tracks for a now-scrapped Circle Jerks record, and although this record will never see the light of day, the duo were determined to continue collaborating. The next step was adding a rhythm section, so Coats and Morris called up two veteran Southern Californian punks and longtime acquaintances in Rubalcaba and McDonald.
The quartet debuted at this year’s South By Southwest Music Festival but have only recently landed a recording contract with Vice Records. And the foursome isn’t wasting any time getting to work on new material. According to Vice, OFF! will release 4 EPs comprising a total of 16 songs during 2010.
The first release, aptly titled 1st EP, will be issued October 12th as a limited edition 7-inch with artwork and an exclusive poster courtesy of living legend, and Black Flag’s visual artist, Raymond Pettibon. Clocking in at just over four minutes, 1st EP gives a concise indication of what can be expected–four professionals honing their craft to bare-bones perfection.
The complete set, which is getting the equally mundane name First Four EPs, will follow on November 23rd as a four 7-inch EP box set. Each EP of the set features its own Pettibon cover art.
And if you caught our announcement for the upcoming Fun Fun Fun Fest, it’s no surprise that OFF! will continue touring as they finalize their newly recorded tracks. According to guitarist Coats, live performances will be topping off at 20 minutes, so the foursome plan to play as many shows as possible in the coming months. Currently, none of the dates have been announced. But check out the three upcoming festival appearances below.
OFF! 2010 Tour Dates:
09/04 – Los Angeles, CA @ FYF Fest
10/09 – Chicago, IL @ Riot Fest *
11/07 – Austin, TX @ Fun Fun Fun Fest
* = with Cro-Mags
