Rancid took the music scene by storm in the early '90s, re-introducing the punk/ska sound to a new generation. Before heading into the studio to finish their 8th album, Rancid hit the road to celebrate their 20th anniversary with frontman Tim Armstrong’s other band Transplants, and The Interrupters, ending with a two night stint across The Bay from their hometown at the famous Warfield Theater in San Francisco. I was able to catch the first night of the celebration.
The opening band, The Interrupters, led by music veteran Aimee Allen with brothers Kevin, Justin, and Jesse Bivona, started the party off right, delivering a solid set of songs from their upcoming debut album, along with a ska’d up version of The Riviera’s surf-song “California Sun." Appropriately, Tim Armstrong came out to play “My Family," a track they play together on the album, which started Armstrong’s busy night. The Interrupters are definitely a band to be on the lookout for and fans of the genre will be anxiously waiting for their album due later this year.
Southern California’s Transplants, the brain child of rapper “Skinhead Rob” Aston featuring Armstrong, The Interrupters bassist Kevin Bivona, and Blink-182’s drummer Travis Barker, started their set with the title track from their new album In A Warzone, pulling songs from all 3 of their albums. Of course, highlights included, “Gangsters & Guns,” “Apocalypse Now,” and “Diamond and Guns” and they even brought up original bassist and punk legend Matt Freeman to play on a song. They closed their 18-song set with “Tall Cans Of Air” off their first album, which sent the floor into a mosh pit frenzy.
The night couldn’t have concluded better with Rancid coming out starting their 29-song set with “Radio," covering their entire 20-year career with hits “The 11th Hour,” “Roots Radical,” “East Bay Night” their newest single from the upcoming album F**k You. After a brief rest, the band came out and ended the show with encores “Timebomb,” “Hooligans,” and the song that really launched their career, “Ruby Soho," where The Interrupters and Transplant joined them onstage to belt out the song with the rest of the crowd.
Rancid sounded very tight and polished throughout, enthusiastically playing to the hometown crowd, showing that there is nothing slowing them down and we may see more decade-marking anniversary tours. Fans will welcome the new album with open arms, and The Interrupters' debut, both out later this year.
Photo courtesy of Andrew Wilson/www.rockmonthly.com