This Californian “Punk Rock” band (the classification no longer applies in the strict sense) may have been formed in the late '80s, and so far released several splits (with Slip, UK Subs, AFI, Youth Brigade, Wham Bam Bodyslam and Modern Action), 12 singles/ EPs, two live albums (1996's Live At The Fireside Bowl EP and the 2004 full-length Live In A Dive) two compilation albums, and a total of 8 studio albums (the current one included, that's 1992 debut album Scared, 1995's The Streets Of San Francisco, 1996's A Juvenile Product Of The Working Class – their first through Fat Wreck Chords, 1998's Five Lessons Learned, 2000's Swingin' Utters, 2003's Dead Flowers, Bottles, Bluegrass, And Bones, and 2011's Here, Under Protest), but as it happens I have never come across the guys before!
Originally the band was founded in Santa Cruz, but later they moved to San Francisco, and went under the name of Johnny Peebucks and the Swingin' Utters, with a line-up including Johnny “Peebucks” Bonnel (lead vocals), Darius Koski (guitar/ accordion), Kevin Wickersham (bass) and Greg cEntree (drums). Back then, their sound was strongly influenced by British Street Punk acts such as The Clash, Sham 69, Sex Pistols and Stiff Little Fingers, but over the years more and more Roots Rock elements came into play (at one time, Koski was found stating, “I've always thought of our songs as just loud, aggressive and fast Folk or Country songs”). With Bonnel, Koski and McEntree as constants, the band went through several line-up changes, with current second guitarist Jack Dalrymple (been with SU since 2002, if I ain't mistaken) now preceded by 3 former guitarists and newest addition Miles Peck replacing longstanding bassist Spike Slawson (whom was with the band from 1997) last year. Although Bonnel is cited as the lead singer, other members of the band have repeatedly taken over that function from him. Note that the band was on hiatus from 2003 to 2010, when they returned with the EP Brand New Lungs.
Over the years (and more so during the hiatus) members of SU went on side-projects. Most notably, there's been Filthy Thievin' Bastardrs (formed in 2000 and including Bonnel, Koski and Slawson), Druglords Of the Avenues (formed in 2004 with Bonnel singing), Me First And The Gimme Gimmes (in which Slawson sings)...but McEntree also joined Viva Hate in 2007, the Re-Volts are fronted by Slawson (and had Koski and Dalrymple playing guitar on the first album). Dalrymple, by the way, was also the former singer/ guitarist for fellow Fat Wreck Chords band Dead To me, and currently still plays guitar and sings in One Man Army. In other words, a busy-body type of band!
Five songs off the new 14-track album (lead single “Librarians Are Hiding Something”, “Take A Walk With The Postman”, album title song “Poorly Formed”, “Brains” and the Country diddy “I'm A Little Bit Country”) can be found at (www.) myspace.com/swinginutters, and form a perfect promotion plateau for the album which, by the way, commemorates the band's 25th year of existence! Enjoy...