Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).
Middle/Born in '69 (1995)
I've touched on it before, but the Seattle 'Splosion of 1991 led the major labels to sign any band within a 50-mile radius that had even held a guitar, let alone played it. When they ran out of Washington State acts to sign, the labels started looking for other scenes to mine for grunge gold. One of those scenes was in San Diego, where a new band called Rocket from the Crypt was making a lot of noise.
John "Speedo" Reis, who started RFTC in 1990, also formed Drive Like Jehu that year. Eventually, the punk act added a horn section, which created a high-speed sound that really filled a room. In '92, they signed to Interscope Records, which re-released their singles comp All Systems Go.
Eventually, the band released Scream, Dracula, Scream! in October 1995, perfecting their furious combination of breakneck punk and '50s rockabilly to create an amazing new hybrid. Horns were a part of the ska scene, but you didn't hear too many punk bands incorporate horns into their like RFTC. These weren't cheesy sax solos, but rather the horn section accompanying the guitars to create a monolithic roar. Atom Willard's pounding drums propel the music along.
On Scream, Dracula, Scream! RTFC managed to perfect the sound they'd been working toward for years. Reis' raspy but powerful vocals on top of the massive roar of RFTC in full effect. The band always had potential, but on this album, they just pulverized their material. Big riffs, blasting horns, gang choruses...RTFC was ready to rumble at a moment's notice.
They weren't above schtick, as the band started dressing in matching bowling shirts. I saw them at the Middle East downstairs for this tour and they powered through an entertaining set, all led by the charismatic Speedo. RFTC just plowed through song after song, forcing you to pay attention as they kicked your ass.
I cheated a bit for this song because I went for the lead-in to Scream, Dracula, Scream, which is actually two songs: The intro "Middle" asks the listener the crucial questions: "Are you stick in the middle? Say are you broke, are you down?/Are you broke? And down?/Broke? And down?"
After a minute, "Middle" goes right into "Born in '69," as the song seemingly slams on the brakes.
"Your inspiration is a memory/That you know you never had/Your desperation lies before me/And you only kick half-ass."
RFTC is nothing if not catchy, and their live show is electrifying and exhilarating. It's unrelentingly heavy but it's got that '60s feel that somehow lightens the mood at the same time. While the album didn't sell big numbers in the U.S., it was bigger in the U.K., where "On a Rope" hit #12 on the singles chart. In the U.S., RFTC got some play on MTV and opened for the likes of Rancid and Soundgarden.
In 1998, Rocket from the Crypt released the album RFTC and had a high-profile gig opening for the ascendant Foo Fighters, but the album didn't do well. I saw them open for the Foos in Boston and Portland and they were amazing, but that album marked the end of their major label days. They released two more albums before splitting up in 2005. RTFC reunited in 2011 to play on the kids' show Yo Gabba Gabba and then did a full reunion a year later, playing shows in the U.S., Europe and Australia. There have been occasional festival gigs but for the most part the band has been dormant as Reis tours with other bands like the Hot Snakes, the Night Marchers and Plosivs.
One of the early gimmicks RFTC put into play was allowing anyone who got a tattoo of the RFTC rocket into their shows for free; it was the only time I even considered getting a tat.
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