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D.O.A. is a hardcore punk
Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America and the UK in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally thicker, heavier and faster than earlier punk rock....
 band from Vancouver
Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal city and major seaport located in the Lower Mainland of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest city in British Columbia and the second largest metropolitan area in the Pacific Northwest region....
, BC. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag
Black Flag (band)

Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established largely as the brainchild of Greg Ginn: the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes....
, Bad Brains
Bad Brains

Bad Brains are an American hardcore punk/roots reggae band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1977. They are widely regarded as being among the pioneers of the genre, though the band's members objected to the term "hardcore" to describe their music....
, and Minor Threat
Minor Threat

Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band that formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. Despite being so short-lived, the band had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene....
. Their second album Hardcore '81
Hardcore '81

Hardcore '81 is an album by the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . It is considered by some to be the first reference to the North American Punk rock scene as hardcore....
 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore
Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America and the UK in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally thicker, heavier and faster than earlier punk rock....
. 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
Randy Rampage

Randy Rampage is a founding member & bass player of the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . Seminal early punk recordings are with drummer Chuck Biscuits and vocalist/guitarist Joe Shithead in Something Better Change and with the same lineup plus guitarist Dave Gregg in Hardcore 81....
 has rejoined DOA after a long absence and is in the current lineup.






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D.O.A. is a hardcore punk
Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America and the UK in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally thicker, heavier and faster than earlier punk rock....
 band from Vancouver
Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal city and major seaport located in the Lower Mainland of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest city in British Columbia and the second largest metropolitan area in the Pacific Northwest region....
, BC. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag
Black Flag (band)

Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established largely as the brainchild of Greg Ginn: the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes....
, Bad Brains
Bad Brains

Bad Brains are an American hardcore punk/roots reggae band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1977. They are widely regarded as being among the pioneers of the genre, though the band's members objected to the term "hardcore" to describe their music....
, and Minor Threat
Minor Threat

Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band that formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. Despite being so short-lived, the band had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene....
. Their second album Hardcore '81
Hardcore '81

Hardcore '81 is an album by the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . It is considered by some to be the first reference to the North American Punk rock scene as hardcore....
 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore
Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America and the UK in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally thicker, heavier and faster than earlier punk rock....
. 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
Randy Rampage

Randy Rampage is a founding member & bass player of the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . Seminal early punk recordings are with drummer Chuck Biscuits and vocalist/guitarist Joe Shithead in Something Better Change and with the same lineup plus guitarist Dave Gregg in Hardcore 81....
 has rejoined DOA after a long absence and is in the current lineup. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra

Eric Reed Boucher , more widely known by the stage name Jell-O Biafra, is an United Statesn musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party ....
's Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles

Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California ?ber Alles," and after realizing the potential for an independent label, they released records for other bands as well....
 Records, and they have released an album with Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra

Eric Reed Boucher , more widely known by the stage name Jell-O Biafra, is an United Statesn musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party ....
 titled Last Scream Of The Missing Neighbors
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors

This is a 1990 punk rock album born out of a collaboration between two punk stalwarts, Jello Biafra and Vancouver, Canada band D.O.A. . The album is notable for a 14-minute, furious, political rant called "Full Metal Jackoff." Based on the events of the time, the song references such topics as Willie Horton, the Iran-Contra Affair, Oliver North, th...
.

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-racism

Anti-racism includes beliefs, actions, movements, and policies adopted or developed to oppose racism. In general, anti-racism is intended to promote an egalitarian society in which people do not face discrimination on the basis of their Race , however defined....
, anti-globalization
Anti-globalization

"Anti-globalization" is a term that encompasses a number of related ideas. What is shared is that participants stand in opposition to the unregulated political power of large, multi-national corporations, and the powers exercised through trade agreements....
, freedom of speech
Freedom of speech

Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship or limitation. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes used to denote not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used....
, and the environment.

Founder Joe Keithley now spends a great deal of time working with his record company Sudden Death Records
Sudden Death Records

Sudden Death Records is a Vancouver, British Columbia based record label run by Joey Shithead.Sudden Death Records arrived in Canada's burgeoning punk music scene in 1978 in music....
 which has branched off into many areas of music.

History


D.O.A was preceded by The Skulls
The Skulls (Canadian band)

The Skulls were an early Vancouver punk rock band whose members would later found two of the area's most influential bands: D.O.A. and Subhumans ....
, 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
Chuck Biscuits

Chuck Biscuits was a drummer for Victorian Pork, D.O.A. , Pointed Sticks, The Subhumans , Randy Rampage, Black Flag , Circle Jerks, Descendents , Brown Sound, Red Hot Chili Peppers , Weirdos , Fear , Floorlords, Samhain , Danzig , The Four Horsemen and most recently, Social Distortion....
 on drums and Randy Rampage
Randy Rampage

Randy Rampage is a founding member & bass player of the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . Seminal early punk recordings are with drummer Chuck Biscuits and vocalist/guitarist Joe Shithead in Something Better Change and with the same lineup plus guitarist Dave Gregg in Hardcore 81....
 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
The Clash

The Clash were an English Rock music band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk rock. Along with punk rock, they experimented with reggae, ska, Dub music, funk, Hip hop music and rockabilly....
 and The Ramones.

In 1980, they added second guitarist Dave Gregg, and put out their full-length debut Something Better Change
Something Better Change

Something Better Change is the debut album by Canada punk rock band D.O.A. . The album was recorded between 1977 and 1980 in Vancouver, BC, Canada and was released in 1980 in on the label Can....
 on Friends Records. This was followed quickly by Hardcore '81
Hardcore '81

Hardcore '81 is an album by the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . It is considered by some to be the first reference to the North American Punk rock scene as hardcore....
, which is often credited with being the namesake for the hardcore punk
Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America and the UK in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally thicker, heavier and faster than earlier punk rock....
 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
War on 45

War on 45 was an eight-song 12" EP released by the hardcore punk band D.O.A. in 1982. It was re-released in 2005 on CD with an additional eleven songs, but without the composition "Let's Fuck," for a total of eighteen tracks....
 (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
Jello Biafra

Eric Reed Boucher , more widely known by the stage name Jell-O Biafra, is an United Statesn musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party ....
 with Last Scream Of The Missing Neighbors
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors

This is a 1990 punk rock album born out of a collaboration between two punk stalwarts, Jello Biafra and Vancouver, Canada band D.O.A. . The album is notable for a 14-minute, furious, political rant called "Full Metal Jackoff." Based on the events of the time, the song references such topics as Willie Horton, the Iran-Contra Affair, Oliver North, th...
. 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
13 Flavours Of Doom

13 Flavours Of Doom is the eighth album from Canada hardcore punk band, D.O.A. . It was released in 1992 on band member Joe Keithley's own record label, Sudden Death Records, and also in the UK on Alternative Tentacles....
 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
John Wright

John Wright may refer to:...
 of Nomeansno
Nomeansno

NoMeansNo is a punk rock music group originally from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada and now located in Vancouver, British Columbia.The band has never had, nor have they seemed to pursue, strong mainstream success, but they do have a devoted underground culture following in North America and Europe....
, who also played keyboards on the recordings.

Tragedy struck the band in 1995 when drummer Ken Jansen died in a house fire. The band then added Ford Pier
Ford Pier

Ford Pier is a Canada singer-songwriter.In addition to his solo albums, he has been a member of Jr. Gone Wild and D.O.A. , and has appeared as a guest musician on albums by Carolyn Mark, Martin Tielli, Showbusiness Giants, Veda Hille, Rheostatics, John Mann and Neko Case....
 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 line-up 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
Larry Campbell

Larry W. Campbell is the former Mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and a Member of the Canadian Senate. Starting in 1969 Campbell worked for the RCMP in Vancouver and then in 1973 as a member of the Drug Squad....
 declared December 21st to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. 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 line=up 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
Bob Rock

Robert Jens Rock, aka Bob Rock,, is a Canada musician, sound engineer, and record producer....
, of Metallica
Metallica

Metallica is an American heavy metal music band that formed in 1981 in Los Angeles. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett, while going through a number of bassists....
 fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. 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.

Discography


Albums

  • Something Better Change
    Something Better Change

    Something Better Change is the debut album by Canada punk rock band D.O.A. . The album was recorded between 1977 and 1980 in Vancouver, BC, Canada and was released in 1980 in on the label Can....
     (1980)
  • Hardcore '81
    Hardcore '81

    Hardcore '81 is an album by the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. . It is considered by some to be the first reference to the North American Punk rock scene as hardcore....
     (1981)
  • War on 45
    War on 45

    War on 45 was an eight-song 12" EP released by the hardcore punk band D.O.A. in 1982. It was re-released in 2005 on CD with an additional eleven songs, but without the composition "Let's Fuck," for a total of eighteen tracks....
     (1982)
  • Bloodied But Unbowed (1984)
  • Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
  • The Dawning Of A New Error (1985)
  • True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
  • Murder (1990)
  • Last Scream Of The Missing Neighbors
    Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors

    This is a 1990 punk rock album born out of a collaboration between two punk stalwarts, Jello Biafra and Vancouver, Canada band D.O.A. . The album is notable for a 14-minute, furious, political rant called "Full Metal Jackoff." Based on the events of the time, the song references such topics as Willie Horton, the Iran-Contra Affair, Oliver North, th...
     (1990)
  • Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
  • Greatest Shits (1991)
  • 13 Flavours Of Doom
    13 Flavours Of Doom

    13 Flavours Of Doom is the eighth album from Canada hardcore punk band, D.O.A. . It was released in 1992 on band member Joe Keithley's own record label, Sudden Death Records, and also in the UK on Alternative Tentacles....
     (1992)
  • Moose Droppings (1993)
  • Loggerheads (1993)
  • The Black Spot (1995)
  • The Lost Tapes (1998)
  • Festival Of Atheists (1998)
  • Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
  • Win The Battle (2002)
  • War And Peace (2003)
  • Live Free Or Die (2004)
  • Greatest Shits (2005)
  • Northern Avenger (2008)


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
  • The Only Thing Green
  • Ken Jensen Memorial Single
  • Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll
  • Split w/ d.b.s.
    D.b.s.

    d.b.s. were a punk rock band from North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. From their beginnings in 1992 to their eventual breakup in 2001, they gained some popularity in the Canadian punk rock scene ....
  • Nervous Breakdown
  • Beat 'Em, Bust 'Em
  • Just Play It Over And Over
  • Are U Ready (Split with Thor)


Videos

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


Compilations

  • Vancouver Complication
    Vancouver Complication

    Vancouver Complication is a compilation album featuring many influential Vancouver Punk rock bands. It was released in 1979, and has been reissued a number of times with several different cover designs....
  • Let Them Eat Jellybeans
    Let Them Eat Jellybeans

    Let Them Eat Jellybeans , subtitled "17 Extracts From Americas Darker Side", is a compilation album released by Alternative Tentacles in 1981....
  • Rat Music For Rat People
  • Something To Believe In
  • Terminal City Ricochet
    Terminal City Ricochet

    Terminal City Ricochet is a 1990 in film film by Filipino people director Zale Dalen. The name was taken from a hockey team called the Terminal City Ricochets....
     soundtrack
  • More Than A State Of Mind
  • Last Call
  • Short Music For Short People
    Short Music for Short People

    Short Music for Short People is a 1999 compilation album released on the Fat Wreck Chords record label. The title is a parody of the 1980s punk compilation Rat Music for Rat People....
  • Return of the Read Menace
    Return of the Read Menace

    Return of the Read Menace is a compilation album, released in 1999 on G7 Welcoming Committee Records....
  • You Call This Music?! Volume 1
    You Call This Music?! Volume 1

    The first in a series of compilation albums from Geykido Comet Records that features international up and coming punk bands, as well as bands who have had appearances on Alternative Tentacles, Plan It X Records, Fat Wreck, Kung Fu Records, Hopeless Records, Lookout Records, Recess Records, Sympathy for the Record Industry, Bluurg Records, BYO Recor...
  • P.E.A.C.E. War Compilation
  • Smells Like Bleach: A Punk Tribute to Nirvana
  • Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1
    Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1

    Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1 is a Rock Against Bush compilation album released on the Fat Wreck Chords record label. It contains a collection of songs, both released and unreleased, by various punk rock artists and includes a bonus DVD with political facts, commentary regarding the U.S....
  • 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)
  • I, Shithead- A Life In Punk (Arsenal Pulp Press) free ebook at Wowio


External links