Looking Back On Alkaline Trio
After Ten Years of High-Powered Emo, Little Remains
It was a only a matter of days after the Sex Pistols ended their 20th anniversary tour in December 1996 when Matt Skiba, the Pistols’ touring drummer, decided to form his own punk rock band, which would later become Alkaline Trio. Teaming up with fellow Chicago suburbanites Rob Doran and Glenn Porter, the 20-year-old drummer-turned-guitarist had high hopes of living out his rock star ambitions.
Now, ten years, one bassist, and two drummers later, Skiba is still wearing his red tie and black shirt, still playing the same three chords, and, rumor has it, still has his membership to the Church of Satan. With five full-lengths, four EPs, two seven inches, and a multitude of compilations under their belts, Matt Skiba, bassist Dan Andriano, and drummer Derek Grant have much to be proud of, despite recent criticism.
Vagrant Records’ Jan. 30 release of Remains—a 22-track collection of B-sides and rarities from the decade-long career of Alkaline Trio—comes as no surprise. The trio hasn’t put out a new recording in almost two years, and, seeing as the band is currently unsigned while Skiba pursues his side project, Heavens, a release of this kind is just what the few but faithful remaining Alkaline Trio fans have been waiting for.
Back in the day, Alkaline Trio’s brand of punk rock came with a deliciously morbid, substance-dependent thrill. It’s what set the band aside from the myriad of more light-hearted pop-punk acts popping up at the time. Sundials, the band’s first 7”, was released in 1997 under Johann’s Face Records and was a terrific, high-powered, two-track preview of things to come. “Nose Over Tail,” the second track off of Sundials, remains a fan favorite and is considered the group’s best and most honest song.
A few months later, the band dropped bassist Rob Doran, picked up Dan Andriano, and switched to Asian Man Records, joining Less Than Jake and Screeching Weasel and releasing a second EP, For Your Lungs Only. It was then, in 1998, that the trio had its first taste of “sell-out” backlash that would plague its entire career. The move to Asian Man was hardly a sell-out; the band had hardly formed in its proper sense, and the label was running out of owner Mike Park’s garage. Despite the angry few, For Your Lungs Only is really what solidified Alkaline Trio as a major forerunner of the Midwest punk scene, leaving the door open for a larger audience to follow in the next few years.
The band’s first LP, Goddamnit!, landed in October of the same year. Arguably the band’s best work, Goddamnit! is a raging, raw, and personal emo-punk epic full of death, drugs, and hopelessness. From “Cop” to “Clavicle,” this record reeks with the pains of adolescence. But the trio knew how to make it fun and fulfilling and showcased its uncanny ability to make even the down and out bang a few heads.
In early 2000, Alkaline Trio released its second LP, Maybe I’ll Catch Fire. Best known for the revenge-anthem “Radio,” the album had a tighter, more polished sound, but lacked the fervor of the band’s debut album. Ready for a change, the Alkaline Trio came with new drummer Mike Felumlee and a switch to Vagrant Records, home to emo-mainstays The Get Up Kids, Dashboard Confessional, and Brooklyn’s own The Hold Steady. With bigger industry support but also the inevitable fan backlash, the trio recorded and released From Here to Infirmary in 2001. Consistently considered the band’s highest achievement, the album was the only recorded with Felumlee and the first to receive national recognition thanks to the single “Stupid Kid.” With Infirmary, Alkaline Trio was at the top of its game, and Skiba was living his dream.
The next five years of the band’s career, however, did not go so well. Felumlee left the band to be replaced by Derek Grant. The band’s 2003 release, Good Mourning, was co-produced by Jerry Finn (responsible for the most recent AFI and Green Day albums) and retained none of the energy of the previous albums despite reaching #24 on the U.S. charts. Two years later, handing over production entirely to Finn, the band released Crimson, a disappointing attempt at pop stardom featuring “Sadie,” a sympathetic elegy for Manson murderer Susan Atkins.
Unfortunately, Remains features tracks recorded only from 2001 on, and offers almost nothing new to owners of the trio’s EPs and compilations. The disc contains the entirety of the Hell Yes 7”, a split with Hot Water Music, and another split with One Man Army. The rest of the tracks can be found on singles or compilations, save the final three live recordings. For those Alkaline Trio fans with only the LPs, Remains is an excellent way to complete a collection. For die-hards, the CD booklet offers interesting comments on each song by all three band members, and the DVD contains a collection of music videos, as well as a backstage look into the trio’s last tour. For the uninitiated, it offers a decent introduction to a band sadly past its prime.