When you talk about the bands that are simply legendary in punk rock terms, then this band will surely be one that you think of almost immediately. Pennywise are one band that simply does not understand the words “sell-out.” They are a band which have been there, done that and got many a t-shirt. And they rock. ‘Live At The Key Club’ does exactly what it says on the tin. Recorded live at the Key Club in California, the band rattle through 17 of their best songs and when listening to them it really does hit home how vital this band are in punk today.
As anyone who has seen Pennywise live knows, they walk on to a piano introduction, and this is recaptured on the record. The foursome then launch straight into ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’, a stereotypical Pennywise song. It’s fast and furious, yet still catches all the melody of a more poppy type band. But with Fletcher Dragge handling guitar duties, there’s not much chance of anything pop related eminating from a Pennywise song. In truth it’s not the bands best song, but it’s a great way to kick things off. ‘Living For Today’ is another great song on record, but it labours slightly during the chorus of this version. Still, it’s only a minor gripe.
It’s good to see the band mixing old and new songs, and ‘Final Chapters’ is still as vital today as it was when it was first released. ‘Can’t Believe It’ is a fantastic song with a fantastic riff. Jim Lindberg has some of the most distinctive punk vocals you’ll ever hear, and this song really does epitomise what the Hermosa Beach foursome are all about. And Byron McMackin’s drums are simply superb throughout. ‘Unknown Road’ is anthemic, ‘Homesick’ brilliant and ‘No Reason Why’ great. Pennywise simply don’t do bad songs.
The opening track on ‘Full Circle’, ‘Fight Till You Die’, is absolutely sensational live, and being a personal fave of mine anyway, is something that you’d just love to be in the mosh to. One thing you do notice about this lot is how brutally honest their lyrics are. There are no songs whining about girls or gushing about how they love old-skool metal. And the track ‘Society’ is perfect proof. Another classic track from ‘Full Circle’, this is a punk anthem. ‘Straight Ahead’ is perhaps a little more melodic than the real old stuff, but don’t hold that against them.
‘Pennywise‘ is skate-punk at its very best, whilst ‘Perfect People’ is a two fingered salute to anyone who criticises you for being different. The line “screw the perfect people, fuck they all look the same” should be a mantra for every alternative kid in the world. Live shows aren’t right without a cover, and Pennywise stomp through a cover of ‘Minor Threat‘ by, er, Minor Threat. It’s not a patch on the original, but it’s still great. ‘Same Old Story’ is a skateboard anthem, as you will know if you’ve seen the video, and ‘Alien’, from ‘Straight Ahead’, is brilliant, even if it isn’t quite the Pennywise that we’ve come to expect.
What can we say about ‘Bro Hymn’ that hasn’t already been said? All Pennywise fans know the Jason Matthew Thirsk story, and as at every live show, the crowd get on stage to participate in some backing vocals. The version on this CD is a bit ramshackle, but for pure emotion, this song just rules, and is a fitting tribute to Mr Thirsk.
It’s basically a greatest hits CD, so anyone that wants to get into the band should probably start off their Pennywise collection with this. The die-hards will buy it anyway, even though the band aren’t quite at their greatest on the basis of this recording. But put simply, everyone should own a Pennywise record. And this is a great one to start off with.
Paul Savage