Strung Out

with The Vandals at The Rat
by Scott Hefflon

Due to the Red Sox game and every college in town having student orientation (which basically means the subways are clogged with post-high school kids on their first fling), I missed Strung Out‘s set. Another Day in Paradise (Fat) was a glorious example of pop/punk circa 1994: uptempo, melodic, layered with pretty harmonies, politically pissed, and, in this case, filled with quick, clever chord changes and more than a few guitar solos. I wanted to see what Strung Out ’95 would sound like, but now I’ll have to wait until their next album (scheduled for release after Lagwagon). I cornered bassist Jim Cherry behind the merchandise counter and did something resembling an interview. (We passed a tattered memo book back and forth ’cause the Vandals were way too fuckin’ loud to try to record an interview. So we did it the old fashioned way.)

An interview with bassist Jim Cherry

When’s the new album out and what’s it called?
Tentatively, it’s called Transmission and should be out in December. It’ll have 14-16 previously unreleased tracks of pure punk crap guaranteed not to hit the radio.

Any favorite songs you want to mention?
“Wrong Side of the Tracks” is one of my favorites to play. I’m also writing one right now called “Where Do I Fit In?” It’s about various laws that apply only to the lower and middle class (i.e., tax laws that benefit the rich). It’s about the exploitation of the everyday man who works for a living.

What are your upcoming tour plans?
As soon as the new record comes out, we’ll probably tour with 88 Finger Louie and a band from Florida called Blount (pronounced “Blunt”). We also made friends with Mighty Mighty Bosstones so, Big Wish!, we might get lucky and do stuff with them.