Keith Morris on his new book, James Brown, and why he loves his mom

Keith Morris only stands about 5'5'', but he is a titan. You all know his resume, but as with any Homeric hero, we must recite his feats. He was a founding member of the seminal hardcore punk band Black Flag and recorded the mindblowing Nervous Breakdown EP. Then, he formed Circle Jerks and recorded multiple masterpieces, including the blink-and-you'll-miss-it Group Sex. And then, when the Jerks had all but melted away, and everyone was expecting Keith to fade into the background, Keith formed punk supergroup OFF! at the age of 54 and came out swinging, releasing some of the very best, if not the best, music of his career.

And now, like any Epic champion, he has recorded his deeds in the excellent My Damage , co-written with Jim Ruland. The book focuses on Keith's adventures from being a shrimpy little kid to the founding of the mighty Black Flag to his issues with substance abuse to his return to glory with OFF! (He also talks about how fun it is to work at a pancake house.)

So, to see what makes a champion like this tick, Editor John Gentile spoke to Morris about the book, his adventures, and why his mom is a great lady.

Pulling Double? Triple? Quadruple? Duty with Jack Dalrymple

It has been about a year since Punknews Editor Ricky Frankel spoke with Jack Dalrymple. And in such a short amount of time Jack has managed to get so much done. toyGuitar’s full-length In This Mess made it on to several Punknews Top 20 lists last year. But more recently toyGuitar released their follow-up EP titled Move Like A Ghost on September 2, 2016 via Fat Wreck Chords — not to mention the band has been doing a solid amount of touring lately as well.

However, just about an hour before this interview took place, Dead To Me announced that they will be releasing the I Wanna Die In Los Angeles 7-inch on October 21, 2016 also through Fat Wreck Chords. So Ricky quickly and jovially scrambled and asked Jack not only about the new toyGuitar release, but also about the new Dead To Me EP, what is going on with the band’s upcoming album American Son Of Cholo, playing Fest 15, what he and the other bands that he is a part of have been up to since the last time he and Jack talked and more.

Photo Credit: Joe Leonard , Fat Wreck Chords

Pansy Division's Chris Freeman on the new LP, GayC/DC, and Satan!

This week, Pansy Division are putting out their newest album, Quite Contrary .So, to celebrate the legendary band's history and the new release, Punknews reader David HD conducted a MASSIVE interview with the band's Chris Freeman. Check it out below!

Hockey, beer, apologies and 25 years of Chixdiggit! with KJ Jansen

Ever young at heart, Calgary's Chixdiggit! is officially old. The beloved pop-punk act has reached the 25 year mark and they're celebrating with a cross-country tour, an ambitious new record (the Rush-riffing 2012 ) and even a beer brewed in their honour. Punknews managing editor Adam White caught up with Chixdiggit! frontman KJ Jansen to talk fatherhood, the Oilers, the struggles of touring and more. You can read or listen to the interview below.

Cheap Girls' Ian Graham talks rarities and b-sides

For the past decade, Lansing, MI's Cheap Girls have been pumping out catchy-as-hell rock built on a simple, but effective format. On September 16th, they'll be releasing their first compilation of selective rarities, God's Ex-Wife, on Asian Man Records. Interviewer Alex Meylink talked with vocalist and bassist Ian Graham about the process of putting this collection together and what it's like to look back at ten years of personal rock music.

Embracing unconventionality with A Wilhelm Scream’s Trevor Reilly

A Wilhelm Scream is one of the hardest working and one of the tightest live bands in the punk scene. If you have ever been to one of their shows then you know exactly what I am talking about. It seems like they never really stop touring and never have an off night. In the studio it is clearly a group effort, but the one of the main engines behind the whole song-writing machine that is A Wilhelm Scream is guitarist and back up vocalist Trevor Reilly. Since their last album Party Crasher was released in 2013, it seemed like it was time to check in on them. So Punknews Editor Ricky Frankel caught up with Trevor Reilly to talk about his very first solo acoustic performance that happened recently, what he learned from working with Bill Stevenson, what the band is currently working on, if they have anything special planned for their performance at Fest 15 this year and a whole lot more.

Photo Credit: John Paul Allen

Video Credit: Mike Plante - ForeignFeelingPhotography.com

Bracket-ology: the evolution of a 'not-very' punk band into a 'definitely-not' punk band

Bracket will release their new album, The Last Page this Friday. So, to celebrate this oft-off kilter band, Punknews Editor Jeff Sorely called up the band and put together a history of their exploits. Check it out below.

Getting stoked with Greg Attonito of The Bouncing Souls

The Bouncing Souls have been churning out some incredible 3 chord punk tracks for over 27 years. From their 1994 release of The Good, the Bad, and the Argyle to their 2012 release of Comet , the band have 9 albums under their belt they have decided it was time to release their 10th album this week with drummer George Rebelo of Hot Water Music. Their 10th album is titled Simplicity will be out on July 29th on Rise Records. Punknews editor and super Souls fan Samantha Barrett spoke with singer Greg Attonito to discuss aliens, conspiracies, and the new album.

Linda Ramone on the Johnny tribute, Ramones t-shirts, and a certain love triangle…

On July 24 at the Hollywood Forever cemetary, Linda Ramone (wife of Johnny… duh) will throw her annual Johnny Ramone tribute. To make things extra special, it's also the Ramones' 40th anniversary, so Linda has got a lot of cool stuff planned. There will be a screening of Rock 'n' Roll High School. Roger Corman will be there, as will Henry Rollins, Steve Jones, and a bunch of other people. Plus Kirk Hammett is bringing his horror movie poster collection!

To kick off our own celebration of the Ramones' 40th, Punknews' John Gentile spoke to Linda about the Johnny celebration, the responsibility of being the protector of the Ramones' legacy, and of course, that very, very famous love triangle…

You can read more about the tribute here and check out the interview below!

Connor Ratliff on why he really, really, really hates the Summer

Comedian Connor Ratliff really, truly, unironically, honest-to-Godly, hates the summer. Ratliff has honed his creative chops at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater and later, as a regular on the Chris Gethard show. But, despite the fact that he's a funny-man, for some reason, he has a blazing hatred towards the sweetest of all seasons.

In fact, his ire runs so hot that he actually recruited pop-punk titan Mikey Erg to record an entire EP about just why he hates Summer. The record has a loose jangle with slight touches of Moldy Peaches type whimsy and Fugs type bitterness, but through it all, despite that Ratliff gets paid for yuks, there really is a seething hatred towards the warmer months on this record. So, Punknews' John Gentile spoke to Ratliff about just why he hates the months that everyone else loves so much.

Photo by Mindy Tucker

Was it the acid? Nope. It was just an interview with Direct Hit!

Direct Hit! has come such a long way since the days that they were on Death To False Hope Records and Kind Of Like Records. They have released two full-lengths, a compilation, a bunch of 7-inches, and they have toured like hell over the past several years. This year the band found its new home at Fat Wreck Chords - something that seemed like such an obvious fit (at least from this fan’s view point) and now they have released their highly anticipated third full-length Wasted Mind . So Punknews editor Ricky Frankel talked with lead vocalist and guitarist Nick Woods about the new album, getting signed to Fat Wreck Chords, becoming a punk rock dad, his other band Galactic Cannibal and more. FUCK YOU! GET PUMPED!

Photo Credit: Denise Borders