Descendents

Profile:
Descendents were formed in 1977 as an acoustic duo by Frank Navetta, and David Nolte. Bill Stevenson soon hooked up with the duo as their drummer. At the end of 1977, Nolte became bass player for the The Last and that group took precedent over David's commitment to the Descendents, so he was replaced by Tony Lombardo, although David stuck around briefly to sing with the band. Their first release (as a trio at the time with Navetta and Lombardo handling vocals) was the Ride The Wild / It's A Hectic World 7" in the style of melodic garage pop.
In 1980 they enlisted Milo Aukerman, Stevenson and Navetta's classmate and a constant presence at Descendents' rehearsals, as a singer, and reappeared as a 'proper' punk band, becoming a major player in the hardcore scene developing in Los Angeles at the time.
Their debut album the following year, Milo Goes To College, introduced an element of melody and sensitivity that set them apart from most other hardcore bands and Stevenson's songs in particular were to greatly influence the melodic punk-pop bands of the 1990s with themes of love and loss and alienation (themes far less common in the punk scene at the time).
Following the album's release, Milo actually went to college to embark on an education that would take him as far as a doctorate in biochemistry. The band recruited Ray Cooper (3) to handle the vocals but at the same time Bill Stevenson became the drummer with fellow hardcore punks Black Flag. Although the plan was to play in both bands, Black Flag's rigorous touring scheduled proved to be too time-consuming. During this time, Descendents gigs were sporadic. There were a few gigs where the band appeared as a 5-piece, with both Navetta and Cooper playing guitar and Milo on vocals, and other shows by Lombardo and Cooper playing under the name Ascendents. The band did not record again until 1985, when they returned with the album I Don't Want To Grow Up. This was much more sensitive than "Milo...," despite silly songs such as "Pervert" and "No F.B".
The band's lineup changed around the time "I Don't Want to Grow Up". By the time of the recording, Navetta left the band to become a fisherman in Oregon and guitar duties were handled by Ray Cooper. Tony Lombardo left after the recording as touring was incompatible with his career as a postal carrier. Doug Carrion replaced Lombardo on bass. Lombardo has since stated that leaving the Descendents is the biggest regret he has in life.
Their next album, Enjoy! (released in 1986) was not well received by critics, but fans liked it. It was a mix of more 'silly' songs (The last track on the album involving band members farting into microphones and laughing).
After the Enjoy! tour, Ray Cooper got a job working in the emerging software scene and Doug Carrion left for other projects, eventually ending up in Dag Nasty. Stevenson invited Stephen Egerton and Karl Alvarez of Salt Lake City's Massacre Guys to replace them, and the now permanent line-up of the Descendents was in place.
The group released the album All in 1987, which, despite "Van", "ALL-O-Gistics" and the one-second "ALL", was the Descendents' most mature 1980's album, and featured emotional songs such as "Coolidge", "Cameage" and "Clean Sheets".
With the release of ALL, the Descendents introduced to the world the driving concept behind their career's work, from which the album derives its title, the philosophy of ALL which they define quite conventionally as "the total extent." The idea of ALL as a concept beyond this conventional definition is one of endless self improvement. "The total extent" is an all-encompassing greatness, the pursuit of which is endless and impossible, but which is also the source of all real happiness.
Milo left again in 1987 and the remaining Descendents reformed with singer Dave Smalley and reformed under the name ALL and continued the legacy until 1996, when the Descendents reformed again with Milo Aukerman, now a full-time research biochemist, to record and tour in support of the album Everything Sucks.
In 2004 the band released the 'Merican EP and their newest full length Cool To Be You, which is among their more emotional releases to date. Since then, the Descendents have sporadically performed live and have continued to work on new material when their schedules allow it. In 2002 and 2006, Stevenson, Lombardo, and Navetta got together to record the original songs the Desendents had written (predating "Milo Goes To College") and had never been recorded before (these recording were released as "9th & Walnut", a reference to the location of their old practice space, in the summer of 2021). Navetta passed away in 2008 after a brief illness. In 2014, the band performed the entire "Milo Goes To College" album live with Tony Lombardo playing bass. Also, a documentary about the band, titled "Filmage" was released that same year.
Sites:
Members:
Variations:

Artist

Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions

Albums

NAR-012 Milo Goes To College — Descendents Descendents Milo Goes To College (Album) New Alliance Records NAR-012 US 1982 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
NAR-C26 I Don't Want To Grow Up — Descendents Descendents I Don't Want To Grow Up (Album) New Alliance Records NAR-C26 US 1985 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
NAR 029, 72158-1 Enjoy! — Descendents Descendents Enjoy! (Album) New Alliance Records, Restless Records NAR 029, 72158-1 US 1986 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
SST 163 Liveage! — Descendents Descendents Liveage! (Album) SST Records SST 163 US 1987 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
SSTC 112 All — Descendents Descendents All (Album) SST Records SSTC 112 US 1987 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
SST 205 Hallraker — Descendents Descendents Hallraker (Album) SST Records SST 205 US 1988 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
86481-2 Everything Sucks — Descendents Descendents Everything Sucks (Album, Single) Epitaph 86481-2 US 1996 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
2124-2 Live Plus One — Descendents ALL (2) & Descendents ALL (2) & Descendents - Live Plus One (Album) Epitaph 2124-2 Brazil 2001 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
FAT672-2 Cool To Be You — Descendents Descendents Cool To Be You (Album) Fat Wreck Chords FAT672-2 US 2004 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
87246-2 Hypercaffium Spazzinate — Descendents Descendents Hypercaffium Spazzinate (Album) Epitaph 87246-2 Australasia 2016 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
87843-1 9th & Walnut — Descendents Descendents 9th & Walnut (Album) Epitaph 87843-1 US 2021 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions

Singles & EPs

001, 002 Ride The Wild / It's A Hectic World — Descendents The Descendents* Ride The Wild / It's A Hectic World Orca Productions, Orca Productions 001, 002 US 1980 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
NAR-005 The Descendents* "FAT" E.P. (EP) New Alliance Records NAR-005 US 1981 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
NAR-E29 Enjoy — Descendents Descendents Enjoy(7", Single, Promo) New Alliance Records NAR-E29 US 1986 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
PSST 112 Clean Sheets / Coolidge — Descendents Descendents Clean Sheets / Coolidge (Single) SST Records PSST 112 US 1987 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
86481-2S1 I'm The One — Descendents Descendents I'm The One (Single) Epitaph 86481-2S1 USA & Canada 1996 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
86481-2S2 When I Get Old — Descendents Descendents When I Get Old (Single) Epitaph 86481-2S2 US 1996 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
27511-2 Lucky (Single)  — Descendents Descendents Lucky (Single) (CD, Single, Ltd, Promo) V2 27511-2 US 1997 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
SESSION-007 Gotta — Descendents Descendents Gotta(7", Single) Sessions Records SESSION-007 US 1997 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
FAT671-7 'Merican — Descendents Descendents 'Merican (EP) Fat Wreck Chords FAT671-7 US 2004 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
87491-1 SpazzHazard — Descendents Descendents SpazzHazard (EP) Epitaph 87491-1 USA & Canada 2016 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
NHS_FLEXI1 Feel This — Descendents Descendents Feel This(Flexi, 7", Shape, S/Sided, Single, Whi) Epitaph NHS_FLEXI1 US 2016 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
none Fighting Myself — Descendents Descendents Fighting Myself(Flexi, 7", Shape, S/Sided, Single, Ltd, Whi) Epitaph none US 2016 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
none Who We Are — Descendents Descendents Who We Are (Single) Epitaph none US 2018 Sell This Version
Image Title Label Catalog Number Year In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory Actions
87587-8 Suffrage — Descendents Descendents Suffrage (Single) Epitaph 87587-8 UK, Europe & US 2020 Sell This Version

Reviews

View More Lists

Videos (116)

Edit