NOT's Davey Warsop On ALL, Descendents & New "Allular" Homage Stop The World In Tribute to Stewart Teggart (The Witzard Interview)
Descendents/ALL are now bands that have strongly infleunced and heavily affected generations of youthful, angsty fans. So, this si where it may get a bit confusing: Descendents & ALL are esentially the same band featuring slightly different, albeit similar line-ups. Descendents' most well-known and longest-standing line-up is singer Milo Aukerman, bassist Karl Alvarez, guitarist Stephen Egerton, and drummer Bill Stevenson. While ALL is Alvarez, Egerton & Stevenson with a rotating cast of beloved frontmen: Dave Smalley, Scott Reynolds & Chad Price and briefly functioned as TonyALL with the addition of bassist and song-writer Tony Lombardo (ex-Descendents.) For obvious reasons, Descendents, ALL & TonyALL have rarely ever ALL consistently functioned at the same time. It's safe to say Descendents' fourth and then-final 1987 album, aptly-titled ALL, was the sheers genesis of ALL the band, as well as ALL the concept formulated by Bill Stevenson and his buddy, Pat McCuistion, years earlier in 1980.
Stevenson himself described the concept of ALL as, "a way of thinking, in which there are extremes and there is this goal called "ALL." It's a way that I created in dealing with achievement and satisfaction and how the two relate. Basically, just to avoid stagnation... going for "ALL" and never being satisfied and just wallowing in your own sameness" within a June 1987 interview. Stevenson has additionally described it as "the total extent" as oulined across the album through "All," "No, All!," and "All-O-Gistics." Aukerman has explained ALL as, "it's partly humor, but it's, also, an outlook on how to conduct your life: to not settle for some, to always go for ALL." In any event, Descendents are back together as a touring unit and most recently released a vaulted and unearthed album, 9th & Walnut, in 2021 primarily consisting of songs written between 1977-80. ALL have released eight studio albums, two live albums, a greatest hits/best of-style compilation, one EP, and one collaborative album with Tony Lombardo as TonyALL with Smalley, Reynolds & Price, respectively, between 1988-2001. ALL has been largely inavtive since 2008 aside from sporadic one-off shows, benefits, live appearances, and various performances with one of and/or ALL three singers.
So, ALL of this is an extremely long-winded way to pose the simplistic question: "what do you do when ALL stop making records?" You form a band with your friends and make your own! NOT, the group consisting of members of SHARP/SHOCK & Mercy Music have announced their debut album, Stop The World, now available digitally and on purple and light blue vinyl, via Wiretap Records (US,) Brassneck Records (UK,) and Waterslide Records (Japan.) Additionally, CD's and cassettes will, also, be available, via Paper + Plastick. NOT is the brainchild of singer/song-writer Davey Warsop, the LA-based British Punk known for fronting bands such as Beat Union, Suedehead, and SHARP/SHOCK. Warsop met guitarist Brendan Scholz and bass player Jarred Cooper (both of Las Vegas' Mercy Music) at a funeral, when their shared manager and Southern California Punk scene legend, Stewart Teggart, tragically passed away. Through a shared love of Pop-punk pioneers ALL & Descendents, the trio pulled in Kyle Whitmore on drums and decided to make a record dedicated to Teggart. It seemed fitting, as it was their late friend and mentor that made their lives cross paths to begin with.
Warsop & Scholz decided to combine forces exclusively for NOT, resulting in a powerhouse writing duo, like the Pop-punk Lennon/McCartney. Their debut album, Stop The World, contains 14 hyperactive, caffeine-fueled Pop songs boasting hook after hook choruses about love and heartache whilst battling wild guitar solos and frantic bass energy. To top things off, Stop The World wouldn't be a fitting tribute to the ALL/Descendents' D.I.Y. work ethic without it being self-produced. Since landing himself in Los Angeles, Warsop has been producing and engineering for the likes of Alkaline Trio, CATBITE, Face to Face, and Green Day. So, it makes sense that the record was tracked at Warsop's very own Strong Studios in Long Beach, California, with himself at the controls. The record was, then, mixed and mastered by Paul Miner (Agnostic Front, H2O, zebrahead.) In Warsop's own words, "so many musicians have unapologetically paid tribute to bands, like The Ramones or The Clash... it's about time someone did the same for ALL. We're just trying to fly that flag as proudly as possible." We recently got a chance to speak with Warsop himself about ALL things ALL, Descendents, now, NOT, and their debut album, Stop The World. Check out our interview below, which has been lightly edited for general clarity.
I. Who are the members of NOT and from which various projects might long-time fans know each of you?
Davey Warsop: Davey Warsop: vocals (also, of SHARP/SHOCK and previously Suedehead & Beat Union,) Brendan Scholz: guitar (also, of Mercy Music,) Jarred Cooper: bass (also, of Mercy Music,) [and] Kyle Whitmore; drums [Better Than Bullets].
II. What inspired you to create a project largely (or if only) directly inspired by Descendents and Descendents off-shoot band, ALL?
Warsop: We've just all been massive fans since childhood. I met Brendan & Jarred over 10 years ago and produced a record by their old band, Lydia Vance. We came to realize all of us were ALL & Descendents obsessives of a similar depth. Years later, I had the idea to make this project album and they were just the obvious people to work with. Brendan is heavily inspired by Stephen Egerton's guitar playing and I think Jarred is pretty much Karl [Alvarez's] stunt double.
III. So, with that said, in addition to or aside from ALL/Descendents, what were some of your greatest sources of inspiration and influence while creating NOT's Stop The World?
Warsop: I think ALL & Descendents definitely championed the "heart on sleeve love song" into Pop-punk. So, that was definitely our objective, at least, for a good handful of the songs—write about relationships past and present for catharsis and emotional therapy. Some of the songs touch on other [subjects,] too, though.
IV. For fans who may be hearing about ALL/Descendents right now by way of NOT's Stop The World, where would you recommend they start delving into each band's expansive back catalog(s)?
Warsop: For Descendents, it has to be Everything Sucks or Somery. For ALL, I would recommend their greatest hits [collection, Greatest Hits?!] (although, it's not on Spotify and probably out of print now—can we get a vinyl re-issue, please!?) and Mass Nerder.
V. What were the typical writing, recording, production, creation, etc. processes generally like that went into the making of Stop The World?
Warsop: I wrote four or five of the songs years ago between 2012-2014. When COVID hit, I got in touch with Brendan, Jarred & Kyle to see if they wanted to get involved. So, during the Lockdowns, I began writing more songs. So did Brendan; the both of us began trading some ideas and co-writing over the phone, also. I pretty much always write on acoustic, so you can really focus on the basic lyrics/[chords] and melody of a song and really judge how "good" or "bad" it is in its rawest form. Once we had enough songs and normal life began resuming (slightly,) Kyle came down to my studio (Strong Studios) here in Long Beach, California and we worked on all the drum parts and got them tracked. Later on, Brendan & Jarred drove down from [Las] Vegas and we tracked their parts and slept about three hours in three days. We, actually, used the same guitar rig as Everything Sucks to try and get close to that tone. It’s very hi-mid-[focused], but something about that guitar tone seems to resonate with fans. So, that's what we went after, too. Finally, I got my vocals done later down the line. So, it was very much a long-distance project tracked bit by bit. We all felt a little burnt out by it all as it was such a lengthy process, so we passed it off to our mate, Paul Miner, to mix and master it.
VI. Did you typically start out with a specific ALL album, song, theme(s), etc. as a starting off or springboard point when creating original songs and homages of your own?
Warsop: We definitely made the production choice to try and sound like a "modern day" Everything Sucks... whilst musically leaning a little more towards ALL. A handful of songs, we definitely tried to tip the hat specifically to certain ALL or Descendents tracks, yes, but, sometimes, we just wanted to shoot for a more miscellaneous era of ALL, rather than a specific song. Some sound a little bit Scott [Reynolds], some, a little bit Dave [Smalley and], others, more Chad [Price] era.
VII. How did you link initially link up with Wiretap (US,) Brassneck (UK,) and Waterside (Japanese) Records and what made you ultimately decide to go with each of them to jointly release Stop The World?
Warsop: Rob [Castellon] at Wiretap [Records] has released a few records I've produced, so we had that connection. He has, also, worked with Mercy Music, so it was just a very obvious choice. Waterslide [Records] released a couple of bands I was in as a teenager. I'd lost touch with Kazu [Onigiri,] but, then, Scott [McLauchlan] at Brassneck [Records] re-connected those dots and got him on board. Scott is a big ALL & Descendents fan and was a believer in this record when it was just rough demos. The fact he had faith in the band when no one else did goes a long way with me. Work with the people that care about your music... don't force it with people that aren’t passionate. Speaking of—I've known Vinnie [Fiorello] (ex-Less Than Jake) from Paper + Plastick for years and worked on records for his label, also. So, he's gonna put out some CD's and cassettes, also.
VIII. What is it specifically about Descendents/ALL that makes them so much more significant and influential than any other band(s) in the land?
Warsop: I think their "heart on sleeve" lyrics always connected with me. And the extremely high level of musicianship. Also, [there's] just something very [signature] and unique about their sound. They were the soundtrack to so many experiences of my formative years as a teenager and the older I get, I find that I can grow out of some bands' music, but ALL & Descendents just stuck with me and I feel as attached and connected to their songs as I ever did; the test of time is a special thing. I, also, saw them live as a teenager in a small venue called The Foundry in Birmingham, [West Midlands, England] where I grew up. They absolutely blew me away! They didn't stop for two seconds. I hung out with Stephen [Egerton] & Natalie [O'Reilly] at the end of the show because I missed my bus. They took care of me and I think that always meant a lot. Years later, I'm now friends with them and they say they still remember the blonde mohawked teenage me, ha!
IX. Who designed the album cover artwork for Stop The World and what we're your (and the artist's) greatest sources of inspiration and influence?
Warsop: My mate, Josh Grelock, is an incredibly talented artist and he made the cover for us. I had the vision, then, we chatted, and he brought it all to life and then some. It's a total Allroy rip-off, of course... cartoon art harking back to 80's/90's Pop-punk, but I wanted to create Allroy's female counterpart—I think she's called Notalia, haha.
X. How do you personally feel about the concept of "ALL" as outlined throughout Descendents' 1987 album, ALL? It's concepts are based around the goals of achieving "the total extent" and "to not settle for some, to always go for ALL." Essentially, "doing the utmost, achieving the utmost," as once explained by Bill Stevenson himself.
Warsop: I have always been extremely influenced by this entire concept. It was one of the things that fascinated me about ALL/Descendents since I was a kid. Henry Rollins' [book,] Get In The Van[: On the Road With Black Flag] and the Black Flag work ethic really made an impact, too. Given that Bill [Stevenson] was in Black Flag, I think they're very much one in the same. When you don't come from money and you're not academically gifted, then, you probably aren't gonna get handed too many breaks in life and so, the only way to go at things is full-on... which is easy, when you've got nothing to lose anyway. Also, if you want an unconventional life in music, then, you have to be prepared to do unconventional things at unconventional measures and never by halfs. So, go for ALL. That was definitely the philosophy behind the NOT record, too. I just thought if were gonna tip the hat to a band like ALL, then, we HAVE TO GO FOR ALL and do it right.
XI. So, what do current and former ALL members Chad Price, Dave Smalley, Scott Reynolds, Bill Stevenson, Stephen Egerton, and Karl Alvarez think of Stop The World and your overall mission with NOT?
Warsop: Brendan & Jarred went to The Blasting Room to work with Bill on their latest Mercy Music record, [Melody & Truth]. They showed it to Bill and he was blown away, apparently. We were a bit nervous about that, but he was so enthusiastic and gave us his blessing. [Basically,] saying that all he ever did was rip-off his idols. Last time I saw him, he complimented me on it, as well, and had lots of questions about how we ripped it off so well, hahaha. Stephen & Natalie said they love it, too, and that's meant the world to us. Dave, Scott & Chad were all interested in singing on the record, but it never quite worked out, sadly... but, again, to have their support was the ultimate blessing.
XII. What's planned next for NOT?
Warsop: We wanna play more and tour. We may have some dates in June. watch this space.
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