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Bad Chemicals EP

by Bad Chemicals

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1.
Cop-A-Feel 01:42
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Must be Friday cuz the cops are comin Smelling like booze and confiscated somethin Letting em stop you is really risky ‘specially when they’re feeling frisky What the fuck man? You got some nerve Thought you were supposed to protect and serve I bet that you like touching me there Why the fuck are you smellin' my hair? So much time with yer hand on my sack I just hope that’s a gun in my back! You just wanna Cop-a-feel Cop-a-feel Cop-a-feel Cop-a-feel Must be Saturday cuz they’re stopping boys Don’t ya know they’re cops’ favorite toys Being a cop must get so lonely Especially when you’re feeling horny What the fuck man? You got some nerve Thought you were supposed to protect and serve I bet that you like touching me there Why the fuck are you smellin' my hair So much time with yer hand on my sack I just hope that’s a gun in my back You just wanna Cop-a-feel Cop-a-feel Cop-a-feel Next time buy me dinner, ya fuckin' pig
2.
Fightin' the Hydra 01:41
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So much shit on my plate Man, it’s filling me up with hate When that stress builds up inside ya Feels like yer fightin’ the hydra Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute I just need some rest One day off would be the best When that stress builds up inside ya Feels like yer fightin’ the hydra Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Back off with all your demands I only got two fuckin’ hands When that stress builds up inside ya Feels like yer fightin’ the hydra Back off with all your demands I only got two fuckin’ hands When that stress builds up inside ya Feels like yer fightin’ the hydra Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Can I get a minute Just a fucking minute Can I get a minute
3.
Burn it Down 02:23
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We're going to burn it down Burn it all straight to the ground We're going to burn it down Play in the ashes and roll around This place has grown moldy and rotten We’re told to take what we have gotten No one asked us what we wanted They tell us to get used to it But they are all so full of shit Less than nothing is what we get We're going to burn it down Burn it all straight to the ground We're going to burn it down Play in the ashes and roll around For our whole lives we run in place We're always told what goals to chase While they buy up the livable space They tell us to get used to it But they are all so full of shit Less than nothing is what we get We're going to burn it down Burn it all straight to the ground We're going to burn it down Play in the ashes and roll around Close your book of fairy tales Can we go from rags to riches? Give it a rest Practice duty before self? Give it a rest Idle hands are the devil’s tools? Give it a rest Is excess the American Dream? Give it a rest We won’t be tricked into slaving for you We are not workhorses to be turned into glue So We’re gonna burn this motherfucker down We're going to burn it down Burn it all straight to the ground We're going to burn it down Play in the ashes and roll around Burn it down Burn it down Burn it down Down to the ground Burn it down Burn it down We're gonna burn it down
4.
(It’s not) San Andrea’s Fault 04:00
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In California there's a growing divide And it's already pretty damn wide But I ain't talkin bout dirt and silt I am talkin bout greed and guilt No It's not San Andrea's fault Some get stepped on so others stand tall No it's not San Andrea's fault You get buried if you don't play ball It's not It's not It's not San Andrea's fault All this friction puts the state in a rut Some go down while others go up But I aint talkin bout plate tectonics I am talkin bout economics It's not San Andrea's fault Some get stepped on so others stand tall No it's not San Andrea's fault You get buried if you don't play ball It's not It's not It's not San Andrea's fault Rich boy poor boy tension builds up Rich girl poor girl tension builds up Rich boy poor boy tension builds up Rich girl poor girl tension builds up Rich boy poor girl tension builds up Rich girl poor boy tension builds up Enough to make mountains
5.
I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive (free) 01:53
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about

Very little is known about Bad Chemicals other than that they formed in West Hollywood sometime in mid-to-late-1980. Just as they were making a name for themselves in LA’s burgeoning hardcore punk scene, their rise was cut short under apparently dubious circumstances. Whether intentional or not, they became largely forgotten. Lost in the shuffle of bands of that time and place.

Flash forward to Chicago 40 years later. Treehouse Records was undergoing renovations in 2021 and, during the process, co-owner Barrett Guzaldo discovered some tapes behind an old shelving unit. The label simply read “Bad Chemicals -1981.” Curious about this mysterious recording, Guzaldo dug up the files of the building’s previous inhabitants. What he found was that Bad Chemicals had sent the tapes from LA to Chicago to be mastered. However, the band had shirked on payment and so the tapes sat on the shelf they eventually fell behind.

Attempts to track down the band were futile, as none of them had used their real names on any of the documentation. It seemed that Jerry Rash (vocals), Luke Warning (drums), Reggie Reckless (guitar), and Double Dare (bass) had, for all intents and purposes, ceased to be. Whether they had died or simply put that period of their lives behind them has yet to be confirmed or refuted. The songs themselves were never registered for copyright and the West Hollywood address given to the old studio is currently a vacant lot.

The tragic bit is that the five-track EP, consisting of four originals and a balls-to-the-walls Hank Williams cover, is really fucking good. The songs’ themes of police corruption, class divide, and mental burnout have only grown in their relevance. Impressed by the short album, the guys at Treehouse Records shared their discovery with any and all willing ears.

Guzaldo, himself a guitarist, played the recordings for Chicago musicians Kyle Decker (vocals), Kevin Decker (bass), and Anthony Esposito (drums), and the group decided to pick up where the original Bad Chemicals left off by remastering the album, with the help of Alex DeYoung of DeYoung Mastering, and performing the songs under the same name. So far, no one has stopped them…

Speculation about the band’s sudden end became the premise for Kyle Decker’s upcoming novel This Rancid Mill (PM Press April 2023).

The book:
pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1465

credits

released September 4, 2022

Current line-up:
Kyle Decker- Vocals
Barrett Guzaldo - Guitar
Kevin Decker - Bass
Anthony Esposito- Drums

Kyle Spitzer- Guitar Solo on "San Andreas Fault"

"Original" Line Up:
Jerry Rash - Vocals
Reggie Reckless - Guitar
Double Dare - Bass
Luke Warning- Drums

Recorded and mixed by: Anthony Esposito
Mastered by: Alex DeYoung, DeYoung Mastering

Tracks 1-4 written by Bad Chemicals
Track 5, "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" written by Hank Williams Sr.

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Bad Chemicals Chicago, Illinois

Bad Chemicals formed in West Hollywood sometime in mid-to-late-1980. Tragically, the band vanished before taking off.

However, some of their recordings were discovered at a studio in Chicago.

While the original band has never been found, the album has been reworked and remastered and given new life. And inspired the upcoming novel This Rancid Mill by Kyle Decker (PM Press, April 2023) ... more

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