Lastnight, I'm in the back of my band's shortbus after a disastrous show in Connecticut. It's raining. My Jägermeister-drunk is turning into a dry liquorice mouthed hangover. Additionally, we are lost and running so low on gas that we are literally putting down a rural road, praying to something that we don't get stuck in Leatherface's backyard. What do you do when staying positive goes wrong? You distract yourself from the scenario with the only capable and available resource: the sweet sounds of the fastest kick-and-snare and melody-driven force in punk, NOFX. I think to myself, “this'll make a great article..”
While my guitarist and I shared a pair of headphones and shuffled up the NOFX discography, I was just barely able to narrow down (give or take) what I would consider to be my top five favorite songs. Maybe you'll agree? Or maybe you appreciate this band as much as I do, enough to just enjoy someone else's connections to the band who, let's face it, got us all into punk rock and changed a lot of lives. I know I'm going to succumb to the generic, and at times boring, pitfalls of any greatest-ever list. So please don't judge this blog by the things in this post. Just gotta get this shit off my chest!
- Leave it Alone – This song really spoke to me as I was growing up. In a couple short minutes and with a few dadada's, these dudes speak a life lesson not really spoken much of, but something that is subtly realized through life's defeats. There are some things in life that might not be so nice, and as we get older, those things change and become new problems and obstacles for us. The song says, in so many words, that we need to learn to accept and do what we can to adapt to what we can't change ( “leave it the same, change with the leaves”), but that there are other things worth living for that don't necessarily make it better, but make it alright. In Mike's world, and surely for me and you if you're reading this, that something is music (“ I hear the voice of reason on the PA.”) Musically, the song is simple and easy to listen to, but complicated enough to make it interesting. The song is sweet, sentimental, and poppy as hell, but still has those complex vocal harmonies and moody guitar octave riffs that we all truly love this band for.
- Reeko – Let's definitely talk about Reeko. I always enjoyed this song. But a defining moment in my life was being at Warped Tour and seeing NOFX play this song. It was just the perfect song at the perfect moment and they played it...well...for lack of a better term, perfectly! The stop right before the vamp up was prolonged an extra three measures, giving just the right amount of silence just before absolute insanity broke out! As far as relativity to this list goes, the song is just a great listen. It's got it all. The clean guitar during the reggae verses sound rich and flowing. The bass line is really what leads this song in a sweet and subtle way, not in an obnoxious Matt Freeman way. The song is musically pleasing to the ear, too, as it kind of bounces around the tonic key during the verses, teasing the listener by resolving briefly, just in time to get lost again. The fast part is just out of control, and it ends with some of the best-placed octave melodies NOFX has ever utilized. They're not crazy, just that sweet repeating melody over the perfect chords, then resolving with a guitar harmony. God damn. Perfection. The lyrics? It doesn't take a lit major to figure them out, but they make use of some awesome metaphors.
- Kids of the K-Hole – Starts with a bass line so fast that it kicks your fucking teeth in. Then, drums that just drop a cinder block on entire head. Seriously, this song is short, fast, beautiful and to the point. The music theory behind this song is what I think makes this song stand out. I mean, I can't explain it. They utilize chords, harmonies, and key changes that oh so sorrowfully match the lyrics. This is a great example of the use of silly imagery and wording that are pretty hard hitting. Everybody remembers “Cuz I promised my heart to her, she cooked it medium well, then preceded to swallow it whole.” Given the context of the song (drug addicted teens), it's pretty sad. The song is a monument in the NOFX catalog; it's a short, fast burst of raw emotion in the form of a punk song. Superb.
- Eat the Meek – This song is one that I don't even need to go into, considering it makes pretty much every fan's list. First off, it's catchy as fuck. This shit spreads into your brain and throughout your body after just the first listen. It's a sad but true reflection on society, but in a mature, non-prechy, opposite of Pennywise type way. I feel like each line of the song stands alone and after each point, I'm just like damn man, you couldn't have said it better. The melodies and vocal harmonies are beautifully laid out, and Mike's bass couldn't be better. This song is also a pivotal moment in NOFX's discography. Everything about this song is fucking rad, all the way down to Melvin's faint “discarded youth!” during the bridge.
- Drop the World – This is a new addition to this list, to be honest. Once again, I always dug this song, just in a different kind of way. I always took it as a great closer to a unique album, and that's all it did for me. But as I've gotten older, I feel like I've grown a new and different appreciation for it. Once this song starts, I just can't skip it. It seems sacrilege to listen to the first couple seconds without finishing. The stop just before the song fully kicks in is so perfectly placed, and the guitars throughout the whole song are doing some pretty cool shit. I never really noticed the layering until recently, which also brought me to pay more attention to the lyrical content of the song. The lyrics are kind of reflective, talking about perfection as a drug that invades one's brain and ruins their life. It's a human condition we can all relate to on multiple levels, either as something that affects our lives personally, or something that affects someone we know. This song gave me a message I think I really need right now: try your best, it's all you can do.
Really should be on this list: Falling in Love, Release the Hostages, All His Suits are Torn
Honorable mention: My Orphan Year (I don't give a fuck what you say, this is a great song), Dig, Idiots are Taking Over, All of Me, Vincent, Cokie the Clown, Decom-Posuer, Wolves in Wolves Clothing.
