We are a Berkeley-based punk zine after all, so yes, of course we’re doing our final Issue 73 cover reveal with Pinhead Gunpowder to celebrate their new record, Unt, out October 18 on 1234 Go! Records.
Get the issue here, or subscribe here. Plus, all back issues are 25% off, so treat yourself while you’re there!
Pinhead Gunpowder are an East Bay, CA hothouse of music cultivation, its members steeped in the fabric of the legendary ’80s and ’90s Berkeley punk scene: From Green Day to Crimpshrine, Foxboro Hot Tubs to the Influents, and numerous other projects and bands, you can peel away layers to find the through line is their friendship from adolescents to adulthood. It’s that friendship that inspires Billie Joe Armstrong, Bill Schneider, Jason White, and Aaron “Cometbus” Elliott—after 30-plus years—to create together now.
“I think, especially because of the history—We’ve been doing it for 34 years now—It makes us prouder that we’re able to pull it off, and we don’t hate each other,” laughs bassist Bill Schneider. “We’re still friends, and we still like to get together and do this. So, whenever we do it, it holds a special place in my heart where it just feels like the right thing to do. It’s always exciting.”
“Yeah, I mean, I love it creatively,” Billie Joe Armstrong agrees. “It creates a different thing for me where I can get my head out of the other stuff that I’m doing and plug in here and go, ‘Oh, this feels really fresh.’”
“It’s not like we don’t all have other things going on,” notes drummer Aaron Cometbus. “These three guys have families, so it’s not like we’re bored and restless, and we’re like, ‘Let’s get the old group back together.’ It’s more like, ‘Oh, we’re drawn to each other, and we’re driven to do it.’ It’s hard to find the time—but when you find the time, it’s valuable.”
Preorder their new album here.
Cover Photo: Kaz Hope
