25 years ago today, April 8, 1994, the Offspring came out with their third album, Smash. The previously unknown band sold over 10 million copies of what journalists inevitably referred to as "the aptly titled Smash."
Just 2 months after Green Day's commercial breakthrough, "pop punk" seemed to be having a moment, leading to somewhat silly debates about whether too much pop and success made the word "punk" inappropriate.
The Offspring's interesting lead singer, Dexter Holland, wrote their breakthrough single, "Come Out and Play," about gang violence after living near the LA riots in 1992. Holland, who was pursuing a Ph.D in molecular biology before he dropped out to focus on the band, added the "You gotta keep 'em separated" catchphrase to this song based on his experience working with hot liquids in a laboratory.
The title track of Smash, released the same day we learned of Kurt Cobain's suicide days earlier, closed out the album with a defiant declaration: "Do what I want, do what I feel like . . . Who gives a f--- if it's good enough for you? 'Cause I am alive, I am alive, I am alive!"
Just 2 months after Green Day's commercial breakthrough, "pop punk" seemed to be having a moment, leading to somewhat silly debates about whether too much pop and success made the word "punk" inappropriate.
The Offspring's interesting lead singer, Dexter Holland, wrote their breakthrough single, "Come Out and Play," about gang violence after living near the LA riots in 1992. Holland, who was pursuing a Ph.D in molecular biology before he dropped out to focus on the band, added the "You gotta keep 'em separated" catchphrase to this song based on his experience working with hot liquids in a laboratory.
The title track of Smash, released the same day we learned of Kurt Cobain's suicide days earlier, closed out the album with a defiant declaration: "Do what I want, do what I feel like . . . Who gives a f--- if it's good enough for you? 'Cause I am alive, I am alive, I am alive!"
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