Beach Rats

New Jersey supergroup Beach Rats assembled in fall 2017 from a pool of established hardcore figures previously associated with Minor Threat, Lifetime, and Bouncing Souls. Guitarist Brian Baker, whose résumé already encompassed Dag Nasty, Government Issue, Bad Religion, and additional landmark acts, joined vocalist Ari Katz, formerly of Lifetime, along with Bouncing Souls guitarist Pete Steinkopf and bassist Brian Kienlen, plus New Jersey drummer Danny Windas. The initial spark came when everyone except Baker convened for a single tribute show honoring the late Vision singer Dave Franklin; their set of Vision covers proved so successful that Katz reached out to Baker to begin writing original material. The veteran musicians, already longtime friends, moved swiftly from that casual start into the studio, generating a collection of melodic hardcore tracks with minimal rehearsal. Bridge Nine Records issued the resulting five-song debut EP, Wasted Time, in July 2018. The group performed sporadically thereafter, fitting brief festival appearances or support slots around commitments to their other bands. When the COVID-19 pandemic halted those primary projects in 2020, the members reconvened in Baker’s basement—windows open, masks in place—to develop fresh songs. By 2021 they had enough material for a full-length effort and tracked it at Lakehouse Recording Studios in Asbury Park. Epitaph Records released the album, Rat Beat, in 2022; its precise old-school hardcore foundation carried greater personal lyricism shaped by the surrounding social upheaval.