Biography
The Santa Barbara, California outfit Dishwalla burst onto the scene in 1996 thanks to their infectious pop hit “Counting Blue Cars.” Rooted in the raw spirit of earlier rock acts, the group’s hard-edged sound propelled that track to become one of the year’s most-played singles, earning them a Billboard Rock Song of the Year trophy and driving their debut album Pet Your Friends past the platinum mark.
Emerging amid the first wave of post-grunge, the lineup featured J.R. Richards on vocals, Scot Alexander on bass, Rodney Browning Cravens on guitar, Jim Wood on keyboards, and George Pendergast on drums. Throughout the mid-’90s the band shared stages with Sheryl Crow, Blind Melon, and the Goo Goo Dolls while promoting Pet Your Friends. Before they could record a follow-up, the Polygram/Universal merger threw their plans into disarray, forcing the musicians to reassess their next steps. Their sophomore effort, And You Think You Know What Life’s About, surfaced in 1998 yet struggled commercially after the label trimmed its staff. Although their stint at A&M proved brief and draining amid the corporate upheaval, the band still contributed a cover of “Policy of Truth” to the Depeche Mode tribute album For the Masses.
Entering the new millennium, Dishwalla stepped away from the major-label circuit to craft a third record. They aligned with Immergent after Pendergast exited, recruiting Pete Maloney, who had played drums on the 1998 tour, to handle percussion. The experimental Opaline arrived on Immergent in 2002, followed the next year by the live set Live... Greetings from the Flow State. A self-titled studio album, helmed by producers Sylvia Massy (Tool, System of a Down), Bill Szymczyk, and Ryan Greene (NOFX, Nerf Herder), appeared in 2005, after which the group entered an indefinite hiatus.
Dishwalla resurfaced three years later with a revised roster that reunited original members Alexander, Pendergast, Cravens, and Wood alongside new singer Justin Fox. They performed intermittently over the ensuing period and finally returned to the studio in 2016 to begin work on their first collection in ten years. Juniper Road was released in 2017.
Emerging amid the first wave of post-grunge, the lineup featured J.R. Richards on vocals, Scot Alexander on bass, Rodney Browning Cravens on guitar, Jim Wood on keyboards, and George Pendergast on drums. Throughout the mid-’90s the band shared stages with Sheryl Crow, Blind Melon, and the Goo Goo Dolls while promoting Pet Your Friends. Before they could record a follow-up, the Polygram/Universal merger threw their plans into disarray, forcing the musicians to reassess their next steps. Their sophomore effort, And You Think You Know What Life’s About, surfaced in 1998 yet struggled commercially after the label trimmed its staff. Although their stint at A&M proved brief and draining amid the corporate upheaval, the band still contributed a cover of “Policy of Truth” to the Depeche Mode tribute album For the Masses.
Entering the new millennium, Dishwalla stepped away from the major-label circuit to craft a third record. They aligned with Immergent after Pendergast exited, recruiting Pete Maloney, who had played drums on the 1998 tour, to handle percussion. The experimental Opaline arrived on Immergent in 2002, followed the next year by the live set Live... Greetings from the Flow State. A self-titled studio album, helmed by producers Sylvia Massy (Tool, System of a Down), Bill Szymczyk, and Ryan Greene (NOFX, Nerf Herder), appeared in 2005, after which the group entered an indefinite hiatus.
Dishwalla resurfaced three years later with a revised roster that reunited original members Alexander, Pendergast, Cravens, and Wood alongside new singer Justin Fox. They performed intermittently over the ensuing period and finally returned to the studio in 2016 to begin work on their first collection in ten years. Juniper Road was released in 2017.
Albums
Alive
2022
Live…Greetings From the Flow State
2003
Opaline
2002
And You Think You Know What Life's About
1998
Pet Your Friends
1995
Singles
