Slojack

Slojack, a Los Angeles rock and roll outfit, delivers high-energy performances whose songwriting echoes the raw punk approach of Mike Ness, while its openly gay lyrics confront entrenched conventions in rock. Core members Eddie Fritz on vocals and keyboards and Andy Bartel on guitar, bass, and vocals first joined forces in the early 1990s once Bartel answered a newspaper advertisement Fritz had placed, giving rise to the band. Its original roster, completed by bassist Glenn Bassett and drummer Teddy Freese, logged countless miles on tour, although the white noise punk debut album Naked appeared only in 2000. Rejecting the increasingly hollow punk tag in favor of genuine punk ideology, Fritz and Bartel began crafting songs meant to upend audience expectations. After recruiting drummer Geoff Haba and assuming bass duties himself following Bassett’s departure, Bartel helped shape the 2001 release Get There From Here, a vigorous and wide-ranging set that travels from roots rock into material influenced by the Who, Iggy Pop, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, and Social Distortion.