Teenage Bottlerocket

Teenage Bottlerocket formed a punk rock outfit whose sound delivered the compact speed, humor, and frenzy typical of the Southern California style, despite originating in Laramie, Wyoming. Ray Carlisle delivered rapid vocals laced with irreverent takes on pop culture topics, while he and Kody Templeman maintained a constant stream of downstroked guitars; Miguel Chen and Darren Chewka propelled the rhythm section at a tempo ideal for pogo dancing or pit circling. Total established the blueprint for their approach in 2005, They Came from the Shadows showcased several signature tracks in 2009, Tales from Wyoming delivered a boisterous restatement of their core aesthetic in 2015, and Sick Sesh! affirmed in September 2021 that the group, to borrow a lyric, would never fade from relevance among devotees of their punk variant.

Ray Carlisle and Brandon Carlisle launched Teenage Bottlerocket in 2000 on bass and drums respectively, soon after the Homeless Wonders disbanded. With guitarist Zach Doe added, the trio began performing in 2001 and issued the A-Bomb EP in 2002. Doe departed later that year; Joel Pattinson joined and appeared on the debut full-length Another Way in 2003. Total arrived in 2005 after the lineup expanded to a quartet with guitarist Kody Templeman, formerly of the Lillingtons whose style had shaped the Carlisle brothers early on. Warning Device followed in 2008 amid further shifts: Pattinson exited, Ray Carlisle switched from bass to guitar, and Miguel Chen assumed bass duties. They Came from the Shadows marked the band’s first release on Fat Wreck Chords in 2009; the label also put out Freak Out! in 2012. Rise Records handled Tales from Wyoming in 2015, Brandon Carlisle’s final recording before his death on November 7, 2015, after he entered a coma. The band continued with Darren Chewka on drums, returned to Fat Wreck Chords for the 2017 covers collection Stealing the Covers and its accompanying single “Going Back to Wyo,” and issued Stay Rad! in 2019. Fat Wreck Chords released Sick Sesh! the following September as another concise, melodic statement in the group’s established vein.