Biography
Indiana-bred pop-punk outfit the Ataris built a devoted following during the late '90s through multiple album releases before securing independent chart traction via the 2001 effort End Is Forever. Fronted by singer/guitarist Kris Roe, the band reached a broader audience with 2003's So Long, Astoria, whose Don Henley cover "The Boys of Summer" propelled the record to number 24 on the Billboard 200. Line-up shifts notwithstanding, Roe has remained the driving force, maintaining an active touring schedule while displaying his facility for alt-rock melodies across projects such as 2007's Welcome the Night and 2016's October in This Railroad Earth.
The ensemble originated in 1996 in Anderson, Indiana, when lead singer/guitarist Kristopher Roe and guitarist Jasin Thomason first assembled it as a home demo-recording venture. Discovery arrived the next year after Vandals founder Joe Escalante encountered songwriter Kris Roe at a show; struck by the submitted demo, Escalante urged Roe to assemble a complete lineup for recording on his Kung-Fu Records imprint. Roe relocated to California to recruit additional players, though Thomason remained in Indiana, eventually enlisting guitarist Marco Peña, bassist Mike Davenport, and former Lagwagon drummer Derrick Plourde, who was subsequently succeeded by Chris Knapp.
Their debut Kung-Fu release, Anywhere But Here, soon drew the attention of Fat Wreck Chords proprietor Fat Mike, prompting the band to sign with that more established roster and issue the EP Look Forward to Failure, produced by several Descendents members. In early 1999 they delivered the second album Blue Skies, Broken Hearts...Next 12 Exits, after which they shared stages with MxPx, blink-182, and Homegrown ahead of the 2000 release Let It Burn and the 2001 arrival of End Is Forever.
The group advanced to major-label status with 2003's So Long, Astoria on Columbia, which introduced guitarist John Collura and achieved solid sales while "In This Diary" and the Don Henley cover "The Boys of Summer" gained traction on MTV and modern rock radio. Live at the Metro appeared in February 2004. After devoting months to tracking a fifth album intended as the Astoria successor, the Ataris departed Columbia in early summer 2006 amid staff changes and merger speculation with Epic; the planned July rollout was postponed, yet the band proceeded without a label through South American dates. Further sonic and personnel adjustments followed, expanding the roster to seven with Roe, Collura, guitarist/vocalist Paul Carabello, cellist Angus Cooke, keyboardist Bob Hoag, bassist Sean Hansen, and drummer Shane Chikeles. Establishing Isola Recordings and aligning with Sanctuary, they issued the darker, more guitar-driven Welcome the Night in February 2007.
Extensive touring and recording occupied the ensuing years, yielding multiple EPs highlighted by the four-track 2012 set The Graveyard of the Atlantic. October in This Railroad Earth surfaced in 2016, the same year that brought the compilation Silver Turns to Rust and the split album Let It Burn alongside Israel's Useless I.D. In 2017 the Ataris joined the Vans Warped Tour lineup.
The ensemble originated in 1996 in Anderson, Indiana, when lead singer/guitarist Kristopher Roe and guitarist Jasin Thomason first assembled it as a home demo-recording venture. Discovery arrived the next year after Vandals founder Joe Escalante encountered songwriter Kris Roe at a show; struck by the submitted demo, Escalante urged Roe to assemble a complete lineup for recording on his Kung-Fu Records imprint. Roe relocated to California to recruit additional players, though Thomason remained in Indiana, eventually enlisting guitarist Marco Peña, bassist Mike Davenport, and former Lagwagon drummer Derrick Plourde, who was subsequently succeeded by Chris Knapp.
Their debut Kung-Fu release, Anywhere But Here, soon drew the attention of Fat Wreck Chords proprietor Fat Mike, prompting the band to sign with that more established roster and issue the EP Look Forward to Failure, produced by several Descendents members. In early 1999 they delivered the second album Blue Skies, Broken Hearts...Next 12 Exits, after which they shared stages with MxPx, blink-182, and Homegrown ahead of the 2000 release Let It Burn and the 2001 arrival of End Is Forever.
The group advanced to major-label status with 2003's So Long, Astoria on Columbia, which introduced guitarist John Collura and achieved solid sales while "In This Diary" and the Don Henley cover "The Boys of Summer" gained traction on MTV and modern rock radio. Live at the Metro appeared in February 2004. After devoting months to tracking a fifth album intended as the Astoria successor, the Ataris departed Columbia in early summer 2006 amid staff changes and merger speculation with Epic; the planned July rollout was postponed, yet the band proceeded without a label through South American dates. Further sonic and personnel adjustments followed, expanding the roster to seven with Roe, Collura, guitarist/vocalist Paul Carabello, cellist Angus Cooke, keyboardist Bob Hoag, bassist Sean Hansen, and drummer Shane Chikeles. Establishing Isola Recordings and aligning with Sanctuary, they issued the darker, more guitar-driven Welcome the Night in February 2007.
Extensive touring and recording occupied the ensuing years, yielding multiple EPs highlighted by the four-track 2012 set The Graveyard of the Atlantic. October in This Railroad Earth surfaced in 2016, the same year that brought the compilation Silver Turns to Rust and the split album Let It Burn alongside Israel's Useless I.D. In 2017 the Ataris joined the Vans Warped Tour lineup.
Albums
Live in Chicago 2019
2020
Hang Your Head in Hope (The Acoustic Sessions)
2019
Silver Turns to Rust
2017
So Long, Astoria Demos
2013
Welcome the Night
2007
So Long, Astoria
2003
End Is Forever
2001
Blue Skies, Broken Hearts...Next 12 Exits
1999
...Anywhere But Here
1997
Singles
Car Song
2025
The Boys Of Summer (Re-Recorded) [Sped Up] - Single
2023
The Boys of Summer
2019
All Souls' Day & The Graveyard of the Atlantic
2010
Live
