Today I’m thrilled to bring everyone an exclusive track-by-track by punk band Dirty O’Keefe, for their new EP called Heavy Water. Dirty O’Keeffe was formed in 2020 by Lagwagon’s Dave Raun. Raun collared Stone Sour’s Christian Martucci, Faith No More’s Billy Gould and Steve Shepard from Cali punk crew Trash n Privilege. Looking both to blow away the cobwebs of the pandemic but also bring attention to the hard-working crews impacted by lockdown, the four released “Brick or Bucket” in 2020. If it was COVID that brought the quartet together, it was the friendships that reunited them five years later for debut EP, Heavy Water. The 4-track collection is a gritty & resonating punk rock collection, with a metallic edge and a splash of influence from each member’s full-time group. If you’re enjoying the feature, please consider streaming the EP here.
”Heavy Water”: We see homeless people every day. We rarely think twice. One afternoon, I saw this homeless guy bathing in an irrigation canal. All this stuff stacked around him; trash bags filled with cans, broken shopping cart, all his possessions. As I drove by, in a matter of seconds, I started thinking about his back story. What’s his day like? He wakes up and falls asleep in dirt. Does he meet his dealer in the same spot? How often does he buy bad meth? Just him and his thoughts all day.
”Crunchy Bass for Breakfast”: I thought about Billy as I was writing the music for this song. I wanted an old FNM style, driving bass line but uniquely Dirty O’Keeffe. This song represents a cool musical blend. Lyrically, it’s about all the T’s and C’s we see every day and approve without thinking. Anytime we click accept, that entity owns our personal data. Our personal information is a revenue source for all online content. The DMV, social media, cell phone service providers, they all can collect our data and sell it to whomever they want.
”A Cliché Amongst the Prey”: A classic case of a tele evangelist. I was reading about very famous tele evangelist who claimed to hold an Oxford doctorate. Ravi was famous for his debates and numerous books on religion. He traveled all over the world and filled stadiums with people who would want to hear him speak. After his death, numerous women came out reporting sexual abuse. His foundation investigated and verified all their accusations. It was also discovered he never attended Oxford and owned multiple brothels across Asia. My first thought was “well of course he did”. This guy was just another cliché.
”A Million”: Lyrically, this song represents the political machine and the mass populus. Punk rock is about dissent. We should always ask questions and push back. If questions are met with vitriol, somebody is hiding something. We know meanings are changed, facts are omitted, political positions are market tested to shape public opinion. This song is about questioning the narrative.