Interviews & Features

Magic City Mix: Who’s Driving the Birmingham Music Scene Right Now

Lee Shook, B Metro
Monday, September 2nd | 2019

They say time heals all wounds. Even those that cut the deepest and are sometimes self-inflicted, which is what makes the redemption and return of one of Alabama’s most beloved ’90s pop punk bands such a great comeback story. Having already achieved minor success in the post-grunge era under the moniker Pain during their original heyday from 1994-2000, this cheerful band of musical misfits has seen its share of ups and downs over the past 25 years, going from a popular mid-level touring group at the top of their game and with a rabidly devoted fanbase, to a 19-year hiatus that saw their members spread out around the country in search of everything from spirituality to more mundane careers as collegial educators. Recently rechristened as the “goblin orchestra” known as Salvo, despite their nearly two decades apart, there may be no better time than now for these hilariously cheeky and horn-driven madmen to make their way back into mainstream culture and the hearts and minds of both old and new audiences around the country and world.

Originally started in Tuscaloosa— by way of Mobile and Jacksonville— in 1994 by founding members Dan Lord and Mark “Pose” Milewicz, Pain first made a name for themselves as an almost impossibly unclassifiable musical entity that seemed wildly out of step with most of their peers from the time. Fun, uptempo, and with an energetic live show that combined humorous onstage antics alongside amusing-yet-pointed lyrics that touched on everything from anthropomorphic cartoon characters to midgets with guns, there was little about them that seemed in touch with the more dour acts of the day, whether it was the heroin chic of groups like Alice in Chains or the dystopian rock of Radiohead. More in line sonically with groups like Blink-182, but with an affinity for the idiosyncratic pop and inventive instrumentation of They Might Be Giants, they were never easy to truly pin down, which is one of things that always made them so interesting. Yet despite gaining national notoriety through plugs on both the Cartoon Network and NBC sitcom NewsRadio, by the time the new millennium rolled around, this band of merry pranksters would come to an abrupt end following the departure of lead singer Lord, who would leave the group at the height of their popularity to study theology and start a family.

Having recently reconvened this past year at Ol Elegante studio in Homewood to record a new album of material at the behest of Lord and longtime member Adam Guthrie— alongside other original bandmates, new recruits and minus Milewicz— the group hasn’t lost a step and are poised to once again bring their raucously joyful music back into the public sphere. Having played a recent sold-out revival show at Saturn that saw fans come from all over the country and was filmed, along with their studio sessions, for a new mini-documentary called Anthem For A Middle Aged Band, the group couldn’t be more excited about what’s in store going forward, all of which Birmingham has been a big part of making possible. And with a release date for the new songs set for this month and designs on touring, they may just be ready to pick up exactly where they left off so many years ago, adding yet another chapter to their quirky and enduring legacy of subversive rock and roll.

Discography