Hallraker
Encyclopedia
Hallraker: Live! is a live album
by the Los Angeles
-based punk rock
band the Descendents
, released in 1989 through SST Records
. It was their second live album and was recorded during their Spring 1987 tour in support of All and their Summer 1987 "FinALL" tour. These were the band's final tours with singer Milo Aukerman
before his departure to pursue a career in biochemistry
, after which the band's name was changed to All
(the Descendents would reunite with Aukerman in 1995). Hallraker: Live! followed 1987's Liveage!, which featured a completely different set of songs recorded on the same tours.
on the band's tour in support of All
, and July 13, 1987 at First Avenue in Minneapolis during the last week of their "FinALL" tour, so-called due to singer Milo Aukerman
's decision to leave the band to pursue a career in biochemistry
. Following these tours the band's name was changed to All
, and they recorded eight albums between 1988 and 1995 with singers Dave Smalley
, Scott Reynolds, and Chad Price
before reuniting with Aukerman to record Everything Sucks
as the Descendents.
Hallraker: Live! is a companion album to 1987's Liveage!, which was recorded during the same two tours. Drummer Bill Stevenson explained:
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
by the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band the Descendents
Descendents
The Descendents are an American punk rock band from Hermosa Beach, California. As of 2011, they have released six studio albums, three live albums, three compilation albums and three EPs. The Descendents broke up and reformed several times over the years, sometimes with different musicians...
, released in 1989 through SST Records
SST Records
SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
. It was their second live album and was recorded during their Spring 1987 tour in support of All and their Summer 1987 "FinALL" tour. These were the band's final tours with singer Milo Aukerman
Milo Aukerman
Milo Aukerman is an American singer, songwriter and research biochemist. Aukerman is perhaps most widely known for being the lead singer of the early Los Angeles area punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to be pioneers of modern "pop punk"...
before his departure to pursue a career in biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
, after which the band's name was changed to All
ALL (band)
All is an American punk band originally from Los Angeles, currently residing in Fort Collins, Colorado, formed by Descendents members Bill Stevenson, Karl Alvarez, and Stephen Egerton.-Formation and Cruz Records Years:...
(the Descendents would reunite with Aukerman in 1995). Hallraker: Live! followed 1987's Liveage!, which featured a completely different set of songs recorded on the same tours.
Background
The tracks on Hallraker: Live! were taken from two performances: April 9, 1987 at Berkeley Square in Berkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
on the band's tour in support of All
ALL (album)
All is the fourth album by the Los Angeles-based punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1987 through SST Records. It was their first album with guitarist Stephen Egerton and bassist Karl Alvarez, and their final studio album before singer Milo Aukerman left the band to pursue a career in...
, and July 13, 1987 at First Avenue in Minneapolis during the last week of their "FinALL" tour, so-called due to singer Milo Aukerman
Milo Aukerman
Milo Aukerman is an American singer, songwriter and research biochemist. Aukerman is perhaps most widely known for being the lead singer of the early Los Angeles area punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to be pioneers of modern "pop punk"...
's decision to leave the band to pursue a career in biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
. Following these tours the band's name was changed to All
ALL (band)
All is an American punk band originally from Los Angeles, currently residing in Fort Collins, Colorado, formed by Descendents members Bill Stevenson, Karl Alvarez, and Stephen Egerton.-Formation and Cruz Records Years:...
, and they recorded eight albums between 1988 and 1995 with singers Dave Smalley
Dave Smalley
Not to be confused with Dave Smalley Dave Smalley is an American musician, best known as the punk bands DYS, Dag Nasty, All and singer/guitarist with Down By Law. He is known for his influence on pop punk music and his early contributions to the emo genre...
, Scott Reynolds, and Chad Price
Chad Price
Chad Price is best known for being the lead singer for the pop-punk band All and alt-country band Drag the River.He joined ALL in 1993 as the band's third singer, after Dave Smalley and Scott Reynolds. He has appeared on the four most recent studio albums, as well as one live album...
before reuniting with Aukerman to record Everything Sucks
Everything Sucks (Descendents album)
Everything Sucks is the fifth studio album by the punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1996 through Epitaph Records. It was their first album of new studio material since 1987's All, after which singer Milo Aukerman had left the band to pursue a career in biochemistry...
as the Descendents.
Hallraker: Live! is a companion album to 1987's Liveage!, which was recorded during the same two tours. Drummer Bill Stevenson explained:
Hallraker will be thought of as "the other" live Descendents LP. The Liveage LP served as a sort of "greatist hits" album, as well as being an accurate documentary of the band in concert. But at the request of fans telling us about all of the songs we "should have put" on Liveage, we decided to release another album with a completely different set of songs, giving people the entire view of the band, with nothing held back.
Reception
Jeremy Salmon of Allmusic gave Hallraker: Live! three stars out of five, saying that "The recordings here do well to capture the vitality and frenzy of the band in action, even as they were in the final throes of existence. Among the songs that are included, 'Pep Talk,' 'Cheer,' and 'My World' are the highlights. Other tracks like 'Iceman' and 'Jealous of the World' demonstrate the metal edge that developed in the band's sound in their last couple of studio albums."Track listing
Band
- Karl AlvarezKarl AlvarezKarl Matthew Alvarez is the bass guitar player for both the Descendents and All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987....
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, cover drawings - Milo AukermanMilo AukermanMilo Aukerman is an American singer, songwriter and research biochemist. Aukerman is perhaps most widely known for being the lead singer of the early Los Angeles area punk rock band the Descendents, a group widely considered to be pioneers of modern "pop punk"...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Stephen Egerton – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Bill Stevenson – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Production
- Timothy Powel, Mark Harder, Jim Hibbard, and Richard Andrews – engineers