Four guys holding English degrees from Ohio State University,
the New Bomb Turks have been declared as leaders in the punk rock revolution by spiked-haired, hardcore punkers everywhere. They are not pop-punk, but ferociously aggressive and fast, borrowing from
the Pagans,
Dead Boys, and so on. The band's name comes from Robert Wuhl's character in an early-'80s B movie, The Hollywood Nights, which also marked the film debuts of
Tony Danza and
Michelle Pfeiffer. Their landmark debut,
Destroy Oh Boy!, came out in 1993 to universally great reviews. Following it up quickly with the
Drunk on Cock EP (which has a hilariously offensive cover), the band scored another winner the next year with
Information Highway Revisited. Featuring a tighter sound and less of a direct punk influence, the record again made them critical darlings. The
Pissing Out the Poison: Singles and Other Swill was their last release for Crypt Records, as mini-major Epitaph asked them to join the roster.
Scared Straight and
At Rope's End both appeared quickly afterwards, although both records started to show the wear and tear the band was experiencing on the road and in the studio. A few EP's marked the time between albums, but their last Epitaph release (
Nightmare Scenario) would hit stores by 1999. The band and label split amicably, and the
Turks toured for a bit before stepping back into the studio. Recording
The Night Before the Day the Earth Stood Still without a label, Gearhead pick up the record and released it in the fall of 2002. ~ Bradley Torreano and Matt Carlson