Hardcore punk rock outfit
Only Crime first appeared in 2002, but its members were already more than seasoned veterans from all over the rock scene. After all, the band is made up of vocalist
Russ Rankin (
Good Riddance), guitarist
Aaron Dalbec (
Bane,
Converge), drummer
Bill Stevenson (
Descendents,
ALL,
Black Flag), guitarist
Zach Blair (
GWAR,
Hagfish), and bassist Doni Blair (
Hagfish,
Armstrong). Dissatisfied with the condition of their present bands,
Rankin and
Dalbec initially toyed with the idea of starting a band together during a summer
Good Riddance/
Bane tour. Next thing they knew, the two
Blairs had signed on, and with the final addition of
Stevenson,
Only Crime were officially up and running. Shows with
Dropkick Murphys were played before Fat Wreck released their full-length debut,
To the Nines, in July 2004. Tour dates with
Stretch Armstrong,
the Suicide Machines,
Strung Out and
Avail followed and the guys also contributed a track to the second Rock Against Bush compilation. Eventually,
Only Crime settled in again at
Stevenson's the Blasting Room in Colorado to begin work on their follow-up,
Virulence, which was subsequently released in January 2007. ~ Corey Apar