Open Questions for Greg Graffin, Lifetime Acheivement in Cultural Humanism Award winner and all-around inspiring dude

This past Saturday, April 26th, 2008, Greg Graffin, lead singer of Bad Religion, Phd in evolutionary biology, and generally inspiring dude received the Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural Humanism from the Harvard Humanist Chaplaincy (Watch it here; Listen here.). Being the big fat nerd that I am, Adam and I headed to Boston to witness this blessed event.

The church(!) pews were filled with an odd assortment of mostly punk rock kids/adults, a few parents, and other middle age adults. The front pew was filled with Greg's dad and his fiance. Sadly (well sad for the stalker in me), I couldn't catch a glimpse of her. I did already know that they were getting hitched because Brett & Jay don't seem to understand the peeping tom potential of their beloved myspace. But I digress ...

The event began with introductions by the president of the Harvard Secular Society and the all important radio intros (it was being sponsored by and broadcast on NPR as well as on local tv). Then Greg came out, in a suit, along with the Humanist Chaplain at Harvard (seriously, how do you get that job?) who gave a long, mildly incoherent, nervous introduction to the award, Graffin, and why it was awarded to him. During this time, Greg stood in the middle of the altar looking awkward.



Students from the society then read leaders to Greg from his PhD advisor, Will Provine, his co-author of Is Belief in God Good, Bad or Irrelevant?: A Professor And a Punk Rocker Discuss Science, Religion, Naturalism & Christianity, Preston Jones, and Brett Gurewitz. Provine's letter consisted of a story about how they didn't expect Greg to finish his dissertation so quickly but he did ... and not much else which was mildly amusing. The letter reading was a sweet touch though.

Finally, they presented Greg with the award and he came up to the podium and gave a very professor-ish lecture on the history of humanism. Frankly, it was a bit hard to pay attention to - especially considering we hadn't got much sleep the night before and the fact that I didn't have to take notes or write a paper on it (Grades are apparently quite the motivator. Who knew?).

After finishing his speech, Greg took off his suit jacket - proclaiming that he'd never played in a suit, rolled up his sleeves and played a few acoustic songs. He played: Highway off his solo album,Cold as Clay, Suffer off Bad Religion's album Suffer, and Sorrow off Bad Religion's album The Process of Belief.



After he finished playing, there was a Q&A session with the audience. Although I had a few questions in my head, I didn't go up to ask them for a few reasons. Firstly, by that point, I was utterly exhausted and knew I had a 45 minute T ride preceding my collapse into bed. Secondly, I know how judgmental I am of the people who ask questions (especially the pretentious "i'm an aaartist music snobs" and that overweight red-headed dude who felt entitled to sit in the front row despite the fact that it had been roped off ... for Greg's family. Seriously, what a douche. Seee?)

Anyway, Adam and I spent much time discussing the questions we might have asked on the subway ride to the hotel so I thought I'd pose them here where they may live on in internet oblivion.

• In Is Belief in God Good, Bad or Irrelevant?, Graffin discusses Steven Jay Gould assertion in Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History that, if the Big Bang were to happen again, i.e. if we could start the world & evolution over again, humans wouldn't exist. While discussing this, he argues that evolution isn't logical. This struck me as a huge contradiction for someone who calls himself a naturalist. It seems to me that logic, and by logic I mean mathematical logic not our colloquial logic-as-a-synonym-for-reasoning, is the very underpinning of the experimental method: if A given B then C. Verifiability is essential to science and naturalism and verifiability requires replication; it require that, given the exact same circumstances, you will obtain the same results and if you don't, it means that the initial experiment was invalid and there are likely causes that aren't being taken into account. While I can completely believe that if the world were to start over again, the existence of humans would be highly improbable; I cannot believe that if the world were to start over again and every determining event happened exactly the same, humans wouldn't exist. I cannot believe the latter because it, in essence, disproves the scientific method itself. Having never read Wonderful Life, but having read another book by Gould, Full House: The Spread of Excellence from Plato to Darwin, I would have asked Graffin to elaborate on Gould's assertion and his own statement on the matter.
• In Is Belief in God Good, Bad or Irrelevant?, Graffin displays a disdain for philosophy. I'd love to hear him expand upon this.
• It seems to me that the issue of creationism vs. evolution; religion vs. science is always set up as a strict dichotomy - including and perhaps especially by Graffin. (His PhD dissertaton was on religious belief amongst evolutionary biologists). As the daughter of two scientists (PhDs in physiology) and regular church goers, I grew up totally (blissfully?) unaware of this inherent conflict. Granted, I did not end up religious at all but my sense is that among scientists in general (not to mention the plethora of people trained in science and biology for other professions - medicine, pharmacology, nursing, teaching, engineering, etc) people are able, however tenuously, to rectify their belief in science with their belief in god. Regardless of how illogical or bullshit I may think that reconciliation is, the fact is that it exists. I'd be interested to hear Greg's thoughts on the matter.
• Since Graffin's father was at the award's ceremony, I would have loved to ask what his dad thought of Bad Religion.
• Graffin mentioned, in a response to a Q&A question, that he had not grown up religious at all and while that was good in many respects, there are essential questions of the world and our place in it that are taught in places like Sunday school; questions that he didn't have answered until he discovered science. I have occasionally missed going to church, especially during turbulent times in my life. For me, I think what I was longing for was the sense of community and roots that are found in religious institutions. (Happily, I have learned that many atheist parents are starting "Sunday schools" in their area to combat this very issues. Perhaps the existence of humanist societies also fills this void.) I would be interested to know how he, as a parent, instilled his values in his children and combated this issue.
• When introducing Graffin, the Humanist Chaplain quoted a song from How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, which Greg wrote when he was 15. I know that I did and said some stupid, embarrassing things when I was 15 and I wonder how Graffin feels to hear those words now. I also wonder how it feels to be 42 and to influence 15 year olds.
  

The Glitz! The Glamour! Bad Religion on Broadway!

Monday night I saw bad religion at the nokia theater times square. Does anyone remember when music venues weren’t named after big corporations?

Going to times square is always an ordeal. The tourists, the flashing lights, the traffic – I have a hunch it’s pretty close to hell. We step out of the subway, get our bearings and walk 2 blocks on that strange patch of triangular cement that exists between broadway and 7^th. Suddenly, to our left, there was a huge screen screaming Bad Religion and prominently displaying their new cd cover. Adam says there was a music video clip but I missed it. We walked up to the entrance where security guards yelled “All exits are final!” swept us with metal detectors before letting us in the door.

And wow. It was just so … shiny. The carpets were clean and the color was obvious. There were escalators. Multiple sized televisions dotted the walls playing a plethora of concert stills, advertisements, and the occasion video of the current show. We stopped at the merch table for a bit (disappointing) then entered the stage area. We walked down to the pit, got a choice spot at the back of the floor directly in front of the stage, and sat down … on the clean, nicely varnished hardwood floors. I noticed some security people walking around with flash lights. I assumed it was to make sure people stayed in line. It wasn’t. It was to make sure the floor stayed clean, which was probably a legitimate liability for them.

The “All exits are final!” call must have scared many people off. A half hour or so before the first band it was pretty empty. And there, in the middle of the pit, was the typical drunk frat boy douche trying to mosh with the few early-risers not pressed up against the stage barricades in anticipation and adolescent glee. This guy was wasted. It was around 7:30 and he could barely walk. So it came as no surprise towards the end of the second band’s set, he slid to the floor and started dry heaving. Some pious soul picked him up and lead him the foot or so to the back railing where he proceeded to start vomiting. By this time the band had ended and this poor douche became the audience’s spectacle of choice. The guy standing next to me, who I have decided is perhaps the nicest person in the world, went and brought the garbage can to the guy. Douche boy then fell over while vomiting into it. Once the guy was walked out by two security guards, tripping over his jacket which had fallen around his ankles, one of the female floor cleaners stood guard by the mess waiting for cleaning tools and help. At this point the crowd became very invested in protecting others from the soiled area. Yells came at anyone who dared walk in front of the girl guarding the spew. The most intense yells came when some guy walked dangerously close then kneeled to tie his shoe. Finally, cheers erupted when a guard came with disinfectant cleaner. I think, for some, this was the highlight of the evening.

But not for me. Bad religion was where it was at.

So let’s start from the beginning:

First band was The Briggs. On first myspace listen they were ok. On first site, they were douches. Two singers with the same voice. Lyrics like “This song is for you, this song is for us, this song is for the world.” Overall, been there, done that. There’s not much to write home about.

Up next was The Gallows. A british hardcore band full of tiny, skinny boys in tight jeans. But damn, did they put on a show. Amazing split leg jumps were executed by the singer and guitarist to the envy of any kid on the track team. The singer spent 80% of the show in the pit. This was mildly problematic since he had a corded mic and here on the east coast the kids love their circle pits. (On a side note, I’ve never really gotten down with the circle pit. I mean, what’s the point? At least with slam dancing or moshing, you’re, you know, dancing. But the circle pit seems like Nascar. Don’t they ever just want to go right??). Towards the end of the show the singer told us that his and his brother’s (the guitarist) mom and aunt were in the audience. On the next song, the guitarist ran up to the upper seats where his mom was sitting, slung his guitar over the railing, and played. Then he kissed his mom and ran back on stage. I’m not sure if his guitar had a wireless pick up or what but it was cute either way.

And finally … drum roll please … BAD RELIGION.

Bad Religion’s stage presence, while awesome, was in stark contrast to The Gallows. As Adam says, there’s no ego in Bad Religion shows. None. It’s refreshing. While there was a sense of punk rock community and values in the Gallow’s singer’s time in the pit, it was a community about him. The kids danced and ran around him. Bad Religion is more like, as they’ve called themselves “a gang of teachers.” They seem more interested in making each other laugh (Brian Baker – of Minor Threat fame – apparently does crazy stuff on the guitar just to amuse Jay Bentley. Bentley seemed utterly amused.) than in looking cool. Greg Graffin is the only singer I’ve ever seen who can pull off the ‘acting out the words to songs with his hands’ thing. Sure, it’s still insanely dorky but since he’s not trying to be anything else, it works. I have a special place in my heart for Greg Graffin. He is my professor father if he was an atheist and in a punk rock band … which sadly, he’s not.

Where The Gallows on stage banter was rock-fucking-roll (“We’re leaving today to go to Australia. We gotta show those convicts how it’s done … [ crowd yells ] ah, shut up, we invented you too …” or ealier “We’re from London-town and honestly, not much good music has come out of there … but how about some Black Flag?”), Bad Religion’s banter made you feel like you were hanging out with your dorky best friends. At the end of one song, Bentley went on a screaming rant about running for mayor of New York City, seriously dissing Giuliani. Jokes were made at the expense of the New York Giants (“This next song is something the New York Giants sorely need – The Defense” and the New York/Boston rivalry (“We haven’t rehearsed this next song much but it’s ok, because this is just practice before our big show tomorrow in Boston …”).

About a third through the show, Graffin tells us how happy he his to be back on Broadway and goes into an impromptu musical-theatre-esque song ending with the line “cuz no one in this band can play guitar … except Brian.” This causes an offended look from Greg Hetson. Graffin then tells us that that lovely rendition was all because “Where his he? Where his he? … Simon Cowell is here tonight! Looking for his newest talent!”

Later, mid way through the show, the band takes an extra long time between sets. I couldn’t quite hear but it looked like Bentley couldn’t remember how to play the next song. Graffin, eventually covering for his band, tell us Trixie the bartender asked them to take a long time between songs so everyone could get drinks. He called it the “alcohol intermission.” (I called it the “we’re old” intermission …). This rant still didn’t fill the time so Graffin asked to have the house lights up to see the “cheap seats in the back.” Graffin said that’s where he’d be … he “spent his time in the pit as you all know but …” and then he mimed a hip fracture. Bentley missed the lights up so they did it again and he commented: “You know who’s back there? … Your moms and dads … it’s ok cuz I’m dating your mom!” The audience booed ... I thought, actually, you are those dads in the back. (In fact, Graffin was spotted at a Fall Out Boy show. When asked about it, he said that his kids wanted to go so he took them. Awww.)

But what about the music you may be asking?

The truth is Bad Religion’s music speaks for itself. Intense, passionate, articulate, intelligent. What else can be said? I will say that, having only seen them live at Warped Tour, they are, in fact, far superior at their own shows. Perhaps because they have time to talk to and get to know the audience. This modest, self-depracting quality is what makes Bad Religion shows so special. After the band walked off the stage, pre-encore, they came rushing back. Jay Bentley ran up the mic and blurted “We have 7 minutes to play 3 songs.” The rest of the band hurried but with less gusto. Jay taunted “Drunky McGoo” (Brian Baker) to hurry up and get his guitar on. After two songs, Graffin pointed one finger at the side of stage, mouthing “one more.” His insistent, repetition makes me think whoever was in charge was not having it. They played another song (“Infected” of course) anyway. The truth is, however old the members of Bad Religion get and in whatever capacity (performers, spectators, parents), they are here for the kids and for the music. Period.

Songs they played (courtesy of Adam – not in order):

We're Only Gonna Die

Fuck Armagadden...This is Hell(from How Could Hell Be Any Worse?)

Suffer(From Suffer)

No Control
I Want To Conquer The World
You (from No Control)

Modern Man

Anesthesia
God Song
21st Century Digital Boy(from Against the Grain)

Generator
Atomic Garden (from Generator)

Recipe For Hate
American Jesus
Lookin' In
Skyscraper (from Recipe for Hate)

Infected(from Stranger Than Fiction)

Come Join Us (from the Gray Race)

Supersonic
Sorrow
The Defense (from the Process of Belief)

Social Suicide (from the Empire Strikes First)

52 Seconds
Heros and Martyrs
New Dark Ages
Requiem For Dissent
Dearly Beloved (from New Maps of Hell)

i'm a stalker!

i admit it. i was, hands down, completely, childishly obsessed with Mike Herrera and MxPx in high school.

but i thought i had gotten over that.

and not just because i had gotten older and started feeling lamer about liking pop-punk bands like MxPx. the real downfall was when they all got married. yuri's marriage wasn't so disconcerting but once tom got hitched, we all knew mike would be a close third. and after that, after the everpassing moment, their songs just went down hill. without a broken heart, mike's lyrics lost their gusto. it all seemed a bit too formulaic and cheesy.

but things changed yesterday when i came across mike herrera's new solo, country myspace page. i mean, hello, is that not the most amazing thing you've ever heard?

for me, it is. i'm always looking for sense in my musical tastes (really in my tastes in general), which in our pop culture defined, identity-politicing society, always seemed so dichotomous.

the thing is - i love country. kasey chambers. johnny cash. hank williams. dixie chicks. it just does it for me. and i think it's awesome that mike is putting out a country record. and even more insanely awesome that he lists kasy chambers and neko case as influences.

the other upside of this was that i found mike's wife's myspace page. (it wasn't that hard considering she was his number 1 friend ... and, i'm pretty sure the song "sunny in dallas" is about her.) i also found out the kat von d is not longer married to oliver pecker ... since mike and his wife holli are friends with him and, not only is kat no longer his number 1 friend, but his relationship status is now single.

i am simultaneously in love and creeped out by myspace (and facebook and all the rest for that matter). i mean, do these bands know how easy it is find shit out about them? i once came upon brett and jay (from bad religion's) pages in which they exchange a series of comments that include each others email addresses. which, for a harmless stalker fan like me, is a freakin' gold mine ... but not everyone is as harmless as me ...

so if you ever need an interent stalking done you now know where to turn. :)

i like people who wreck. homes.

this may come as a shock to many (or not) but i like michelle branch. and vanessa carlton. they write catchy pop music. let me say that again: they write catchy pop music.

the state of women in music today is dire. DIRE. and i feel that michelle branch and vanessa carlton get unfairly lumped into the britney and avril camp. they are both musicians and artists as opposed to marketing ploys. and because they write the words they sing, they are a voice in music today that is rarely heard: the voice of young girls growing up.

in vanessa carlton's song "white houses," she sings about losing her virginity. from the joy of new, bestest friends to crush and obsession with insignificant details ("he's so funny in his bright red shirt") to the disappointment of the aftermath; the disappointment of growing up. i've seen one tree hill and buffy and everwood and the other shows that imply and show but never say, not really. i mean have you ever heard something this honest on tv or in popular movies or music?

my first time, hard to explain
rush of blood, oh, and a little bit of pain
on a cloudy day, it's more common than you think
he's my first mistake

now we have all gossiped about britney and christina and mandy's virginity from the time they claimed it to the rumors of when they lost it. they were coy and vague. and they sure as hell never came out and said that it had happened, let alone mentioned blood or pain. but there are millions of girls out there going through that experience without any representation in popular culture. and the point of music (or one of them) is to make you feel like what your going through makes sense.

i also have a thing for liberal pop country - you know, the dixie chicks and now, michelle branch's new collaboration the wreckers (purportedly a shortening of 'the cass county home wreckers' which is what michelle's husband nicknamed her and her friend and collaborator jessica harp). i like about a third of the album a lot ... which is pretty impressive for me frankly. oddly enough i created a playlist that consisted of my favorite songs of bad religion's new album 'new maps of hell' (new dark ages, requiem for dissent, honest goodbye, dearly beloved, grains of wrath, scrutiny, and prodigal son) and favorite songs off the wrecker's album 'leave the pieces' (leave the pieces, tennesse, stand still look pretty, cigarettes). of these songs on my playlist, i think michelle and/or jessica wrote all but one and i think that plays into my enjoyment of the songs. we're around the same age, they are into tattoos (michelle has got a pretty hot pin up tattoo on her forearm these days) ... it's a match made in great theory. the point is that i like these songs because a) i like catchy songs that aren't contrived b) i like pop country and the real clincher c) the lyrics say something that i think i would say; i could say those things and mean them (unlike, say, 'hit me baby one more time.') but even beyond that there lyrics are honest and it's a kind of honesty that we rarely hear from female artists today:

see i left another
good man tonight
i wonder if he'll miss me
lord knows i tried

but i think maybe
the thing that i did wrong
was put up with his bullshit
for far too long

i think i might like
the quiet nights
of this empty life ...
from cigarettes

compare that to 'You're so fine/I want you to be mine/You're so delicious/I think about you all the time' (avril lavigne's newest hit 'girlfriend').

even better, though, is that michelle is honest about herself and her life and not in a 'feel bad for me i make millions of dollars kind of way':

i am slowly falling apart
i wish you'd take a walk in my shoes for a start
you might think it's easy being me
you just stand still, look pretty
from stand still, look pretty

now why does it matter if women's voices are represented in pop culture? or anywhere for that matter?

i've been asked this question many times, especially in the context of workplace diversity. i always tell the same story:

in the beginning days of heart bypass surgery there was an inordinate number of women who died from the procedure. the doctor's couldn't figure out what was causing this. women's immune system? their period? what? it turns out it was because woman are, on average, physically smaller than men and the tools used were too big and popping their arteries. Here's the thing: had women been included in the study (the fda didn't require women to be a part of studies until the last 5 or so years), then these women might not have died. there are other factors of course but this seems pretty basic to me.

of course, music isn't quite as dire as say, heart surgery. but for some, it can be pretty important, especially during adolescence. moreover, if we're not telling women's stories in popular culture, it's not just women who lose out. men do too. many of us learn to relate to each other (sadly) through tv, music, movies and without an honest, true female voice we tend to operate on different wavelengths (venus and mars, for example). but i don't believe that's inherent; i believe it's because we each have false preconceived notions about the behavior, motivation, and feelings of the other gender and thus, we operate under false assumptions and get angry and confused when these assumptions - which we hold to be truths - don't turn out how we planned.

but you don't have to like michelle branch or vanessa carlton to support women in music (although, try to search out female artists that play the type of music you like, maybe you'd be surprised?). you can support rock camp for girls!

i personally am on the advisory board for the new york city willie mae rock camp for girls! hooray!

more pitchfork + bad religion

i admit it. i was spurred to search pitchfork for bad religion reviews after hearing that a friend's hipsterific brother stopped liking bad religion after pitchfork called their lyrics 'politics for seventh graders.' (let's not even get into the fact that this person blindly follows pitchfork ...) the previous post on their review of los angeles is burning was just my first foray.

next in google's "more from pitchforkmedia.com" is:

the process of belief:

well i respect them for not dissing too hard on br; on refusing to give their readers what they want: "You want to see your friendly neighborhood elitist thoroughly skewering a band long past its prime." (what does that say about their readers? only 28 year olds in girls jeans one size too small plastered on by the modern marvel of spandex can make good music?) at least, they are mildly aware of the roots of the shitty hipster indie rock crap they listen to.

but it's statements like these that i really don't understand: "Obvious pleas for radio play, like the mid-tempo and acoustic-flavored "Broken," make you feel a little sorry for the band and their memories of brief mid-nineties alt-rock stardom (sing it: "You and me-ee/ Have a disea-ease!")"

let's review something here ...

the highest a bad religion song ever charted on the us modern rock charts (never hot 100) was 11 ... and it was 21st Century Digital Boy not Infected. (Infected only got to 27). That was over 10 years ago. Somehow I don't think a band that has been around since 1980, that seems to be doing quite well financially, and in which most members have kids and other jobs is really looking for that #1 in celebrity magazine hit. I guess it's just me but maybe, just maybe, they, as Jay Bentley says in their latest dvd, "want what they have." Bad Religion makes good money off their music ... what else can a punk rock band ask for? Personally Bad Religion with their just under the radar record sales in the hundreds of thousands (250,000 to 800,000) is something to aspire to. Plus I look like an ice cream cone in skinny jeans.


Don't get me wrong I don't think Process of Belief is their best album and yes, Bad Religion can do wrong. I just don't trust the self-proclaimed "elitist" who consistently lists animal collective under best new music.


~ * ~ * ~

ah-ha! found it! the impetus for the search!

"Therefore, I think discovering Bad Religion and their Chomsky for Dummies rhetoric is an important experience for a youth in his/her formative musical years. Sure, their politics are a little flimsy and idealistic (the line "when all soldiers lay their weapons down" would make even a 1967 Haight-Ashbury drum circle queasy), but Graffin's lyrics at least can plant questions in a seventh grader's brain more profound than whether that girl in study hall likes him. And it's all delivered in the kind of sugar-high sonic package that speaks most directly to the age range in question."

I can barely begin here. Are you saying that adults who like bad religion are intellectually immature? That punk rock is only for kids (kind of like trix)? Bad Religion has the largest age range of fans of any band i know.

And Chomsky for Dummies? Flimsy and idealistic? Here they call it "thesaurus rock."

Have they ever actually written a song? Have they ever tried to use "transubstantiation" in a lyric?

The truth is that pitchfork media exemplifies the old adage that those who do do and those who can't teach ... or in this case, review. Now I don't believe that of teachers but I definitely believe it of critics and reviewers of all kinds.

More importantly, we forget that songs are not dissertations (which Greg Graffin has successfully completed for his Ph.fucking.D). They are short and rhymed and there is no way that a song could ever capture the nuance of life, especially politics. Songs are a moment of thought and feeling and shouldn't be held to the standard of say, Chomsky's books. And if you read Greg Graffin's books and articles you will find a very well-read, intellectual, solid mind. More importantly, why don't you try to fit a Chomsky book into 2 minutes of verse/chorus/verse? oh right, because you can't even strum an E chord.

once upon a time pitchfork media reviewed los angeles is burning ....

Read the article here.

"The irony of it all is that the band's call-and-response vocal arrangements are straight out of a Baptist church house, as are the rich harmonies and the reliance on one man-- in this case, Graffin-- to testify to (and for) the congregation. Bad Religion's magic doesn't stem as much from their political lyrics as from the airtight arrangements and thick, sweet harmonies that bring the lyrics to you, and interestingly, are also the antithesis of the social rebellion the band advocates. A case could be made (and sometimes I make it) that the band resorts to the very things it deplores in order to get across a message, and that in the process, they demand a kind of allegiance that a cynic might call unhealthy. But if Graffin and Gurewitz are willing to return to the well to help the innocent climb out, the end certainly justifies the means. "

Um, what?

Just because they use musical techniques developed in a church (which ps - everyone does because that's how music developed) doesn't mean they "resort to the very things [they] deplore"? I don't even understand what they are talking about? You can't have airtight arrangements and harmonies if you are an indie band or advocate for a social rebellion? The formualic songs written by record company execs in no way resemble Bad Religion. Pop music isn't evil in itself. I mean who doesn't like the Beatles? Have you heard the Ramones? Have you listened to Buddy Holly at a really fast speed … oh wait, that IS the Ramones.

Punk rock and social rebellion are about creating the world you live in and not just going along with the corporate, powerful, self-serving way. That does NOT mean doing something just because it's against authority. It means thinking about the actions that you take, the way you vote, the things you say. Sometimes those things may be in line with "authority;" sometimes not. The key thing is that it involes thinking and thoughfully doing things your way. And that's exactly what Bad Religion does and has done for 18(?) years.

Perhaps ironically, blink 182 said it best: (I'm paraphrasing here) a kid who won't listen to anything because it's on the radio is just as bad as a kid who will only listen to something because it's on the radio.