Alkaline Trio

Alkaline Trio

Alkaline Trio are a punk rock band from McHenry, United States, formed in 1996 and active since then. The group is known for combining fast tempos and catchy hooks with dark lyrics, often centred on alcoholism, depression, broken relationships, drugs and death. Their sound sits within punk rock, punk, alternative rock, emo and pop punk.

Formation and early releases

The band forms in December 1996 with Matt Skiba on guitar and vocals, Rob Doran on bass and vocals, and Glenn Porter on drums and vocals. Their first EP, Sundials, appears in 1997, followed by For Your Lungs Only in 1998. Doran leaves shortly after the first EP and is replaced by Dan Andriano, who previously sings in Tuesday and plays bass in the ska band Slapstick.

Their first full-length album, Goddamnit, appears later in 1998, followed by Maybe I’ll Catch Fire in 2000. Both are released on Asian Man Records. In 2000 the band also issues a self-titled collection of earlier EP material.

Line-up changes and wider recognition

After the Asian Man releases, Alkaline Trio sign to Vagrant Records. Mike Felumlee, formerly of the Smoking Popes, joins on drums for From Here to Infirmary in 2001. That album brings the band wider attention through alternative radio and mainstream media, and includes the single “Stupid Kid”. The song “Armageddon” appears in the Tony Hawk’s Underground and Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland video games. The band also contributes a cover of “Over at the Frankenstein Place” to The Rocky Horror Punk Rock Show, a tribute compilation to The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Felumlee later leaves and Derek Grant, previously of The Suicide Machines, joins on drums. The band’s 2003 album Good Mourning includes the single “We’ve Had Enough” and shows a more polished, mainstream-leaning production style than earlier records.

Releases in the 2000s and 2010s

Alkaline Trio appear on compilation albums including Plea for Peace Vol. 1 and Rock Against Bush Vol. 1. Skiba and Andriano also take part in side recordings: Skiba records a split record with Kevin Seconds on Asian Man Records, Andriano records a split record with Mike Felumlee on Double Zero Records, and both provide backing vocals on Common Rider’s This Is Unity Music. The band also records split EPs with Hot Water Music in 2000 and One Man Army in 2004.

Crimson follows on Vagrant Records in 2005 and includes “Time to Waste”, “Mercy Me” and “Burn” as singles. In 2004 Andriano joins The Falcon, a group with Brendan Kelly of The Lawrence Arms and Neil Hennessy of The Lawrence Arms; the band releases a five-song EP in 2004 and Unicornography in 2006. Skiba also works with Josiah Steinbrick in the project Heavens in 2006.

In 2008 the band releases Agony & Irony on Epic Records, reaching number 13 on the Billboard 200. This Addiction follows in 2010 on Heart & Skull, the band’s own label and an offshoot of Epitaph, and reaches number 11 on the Billboard 200, their highest chart placing. Damnesia appears in 2011 as a semi-unplugged collection of fan favourites, with two new songs, “Olde English 800” and “I Remember a Rooftop”, plus a cover of the Violent Femmes’ “I Held Her in My Arms”.

Later work

My Shame Is True appears in 2013. In 2023 longtime drummer Derek Grant leaves the band and Atom Willard, formerly of Rocket from the Crypt and Against Me!, joins on drums. Later that year Alkaline Trio release “Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs”, and an album of the same name follows.