Social Distortion are considered one of the best-selling punk rock bands, with more than three million albums sold worldwide. They are pioneers of the original Southern California punk rock movement out of Orange County, California and broke through in the mid-eighies with the help of legendary Los Angeles disc jockey Rodney Bingenheimer. Over the decades, the punk godfathers in the band have all but trademarked their sound, a brand of hard rockabilly/punk that’s cut with the melodic, road-tested lyrics of frontman Mike Ness. Their searing guitars and a locomotive rhythm section sound as alive today as they did in ’82, as do Ness’ hard-luck tales of love, loss and lessons learned. “The most common thing I hear is, ‘Man, your music got me through some hard times,’” Ness says. “And I just say, ‘Me too.’”
Now in their fourth decade, Mike Ness and Social Distortion have officially done one of the most non-punk things possible: They’ve failed to burn out. Mixing Springsteen’s factory-overalls ethic with Southern California punk energy and black leather, Social Distortion formed with Ness and high school buddy, the late Dennis Danell, in the late 1970s; the group broke in 1983 with the thrashing plate of punk and displeasure “Mommy’s Little Monster.” Their 1988 follow-up, “Prison Bound,” hinted at a sonic change to come that solidified into the instantly recognizable brand of rock n’ roll that’s defined them since.
Born to Kill world tour
“Born To Kill” was released this May. The album is more than the conclusion to a 15-year wait between Social Distortion albums, it’s a revelation: 11 songs of pure, unadulterated rock ’n’ roll fury, joy and catharsis, all imbued with the signature blend of defiance and world-weariness that has made founder Mike Ness a poet and sage to the dispossessed for more than 40 years.
The first Social Distortion album since Ness’ recovery from a bout with cancer, “Born To Kill” brims with aggressive optimism. The album wastes no time letting the listener know where its heart is, with its title track and mission statement dropping nods to Lou Reed (“Rock ’n’ Roll Animal gonna come your way!”) and Iggy and the Stooges (“The agenda is yeah to Search and Destroy”) and an homage to David Bowie (“It’s a Rock ’n’ Roll Suicide”) following a few songs later on “Partners In Crime.” This is a man, a band and a record that wear their influences proudly while creating timeless anthems and ballads that both chart Social Distortion’s path forward and celebrate its storied past. “Tonight” and “The Way Things Were” are emotionally charged reminiscences in the vein of classics like “Story of My Life” from the band’s eponymous 1990 breakthrough, and “I Was Wrong” from 1996’s “White Light, White Heat, White Trash,” the latter containing a potent distillation of the Social D ethos: “I wrote a song with a stolen riff / If you ain’t got a song you ain’t got shit.”
Friday, July 17, 2026 at 8:00pm
MTelus
To purchase your tickets, visit: www.evenko.ca