LA punk scene in the 1980s, through the eyes of a tween who lived it

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Listen: Steven McDonald of Redd Kross performs at LAist

Steven McDonald dropped by LAist to play live, ahead of a benefit concert he's headlining for musicians who lost gear in the Eaton Fire on Sunday.

Punk rose up in L.A.'s Hollywood in the 1970s with groups like X, the Germs and The Go-Go's. Just a handful of years later, disaffected kids from the ‘burbs picked up guitars and an attitude and took punk hardcore with bands such as Adolescents, Black Flag and Social Distortion.

Steven McDonald, then 12, had a front row seat to all that noise, angst and swagger as one of the core members, along with his slightly older brother Jeff, of the Hawthorne-based punk group, Redd Kross.

The younger McDonald had just picked up the bass — the instrument he plays in Redd Kross — and the guitar a year or so before. In no time, the brothers found themselves in the thick of a thriving scene.

A man with long hair sitting in front of a mic with an acoustic guitar in his lap.

Steven McDonald of Red Kross recently dropped by the LAist studio to perform live, ahead of a benefit concert for Eaton Fire musicians he's headlining on Sunday.

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Fiona Ng

LAist

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A man sitting in a warmly lit room in front of a mic, tuning his guitar.

(

Fiona Ng

LAist

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“ It's a unique thing that I got to experience,” McDonald told LAist. “We got to play the punk clubs like in Chinatown at the Hong Kong Cafe, and then later on the Whisky a Go Go. It was a really magical moment around 1979, 1980 — when I was 12 or 11.”

Redd Kross, known briefly as the Tourists before, opened for an early incarnation of Black Flag. New York art punk gods, Sonic Youth, frequently performed with the group. Social Distortion, McDonald said, opened for them when he was around 13.

“It was just this super creative, supportive environment. Most of these people were older than me in their early 20s,” McDonald said, adding that many of them were art school kids open to groovy new things. “I'd get a lot of CalArts people and people that had kind of been around for the glitter scene in Los Angeles and it kind of was morphing into this new punk rock thing and had a very independent spirit.”

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And no one thought the McDonald brothers were out of place.

“People thought like, ‘Oh, if you've got something to say, then don't get weighed down with, like, refining anything. Just go say it.’”

A man with long hair covering his face playing the bass at a festival outdoor. He is wearing a short that says, PUNK ROCK.

The brothers soaked in L.A. punk lore watching legends from The Runaways to The Go-Go’s perform on stage. And knocked on doors on their own until local clubs and venues let them play.

They were persistent, but McDonald said they couldn’t have done it without the support of their parents.

“ They're not musicians, they're not hippies on a commune,” he said.

In fact, their father is a welder who's still running the same small business with their mom.

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“They just could recognize that their kids had some kind of intense interest and even if they didn't share it or understand it, they could recognize that,” he said.

Two men, one with short hair and glasses and another with long hair and a mustache pose in front of a background that says "Grammy Museum."

That meant pick-ups and drop-offs — the usual stuff, in a way, for parents. “They would actually drive us to the Whisky a Go Go and they would sit in the parking lot at the gas station across the street,” he said.

As Redd Kross gained success with their pop punk sound, the band became elder statesmen looking over the next generation of bands that were coming up.

Last year, McDonald attended the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where grunge group Soundgarden was inducted.

“Those guys opened for my band in 1986,” McDonald said lovingly.

Two musicians completely immersed in the moment as they perform on their guitar and bass. Both musicians are leaning forward, headbanging, with their long hair whipping through the air.

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It was a moment that brought into relief the many decades that Redd Kross has been making music. And they’re still at it — working on a new album this year and going on tour abroad and locally.

Benefit show in Pasadena

A graphic announcing a benefit concert for fire survivors.

On Sunday, McDonald will headline a benefit show (LAist is a media sponsor) at the record shop, Healing Force of the Universe, in Pasadena to help musicians replace equipment and gear they lost in the Eaton Fire.

He’ll play an acoustic set of Redd Kross songs, including “Annie’s Gone,” which he previewed in a performance at the LAist studios.

The song is a reference to the character Annie in the 1980 film, Foxes. The role was played by Cherie Currie, the lead singer of one of McDonald’s favorite bands, The Runaways. He first saw them played at the Whisky in 1979.

“ I just really worshiped them and they inspired me because they were teenagers and they were bridging that gap between punk and hard rock. They were just out there doing it,” he said.

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Performing solo is something of a first for him. At Sunday's show (tickets are still available), McDonald will include "Annie's Gone" in his acoustic set — a song normally sung by his lead singer brother Jeff.

"It's a rare opportunity to see Steve McDonald singing 'Annie's Gone.'"

Details

Gear Donation Drive and Acoustic Show
When: Jan. 25, 2 p.m.
Where: Healing Force of the Universe, 1200 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
Tickets: $12 (pre-sale) / $15 (door) / or donate a working musical instrument

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LA punk scene in the 1980s, through the eyes of a tween who lived it

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Benefit show in Pasadena

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