Northwest Punk Rock Pioneer PAUL SOLGER Issues “New American” Single/Video Featuring GUNS N’ ROSES Bassist DUFF McKAGAN On Lead Vocals
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Pioneering Pacific Northwest punk rock/hardcore luminary Paul Solger will release his first-ever solo album, 20 Years M.I.A., on May 8 via Loosegroove Records, the label co-founded by Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam.
The raw, blistering eleven-track set includes standouts like the LP opener, first single, and video “New American”, featuring Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses on lead vocals, as well as “My 3rd Dream”, “Surfing In Hell”, and “Mushroom Mary”, Co-produced by Solger, Gossard, and Josh Evans, the album further expands Loosegroove’s ongoing commitment to championing Seattle’s underground music scene.
“This album was a total surprise I never would have thought possible. Until 2019 I barely touched a guitar for years. I hated how they felt. Writing songs was just as vacant,” says Solger. “But when the pandemic hit I had a phone conversation with my old bandmate Robb Clark and we decided, ‘screw it, lets try once more.’ Our rules were simple. We didn’t want to reinvent the wheel, or use any old material. The goal, write some songs that were similar to the stuff that we heard as kids and excited us, like those first records by Ramones, Stooges, Dolls, etc. If we could make listeners feel a fraction of what we felt, we had succeeded. Pretty soon songs were popping in my head every day. I’d never experienced anything like it before. Fast forward to 2023 as we’re getting ready to record and Robb suddenly dies. I’m right back to being depressed again. But at some point a batch of songs were sent to Stone Gossard. He called from the road saying he got them and would get in touch after the tour. Three days later he called again, quite excited about what he’d heard and the ball started rolling again. Next thing you know Duff McKagan is onboard to contribute.”
Solger first made his mark with the band Solger, one of the earliest hardcore groups to emerge from Seattle. The band’s brief existence produced a rare self-titled 7-inch EP that has since become a sought-after collector’s item among punk crate diggers. Following that project, Solger remained active in the local scene, performing with influential Seattle punk bands such as The Fartz and later 10 Minute Warning, a group that fused hardcore roots with heavier, psychedelic influences and included musicians who would later help shape the city’s emerging alternative rock movement.
“Paul and I came up together during such an immense time in new music. He taught me so much about playing guitar and being a smooth operator. Nobody is as cool as Paul,” says McKagan. “We were colored by The Stooges, Dead Boys, Killing Joke, Motörhead, The Germs, Lou Reed, and David Bowie. Solger takes these references and has the ability to mold instant-classic songwriting on this record. He’s back!”
“From my perspective, the post-punk pathways that Paul and Duff explored during the early ’80s Seattle music scene are the foundation of what came to be known as grunge,” says Gossard. “20 Years M.I.A. embodies that collaborative hardcore punk attitude with slinky, trans-harmonic nods to The Stooges and ’60s psychedelia.”
“Now that 20 Years M.I.A. is finally coming out, I think I need to actually play these songs live to make sure it’s all real. The whole journey seems too good to be true. Things like this record just don’t happen for me. I’ve had other stuff come out, but it was all mostly subpar sound quality and nothing I felt particularly proud of. Different story with this slab of vinyl,” concludes Solger. “I hope it’s the first of many more until I can no longer do it due to old fricking age. I’m surprised I’m still here. I was probably voted one of the most likely to drop long ago, but people change (if they want to survive) and yes there are second chances in this world. Why now? I don’t know, but it’s made this chapter of my life brilliant!”
Tracklisting:
New American
Limbo A Go Go
My Third Dream
Invisible Me
Mushroom Mary
Funny Running Into You Here
Zero the Hero
Twitch
Surfing In Hell
Burn It Down
You Ain’t No Loser
(Source: www.bravewords.com)
