Ah, memories.
I grew up on Alkaline Trio. Back in the day — it’s disturbing to think of eighth grade and 2003 as “back in the day” — when I was getting into music, pop-punk and ska were the big ones I gravitated toward.
One of the biggest reasons for that early musical love was this here band, featuring Matt Skiba on guitar and vocals, Dan Andriano on bass and vocals, and a slew of drummers over the years, including the current (I think) man behind the kit, Derek Grant.
I fell off the Alk-3 bandwagon long ago, though occasionally my dorm roommate, Kevin, would blare them from his computer and we’d bond. That is, when we weren’t making double entendres at each other, competing in hours-long Max Dirt Bike competitions, or trying in vain to get our suite mates to unlock the bathroom door.
However, I’ve been doing a fair amount of jogging this summer and bringing my trusty, portable iPod (you can pay me now, Apple) with me. I set it on shuffle and let it do its thing while I huff and puff for a couple miles.
And whaddaya know, a few days ago my childhood heroes, the boys in Alkaline Trio, began playing and I haven’t been able to stop listening to them since.
So, excuse my long-winded reminiscing and listen to this song, “My Friend Peter,” from a collection of the band’s early EPs, and enjoy it for all its depressed-alcoholicy goodness.
Defeating Boredom 