In June, The Offspring played a show celebrating the 30th anniversary of their hit 1994 album, Smash. They’ll play the record in full again during their set Friday at Chicago’s Riot Fest.
“It takes you back to the time for sure,” frontman Dexter Holland tells ABC Audio of performing Smash in its entirety. “It still is really fun to play, and it’s a record that I’m really proud of.”
Holland certainly has reason to be proud: Smash is certified six-times Platinum by the RIAA, and spawned hits including “Self Esteem” and “Come Out and Play.”
“I think they still work,” guitarist Noodles says of the Smash songs. “To me they seem as relevant today as they did back when we first did them.”
While you’ll almost certainly hear “Self Esteem” and “Come Out and Play” at a normal Offspring show, the dedicated Smash set also allows the band to revisit some deeper album cuts.
“Some of those songs we never really played back in the day,” Noodles says. “‘Something to Believe In’ and ‘Not the One,’ we never played. So it’s fun to bring those back.”
Holland adds that performing Smash in full provides a “different kind of experience.”
“Playing it as, like, a package, as a record, there’s something different about that,” he says. “Even when we had Smash out, we didn’t play it front-to-back or whatever.”
In addition to looking back into their past, The Offspring is looking toward the future with their upcoming new album, SUPERCHARGED, due out Oct. 11. It includes the lead single “Make It All Right,” and the released tracks “Light It Up” and “Come to Brazil.”
Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
