D.O.A. is a Canadian

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band from

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. They are often referred to as being among the "founders" of

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

, along with Black Flag,

Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Initially consisting of lead guitarist East Bay Ray, bassist Klaus Fl ...

Bad Brains Bad Brains are an American punk rock band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1976. They are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this term to describe their music. They are also an ade ...

Angry Samoans The Angry Samoans was an American punk rock band from the first wave of American punk. Formed in August 1978 in Los Angeles, California, by early 1970s rock writer "Metal" Mike Saunders, his sibling lead guitarist Bonze BlaykBad Trip Records ...

, Germs, and

Middle Class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

. Their second album ''

Hardcore '81 ''Hardcore '81'' is an album by the Canadian hardcore punk band D.O.A. It is considered by some to be the first time that a certain style of punk rock was labeled ''hardcore''. In 2019, the album was named as the public vote winner of the Pola ...

'' was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore. Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist

Randy Rampage Randall Desmond Archibald (February 21, 1960 – August 14, 2018), better known by his stage name Randy Rampage, was a Canadian musician and founding member, bass player and vocalist of the hardcore band D.O.A., often referred to as the "found ...

returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on

Jello Biafra Eric Reed Boucher (born June 17, 1958), known professionally as Jello Biafra, is an American singer, spoken word artist and political activist. He is the former lead singer and songwriter for the San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys. Init ...

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 by Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra and guitarist East Bay Ray in San Francisco, California, with the intention to release the Dead Kennedys' self-produced single " C ...

Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled ''

Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors ''Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors'' is a punk album by Jello Biafra of Dead Kennedys and Canadian band D.O.A., released in 1990. It is notable for "Full Metal Jackoff," a furious 14-minute song that touches on then-relevant topics such as W ...

''. D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate

anti-racism Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate ...

anti-globalization The anti-globalization movement, or counter-globalization movement, is a social movement critical of economic globalization. The movement is also commonly referred to as the global justice movement, alter-globalization movement, anti-globalist ...

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...

, and

environmentalism Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology, and social movement about supporting life, habitats, and surroundings. While environmentalism focuses more on the environmental and nature-related aspects of green ideology and politics, ecolog ...

. In support of the Vancouver 5 defence fund, the band released the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

Burn it Down from ''Hardcore '81.'' In a 1984 interview, Keithley stated that the Burn it Down 45 had raised at least $2,500, and disclosed that he was called by defence counsel as a character witness for

Gerry Hannah Gerald Richard Hannah (also known as Gerry Useless; birthdate unknown) is a Canadian musician who was the bass guitarist for the Canadian punk rock group The Subhumans. Hannah was also a member of the armed revolutionary group known as the Squam ...

while Hannah's sentencing was pending. Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of

Sudden Death Records Sudden Death Records is a Vancouver, British Columbia based record label run by Joe "Shithead" Keithley, frontman of D.O.A. Sudden Death Records arrived in Canada's burgeoning punk scene in 1978. Keithley formed the label to release his D.O.A. ...

which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including

Pointed Sticks Pointed Sticks (sometimes credited as the Pointed Sticks) are a Canadian punk rock/ new wave band from Vancouver consisting of vocalist Nick Jones, guitarist Bill Napier-Hemy, bassist Tony Bardach, drummer Ian Tiles, and keyboardist Gord Nichol ...

and

Young Canadians Young Canadians (originally The K-Tels) were a Canadian punk rock band formed in Vancouver in 1978 and active for just under two years. The YC's were influenced not only by the other punk bands in town at that time such as D.O.A. and the Pointed ...

History

Formation and early years (1977–1980)

D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, along with founding members of the Subhumans, Brian " Wimpy Roy" Goble and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery. When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother

Chuck Biscuits Chuck Biscuits (born Charles Montgomery on April 17, 1965) is a retired Canadian drummer best known for his work across multiple punk rock and heavy metal bands. Biscuits was a member of D.O.A. from 1978 to 1982, playing on the band's first t ...

on drums,

on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving. The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP ''Disco Sucks''. The single soon topped the charts of the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in San Francisco, California, United States. Founded in 1855, it has nearly 9,000 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees ...

radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at

Mabuhay Gardens The Mabuhay Gardens, also known as The Fab Mab or The Mab, was a former San Francisco nightclub, located at 443 Broadway Street, in North Beach on the Broadway strip area best known for its striptease clubs. It closed in 1987. History The Ma ...

. It was during this trip that the band first met

frontman and future collaborator

. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner". In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for

The Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

at the

Pacific Coliseum Pacific Coliseum, locally known as The Coliseum or the Rink on Renfrew, is an indoor arena located at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its main use has been for ice hockey and the arena has been the home for several ice hockey tea ...

. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new line-up, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980. D.O.A. released their full-length debut '' Something Better Change'' on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.

''Hardcore '81'' and further line-up changes (1981–1989)

On April 22, 1981, the band released their second album ''

''; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "

". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982, and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This line-up would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985–1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP '' War on 45'' (now expanded into a full-length album). ''War on 45'' found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's ''Let's Wreck The Party'' and 1987's ''True (North) Strong And Free'' saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's line-up changes continued after ''Let's Wreck the Party'', with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the ''Expo Hurts Everyone'' 7" as well as two songs for ''True (North) Strong and Free'' before being replaced by

Jon Card Jon Card (December 11, 1960 – April 8, 2024) was a German-born Canadian drummer. He played in the punk rock bands Personality Crisis, SNFU, D.O.A., and The Subhumans. Life and career Card was born to a Royal Canadian Air Force pilot in Zwe ...

from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.

First break-up and reunion (1990–2002)

1990's ''Murder'' featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with

singer

with ''

''. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter

Dirk Dirksen Dirk Dirksen (August 25, 1937 – November 20, 2006) was a music promoter and emcee of the San Francisco punk rock clubs Mabuhay Gardens and On Broadway in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Dirksen was nicknamed the "Pope of Punk." Dirksen was bo ...

, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990, at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled ''Talk Minus Action = 0'' while Keithley pursued an acting career. 19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from

NoMeansNo Nomeansno (sometimes stylized as NoMeansNo or spelled No Means No) was a Canadian punk rock band formed in Victoria, British Columbia, and later relocated to Vancouver. They released 11 albums, including a The Sky Is Falling and I Want My Mommy, ...

suggested they hire Ken Jensen from

Red Tide A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, sometimes called a red tide in marine environments, is an algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural algae-produced toxins, water deoxygenation, ...

as the new drummer, which they did. The new line-up released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, '' 13 Flavours Of Doom'' and ''Loggerheads''. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added

Ford Pier Ford Pier (born 1970) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father is a professor of music. In addition to his solo albums, he has been a member of Jr. Gone Wild, Showbusiness Giants, Rheostatics and D.O ...

on guitar and vocals. Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length ''The Black Spot'' was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output. The late 1990s found the band's line-up in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album ''Festival Of Atheists'' in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, ''Beat Trash'', and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the ''Win The Battle'' album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko. ''The Lost Tapes'' was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by ''Festival Of Atheists''. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.

Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)

In 2003, Vancouver Mayor

Larry Campbell Larry W. Campbell (born February 28, 1948) is a Canadian politician who was the 37th mayor of Vancouver, Canada, from 2002 until 2005, and a member of the Senate of Canada from 2005 until his retirement in 2023. Before he was mayor, Campbe ...

declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled ''War And Peace''. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured ''Live Free or Die''. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band. The line-up remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that

Bob Rock Robert Jens Rock (born April 19, 1954) is a Canadian record producer, recording engineer and musician. In 1976, Rock joined Little Mountain Sound Studios, starting out as a recording engineer and sound mixer. During his time there, he coll ...

, of

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones. In September 2008, D.O.A. released ''Northern Avenger'' and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again. D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009. On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album ''Talk Minus Action = Zero'' (a similarly titled live album ''Talk Minus Action Equals Zero'' had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at

Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (, trading as Canada Post (), is a Canadian Crown corporation that functions as the primary postal operator in Canada. Originally known as Royal Mail Canada (the operating name of the Post Office Department of the Can ...

. In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013, in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.

Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)

On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, ''Welcome To Chinatown''. This line-up recorded and released the studio album ''Hard Rain Falling'' in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

) as a single.

Members

Current line-up *

Joe Keithley Joseph Edward "Joey Shithead" Keithley (né Keighley; June 3, 1956)
is a Canadia ...

– vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998) *Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present) *Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present) Former members *Harry Homo – lead vocals (1978) *Brad Kent – guitar (1978) *Randy Romance – guitar (1978) *Zippy Pinhead – drums (1979; died 2019) *Simon Wilde – bass (1979–1980; died 1994) *Andy Graffiti – drums (1979–1980) *

– bass (1978–1979, 1980–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018) *Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1979, 1980–1982) *Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014) *Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014) *Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984–1986; died 1994) *Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James – drums (1983–1984) *Kerr Belliveau – drums (1986) *Jon Card – drums (1986–1990; died 2024) *Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990) *Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995) *John Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996) *Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996) *Wycliffe – bass (1997) *Kuba van der Pol – bass (1998–2000, 2002–2003) *Brien O'Brien – drums (1997–1999) *The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008) *Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013) *Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010) *Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Something Better Change'' (1980) * ''

'' (1981) * ''Let's Wreck the Party'' (1985) * ''True (North) Strong and Free'' (1987) * ''Murder'' (1990) * '' 13 Flavours of Doom'' (1992) * ''Loggerheads'' (1993) * ''The Black Spot'' (1995) * ''Festival of Atheists'' (1998) * '' Win the Battle'' (2002) * ''Live Free or Die'' (2004) * ''Northern Avenger'' (2008) * ''Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer'' (2009) * '' Talk-Action=0'' (2010) * ''We Come in Peace'' (2012) * ''Hard Rain Falling'' (2015) * ''Fight Back'' (2018) * ''Treason'' (2020)

Live albums

* ''Talk Minus Action Equals Zero'' (1991) * ''Welcome to Chinatown'' (2013)

EPs

* Positively (1981) * '' War on 45'' (1982) * ''D.O.A. & Thor – Are U Ready'' (2003)

Collaborations

* ''

'' (with

) (1990)

Solo albums

* ''Beat Trash'' (2002) – Solo project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley

References

External links

The official D.O.A. myspaceCanadianBands.com entrySudden Death records
* *
Interview with Joey ShitheadSnot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979

Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albumsLate Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)

The Ruckus – Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008

1984 Interview, ''Guillotine'' Fanzine
/ Ragged Edge Collection @ archive.org] {{Authority control Musical groups established in 1978 Musical groups disestablished in 2013 Musical groups reestablished in 2014 Canadian hardcore punk groups Canadian activists Musical groups from Vancouver Alternative Tentacles artists 1978 establishments in British Columbia Canadian political music groups