The Soft Pack was an
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
band from
San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, California, United States.
History
The band was originally named the Muslims,
but changed the name due to "ignorant and racist" comments.
Matt Lamkin has stated Soft Pack can describe the band as being well mannered or it can refer to a device that when worn is intended to convince others that the wearer has a penis. The band formed in San Diego but are now based in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
.
Having released records through labels such as 1928 Recordings, Sweet Tooth Records, Caspian Records and I Hate Rock n' Roll, the band is currently signed to
Kemado Records.
The band has signed a deal with Heavenly Recordings/Cooperative Music. The band released their debut full-length album, ''The Soft Pack'', on Kemado Records on February 26, 2010. It was produced by
Eli Janney and recorded in Brooklyn, New York, at
Saltlands Studio.
The band's single "Answer to Yourself" was the final song streamed on
WOXY.com before its sudden shutdown on March 23, 2010. The song is also included in the video game ''
Grand Theft Auto V
''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and ...
'' on the in-game radio station ''Vinewood Boulevard Radio''. Since August 2010 it is also used for the commercial of the Dutch beer brand Grolsch.
On June 8, 2010, the indie rock band
Nada Surf
Nada Surf is an American alternative rock band formed in New York City in 1992, consisting of Matthew Caws (guitar, vocals), Ira Elliot (drums), and Daniel Lorca (bass, backing vocals).
After initially operating under the name Helicopter, Caw ...
released a cover of the Soft Pack's "Bright Side" on their all-covers album ''
If I Had a Hi-Fi
''If I Had a Hi-Fi'' is the sixth studio album by United States, American alternative rock band Nada Surf. It was released on June 8, 2010, on Mardev Records. It consists only of cover version, covers chosen by the band members themselves.
The ...
''.
The band's second album, ''Strapped'', was released on
Mexican Summer on August 17, 2012. The band performed "Answer to Yourself" on The Late Show with
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer, and auto racing team owner. He hosted late-night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of ''Late N ...
, dedicating their performance to the late Warren Zevon.
On August 26, 2016, the band's frontman Matt Lamkin released his solo album on BigMono Rekords, titled ''Where I'm Matt''. Matty McLoughlin, guitarist for the band, releases material under the name ''US Underground''.
It is currently unclear whether or not the Soft Pack will continue making music together, however, the band is occasionally active through its social media accounts.
Band members
*Matt Lamkin -
vocals
Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...
,
guitar
The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
*Matty McLoughlin - guitar
*David Lantzman -
bass guitar
The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
*Brian Hill -
drums
The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
Albums
* ''
The Soft Pack'' (February 2, 2010, Kemado)
* ''
Strapped'' (September 25, 2012, Mexican Summer)
Singles
* "Parasites"/"Walking With Jesus" (2008, I Hate Rock n' Roll) as the Muslims
* "Extinction" (2008, Sweet Tooth) as the Muslims
* "Nightlife" (2008, Caspian)
* "Answer to Yourself" (2009, Kemado)
* "Gagdad" (2010, Mexican Summer)
* "Saratoga" (2012, Mexican Summer)
EPs
* ''The Muslims'' (2008, 1928 Recordings) as the Muslims
* ''Extinction'' (2009, Merok)
External links
Official MySpaceAn interview with Matty of the Soft Pack: Fuck then, this is now
September 28, 2012
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soft Pack, The
Indie rock musical groups from California
Mexican Summer artists
Musical groups established in 2007
Musical groups from San Diego