by Scott Albright
Daily Lobo
South Carolina punk band Stretch Arm Strong likes to keep things positive.
"I can't relate to the violence in a lot of today's music," lead singer Chris McLane said. "We differ in that we're more uplifting and have a positive approach to things swirling around out there," he said.
Free at Last, Stretch Arm Strong's latest album, features a high-energy punk and hardcore metal sound. The band has been together for about 12 years and still sees a future beyond this album, McLane said.
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"We plan on staying on tour. We want to maintain our approachability," McLane said. "We try to have new designs and bring belts and hats to sell. We try to keep up with what's going on and stay current," he said.
He said the band has played with groups such as Pennywise and Rancid and also played in the Warped Tour where they brought skateboards for people to buy. McLane said they have toured throughout Asia and Europe and have made a name for themselves in the world of punk rock.
The band shares its name with hip-hop DJ Stretch Armstrong. McLane said the band had the name Stretch Arm Strong first, though the DJ's New York-based radio show began around 1991, well before the band produced an album.
"We got our name from the toy," he said. "We thought it was a cool name. People asked me if I was making rap because of the DJ. It got to be a little confusing."
The band sticks to their hardcore punk sound, which has been influenced by legends like Led Zeppelin and the Who, drummer John Barry said.
"I never listened to punk rock until we formed this band," he said.
He also said that the drummer from Lies Against Brandon and Tucker Rule from Thursday have had an impact on his style.
"The thing about drumming is that it's a form of expression of myself. It's channeling a feeling through an instrument," Barry said. "Beatwise, I'm responsible for keeping things together. When I fall apart, the rest of the band falls apart too."
Barry said it was cool that punk bands have crossed over into the mainstream. He said it has changed the progression of punk to a certain degree.
"Punk is going to be more polished, slicked, and smoothed over," he said. "It's going to be sweetened up and lose its raw edginess, and the lyrics will be more toned down."
Stretch Arm Strong doesn't plan on losing any of its high-energy rawness anytime soon.
Both McLane and Barry said the best shows they put on are usually in southern California.
Barry said the band will hopefully turn it up a notch for the Albuquerque punk rockers.
"I expect to have a good time and to interact with the crowd," McLane said.
