Representatives of every punk subscene will be at Leftover Crack's gig at Mesa's Nile Theater. The reason being is that Leftover Crack is really good at being punk. There are a lot of bands that describe themselves as makers of punk rock, but very few of them embody the attitude of their genre quite like Leftover Crack.
Born from the ashes of Choking Victim, LOC has been bringing the "crack rock steady" to venues internationally since 2001 and pushing the limits of what punk music and what the punk lifestyle really means. Their style is, of course, overtly aggressive but more than just making in-your-face tracks that get people moshing, Leftover Crack brings a heavily political message that they do more than just sing about, but actively try to live by.
"We're for holding the police accountable under the same laws that they are sworn to uphold. We're for eight hours of sleep every night. We're for socialism in the public's general interest, and we're for ending the drug war," says singer Scott Sturgeon, a.k.a. Stza.
While almost every musician does their best to look like they are about more than just making tunes and making money, when it comes to LOC, you really can assume they mean it. No doubt the members enjoy the trappings of being a successful punk band, but since they tried to call their first album Shoot the Kids at School they have made it fairly clear that they are more about getting the message out than they are about making a buck.
Sturgeon and his cohorts went to battle with Hellcat Records in Los Angeles in an effort to release the album under the name they had chosen. Though LOC eventually lost the fight and changed the name of the record (it became 2000's Mediocre Generica), they set a precedent for what they are trying to accomplish as a band.
"I would never compromise my art, but at this point, putting an album out with that title would be kind of futile. At the time of releasing what became Mediocre Generica, the title would have had a lot of political resonance and it would have opened up an important discussion. It, in fact, still does despite being censored and never released officially," Stza says.
That's all old news though as LOC tours in support of their most recent record, Constructs of the State, and the new record goes just as far to highlight the group's attitude and message in more than one way. The record's aesthetic and lyrical content fall in line with what LOC does, but even the album's release date served as a stark contrast to the generally accepted industry formula.
It is a well-known fact in the music industry that the business all but shuts down between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, so naturally Leftover Crack dropped Constructs of the State on the day after Thanksgiving 2015.
Even with its outwardly unapologetic politics, however, the group still finds itself running into the same pitfalls of its musically political forefathers.
"I find there is an increasing number of folks that really like our music but have absolutely no idea about what it is that we are saying. It sure is something when they hear about our politics and respond with 'sickness' or the like. How can you be so irresponsible to not care about the content of the food that you eat, the air that you breath or art that you love?" Stza says.
