I got a brand new car and I can take you around
To where the action is, I’m gonna take you down
To Hermosa Beach ’cause the gang’s all there
And I know that you can make it with your long blonde hair.
— Every Summer Day by The Last, 1979
by Jim Lindberg
If you ask the members of legendary Hermosa Beach punk rock bands Black Flat, Circle Jerks and the Descendents who the godfathers of South Bay puk are, undoubtedly they will say it’s the Nolte brothers and their psychedelic flavored, garage rock/surf punk band The Last.
Joe Nolte and his brothers Mike and David grew up all over Hermosa and Palos Verdes and witnessed firsthand the evolution of popular music from The Beatles to Jimi Hendrix, from the Stooges to Blondie and the Ramones.
Frustrated at seeing the powerful music that started the rock revolution in the mid ’60s turn into mid ’70s FM radio soft pop and bloated arena rock, they knew they would have to start a band of their own.
So the brothers started writing songs in the family’s garage. Joined by Vitus Matare on keyboards and Jack Reynolds on drums, they began playing local living room parties, eventually releasing their seminal album LA Explosion on Bomb Records in 1979. It’s no wonder the vaunted Trouser Press magazine called it a “near perfect debut.” When you listen to the album, even today, especially the mid album run of songs — Walk Like Me, Slavedriver, and Every Summer Day — it bristles with the spark and energy of punk, but with the harmony and melodies of what The Beatles and The Beach Boys might have sounded like if the had remained in their respective garages.
Garage rock pioneers The Seeds and The Standells were definitely on the Noltes’ turntables at home, and it’s that unique blend of melody, attitude, and energy that influence the pop-punk flavored tunage of their grandsons, the Descendents. Make sure you catch The Last at this year’s BeachLife Festival, and witness some true South Bay Garage rock/surf royalty.
The Last release new album
by Ron Hasbah
[Editor’s note: This story originally appeared in Easy Reader on November 21, 2013. The Last are performing at Beach Life this Saturday, May 4 at p.m. on the Riptide Stage.]
The Last, South Bay pioneers of the ‘70s punk rock movement, have re-emerged onto the scene with their seventh studio album, “Danger!” After 17 years without producing an album, brothers and founding members Mike and Joe Nolte have broken their silence. They’ve enlisted an all-star rhythm section to help oil the gears – Bill Stevenson (Descendents, Black Flag, etc.) on drums and Karl Alvarez (ALL, Descendents) on bass.This new lineup is busying themselves with live dates across the country in support of the record. Until just a couple of years ago, the brothers were playing an average of one local show a year, with the basically-original lineup of The Last.
When asked how the music’s been flowing after swapping some members, guitarist and singer Joe Nolte assured me the “new lineup is a pretty natural fit because The Last was an influence on Bill [Stevenson] in the early days… He actually just told me, too, that when Karl [Alvarez] joined the Descendents, they handed him a Last record, you know, as a [rite of entry].”
The Last in September 1978. The British look is gone. Photo by Marz Fulton
The group’s influence runs deep, dating back to Hermosa Beach in the 1970s. During an era when nobody outside of New York had heard the Ramones, The Last were taking some Velvet Underground, some Stooges, some Modern Lovers, some ‘60s psychedelia, and “you know, shake ‘n’ bake.”
Given their punky edge – while the hippie movement was still in full effect at the beach – the Nolte brothers literally had to “trick people to play music with them,” Joe recalls, “We’d have to tell the guy, ‘We’re just playing rock… and there’s beer.’”
Through these formative years, they performed regulars at the legendary, now defunct church-turned-party pad off of Pier Ave., where they established ties with Black Flag. When The Last’s first studio album hit stores in 1979, they were graced with a short streak of fame in Los Angeles. With The Last having their foot in the door of the music industry, they were able to pull Black Flag into clubs in Hollywood that, otherwise, wanted nothing to do with them. Into the ‘80s, the band continued to record studio albums, though to this day they reportedly have more unreleased cuts than album tracks.
Album cover art by Rmond Pettigone for The Last’s 2013 Danger! Easy Reader archive image
With the passing of a few decades and a few lessons learned, The Last have stepped onto the modern playing field, donning a wiser, more wary sensibility of being a band. “I have lower expectations this time around,” claims Nolte. “Back in the ‘70s, we thought we could make money with music. It’s gotta be fun or you’re setting yourself up for dismal disappointment… Now I’m trying to be a rock star at 57… Why not?” That’s right – Why not? With an album full of new songs that Joe considers “the best thing we’ve ever done,” cover artwork by the infamous Raymond Pettibone, and festival appearances around the country, it seems as though The Last are on a road loaded with prospects. In any case, at least they’re having fun.
The Last’s new album, “Danger!” can be ordered on iTunes, or purchased in music stores as a CD or vinyl record. ER
