Inspection 12
Encyclopedia
Inspection 12 is an American pop punk
band from Jacksonville, Florida
, founded by Robert Reid, Dan McLintock, John Comee and Scott Shad. They have released two full length recordings internationally, one on Honest Don's Records
and one on Suburban Home Records
and Takeover Records
. They have also released four full length albums independently.
n punkrock/skate punk
bands such as Lagwagon
and NOFX
. The band was renamed Inspection 12, inspired by a fictional band on the Nickelodeon TV show The Adventures of Pete & Pete
named Inspector 12. After recording a cassette in 1995, titled Eponym
ous EP
the band recruited a second guitarist, Peter Mosely
. Their first show for a crowd was at a friend's backyard birthday party, playing only cover by bands such as Nirvana
and Green Day
, with newcomer Pete joining in on the NOFX and Weezer
songs.
Their first full-length album, Come, Hefe, Come! was recorded on cassette tape in 1996 and sold independently. Few copies are known to exist, but a digital copy made by a fan was uploaded to the official messageboard in 2003. Recorded live and consisting mostly of songs later re-recorded with vastly improved production values, such as "Secure" and "Bad Mentality", it could be considered a demo. Their first big show was opening for Less Than Jake
.
Incorporating vocal harmonies beyond that which is considered gratuitous for most typical skate punk
bands, while also sharing vocal duties on their recording, their second album Inspection 12 would be the last for founder Robert Reid as he graduated and left the band to enter college, and with bassist John Comee also leaving, guitarist Dan McLintock soon took up the bass and lead vocalist roles. Released in 1997 on compact disc
, it was their first recording with sound quality on the level of a professional demo. Another album, You're A Nation, was released in 1998, and James Trimble, cousin to Scott Shad, was added as second guitarist to replace the departed founder Robert Reid. Their fourth full-length album, Step Into The Fire, was released in 1999 with the new lineup. On this recording, drummer Scott Shad's best friend Ryan Key
performed additional vocals on the song "Nothing to Lose". While still in high school, they sold more than 2,500 copies of their independently recorded and produced CDs locally and opened for bands such as Strung Out
, Millencolin
and Bigwig
. Although being a relatively successful local band, Mosely recalls feeling like outcasts because of their preppy clothes and unorthodox style of punk rock, explaining that "Whenever we'd play a show like Good Riddance
or AFI
, it would always be a real tough crowd. I used to hear it all the time about us being rich kids."
band Craig's Brother
. They were both successful, and Inspection 12 were left without their lead vocalist and frontman. After recording Lost at Sea
in 2000, Dan left Craig's Brother and briefly joined Limp
, out on tour, where at a show in Las Vegas
a copy of Inspection 12's latest album Step Into The Fire was handed to Fat Wreck Chords
label owner Fat Mike by Limp's tour manager. Dan was asked to produce a newer recording to be considered for Fat Wreck Chords subsidiary Honest Don's Records
, so he returned home to Jacksonville and rejoined Inspection 12 to record an EP. Guitarist James Trimble had began studies to become an obstetrician
in Tennessee
, and Ryan Key had left Craig's Brother a year before Dan and joined Yellowcard
, so he was asked to play bass while Dan covered the guitars for the recording. After the release of the Home EP, Inspection 12 signed on with Honest Don's and entered the studio in December to record their fifth album and record label debut, In Recovery
. By now, James was back as a guitarist, and Yellowcard violinist Sean Mackin
was asked to record the string sections, along with Ataris
cellist Angus Cooke. Joey Cape
from Lagwagon
and Bad Astronaut
also made a brief appearance, singing a few lines on the song "Red Letter Day".
On March 6, 2001, awaiting the release of Inspection 12's debut album, eighteen-year-old drummer Scott Shad went into diabetic shock while driving alone in his car, passed out and crashed into a brick wall. His death devastated the members of the band, who for a while considered disbanding. Scott's best friend Ryan playing with Yellowcard was also traumatized by this experience, and both bands would keep writing songs and paying tribute to Scott's memory throughout their careers. Instead of auditioning for a new drummer, Dan's best friend since pre-school Tim Grisnik was signed on as the new drummer, and in May, In Recovery
was released on Honest Don's, in memorium of Scott Shad.
James left the band after their 2002 In Recovery U.S. tour to go to medical school, and the band returned to the studio as a three-piece to record their second album for Honest Don's, Get Rad
. However, after eight months of recording songs, which were distinctly less typical for punkrock than their previous recordings, more slowly paced and prominently featuring many other instruments than the core bass, guitar and drums, Honest Don's president reportedly told them "My label doesn't put out this kind of music. And I don't even know what to call it. " They were dropped from the record label and bought their recorded material back to finish the album themselves. Pete Mosely was simultaneously assisting Yellowcard with writing and recording bass guitar for their Capitol Records
debut Ocean Avenue
, and shortly after left Inspection 12 to join them as their permanent bassist. After closing a new recording deal with European label Floppy Cow Records, the album was finished, with guest vocals performed by Ryan Key as well as Ted Bond, lead singer of recently disbanded Craig's Brother
. It was released by Floppy Cow in 2004 in Europe
and Japan
, along a distribution deal with Suburban Home Records
to sell it in the U.S. The distribution rights for the album were later transferred to Yellowcard guitarist Ben Harper
's label Takeover Records
when the band was signed to the label in 2005.
, Pete Mosely would also return. He describes the current situation of the band as "We just toned it down and it's more of just a hobby for us".
alongside Inspection 12, together with long-time friends Damion Waters, Mark O'Quinn and Eric Denton. After playing shows for a few years, Sensei dissolved in May 2007, and in 2008 the John Carver
Band was formed out of its remnants, consisting of Dan, Tim, Eric and newcomer Casey Teate. Their eponymous debut album was released independently in early 2009 through CD Baby
.
compared to the more stereotypical punkrockers, eventually incorporating more and more instruments into their sound, oftentimes layering a piano over the guitars which has been described as "sacrilege" to the punk community.
Apart from the southern Californian punkrock/skate punk bands such as NOFX
and Lagwagon
, members of Inspection 12 have expressed their admiration for musicians such as The Beatles
, Ben Folds
, Billy Joel
, Bruce Hornsby
, Cat Stevens
, dada
, Death Cab for Cutie
, Elton John
, James Taylor
, Mötley Crüe
, Sting and Tom Petty
as well as classical composers such as Ludwig van Beethoven
, Johann Sebastian Bach
, Frédéric Chopin
, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
, George Frideric Handel
and Sergei Rachmaninoff
.
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
band from Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
, founded by Robert Reid, Dan McLintock, John Comee and Scott Shad. They have released two full length recordings internationally, one on Honest Don's Records
Honest Don's Records
Honest Don's Records was a subsidiary label based in San Francisco, California, set up along with Pink & Black Records by Fat Wreck Chords to release material by bands that didn't fit within the roster at Fat....
and one on Suburban Home Records
Suburban Home Records
Suburban Home Records and Distribution is a record label based in Denver, Colorado, United States. The label was founded in 1995 by Virgil Dickerson, and is known for focusing on vinyl releases and bands in the pop-punk and alt-country genres. Its roster has included Two Cow Garage, Drag the River,...
and Takeover Records
Takeover Records
Takeover Records is a punk music record label based in Long Beach, California, U.S.A.The company was founded by former Yellowcard guitarist Ben Harper and his friend Greg McDonald in 1997.-Current:*Bracket*HeyMike!*Near Miss*River City High...
. They have also released four full length albums independently.
Teenage years
Vocalist Robert Reid, guitarist Dan McLintock, bassist John Comee and drummer Scott Shad formed The Abominable Snowmen of the Himalayas 12 in 1994 while in junior high school, influenced by the first wave of southern CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
n punkrock/skate punk
Skate punk
Skate punk is a sub genre of punk rock, originally a derivative of the West Coast hardcore punk scene, that is named after its popularity among skateboarders and association with skateboarding culture. Skate punk most commonly describes the sound of melodic hardcore bands from the 1990s with an...
bands such as Lagwagon
Lagwagon
Lagwagon is an American punk rock band originally from Goleta, just outside Santa Barbara, California. They formed in 1990 and went on hiatus and reunited several times over the years...
and NOFX
NOFX
NOFX is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California .The band was formed in 1983 by vocalist/bassist Fat Mike and guitarist Eric Melvin. Drummer Erik Sandin joined NOFX shortly after. In 1991 El Hefe joined to play lead guitar and trumpet, rounding out the current line-up...
. The band was renamed Inspection 12, inspired by a fictional band on the Nickelodeon TV show The Adventures of Pete & Pete
The Adventures of Pete & Pete
The Adventures of Pete & Pete is an American children's television series produced by Wellsville Pictures and broadcast by Nickelodeon. The show featured humorous and surreal elements in its narrative, and many recurring themes centered on two brothers both named Pete Wrigley, and their various...
named Inspector 12. After recording a cassette in 1995, titled Eponym
Eponym
An eponym is the name of a person or thing, whether real or fictitious, after which a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named...
ous EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
the band recruited a second guitarist, Peter Mosely
Peter Mosely
Peter Michael Mosely is an American rock musician. He is one of the two guitarist, vocalist and pianist for the American punk rock band Inspection 12 as well as the former bassist for the American pop punk band Yellowcard. He joined Inspection 12 in 1996 but left in 2004 to be the bassist for...
. Their first show for a crowd was at a friend's backyard birthday party, playing only cover by bands such as Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
and Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
, with newcomer Pete joining in on the NOFX and Weezer
Weezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
songs.
Their first full-length album, Come, Hefe, Come! was recorded on cassette tape in 1996 and sold independently. Few copies are known to exist, but a digital copy made by a fan was uploaded to the official messageboard in 2003. Recorded live and consisting mostly of songs later re-recorded with vastly improved production values, such as "Secure" and "Bad Mentality", it could be considered a demo. Their first big show was opening for Less Than Jake
Less Than Jake
Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainesville, Florida. Originally formed in 1992 as a power pop trio, the band evolved into a hybrid of ska punk. Less Than Jake have also been cited as showing influences from a wide variety of genres including post-grunge, heavy metal, alternative...
.
Incorporating vocal harmonies beyond that which is considered gratuitous for most typical skate punk
Skate punk
Skate punk is a sub genre of punk rock, originally a derivative of the West Coast hardcore punk scene, that is named after its popularity among skateboarders and association with skateboarding culture. Skate punk most commonly describes the sound of melodic hardcore bands from the 1990s with an...
bands, while also sharing vocal duties on their recording, their second album Inspection 12 would be the last for founder Robert Reid as he graduated and left the band to enter college, and with bassist John Comee also leaving, guitarist Dan McLintock soon took up the bass and lead vocalist roles. Released in 1997 on compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
, it was their first recording with sound quality on the level of a professional demo. Another album, You're A Nation, was released in 1998, and James Trimble, cousin to Scott Shad, was added as second guitarist to replace the departed founder Robert Reid. Their fourth full-length album, Step Into The Fire, was released in 1999 with the new lineup. On this recording, drummer Scott Shad's best friend Ryan Key
Ryan Key
Ryan Key is an American rock musician. He is best known for being the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the American pop punk band Yellowcard, and one of the two lead singers in his side project Big If.-Early life:...
performed additional vocals on the song "Nothing to Lose". While still in high school, they sold more than 2,500 copies of their independently recorded and produced CDs locally and opened for bands such as Strung Out
Strung Out
Strung Out is a Californian punk rock band from Simi Valley, California, formed in 1992. They are known mainly for their musical style, which fuses aspects of punk rock and heavy metal to form their primary sound. They have released seven albums on Fat Wreck Chords and appeared on numerous...
, Millencolin
Millencolin
Millencolin is a punk rock band that was formed in October 1992 by Nikola Šarčević, Mathias Färm, and Erik Ohlsson in Örebro, Sweden. In early 1993, drummer Fredrik Larzon joined the band...
and Bigwig
Bigwig (band)
Bigwig is a hardcore punk band from New Jersey, formed in 1995. They were originally composed of Josh Farrell , John Castaldo , Tom Petta , and Dan Rominski . It is said they got their name from a character in the book "Watership Down", a large, tough rabbit...
. Although being a relatively successful local band, Mosely recalls feeling like outcasts because of their preppy clothes and unorthodox style of punk rock, explaining that "Whenever we'd play a show like Good Riddance
Good Riddance
Good Riddance was a punk rock band from Santa Cruz, California. They released seven full-length studio albums on Fat Wreck Chords, and their final album was a live recording of their farewell concert in 2007. Led by vocalist Russ Rankin, the band's longtime lineup included guitarist Luke Pabich,...
or AFI
AFI
AFI, the three letter acronym, may refer to:*AFI , an American alternative rock band**AFI , an album by AFI released in 2004*Air Force Instruction, documented instructions for members of the United States Air Force...
, it would always be a real tough crowd. I used to hear it all the time about us being rich kids."
Graduation
Upon graduating high school in 1999, Dan McLintock left for Santa Cruz, California together with Ryan Key to audition for two newly vacated guitarist spots in the Tooth & NailTooth & Nail Records
Tooth & Nail Records is a record label founded by Brandon Ebel in the U.S. state of California in November 1993. The label later moved to Seattle, Washington, where it is situated today...
band Craig's Brother
Craig's Brother
Craig's Brother is an American punk rock band founded by Andy Snyder, Scott Hrapoff and Heath Konkel, later joined by Ted Bond and Adam Nigh. They have released three full length recordings internationally, two on Tooth & Nail Records and one self-released through digital distribution.-Foundation...
. They were both successful, and Inspection 12 were left without their lead vocalist and frontman. After recording Lost at Sea
Lost at Sea (Craig's Brother album)
Lost At Sea is Craig's Brother's second full length album, released on July 17, 2001, their final release with Tooth & Nail Records. The violin part on "Back and Forth" was performed by Sean Mackin from Yellowcard, the band which ex-Craig's Brother member Ryan Key had recently joined.-Aftermath:The...
in 2000, Dan left Craig's Brother and briefly joined Limp
Limp (band)
Limp were an American pop punk band formed in 1994, with strong influences in both rock and ska, hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area. Limp released three studio albums on Honest Don's, a subsidiary label of Fat Wreck Chords, as well as an EP released on Fueled by Ramen, before their 2002...
, out on tour, where at a show in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
a copy of Inspection 12's latest album Step Into The Fire was handed to Fat Wreck Chords
Fat Wreck Chords
Fat Wreck Chords is a San Francisco, California based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by Fat Mike and his ex-wife, Erin, in 1990....
label owner Fat Mike by Limp's tour manager. Dan was asked to produce a newer recording to be considered for Fat Wreck Chords subsidiary Honest Don's Records
Honest Don's Records
Honest Don's Records was a subsidiary label based in San Francisco, California, set up along with Pink & Black Records by Fat Wreck Chords to release material by bands that didn't fit within the roster at Fat....
, so he returned home to Jacksonville and rejoined Inspection 12 to record an EP. Guitarist James Trimble had began studies to become an obstetrician
Obstetrics
Obstetrics is the medical specialty dealing with the care of all women's reproductive tracts and their children during pregnancy , childbirth and the postnatal period...
in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, and Ryan Key had left Craig's Brother a year before Dan and joined Yellowcard
Yellowcard
Yellowcard is an American pop punk/alternative rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1997, and based in Los Angeles, California since 2000. Their music features the use of a violin, unusual for the genre...
, so he was asked to play bass while Dan covered the guitars for the recording. After the release of the Home EP, Inspection 12 signed on with Honest Don's and entered the studio in December to record their fifth album and record label debut, In Recovery
In Recovery
In Recovery is Inspection 12's fifth full length album and record label debut. It would become the final recording featuring drummer Scott Shad before his death in March of 2001, only months before it's release.-Track listing:#"Secure" – 2:35...
. By now, James was back as a guitarist, and Yellowcard violinist Sean Mackin
Sean Mackin
Sean/Seán Mackin may refer to:*Seán Mackin , Northern Irish activist, fundraiser for the Friends of Sinn Féin*Sean Mackin , American musician for the pop punk band Yellowcard...
was asked to record the string sections, along with Ataris
The Ataris
The Ataris are a rock band from Anderson, Indiana. They have released five studio albums, and their most recent E.P. was released on November 25, 2010 on the Gainesville, Florida based label, Paper + Plastick. It contained the brand new tracks "All Souls' Day" and "The Graveyard of The Atlantic"...
cellist Angus Cooke. Joey Cape
Joey Cape
Randal "Joey" Cape is an American singer, songwriter and producer. Active since 1989, Cape is best known as the frontman of the seminal California punk rock band Lagwagon....
from Lagwagon
Lagwagon
Lagwagon is an American punk rock band originally from Goleta, just outside Santa Barbara, California. They formed in 1990 and went on hiatus and reunited several times over the years...
and Bad Astronaut
Bad Astronaut
Bad Astronaut is an American indie/punk rock band founded in 2000 by Joey Cape, singer from Lagwagon. In Bad Astronaut, Joey Cape explores a new style of pop, with lyrics often about deep and intricate personal matters....
also made a brief appearance, singing a few lines on the song "Red Letter Day".
On March 6, 2001, awaiting the release of Inspection 12's debut album, eighteen-year-old drummer Scott Shad went into diabetic shock while driving alone in his car, passed out and crashed into a brick wall. His death devastated the members of the band, who for a while considered disbanding. Scott's best friend Ryan playing with Yellowcard was also traumatized by this experience, and both bands would keep writing songs and paying tribute to Scott's memory throughout their careers. Instead of auditioning for a new drummer, Dan's best friend since pre-school Tim Grisnik was signed on as the new drummer, and in May, In Recovery
In Recovery
In Recovery is Inspection 12's fifth full length album and record label debut. It would become the final recording featuring drummer Scott Shad before his death in March of 2001, only months before it's release.-Track listing:#"Secure" – 2:35...
was released on Honest Don's, in memorium of Scott Shad.
James left the band after their 2002 In Recovery U.S. tour to go to medical school, and the band returned to the studio as a three-piece to record their second album for Honest Don's, Get Rad
Get Rad
Get Rad is Inspection 12's sixth full length album. It was released independently in 2003, then internationally in 2004 by Floppy Cow Records, and in the US by Suburban Home Records. Takeover Records rereleased it with the original artwork in 2005...
. However, after eight months of recording songs, which were distinctly less typical for punkrock than their previous recordings, more slowly paced and prominently featuring many other instruments than the core bass, guitar and drums, Honest Don's president reportedly told them "My label doesn't put out this kind of music. And I don't even know what to call it. " They were dropped from the record label and bought their recorded material back to finish the album themselves. Pete Mosely was simultaneously assisting Yellowcard with writing and recording bass guitar for their Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
debut Ocean Avenue
Ocean Avenue
Ocean Avenue is the fourth studio album by the American pop punk band Yellowcard. It was produced by Neal Avron, and was released on July 22, 2003 through Capitol Records. The album is the major-label debut for the band...
, and shortly after left Inspection 12 to join them as their permanent bassist. After closing a new recording deal with European label Floppy Cow Records, the album was finished, with guest vocals performed by Ryan Key as well as Ted Bond, lead singer of recently disbanded Craig's Brother
Craig's Brother
Craig's Brother is an American punk rock band founded by Andy Snyder, Scott Hrapoff and Heath Konkel, later joined by Ted Bond and Adam Nigh. They have released three full length recordings internationally, two on Tooth & Nail Records and one self-released through digital distribution.-Foundation...
. It was released by Floppy Cow in 2004 in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, along a distribution deal with Suburban Home Records
Suburban Home Records
Suburban Home Records and Distribution is a record label based in Denver, Colorado, United States. The label was founded in 1995 by Virgil Dickerson, and is known for focusing on vinyl releases and bands in the pop-punk and alt-country genres. Its roster has included Two Cow Garage, Drag the River,...
to sell it in the U.S. The distribution rights for the album were later transferred to Yellowcard guitarist Ben Harper
Ben Harper (musician)
Not to be confused with Ben HarperBenjamin Eric Harper is an American rock musician. He is best known for being the former lead guitarist for the American pop punk band Yellowcard, as well as for the bands Amber Pacific and HeyMike!. Harper is co-owner of Takeover Records.-Yellowcard :Harper formed...
's label Takeover Records
Takeover Records
Takeover Records is a punk music record label based in Long Beach, California, U.S.A.The company was founded by former Yellowcard guitarist Ben Harper and his friend Greg McDonald in 1997.-Current:*Bracket*HeyMike!*Near Miss*River City High...
when the band was signed to the label in 2005.
Recent history
After the release of Get Rad, Dan McLintock also decided to return to school. Not breaking up or going on hiatus, Inspection 12 remained, although only playing sporadic shows in the member's home area of Jacksonville as they focused on their lives outside of music. James would later rejoin the band in July 2006 after finishing his studies, and after Yellowcard's 2007 release Paper WallsPaper Walls
Paper Walls is the third major-label album from American pop punk band Yellowcard, released on July 17, 2007, but their fourth full-length studio album with Ryan Key and sixth including those recorded before him. This is also the first Yellowcard album with Ryan Mendez, the last with Peter Mosely,...
, Pete Mosely would also return. He describes the current situation of the band as "We just toned it down and it's more of just a hobby for us".
Side projects
In 2004, following the release of Get Rad after being dropped by Honest Don's, Dan McLintock and Tim Grisnik started the band SenseiSensei (band)
-History:The idea was born in the summer of 2004 when guitarist Damion Waters and bassist Dan McLintock began writing together for their then unnamed project. Following the conception of several songs, the two began recording ideas; slowly piecing guitar parts and vocal harmonies together on...
alongside Inspection 12, together with long-time friends Damion Waters, Mark O'Quinn and Eric Denton. After playing shows for a few years, Sensei dissolved in May 2007, and in 2008 the John Carver
John Carver
John Carver was a Pilgrim leader. He was the first governor of Plymouth Colony and his is the first signature on the Mayflower Compact.-Mayflower:...
Band was formed out of its remnants, consisting of Dan, Tim, Eric and newcomer Casey Teate. Their eponymous debut album was released independently in early 2009 through CD Baby
CD Baby
CD Baby is an online music store specializing in the sale of CDs and digital music downloads from independent musicians to consumers. The company is also a digital aggregator of independent music recordings, distributing content to several online digital music retailers.CD Baby has achieved recent...
.
Music style and influences
The band started off as an unorthodox band, described as preppyPreppy
Preppy, preppie, or prep refers to a modern, widespread United States clique, often considered a subculture...
compared to the more stereotypical punkrockers, eventually incorporating more and more instruments into their sound, oftentimes layering a piano over the guitars which has been described as "sacrilege" to the punk community.
Apart from the southern Californian punkrock/skate punk bands such as NOFX
NOFX
NOFX is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California .The band was formed in 1983 by vocalist/bassist Fat Mike and guitarist Eric Melvin. Drummer Erik Sandin joined NOFX shortly after. In 1991 El Hefe joined to play lead guitar and trumpet, rounding out the current line-up...
and Lagwagon
Lagwagon
Lagwagon is an American punk rock band originally from Goleta, just outside Santa Barbara, California. They formed in 1990 and went on hiatus and reunited several times over the years...
, members of Inspection 12 have expressed their admiration for musicians such as The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Ben Folds
Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott "Ben" Folds is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and television personality. From 1995-2000, Folds was the frontman and pianist of the alternative rock band Ben Folds Five. Since the group disbanded, Folds has performed as a solo artist and has toured all over the world...
, Billy Joel
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
, Bruce Hornsby
Bruce Hornsby
Bruce Randall Hornsby is an American singer, pianist, accordion player, and songwriter. Known for the spontaneity and creativity of his live performances, Hornsby draws frequently from classical, jazz, bluegrass, folk, Motown, rock, blues, and jam band musical traditions with his songwriting and...
, Cat Stevens
Cat Stevens
Yusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
, dada
Dada (band)
Dada is a three piece rock band from California . The band is made up of Michael Gurley , Joie Calio and Phil Leavitt ....
, Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
, Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
, Sting and Tom Petty
Tom Petty
Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...
as well as classical composers such as Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
, Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
, Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
, George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
and Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
.
Band members
- Dan McLintock - bass, vocals (1994–1999, 2000–present)
- Pete Mosely - guitar, vocals (1995–2003, 2007–present)
- James Trimble - guitar (1998–2002, 2006–present)
- Tim Grisnik - drums (2001–present)
Albums
- Come, Hefe, Come! (1996)
- Inspection 12 (1997)
- You're A Nation (1998)
- Step Into the Fire (1999)
- In RecoveryIn RecoveryIn Recovery is Inspection 12's fifth full length album and record label debut. It would become the final recording featuring drummer Scott Shad before his death in March of 2001, only months before it's release.-Track listing:#"Secure" – 2:35...
(2001) - Get RadGet RadGet Rad is Inspection 12's sixth full length album. It was released independently in 2003, then internationally in 2004 by Floppy Cow Records, and in the US by Suburban Home Records. Takeover Records rereleased it with the original artwork in 2005...
(2003)
Compilation appearances
- Floyd ...And Out Come The Teeth, Fat Wreck ChordsFat Wreck ChordsFat Wreck Chords is a San Francisco, California based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by Fat Mike and his ex-wife, Erin, in 1990....
, contributed "Red Letter Day" (2001) - The Beginning of the End, End Records, contributed "Secret Identity" (2001)
- Honest Don's Dirty Dishes, Honest Don's RecordsHonest Don's RecordsHonest Don's Records was a subsidiary label based in San Francisco, California, set up along with Pink & Black Records by Fat Wreck Chords to release material by bands that didn't fit within the roster at Fat....
, contributed "Secret Identity" (2001) - A Different Shade of Green: A Green Day Tribute, Skunk-Ape Records, contributed "F.O.D." (2003)