SCHOOL DRUGS
Nestled along the Jersey Shore, in the cradle of a pharmaceutical country where School Drugs was born, frontman Josh Jurk is lost in a memory. “I remember thinking ‘this is fucked’ and I was pissed”! His fourth-grade teacher had just recommended to Mr. and Mrs. Jurk that he be medicated. School Drugs are still pissed, only now they know how to express it: fast, loud, angry with a cheeky grin, proper fucking punk. Listening to Jurk talk about his influences, it is clear he had a proper Punk and Hardcore education; listing Negative Approach, Bad Brains, and Poison Idea alongside Weird Al Yankovic and Hong Kong-era Jackie Chan can begin to give you a sense of his Punk Rock cultural entrenchment. Growing up at the Jersey Shore and steeped in Shore Core, witnessing Tear It Up, Forward To Death, and Splitting Headache on the reg was like secondary school. Finally taking to the stage, School Drugs has opened up for the senior class of punk rock: the Cro-Mags, Dag Nasty, Adolescents, Agent Orange, 7 Seconds, etc. Controversial social debates as themes are nothing new in Punk Rock curriculum. Unfortunately, many contemporary bands seem to have forgotten that pushing back against societal norms is one of the pillars of Punk Rock. Every component of School Drugs - name, tempo, stage antics, and artwork - is a pushback, a reminder of what Punk is, why Punk is, and how Punk is. It is necessary to wipe the slate clean periodically, remembering the formula but starting again. Welcome to the age of School Drugs. Pay attention; class is in session.
