The Menzingers are an American punk rock band from Scranton, Pennsylvania, formed in 2006. The band consists of Greg Barnett, Tom May, Eric Keen and Joe Godino. To date, the band has released six studio albums, with their most recent, Hello Exile, released on October 4, 2019.
History
The Menzingers formed in the wake of Scranton ska-punk/pop punk bands Bob and the Sagets and Kos Mos. Their first release was a self-titled demo tape made in 2006, which made its way onto many top ten lists of that year. Their debut full length, "A Lesson in the Abuse of Information Technology", was produced by Jesse Cannon. According to Cannon, "I record bands every day and almost all of them are missing something. The Menzingers have it all — the songs, the aggression, the heart, and the passion that most only dream of." In 2009, the band released a four-song EP titled "Hold On Dodge" through Red Scare Industries, their first vinyl release. A bonus track for the EP titled "Kentucky Gentleman" is available through iTunes. Early in 2010, the band did a brief stint with Anti-Flag. April 13 saw the release of their second full length, Chamberlain Waits, through Red Scare Records. In March and April they also toured in support of Against Me!. On May 17, 2011, they announced that they had signed to Epitaph Records. Brett Gurewitz, founder of Epitaph Records and guitarist of Bad Religion said this about the signing of the band:
"These guys play the kind of pure punk rock that I grew up with. They are seriously talented songwriters and I'm happy to welcome them to the Epitaph family. I think the band is a great fit here." They released On the Impossible Past on February 20, 2012, and it was met with critical acclaim. A music video was shot and released for the song "Nice Things." On the Impossible Past went on to be voted "Album Of The Year" 2012 for both Absolutepunk.net and Punknews.org. It was also voted "Album Of The Year" by RockZone magazine in Spain. The Menzingers released a split 7" EP with The Bouncing Souls in November 2013. Both bands released a new original song on the split, along with a cover of one of the other band's songs. The Menzingers covered "Kate is Great" from The Bouncing Souls, and The Bouncing Souls covered "Burn After Writing" from On the Impossible Past. On November 29, 2013, while performing at the Bowery Ballroom, Greg Barnett said that the band had just come out of the studio. The new album, Rented World, was released on April 22, 2014. A music video for a song from the new album, "In Remission", was released on February 18, 2014. The band spent 2014 and 2015 touring North America, Europe, and Australia with a variety of acts as both support and a headline act, including The Smith Street Band, Off With Their Heads, Lemuria, Chumped, Taking Back Sunday, mewithoutYou, Pianos Become the Teeth, letlive., and others. The Menzingers released their fifth studio album After The Party on February 3, 2017, for Epitaph Records, along with a United States tour featuring Jeff Rosenstock and Rozwell Kid. On May 30, 2018, The Menzingers released a new single: "Toy Soldier" and released "The Freaks" in October. The Menzingers announced their sixth studio album Hello Exile and premiered a music video for the single "Anna" on July 15, 2019. On August 20, 2019, The Menzingers released the second single from Hello Exile: "America ", alongside a music video. On September 18, 2019, The Menzingers released the third single from Hello Exile: "Strangers Forever", alongside a music video. Hello Exile was released on October 4, 2019 on Epitaph Records and the band went on a U.S. headlining tour with Tigers Jaw and Culture Abuse.
