MxPx Enlist The Ataris and The Summer Obsession
By: Bear Frazer
Last updated October 9th , 2009

Bremerton, WA's punk trio MxPx will be embarking on an International tour to Japan and Malaysia, but with a slight twist.  An MxPx All-Star line-up has been announced featuring MxPx lead vocalist and bassist Mike Herrera along with Kris Roe of The Ataris on guitar and Chris Wilson of The Summer Obsession on drums.  The MxPx All-Stars will perform four dates in Japan with friends, Zebrahead starting on December 4 in Tokyo and ending in Osaka on December 8.  The All-Stars will then head off to KualaLumpur, Malaysia for a solo date on December 11.

"We decided to change things up a little for some International dates, due to Yuri having another baby recently and Tom wanting to be home through the holidays," said MxPx lead vocalist and bassist Mike Herrera. "Chris [Wilson] has been our fourth member for awhile covering on select dates, so he was an easy selection. I asked Kris [Roe] to join in because he's another close friend of ours that plays his own music and I knew he would be a fun addition to the line-up."

For the past decade, MxPx have had a relentless touring schedule.  Having traveled to Australia, Israel, Russia, China, Europe, South American, Indonesia, Japan, and now Malaysia, the band finally had this summer off to finish recording and mastering their new EP, Left Coast Punk, which will be released later this year.  They will also finish recording additional tunes for their holiday album, which is set to be released in the next few months as well. 

Ataris front man Kris Roe met MxPx in 1996, when both bands began their first tours together. "We all bonded in the fact that we were all under 21, grew up in small towns and had left school and dropped everything we knew to get in a van to follow our dreams of what we loved and the only thing we likely knew... to play music." Roe is ready to let go of his normal front man role to fill in for MxPx guitarist Tom Wisniewski. "Being able to just play guitar for an entire set without having to worry about being the singer will be a great relief.   It gets a little tiring sometimes."

Chris Wilson is very familiar with MxPx's set list as he has filled in for MxPx drummer Yuri Ruley in the past on occasional dates as well as being a fan of the band while growing up. "MxPx have definitely been one of my biggest music and lifestyle influences, and when I tour with them it always proves to be a great time!  I mean hell...I get to play for one of my favorite bands again! Who wouldn't want to do that?"

The song selection will consist of tracks from MxPx's massive catalog, and of course, include tracks from their current covers album, On The Cover II; And with Roe and Wilson in the mix, they will also be performing a couple of Ataris tracks, as well as some special surprises.

The Ataris, a pop punk band originally out of Anderson, Indiana have released five studio albums and are currently finishing their forthcoming album The Graveyard of the Atlantic.  They will be touring the western U.S. throughout September and early October before heading to Jakarta, Indonesia for one show, and then continue on to New Zealand and Australia. 

The Summer Obsession, a punk band now based in Los Angeles, is also working on a new album.  Having last released their major label debut This Is Where You Belong through Virgin Records, the band took some time off, but are now back in the studio working on a new material.

[Tags] In-The-News, POP, Punk