Chicago punk rockers Naked Raygun have a new 7" coming out on Riot Fest Records June 15th. The new songs are "Growing Away" and "Just For Me".Easily the most influential band bursting forth from the initial Chicago punk rock explosion, Naked Raygun also holds the distinction of being the longest running. When many of their peers were either breaking up or going metal in the mid-to-late 1980s, Naked Raygun soldiered on with their trademark sound, combining infectious vocal melodies with muscular guitar and a precision rhythm section. Echoes of the golden era of Raygun sound can be heard in punk rock circles worldwide.
In the fall of 2006 drummer Eric Spicer began to get the itch to play the old songs again and gathered the guys together again to reunite for Riot Fest in Chicago. The overwhelming response from the sold out crowd of four thousand prompted Naked Raygun to re-form permanently with their final lineup of Spicer, Bill Stephens on guitar, Pierre Kezdy on bass and Jeff Pezzati on vocals.
Naked Raygun returned to action by playing shows across the Midwest and embarking on their first West Coast tour in over a decade with Bay Area legends the Swingin' Utters. The band also released their first DVD via Riot Fest Records, entitled "What Poor Gods We Do Make." The CD/DVD package combined a documentary covering the lifespan of the band with performances from their sold out performance at Riot Fest 2006.
Raygun have been active ever since, playing Riot Fest to a sold out crowd at Metro last October and making plans for a full length album to be released in 2011.
Fans can order black or violet vinyl of the new 7" for just 9.98, pre-orders start Thursday, May 6th at http://www.riotfest.org/records/ .