Orlando, FL [1999-2010]

Sam Johnson - Guitar/Vocals
Alex Goldfarb - Bass
Richard Minino - Drums
Brian Etherington - Guitar

The Story

There's always been a refreshing, inverse relationship between the most white-washed stretches of suburban America and its attendant youth cultures. From the tedious boredom of Midwestern expanses came the furious outbreak of Negative Approach and the Necros. New England's puritan tradition yielded SSD and Jerry's Kids. The painstaking normalcy of Beltway army brats and senators' homes, engendering Minor Threat, Government Issue and S.O.A. Given this history, it's surprising all eyes haven't been fixated on "the happiest place on Earth," Orlando, Florida, for years. Firmly influenced by early-to-mid-'80s hardcore, New Mexican Disaster Squad is the youth report guidance counselors and child psychologists dread (although I do know at least one practicing child psychologist who's a big fan). Their memorable live shows have garnered attention and opening spots with Strike Anywhere, Against Me!, the Subhumans and Anti-Flag. Formed in 1999, signed for a time to Anti-Flag's own A-F Records label, and veterans of relentless touring in more than 11 countries, NMDS has had time to lock in on their collective chemistry. The result is a tight, full-power punk band, devoid of unnecessary frills or de-clawed overproduction. Two full-lengths, a seven-inch and a split 12" with Western Addiction followed the band to its current home on Jade Tree, where there's no signs of calming down soon.