Social DistortionIF YOU GO
* What: Social Distortion featuring Lindi Ortega and Biters.* When: 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13.* Where: Track 29, 1400 Market St.* Admission: $28 in advance, $30 at the door.* Phone: 521-2929.* Venue website: www.track29.co.* Related links at current.timesfreepress.com.
DISCOGRAPHY
1983: “Mommy’s Little Monster”1988: “Prison Bound”1990: “Social Distortion”1992: “Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell”1996: “White Light, White Heat, White Trash”1998: “Live at the Roxy”2004: “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll”2011: “Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes”
When Johnny Wickersham joined Social Distortion in 2000 following the sudden death of longtime guitarist Dennis Dannel, the hardest part wasn’t standing out but blending in.
“I wasn’t a good rhythm guitar player at all, and I didn’t know that,” he said, adding that an early conversation with founder and frontman Mike Ness was eye-opening. “He said to me one time that if there’s no groove, there’s no song, and that’s very much the truth.”
In the 30 years since Ness founded Social Distortion in Los Angeles and began creating his signature blend of punk rock with traces of roots music, helping new members assimilate has become an all-too-frequent activity. As a result of numerous shifts and upheavals, the band has featured about 20 musicians, mostly new bassists and drummers, with Ness as the group’s sole constant presence.