Ripcordz

Ripcordz are a Canadian punk rock band, formed in Montreal in 1980.[1] They have released 15 full-length albums and continue to tour extensively as a three-piece band.[2]

Ripcordz
Ripcordz live in Vancouver
Background information
OriginMontreal, Quebec, Canada
GenresPunk rock
Years active1980–present
LabelsMayday Records
EnGuard Records
Og Records
Sudden Death Records
Websitetheripcordz.com/main.php
MembersPaul Gott
Alexandre Gauthier
Gopal D
Past membersFrançois Demers
Alexandre Gauthier
Ian Campeau
Simon Cloutier
John Isherwood
Danny Laflamme
Chris Moroz
Phil O'Neill
Alexandre Roy
Ian Swinson

The band has undergone numerous lineup changes through its history, with vocalist and guitarist Paul Gott as the only remaining original band member.

History

The band was formed in 1980, playing their first show at Montreal's Le Steppe.[2] Gott, at the time a journalism student at Concordia University,[3] initially performed only on guitar, but took over as vocalist after the original vocalist sang the show in a vocal style more reminiscent of Robert Plant than punk rock.[2]

The band released their debut album, Ripcordz Are Go(d), in 1988 on Og Records.[4] After that label folded in 1990, Gott launched EnGuard Records,[5] releasing the album A Right Is a Right that year.[6] Gott simultaneously ran his own typesetting business.[5]

In 1992, they released the albums There Ain't No 'H' in Ripcordz, Dork-Face and Kidnoise.[7]

In 1994, the band released Canadian As Fuck.[8] Later the same year, 12 bands contributed covers of the band's songs to the tribute album Ripcordz As Fuck.[9] Around the same time as the tribute album's release, Ripcordz organized an all-ages show featuring 18 bands.[10]

In 1998, the band released Is That a Squeegee In Your Pocket Or Are You Just Happy to See Me?, their first album to be released on another label since their debut.[11] By this time, Gott was working as a news producer for Montreal television station CKMI.[11] They have continued to release albums, including It's Never Too Late to Annoy Your Parents, I Went to the Summit of the Americas and All I Got Was This Lousy Tear Gas Canister in the Back of the Head, What If They Held a Revolution and Nobody Came?,[3] 100,000 Watts of Pure Power (At Least That's What We Tell All the Girls), Double Your Punk, Double Your Fun, Dead or Alive in '92, Black, Made in Montreal and War on Xmas, as well as a reissue of Ripcordz Are Go(d) in 2004.[12]

By the time of the band's 2014 album Made in Montreal, Gott was estimating that the band had played at least 3,000 shows across Canada.[2] He was working at this time as a news producer for the local CBC News on CBMT.[2]

Current members
  • Paul Gott – 1980–present – vocals, guitar
  • Alexandre Gauthier – 1999–2008, 2010-2012, 2016-present – vocals, bass
  • Gopal D 2019-present – drums

Former members
  • François Demers – 1990-1999, 2003-2019 – drums
  • Ian Campeau – 2002-2003 – drums
  • Simon Cloutier – 1999-2001 – drums
  • John Isherwood – 1991-1992 – bass
  • Danny Laflamme – 1992-1995, 2008-2009 – bass
  • Chris Moroz – 1995-1999 – bass
  • Phil O'Neill – 1988-1990 – drums
  • Alexandre Roy – 2012–2017 – drums
  • Ian Swinson – 1988-1991 – bass

Discography
  • Greatest Hits (1986)
  • Ripcordz Are Go(d) (1988)
  • A Right is a Right (1990)
  • There Ain't No 'H' in Ripcordz, Dork-Face (1992)
  • Kidnoise (1992)
  • Canadian as Fuck (1994)
  • Re-Cordz (1995)
  • Shut Up and Pogo (1996)
  • Your Mother Wears Army Boots, But Man She Looks So Cool (1996)
  • Is That a Squeegee In Your Pocket Or Are You Just Happy to See Me? (1998)
  • It's Never Too Late to Annoy Your Parents (2000)
  • I Went to the Summit of the Americas and All I Got Was This Lousy Tear Gas Canister in the Back of the Head (2002)
  • What If They Held a Revolution and Nobody Came? (2003)
  • 100,000 Watts of Pure Power (At Least That's What We Tell All the Girls) (2006)
  • Double Your Punk, Double Your Fun (2006)
  • Dead or Alive in '92 (2008)
  • Black (2010)
  • Made in Montreal (2014)
  • War on Xmas (2015)
  • The Vinyl Countdown (2017)
  • Punk East vs. Punk West (4-band split vinyl, 2019)
  • Don't Buy the First Album, Jerk-Wad, Get This One! (2020)
gollark: "polyamory involves multiple people → jealousy → bad"
gollark: 90% of political arguing is just bad equivocation, so expect that imminent.
gollark: Even unpopular ones like my website somehow.
gollark: * trash
gollark: All sufficient popular comment boxes are full of utter trahs.

References
  1. "Ripcordz feeling good about making fans one at a time". Regina Leader-Post, August 6, 2003.
  2. "The Ripcordz an all-ages defying punk rock act". Montreal Gazette, October 20, 2014.
  3. "Part journalist, part teacher and all punk". Edmonton Journal, August 8, 2003.
  4. "Ripcordz: Ripcordz Are Go!" Montreal Gazette, October 5, 1989.
  5. "Gott: local rock's best friend". Montreal Gazette, December 19, 1991.
  6. "Ripcordz: A Right Is a Right". Montreal Gazette, July 21, 1990.
  7. "Ripcordz promise to take Station 10 by storm". Montreal Gazette, December 12, 1992.
  8. "Ripcordz: Canadian As Fuck. Montreal Gazette, May 7, 1994.
  9. "Ripcordz redux; Groups pay tribute to elder statesmen of local scene". Montreal Gazette, December 31, 1994.
  10. "Ripcordz pull local scene together; Sunday's all-ages blowout showcases 18 bands". Montreal Gazette, December 15, 1994.
  11. "Never too old for anarchy: After a decade of upstartism, Montreal's aging punkers put out eighth album, this time with a label". Montreal Gazette, October 15, 1998.
  12. "Punk contrarians are at it again". Edmonton Journal, August 6, 2004.
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