Emerging from humble beginnings in suburban LA, two brothers Jeff and Steven McDonald took their rock 'n' roll fantasy, ran with it, and wound up becoming Redd Kross, one of the most influential American bands of their time.
Published in Australia on January 8 2025 by Omnibus Press, Now You’re One Of Us: The Incredible Story of Redd Kross tells their definitive story. An in-depth and riveting tale told in the voices of the talented and tempestuous brothers, in this new book the McDonalds have teamed up with music journalist Dan Epstein to tell their wild, hilarious and gloriously star-spangled tale with honesty and humour. Pre-order it HERE.
Over four decades of joyful service to rock’n’roll have seen Redd Kross evolve into a killer pop-rock outfit, dealing in dayglo power-chords, choruses as tall as skyscrapers and a lyric sheet thick with acid couplets and arch pop-cultural references. In 1979 they started their own group in their hometown of Hawthorne LA, and soon found themselves opening shows for notorious scene pioneers Black Flag. Jeff McDonald was 15, his brother Steven only 11. But that didn’t stop their group from becoming one of the most remarkable, enduring and unique outfits punk rock ever belched up.
Cut to 2024, and Redd Kross are celebrating their 45th birthday – an important milestone for any band whose heart pulses at 45rpm – with a multimedia extravaganza that includes this new biography, a new album and a documentary.
“It’s our 45th anniversary,” says Steven, “but we’re still defining who we are. And it feels like the beginning of something. It’s so exciting to us that there’s still more to discover. We’re publishing the memoir, the movie’s coming out, we’re releasing a new album – and getting the machine started up again makes me nervous, and that’s thrilling. Our third act is going to be badass.”
Now You're One of Us is preceded by the eponymously titled double album (out now) and a new rockumentary directed by Andrew Reich - Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story.
Now You're One Of Us: The Incredible Story of Redd Kross By Jeff & Steven McDonald with Dan Epstein will be published in Australia on January 8, 2025 via Omnibus Press.
Preorder here: https://www.woodslane.com.au/Book/9781915841056/Now-You-re-One-of-Us
Redd Kross have released the highly anticipated 18-track eponymous double-album (aka The Redd Album) courtesy of In the Red Records, accompanied by a charmingly trippy, retro new video for “The Main Attraction,” a cosmic song that derives its power from the McDonald brothers’ dual vocals and Beatles-y harmonies, tracing the motivation for the ever-expanding universe’s kinks and twists to love.
Steven McDonald shares:
"The music to 'The Main Attraction' was written one day while thinking of a friend that was in need of some spirit lifting. It was the strangest thing, all of the chords and melodies came out fully formed in one shot. Had never happened before, and hasn’t happened since. The lyrics came some time later, after filling out, a sort of, self help questionnaire. One prompt was, and I’m paraphrasing, ‘Do you ever pray, and if so how?’ The nihilistic inner teen within rolled his eyes, but managed some words he could stomach without vomiting and going full head spinning, Linda Blair style:
'Ever expanding universe, please help me make best use of my place in you. And may all my actions be motivated by love.'
Later Jeff McDonald helped me fill in some of the blank spaces, most notably suggesting the line ‘Cosmic elastical show.’ I said, ‘I like it, but I don’t think ‘elastical’ is a real word,’ Jeff quickly responded, ‘So?…’ ✨ and voila 'The Main Attraction' was born.“
With regard to the video, he adds “The clip here brilliantly directed by video FX artist Sean McGuirk @seanstle goes down a similar cosmically contemplative path, but then seems to veer off into the unfortunate realities of human foibles hinting at some kind of sibling struggle and ending on a note I interpret as; those that dare to indulge pettiness before an awe inspiring loving universe should probably get what they deserve,.. a pie in the face.”