In 8th grade The Ataris were my favorite band. No band was even close. They had a mainstream breakthrough moment with 2003’s So Long Astoria based off their cover of Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer”, but Blue Skies, Broken Hearts…Next 12 Exits will always and forever be my favorite record by them. It is my personal definitive soundtrack for youthful exploration, and it’s safe to say my love for music, decision to join a band in high school, and the fact I continue playing music well into my 30’s is owed a huge debt of gratitude to The Ataris. Simply put they were the spark that lit a fire which continues to burn to this day.
In a serendipitous twist I ended up going to college at UCSB minutes away from where this cover photo was taken (it’s of the Blue Skies mobile park in Santa Barbara). Another huge life moment somehow aligned with The Ataris.
This was the era when pop punk was intensely personal and melodramatically juvenile. One look at the lyric sheet will tell you all you need to know on that front. Here’s an example from “I Won’t Spend Another Night Alone”:
The things you make me wanna do
I’d rob a Quik-E-Mart for you
I’d go to the pound and let all cats go free
Just as long as you’d be with me
Is it Shakespeare? Hell no. Is it something I’d listen to for the first time now and not bust out laughing? Not a chance in the world. But at one point in my life these songs spoke to me on a deeply personal level. They had all the elements of any great story, richly filled with specific detail, and though the subject matter is pretty silly in retrospect, that lyric and so many others on this album are what being young actually feels like.
It’s very easy as adults to forget how disorienting life can be for a 12-year old coming into their own and trying to navigate an increasingly complex world. We view our own experience as somehow more informed (it is) but often times fail to recognize that young kids are operating without that sense of life experience to help them contextualize their feelings. As a parent of two, it’s something I hope I’ll always remind myself of as my kids go through their own journey of finding their own voice for the very first time.
The Ataris were once that voice for me. And for that I’ll forever be grateful.
Standout Songs: “San Dimas High School Football Rules”, “I Won’t Spend Another Night Alone”, “The Last Song I Will Ever Write About A Girl”, “In Spite Of The World”
