Bay Area punk rockers Druglords of the Avenues are shaking up 2026 with the release of their long-awaited third LP, Gotta Light on Pirates Press Records!What began as a side project with legendary San Francisco punk singer Johnny “Peebucks” Bonnel (Swingin’ Utters, Filthy Thieving Bastards, Primitive Heads) and guitarist Matt Grayson quickly evolved into a fully fledged band with a life and perspective all its own. Now releasing their third full length, the band are locked in and firing on all cylinders with their unique brand of rollicking, storytelling streetpunk.On past albums, influences ranging from the fiery grit of punk & hardcore classics like the Dwarves & Circle Jerks to the ramshackle folk chaos of The Pogues and the dark complexities of The Pixies have been spotted in the mix.What truly sets Druglords of the Avenues apart is the combination of that punk rock energy with the folk tradition of songwriting as storytelling. While the guitars and the rhythm section - where Bonnel & Grayson are joined by guitarist Rob Pierce, bassist Michael Mininger, and drummer Robert Faria - may be blazing at a breakneck pace, the lyrics are relating street level tales of poor and working class people doing what they have to to survive.On the single “Ghetto Sidewalks,” primary lyricist Bonnel engages in complex wordplay alongside straightforward snapshots of urban decay with declarations such as “We need some light on the ghetto sidewalks / We’re always stumbling in the dark.” Indeed, Bonnel’s one-of-a-kind, dense but direct lyricism calls to mind a character he describes in “Gutter Roller Mart”: “He’s a street poet / Aggressive misbehavior.”The characters that populate the streets and sidewalks of Gotta Light have their struggles, mistakes, conflicts, and grudges, but for the most part, they are presented without value judgements. These are simply the stories of lives lived hard, and Druglords of the Avenues are here to tell them.TRACK LIST:SIDE A01. Ghetto Sidewalks02. Mudders Boy03. Fall To Pieces04. Pocket Find05. Gutter Roller MartSIDE B06. Nobody Here07. Death Can Always Keep Up08. I Fold09. I Don’t Like You10. Cause and Effect Pressing Info:100 x Picture Discs w/ Pink & Black Spiral B-side400 x Picture Discs w/ Black & White Spiral B-side
