Bio

 

800 Octane is one of one of the longest running punk rock bands that you’ve never heard of. The band originated in Boone, North Carolina in the summer of 1994 and later relocated to Portland, Oregon in the winter of 1996. Since then, 800 Octane has evolved from a couple of friends in a storage space trying to find their sound to a Pacific NW institution. At the core is a long running friendship between the founding members and a common interest in writing aggressive and energetic songs with what could be described as a mix of early 80’s skate punk combined with a horror influenced B-movie sensibility. 800 Octane has remained totally independent, and largely unchanged by the trends that have come in and out style over the years.

 

Although the pace has tapered in the past years, 800 Octane is probably best known for their live shows. The mission is simple: play a little faster that you probably should and try not to break anything. The band has played hundreds of self booked, self promoted shows, in all matter of cities and towns. The payoff has been the chance to play with many of their influences, including The Misfits, Tiger Army, Guttermouth, UK Subs, H2O, Strike Anywhere, New Found Glory, All, Strung Out, TSOL, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Face To Face, Bigwig, Sum 41, The Living End, Saves The Day, Poison Idea, GWAR to name a few. Not bad for a band that prefers singing about zombies to politics.

 

If you have seen 800 Octane’s raw live shows then you may be surprised to find that their studio albums are somewhat polished with hooks and sing alongs. Song topics range from movies, to monsters, to getting older, and then back again. The first album is rarely spoken of, however the 2nd album The Kelvis was released in 1999 and recorded by Portland luminary Mike Lastra. The next three albums, The Return (2002), Rise Again (2004), and Requiem (2008) were recorded with Conrad Uno of Seattle’s legendary Egg Studio. In addition to these album releases there have many appearances on compilations and soundtracks, as well as a 7″ called Get In The Van (2003).

 

800 Octane isn’t here to change the world. Their goal is just to give anyone with a pulse (or without one) a chance to get their blood flowing a little bit faster.

Hi-Res Album Cover for Requiem
Hi-Res Album Cover for Rise Again
Hi-Res Album cover for The Return