Bio
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800 Octane is one of Portland’s longest running punk rock bands. 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 garage trying to find their sound to a Northwest punk rock 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 fiercely independent, and mostly uncaring about the trends that have come in and out of style since their inception.
Although the pace has tapered in the past few years, 800 Octane is probably best known for their live shows. The mission is simple, play like it’s your last show ever and try not to break anything. Playing for whomever and traveling wherever has always been the name of the game and to date they’ve played hundreds and hundreds of self booked, self promoted shows. The payoff has been the chance to play with many of their influences and idols 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 often sped up and abrasive live sound you may be surprised to find that their studio albums are typically somewhat polished and hook filled. 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.
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