Social Distortion Hire New Drummer, Mike Ness Joins PETA2

BY Keith CarmanPublished Apr 24, 2009

As if Orange County, CA punk rockers Social Distortion needed any more cool points. Then again, founding singer/guitarist Mike Ness has shit a few out over the years with questionable moves. However, he's earned them back in spades with a couple of smooth calls recently.

First, while it is sad that longtime (ten years at that) drummer Charlie "Chalo" Quintana has announced his departure from Social D, his replacement is none other than super-amazing skinsman Atom Willard. Willard came to prominence as the beat-keeper for Rocket From The Crypt, earned a few bucks with the Offspring after RFTC's dissolution and then suckered Angels And Airwaves out of a paycheque until leader Tom DeLonge realized A&A sucked and it might be smarter to get back together with Blink-182. Come to think of it, this is quite possibly the coolest thing Willard has done in a good decade as well.

"Playing with Social D for ten years was a good time in my life," said Quintana about his departure. "I was lucky to play on two Social D records and the second solo album, and I am proud to have been part of the band. We hit some spectacular heights, which I will never forget. Adios amigos!"

Second, Ness's train isn't prison-bound anymore. It's switched tracks to the political/socially conscious, joining animal rights group PETA2 in its latest campaign against factory farming. That in and of itself comes as a shock, seeing as the 30-year-old band have rarely - if ever - made such statements or connections.

Ness posed for his first ad with PETA2 next to the tagline "Fact: The Factory-Farming Industry Is the Number One Cause of Climate Change, Creating More Greenhouse-Gas Emissions Than All The Cars, Planes, Ships, Trucks, and Trains in the World Combined. Meat's Not Green." 


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