In 1994, Brian was asked to step in for Peter Holsapple of R.E.M. and join their Monster tour. But just as he was getting ready to join them, he got an offer to join BR. He saw R.E.M. as one of the biggest bands in the world, but also saw BR as one of the biggest punk bands in the world. So, two days after Greg’s call, he called R.E.M. again to let them know he was choosing BR. He packed his bags, sold his car, and embarked on his new career. As he likes to say, “That’s me in the corner, choosing Bad Religion.” “Touring for nineteen months with one of the biggest bands in the world isn’t exactly a crappy offer, and I was absolutely amazed that these R.E.M. folks even knew who I was. (…) My best friend Nathan [ex-Careless] got the gig. After the Monster tour, Nathan bought a house and built a home studio in his backyard. He’s happy. I’m renting a one-bedroom apartment and recording my songs with just an acoustic guitar and a boombox, but hey, I’m in Bad Religion. I’m happy.” Regarding Into The Unknown, Greg says, “I think it’s like early R.E.M.; if it had come a couple of years later, it probably would have been as popular as R.E.M..”
This content was originally written by the badass contributors of thebrpage.net, the best superfan resource and website that exists for any band, let alone the best band in the whole entire world. I’ve been lurking on that site for over 20 years and if you’re into Bad Religion as much as I am, I’m sure you’re familiar. If you are not, go there right now and never come back to this site again. You should, and I totally understand.
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