Once upon a time in a wild and vibrant country, BR was incredibly famous. It was during the Recipe for Hate tour, at a disco in the lively town of Oiartzun near Donostia, when something unexpected happened. The floor where the enthusiastic crowd was standing gave way during the first or second song, causing dozens of people to fall into the basement of the venue. Thankfully, although many had to be taken to the hospital, there were no fatalities.
Fast forward to April 4, 1998, when BR returned to the Basque Country (Donostia) for the first time since the incident. This time, they were performing at a different and larger venue. To everyone’s amusement, they kicked off the show with “Recipe for Hate,” and Greg cheekily remarked, “we’ll start with the same song as last time.”
On November 10, 1998, when NOFX played in Donosti, Fat Mike couldn’t help but comment, “shit, it’s the same place as last time. Why don’t we find venues where the floor collapses?”
During an interview with the Basque music newspaper El Tubo, Greg was asked about his knowledge of the separatist movement in the Basque Country. His response was witty and inclusive, stating, “yes, I heard some of you are Spanish, some are French, and some just want to be yourselves.”
The popularity of BR’s songs in the Basque Country was undeniable. Even before their singles were released, “Dream of Unity” made it to the hits list of Euskadi Gaztea, the country’s biggest radio station, surpassing The Offspring, Foo Fighters, and Spice Girls. “A Walk” reached number 4 on the charts, and even “It’s Reciprocal,” which didn’t have a single or promotional release, made it to the hits list. “Hear It” climbed to number 24 in mid-March 1998, a month before the release of “No Substance,” and by late March, it had reached number 9.
In 1998, the band almost played at the disco Young Play in Hernani, but they demanded a hefty fee of 4 million pesetas, and the gig ultimately didn’t happen. However, they did perform at the Polideportivo Anoeta in Donostia. Greg greeted the Basque crowd with a cheerful “hola vascos” and
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.
Leave a Reply