Get ready for a wild ride through the history of Bad Religion tours! In the early years, touring was a challenge for the band due to Greg Graffin’s high school commitments and summers spent in Wisconsin with his father. Despite gaining popularity in the L.A. punk scene, they couldn’t go on tour right away, which actually fueled their hunger for success.
It wasn’t until 1984-1986 that Bad Religion started expanding beyond Southern California, hitting up cities like Phoenix, Tuscon, Las Vegas, and more. However, these tours were few and far between as Graffin still had to spend his summers in Wisconsin and attend school during the year.
Finally, in December 1986, Bad Religion embarked on their first ten-day east coast tour. It was a freezing experience, with broken windows in their VW van. Pete Finestone missed out on this trip, but Lucky Lehrer stepped in and froze along with the rest of the band.
After their full North American tour for the album “Suffer” in 1988, Bad Religion found themselves $2000 in debt. They realized they were getting the short end of the stick financially and became the “assholes” they are now. But in 1989, they still had day jobs and considered the band a hobby gone wild. They had to learn the economics of the industry the hard way.
Then, a promoter offered Bad Religion a chance to play in Germany. Initially skeptical, they decided to take the leap and were blown away by the reception. The band focused on Europe, playing there in 1989, 1990, and 1991, with sold-out shows and enthusiastic fans everywhere.
And that’s just the beginning of Bad Religion’s touring adventures! Stay tuned for more.
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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