Parasites, in my book one of the greatest pop-punk bands to ever exist, have a new record coming out on Otitis Media Records. EP-Onymous is an absolute treat for Parasites fans in the respect that it features tracks recorded 34 years ago which went unreleased until now. At the time these tracks were recorded, the entire band was just Dave and Ronnie. According to Dave, he and Ronnie wrote these songs for Sweet Baby in an effort to coerce the band to record a second LP. The Parasites guys were huge fans of Sweet Baby's classic debut album It's A Girl and got to talking to Dallas Denery when Sweet Baby played the Pipeline in Newark, New Jersey. Upon hearing that Sweet Baby didn't have enough songs to do a second album, Dave and Ronnie offered to write some songs for them. So they wrote five songs, demoed them on four-track cassette in Ronnie's basement, and sent them off to Sweet Baby. Sadly, Sweet Baby broke up and never made a second album. Thankfully, the songs Parasites wrote to be Sweet Baby songs were not permanently lost. The demo tracks were transferred to digital and then cleaned up and mixed by Matt Yonker. And now they're an honest-to-goodness Parasites record featuring Sweet Baby–like artwork by Rev. Norb and liner notes by Dallas Denery himself (who admits he doesn't recall requesting the demos but does remember loving them when they arrived in the mail).
The real bombshell of EP-Onymous is that a couple of these tracks ("Fool for You" and "Love Me Too") went on to become classic Parasites songs. Who ever realized that Dave actually wrote those songs for Sweet Baby? Yet listening to them now, it totally makes sense. I always knew that Parasites were big Sweet Baby fans (they famously covered "She's from Salinas," one of the greatest songs ever written). But now I understand the deeper connection. Listening to EP-Onymous, I can absolutely hear these tunes in my head as Sweet Baby songs. But they're also vintage Parasites songs. The Ronnie-penned "Perfect Girl" and "I Got a Crush on Donna" are unearthed treasures from the band's early years. Longtime Parasites fans will flip out over these tracks!
Who in the world would have ever imagined a Dave & Ronnie Parasites EP coming out in the year 2023? EP-Onymous is a must-buy for any Parasites fan and really for anyone who loves pop-punk. Matt Yonker did amazing work restoring these recordings, and the songs hold up so well that one of the best record labels out there was excited to release them. Click here for the juicy details and pre-ordering information. And stay tuned for more new Parasites releases!
