MIDDLE CLASS AT OC WEEKLY

I'll be honest. The older I get, the less I care about band reunions. In fact, I'm almost positive they shouldn't happen. Of course, there are exceptions and Orange County's Middle Class is one.

The group is credited with founding hardcore and was doing more of a post-punk thing by the time the rest of the punk scene caught up to them.

The fact that they weren't afraid to change was reason No. 1 I liked the idea of this story. Reason No. 2 was the fact that the band hadn't played in 27 years. This told me that something must have felt right for these guys or else they wouldn't have bothered? I mean, this wasn't Coachella offering a million dollars, nor was it a reunion of a band that gets back together every five years and plays the same set each tour. I figured, "Hey, 27 years. That must mean their hearts are actually into it." And I was right.

Middle Class guitarist Mike Atta owns a great vintage store in Fullerton called Out of Vogue, which is also the name of his band's first single. I must have bothered him because I called weekly for about two months before doing the interview. My logic was, we could have done the interview right away, but I wanted the band to practice as much as they could before we spoke. This seemed to work out well because Atta and his brother/singer Jeff Atta were in good spirits and had lots to say as we lounged on some awesome vintage chairs at Out of Vogue.

Unfortunately, I couldn't make the show. I got stranded at O'Hare Airport for three hours (that's a different story) and the thought entered my mind that I could have been at the show had I stayed in Los Angeles. The Attas say their reunion was a one-off, but if they play again, I just might check it out.

Click here to read all about dudes in the 50s playing songs they wrote as kids. But this time, don't feel depressed about it because it's actually a positive story!