Early years (1980–1984) The Vandals formed in 1980 in
Huntington Beach, California, by guitarist Jan Nils Ackermann. Soon vocalist
Steven Ronald "Stevo" Jensen (1959 – August 21, 2005) was found and he and Ackermann practiced and performed with a rotating cast of other members before a permanent lineup coalesced to include bassist
Steve "Human" Pfauter and drummer
Joe Escalante. Other early members included Steve Gonzalez on bass and Vince Mesa on drums. The band quickly built a reputation in the
Los Angeles and
Orange County punk rock community. The Vandals distinguished themselves in their scene by sticking to humorous subject matter rather than the typical social and political topics addressed by most punk bands of the time. , in 1984, showing original members
Stevo and Jan Nils Ackermann, with bassist Chalmer Lumary in the background).In 1982 the group became the second band to sign with
Epitaph Records, the Los Angeles label run by Bad Religion's
Brett Gurewitz, who released their first
EP,
Peace thru Vandalism. It would not be the last time the band's actions would draw criticism, with their music generally maintaining an apolitical position. When Pfauter left the band in 1984, Eric VonArab (Love Canal) filled in on bass while the band was writing and rehearsing for their first album until Brent Turner was brought in to play
bass on the recording of that album,
When in Rome Do as the Vandals. By the time of its release in 1985 on
National Trust Records Chalmer Lumary had joined as the band's full-time bassist. The album explored different musical styles and contained several songs that would become fan favorites. "Ladykiller" incorporated scratching and dance beats, while "Mohawk Town" explored a mixture of punk rock and country music. Personality clashes between members led to Stevo's departure from the band shortly thereafter. He was replaced by Dave Quackenbush of the band
Falling Idols, who has remained the Vandals' vocalist. The departure of Ackermann and MacKinnon left Escalante and Quackenbush searching for a new guitarist and drummer. The Vandals had previously played shows with a band called
Doggy Style and had been intrigued by the wacky antics of their guitarist
Warren Fitzgerald, and they soon recruited him as their new permanent guitarist. Also around this time Escalante and Quackenbush made many visits to
Disneyland, where they witnessed
Josh Freese playing electronic drums in the children's cover band Polo on the
Tomorrowland Terrace stage. They persuaded him to join, solidifying the Vandals lineup of Quackenbush, Fitzgerald, Escalante, and Freese which would remain constant throughout the rest of their career (with occasional substitutes filling in for Freese). a live album and video which featured mostly performances of songs from
Peace thru Vandalism and
When in Rome. From this point on the band would play fewer and fewer of these older songs in their live sets, concentrating instead on newer material. By 1995 punk rock had gained nationwide mainstream popularity, and the Vandals signed to Offspring singer
Dexter Holland's new label
Nitro Records. They released the album
Live Fast, Diarrhea to positive reception and supported it with tours throughout the United States and Europe, including a spot opening for fellow Orange County rockers
No Doubt. The album and band garnered increased attention thanks to an episode of the popular television show
The X-Files in which actor
Giovanni Ribisi played a character who wears Vandals T-shirts and listens to their music. In 2005 the
Shingo Japanese Remix Album was released, composed of versions of the band's songs remixed by Japanese DJ
Shingo Asari. That August the band played a benefit show for the legendary New York rock club
CBGB. In the same month, original singer Stevo died of a drug overdose. In April 2006 the Vandals once again returned to the Middle East with McMackin to perform for US troops, this time in
Afghanistan. They continue to tour when the members' schedules permit, as they also have other music-related obligations outside the band. Freese continues to act as a studio drummer for a multitude of recording artists. Fitzgerald writes and produces songs and albums for other artists as well as movie scores, and occasionally acts, having starred in the Kung Fu film
Cake Boy. Escalante continues to own and operate Kung Fu Records and Kung Fu Films, signing bands and making films such as the
Show Must Go Off! series and
Cake Boy. He retired from legal practice in 2005 and hosted the call-in radio show
Barely Legal Radio on
Indie 103.1 FM, where he dispensed entertainment and legal advice to aspiring musicians. In May 2006 he became the station's drive-time morning show host, replacing former
Mighty Mighty Bosstones singer
Dicky Barrett. In 2007 the Vandals played the first four dates of the
Warped Tour. In August 2008 the Vandals played nine dates of the 2008
Warped Tour with
Sum 41 drummer
Steve Jocz filling in for Josh Freese, who was touring with
Nine Inch Nails. On August 12 the band released
BBC Sessions and Other Polished Turds, a collection of rare songs and b-sides, exclusively as a digital release. In January 2015, the band recorded a version from the song ''I'm An Individual
, originally recorded by the Australian footballer Mark Jacko'' Jackson, for the Australian Soundwave 2015 Compilation, launched in February of that year. In July 2020 the band released a new rarities album named
Curse of the Unripe Pumpkin. ==Original band's reformation==