Twisted Nixon was formed in the spring of 1996 by Johnny Punish, Ben Madrid, Gary Richter, and Mike Henry - the band quickly evovled into a new line-up including Richy A. Garcia on drums, Jake "Skoor" Wickstrom on bass guitar, and "Joe" as an un-official band poet and occupier of our studio. With periodic guest star appearances by the Brookyn NYC Singer Songwriter Brian Jay Cline, Twisted Nixon was off to immortality.

The band came in fast, rocked hard, and produced hits like Left is Right, Stone Throwing Riot, and others like Hit in the Head.

Twisted Nixon played raucous shows to thousands of fans with diverse bands e.g. The Skeletones and countless others at all kinds of venues like the infamous Whiskey a -Go-Go in Hollywood CA.. However, with a bit of encouragment from their friends at the lovely offices of The Clampdown, the boys have decided to call it a day and let it be. Thanks Tim! Good Show Mate!

In 2001, the boys played their last tour and bid farewell. "We came, we said, we rocked" said Johnny Punish. Will Twisted Nixon return to re-unite and save the world from itself? Well, probably not. "But rest assured" says X Factor, a fan in the pit "We loved you while you were here".

Discography

In Punk We Trust - 1997
This CD winds its way through a variety of genre blends and multi-layered rhythms—from english punk rock to heavy metal punk to old school NYC punk. The result is a raw, powerful collection, masterfully arranged, that pays tribute to Twisted Nixon's zest for life and all its ironies.

IRS Agent, Kissinger is Dead, Journey of a Thousand Miles, Billboard Idiots, Pilar of Fire, Mr. Sick Money Man, Somebody Got Murdered, The Blame Game, The Pilar of Fire, Oh Boy, Hold Your Hand. Lryrics by Johnny Punish - Music by Twisted Nixon. Arranged, Directed and Produced by Paul Hampton and Jake Skoor. Recorded and Mastered at Skeletone Studios in Riverside, CA. USA . Somebody Got Murdered courtesy of The Clash, Oh Boy courtesy of Buddy Holly, Hold Your Hand courtesy of The Beatles. Additional musicians: Mike "Sketch" Henry, Ben "I named the band" Madrid, and Gary Richter, the old drummer who sucked but was super funny.

Downloads:
IRS Agent - Kissinger is Dead - The Pilar of Fire - Hold Your Hand
Somebody Got Murdered - Oh Boy - The Blame Game - BillBoard Idiots - Journey of a Thousand Miles - Nico Teens - Mr. Sick Money Man

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Stone Throwing Riot - 1998

Released as a tribute to the No Peace Process in the Middle East, this two track diddy features the composed anthem "Stone Throwing Riot" and it's pop alter ego "Left is Right" - a major hit in Britian, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt, and New York City!
Lyrics by Johnny Punish, "Joe", & Brian Jay Cline - Music by Twisted Nixon - Arranged, Directed and Produced by Paul Hamption and Jake Skoor Recorded and Mastered at Skeletone Studios in Riverside, CA. USA. Dedicated to their guitar hero - Joe Strummer - who passed in early 2001, Twisted Nixon recorded the songs Hit in the Head, Yvette, and Free for All
Downloads: Stone Throwing Riot - Left is Right - Yvette - Hit in the Head

The Lost Johnny Punish Tapes - 2001
Interviews were completed at WBAI Studios in New York City with Johnny Punish - late one cool early spring night on March 23, 2001. For those of you who did NOT hear the Johnny Punish interviews in New York City back on 03-23 of 2001 where Johnny was called horrific names by listeners who condemned Twisted Nixon and it’s song STONE THROWING RIOT, we hereby offer you THE LOST JOHNNY PUNISH TAPES – recorded live in NYC – late at night – it was WBAI highest rated show in it’s history.
WBAI - Johnny Punish - Part 1
WBAI - Johnny Punish - Part 2
WBAI - Johnny Punish - Part 3
WBAI - Johnny Punish - Part 4

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Left is Right - Listen Now

Well the weight of the world is - FALLING
On my back I''ve been – CRAWLING
The state of affairs is – APPALLING
And the 6 o’clock news keeps – CALLING
I’ve been trying to see the world through their eyes
Where black is white and day is night
Left is Right
Left is Right
Left is Right for me
Well negotiations been – STALLING
The United Nations keeps – CALLING
The skeletons you’re –HAULING
Won’t hold you when your –FALLING
I’ve been trying to see the world through their eyes
Where day is night and black is white
Left is Right
Left is Right
Left is Right for me
Keep your head in the sand and you’ll never know
What’s waiting for you in the depths below
Don’t believe everything that you read
Take what you want and keep what you need
I’ve been trying to see the world through their eyes
Where day is night and black is white
Left is Right
Left is Right
Left is Right for me
I said Left is Right
Left is Right
Left is Right for me
For me, For me, For Me!

Written in 1998 after Johnny Punish who was sitting at the Las Vegas Hilton Sports Book and was hit by the absurdity of the place. It absorbed him and he wrote the phrase "LEFT is RIGHT for me" on a drink napkin. That night in a studio in the seedy back alleys of Las Vegas, LEFT IS RIGHT was born when then lead guitarist, Brian Jay Cline, wrote the clever verses while Twisted Nixon added the melodies. Sung by Brian Jay Cline, Left is Right is clearly Twisted Nixon's best ever in terms of a pop anthem. This song is the most requested song by fans. Produced by Paul Hampton of The Skeletones

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Stone Throwing Riot - Listen Now

Settlements, on the West Bank
Armaments, in the Gaza
Terrorists, on the border
What’s this? A new world order
Security by your guns
Oppression by your religion
Employment for you if you beg
And there’s kids with rocks and they’re dropping dead
It’s a
Stone Throwing - Riot
Stone Throwing - Riot
Stone Throwing – Riot
Stone Throwing – Riot
Peace Process, what a fable
Netanyahu, at the table
Laughing at, the secretary mame
With US Cash, in his hand
Smart money brothers look what you did
Advancing zionism in the name of David
While United Nations falls on it’s face
And the US Congress, what a disgrace
A little girl sleeps in tonite
While her brother packs his stones for the fight
And he takes aim at the soldiers machine guns
And takes a bullet in the back for freedom on the run
Cause they have none
Knocking down homes, in Ramallah
Killing olive trees, where is Allah?
Got your F-15s, with cellular phones
Better duck kids, throwing stones
Born American Beebee boy
You have all the guns and American toys
But your not from there but you moved right in
Let the Intifada begin again
They’re desperate, Riot
Oppression Taxation, Riot
No Representation, Riot
I am talking big money man
No Peace for Land!

Written in 1998 after the 2nd Intifada, this song is dedicated to Mohammed Al-Dura, the young 12 year old boy who shot dead in the arms of his father by the guns of Israeli Soldiers. Music by Twisted Nixon and the lyrics by Johnny Punish with inspiration al direction and input by bant poet and resident coffee drinker "Joe", Stone Throwing Riot is a punk rock song that has become an underground classic is widely considered by critics to be the signature song of Twisted Nixon. Produced by Paul Hampton of The Skeletones

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Favorite Links
The Ongoing History of New Music - The Clash

Favorite Things and Quotes

Early History

Cal State Fullerton's Most Famous Student.......The First Lead Singer of the Band

The excerpt below is taken from an Oral History of the Orange County College Punk Scene circa 1983

Last Night, Joe, real name Joe, was torn to obvilion by the crowd at The Pub at Cal State Fullerton during a Battle of the Bands show. Charged with disturbing the Peace Process, the curtain was dropped on Joe just before he finished the last verse of SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO.

It was said that Joe was to sing HATEFUL, LONDONS BURNING, SOMEBODY GOT MURDERED, and I’M SO BORED WITH THE USA.

Spectators claim he was wearing a U.S. Military jacket with the flag of Palestine emblazed in gold on his lapel and screaming obscenities. Some say that the JDL’s Irv Rubin was in the crowd taking pictures. This could not be confirmed. Just one song in, the crowd of future republicans and neo-cons turned on Joe and dropped the heavy curtain on his head, thus effectively ending Joe’s tenure as Anaheim’s most notorious punk rocker.

Later charged and convicted by Cal State Fullerton Police with being the most famous student on campus even though he never officially enrolled, Joe’s short but infamous tenure as College Student without Portfolio and lead singer of the future Twisted Nixon was cut down by a public who could not take it anymore.

Joe was punk at the extreme. The most outrageous, the most obscene. He was not there for his singing talent. At best he was just mediocre. No, he was there for what he stood for. He picked fights freely….not even his friends believed his was normal.

At his garage office, there were exaggerated and unsubstantiated rumors of thuggery, strategic planning of protests, and music by The Clash. In his mobile office, namely his white Audi Fox, there were rumors of enemies buried in the wheel wells and speeding races down Euclid Ave as Joe chased down local antagonists. Joe was even seen at Anaheim’s Famous Shakey’s Pizza picking fights with some alien named Galaga! He claimed that Galaga was a Mossad Agent and the handlers where what he called the ZOG (Zionist Occupied Government), sometimes known as the U.S. Government.

On Campus, Joe was both respected and feared. A Thug, Dictator, and Politician. He was hard to peg. Who was this Joe? At the Cafeteria, It was Joe’s world. At his table, you were offering your respects or acting as his personal security force or you were his sworn enemy and a public pariah.

Back the Pub, he was too much for the crowd of wankers, yuppies, and future republicans. The stage hands at the Pub at Cal State Fullerton dropped the curtain on the lead of singers head after just one song this crystal night, thus ending his tenure as one of Anaheim’s most notorious and infamous punk rockers.

* DISCLAIMER - Literary License was taken in the above oral recallection of this fabled history taken from a jaundice eye. "JOE" is a mythical figure and any resemblance to a real person is purely coincidental. After all, does anyone really believe this story?

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"If you live life long enough, eventually, you get hit by its shrapnel" Johnny Punish

Here are some favorite tidbits by Twisted Nixon's favorite band, THE CLASH;

“The Clash needs to JOB-ON in trying to attempt its ridiculous aims. I am proud that we have ridiculous aims cause at least we aren’t going to underachieve.” Joe Strummer (circa 1983).

LONDON CALLING was Recorded in August 1979. 12 of the 19 songs were recorded in 3 days. Rolling Stone Magazine calls LONDON CALLING the best album of the 80’s. Some call it the greatest ever. It was released on Dec. 14th 1979. The famous cover graphic on the London Calling album was actually Paul Simonon, the bass player, who crashed his guitar at 10:50pm on September 21st 1979 at the Palladium in New York City. How do they know it was 10:50pm? Paul broke his watch when he crashed the guitar……watch stopped at 10:50pm. The Black and White Photo and Green lettering is a tribute to old Elvis Presely Record

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