Last month, I had the pleasure of repeatedly working with some superb artists who, across the past two decades, have really impacted their respective genre, music in general, and even some non-music-related causes ranging from politics to pets. No independent band has received a greater welcome or greater success than they have and it will take a band of megalithic proportions to topple them from that achievement. This month's featured artists, here at Blogcritics, are NOFX.

NOFX got their start, as so many bands do, in Los Angeles, California in 1983. Since that foundation the band has gone on to release 10 studio full lengths, 6 EPs, and a military-grade gigaton of 7 inches; to put that into perspective, the Beatles released 11 UK studio full lengths. The band has found unparalleled independent success, selling over 6 million records worldwide and touring all six continents (note: Antarctica is a chunk of ice - not a continent).

The band has always had some lyrically absurd songs but the majority of them are borne of a joking nature. Historically, not all people, mainly the press, have been receptive to that sentiment; for awhile the band had trouble finding daylight within any media outlet. Though once the fan buzz generated, the media was forced to take notice to the band, but by that time NOFX had decided they were done with the media. NOFX has traditionally given very few interviews, refuses to work with MTV, and has seldom relied on media attention for anything. This general uncooperativeness doesn't stem from any bitterness but rather a hardy, "thanks" to all those who helped them back when they were still nobodies; it might also have been, whether known or not, a brilliant PR move since it made the media crave the elusive interview with NOFX. On that note, make sure to check back later this month for my interview with frontman Fat Mike.

Bad Religion, Misfits, and Rich Kids on LSD are some of the bands that have influenced NOFX over the years. In modern music, you'd be pressed to find a punk band who didn't list NOFX as one of their influences. It didn't take long, after making their mark on the scene, for the band to make that transition from influencees to influencers. The band's first full length, S&M Airlines, was released on Epitaph Records in 1989. While the band found moderate success with albums throughout the early nineties, the band had their first certified gold with the album, Punk in Drublic.