The Offspring - 'Greatest Hits' (SonyBMG) Released 27/06/05

The fact that NO ONE expected the Offspring to sell as much as they did (32 million albums worldwide at last count) is brilliant reminder of the days when a bands success was a genuine surprise (not even Epitaph, their original record label, who famously couldn’t keep up with the unprecedented demand of their ‘Smash’ album) and not a well funded marketing strategy.

The Offspring may have followed in the still warm footsteps of Green Day, but they set a new bar in Pop Punk that wouldn’t matched for a good 8 years when Blink 182 came along and ignited a genre most thought was dead. They survived signing to a Major Label after their initial success on an independent, they survived the critically panned and significantly lower selling follow up to ‘Smash’, ‘Ixnay On The Hombre’, and although they’ve never really evolved musically, they have still kept themselves firmly planted on the Pop-Punk thrown adorning respect from fellow bands, critics and most importantly and undying and obsessive fan base.

So why a Greatest Hits set now? With no label change on the cards, a new album expected within the next year, and the band going from strength to strength it seems slightly ill-timed. Perhaps the only laudable reason is that this collection will serve as a timely reminder of the band’s history, and testimony to the jaw dropping power their songs invoke within us all. With a track list that includes anthems such as ‘Come Out And Play’, ‘Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)’, ‘All I Want’, ‘Why don’t You Get A Job’, and the world conquering ‘Self Esteem’ you can’t go wrong.

Most of the songs included are on every self respecting Rock Dj’s set list, which is testament to the bands ability to write perfectly formed mini-anthems with enough hooks to ensure that the dance floor will be rammed full for the 3 minutes their song plays. At the end of the day it’s not always about integrity, it’s about the songs and the bands ability to survive on it’s own terms and not those enforced by the punk rock community. The Offspring are now an institution, and one you should be proud to be a part of.