The Secretions are a long-running Sacramento punk rock band, formed in 1991 by Mickie Rat and Danny Secretion, widely described in Submerge coverage as "Sacramento punk legends" and a foundational, mentoring presence in the local scene.[1][2] The band was active from 1991 to 2016.[3][4]
At a glance
- Formed 1991 in Sacramento; founders Mickie Rat and Danny Secretion met as Sacramento State students.[1]
- From Sacramento — repeatedly framed as a local band ("Sacramento's own," "local punk heroes," "local punk legends").[1][5][6][2]
- Core trio (as of 2009–2016): Mickie Rat (bass, vocals), Danny Secretion (drums, vocals), Paul Filthy (guitar, vocals).[1][2]
- Play fast, fun, Ramones- and Misfits-inspired pop-punk; fans nicknamed "Secretins."[1][7]
- Celebrated their 25th anniversary in 2016.[2]
- Drummer Danny Secretion runs the annual charity "Cancer Sucks"/"Fuck Cancer" B-Day Bash benefiting the American Cancer Society.[8][9][2]
Origin and members
The band formed in 1991 when Mickie Rat and Danny Secretion, both then attending Sacramento State, met and began playing together.[1] By their own account they crossed paths around campus — Danny recalled Mickie as the all-black-clad "scary punk guy" — but did not really speak until a funeral for the program director of the student-run radio station, who had been the original guitarist in a band Mickie had already started.[1] The Secretions formed after Danny was invited to jam.[1]
According to Wikipedia, the band's name came from a list of band names that original guitarist D.J. Willis kept on his fridge. Shortly after the decision to form the band, Willis died in a vehicular accident; Mickie Rat met Danny Secretion at Willis's funeral and recruited him as a guitarist.[3][4]
Across the 2009–2016 coverage, the lineup is consistently given as a trio: Mickie Rat (bass, vocals), Danny Secretion (drums, vocals) and Paul Filthy (guitar, vocals).[1][2] The band has had members past and present beyond this core.[2] Past members include D.J. Willis (guitar, 1991), Dave Leon (drums, 1991–1992), Joolie "Bulletgrrl" Bruce (guitar, 1991–1996), Molly Church (guitar, 1994–1998), Morgan Giles (guitar, 1997–2000), and Kevin Stockton (guitar, 1999–2005), before Paul Filthy joined in 2005.[4][3]
Local status
The Secretions are local to Sacramento. Submerge repeatedly identifies them as a Sacramento band, including "Sacramento Punk Legends,"[1] "local punk heroes,"[5] "local punk band,"[8] and "Sacramento's own The Secretions."[9] One contributor called them "one of the greatest bands to come out of Sacramento."[2] The founders met as Sacramento State students, confirming Sacramento origin.[1] Confidence: high.
The band won the Sacramento Area Music Awards (SAMMIES) three consecutive times and were nominated to the local music hall of fame.[3][4] In 2006 they won a competition on Sacramento's KWOD radio station to perform at Arco Arena alongside Papa Roach, Gnarls Barkley, and My Chemical Romance.[3][4]
Sound and approach
The band plays high-energy, "addictive" punk rock — self-described as "pissed off punk rock" and noted for short songs (Mickie Rat citing a roughly minute-and-fifteen average song length).[1] A longtime peer described their sound as a "buzz-saw rock 'n' roll, Ramones-inspired punk-roll blitzkrieg."[2] They cite The Ramones and The Misfits as influences.[2] Lyrically they favor humor — "poking fun at people" and writing about scene characters — while engaging with serious causes.[1][2]
Joe Queer of The Queers offered this endorsement: "The Secretions are men of peace in a world of mayhem. They are poets and onanists and bloodsucking freaks. They are punk rock."[10]
A notable career strategy described by the band is deliberate pacing: touring the country repeatedly while gigging roughly every other month rather than every weekend to avoid over-saturating their market, and cultivating an unusually close relationship with their fanbase, the "Secretins."[1]
Releases and tributes
Full discography (per Wikipedia[3]):
| Release | Format | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| We Secrete You Suck | 7" | 1997 | — |
| Attention Deficit Disorderly | CD | 1999 | Slap Happy Records |
| Contributing To The Delinquency Of Minors Split | 7" | 2000 | Slap Happy Records |
| 'Til Death | CD | 2001 | Springman Records |
| Seven Inches | 7" Split | 2001 | — |
| 'Til Death Do Us Party | Split 7" | 2002 | Springman Records |
| Coming To Save The World | CD | 2005 | Springman Records |
| Rock N Roll Three-Way | CD | 2007 | — |
| Faster Than The Speed Of Drunk | CD | 2007 | — |
| Blast Off | 7" | 2007 | Gearhead Records |
| GreasyHotMeatCheezy | CD | 2009 | — |
The band has released records on Springman Records, Silver Sprocket, and Drool City; an early release (Attention Deficit Disorderly, 1999) came out on Slap Happy Records.[3]
From the Submerge coverage:
- Faster Than the Speed of Drunk — earlier album marked with a formal listening party at the Javalounge.[1]
- GREASYHOTMEATCHEEZY — album due July 2009, with a preview/listening party at Capitol Dawg (July 2), and Sacramento release shows at the Blue Lamp (July 3) and the Boardwalk (July 20).[1] The album includes "Tony Silva Rides the Bus," written about a young fan from Woodland who bused into Sacramento for punk shows, and "Back in the Day Punk," for which the band shot a video with local DJ/filmmaker Rob Young (aka Rob Fatal), partly at a Club Retro show.[1]
- The band is known for live tribute/cover sets — performing the entirety of the Ramones' Leave Home as a tribute at Simpl3Jack's "final" show at Café Colonial,[2] and routinely staging themed cover sets at Danny's birthday bashes.[9][2]
Notable shows and scene role
The Secretions have served as local openers for major touring punk acts passing through Sacramento, including The Batusis (the Sylvain Sylvain / Cheetah Chrome supergroup) at the Blue Lamp on Oct. 23, 2010,[5] and Dead Kennedys at Ace of Spades in 2016.[7] They have played venues across the region including the Blue Lamp, the Boardwalk, Club Retro, Capitol Garage (a 10-year anniversary show), Café Colonial, Luigi's/Luigi's Fungarden, Press Club, Digitalis Studios, the Fire Escape Bar and Grill (Citrus Heights), Shady Lady, Ace of Spades and the Colonial Theatre.[1][11][12][8][13][9][2][7] They have appeared at the Insubordination Fest in Baltimore, including backing Wimpy Rutherford (original singer of The Queers) on a set of old Queers songs.[1]
A recurring theme across the coverage is the band's mentorship of younger Sacramento punk acts. Members of bands such as The O'Mulligans, Shot Trip (formerly Pilgrim), Final Summation, Crude Studs, The Bar Fly Effect, Luckie Strike and The Polyorchids credit the band with welcoming, advising and inspiring them, describing them as "the gateway drug to punk in Sacramento" and as "big brothers" within the scene.[2] An oft-told 1998 anecdote has the band getting their power cut and being escorted off the Rio Americano High School campus by police after sparring with hecklers; Danny confirmed the story, noting later bands had to sign a contract stating they didn't know the Secretions.[2]
Charity work: "Cancer Sucks" / "Fuck Cancer" B-Day Bash
For years, drummer Danny Secretion has organized an annual multi-night birthday-bash concert series raising money for the American Cancer Society, motivated by the loss of his father to cancer.[8][9] The 2011 edition ran six shows over four nights (Nov. 3–6) featuring well over two dozen bands at venues including the Blue Lamp, Luigi's and Digitalis Studios, with proceeds and "Fuck Cancer" T-shirt sales going to ACS.[8] The 2012 edition (Nov. 16–18, at Luigi's Fungarden and Press Club) featured local bands performing tribute/cover sets.[9] The band's 25th-anniversary show in 2016 was itself a benefit, with sliding-scale donations going to the Pit Bull Socialization and Obedience Crew.[2]
Side projects
Mickie Rat has been involved in other Sacramento projects, including the fast-punk band Rat-O-Matic and, in 2012, the one-off female-fronted pop-punk group Hey Pretty Pretty (with members of the defunct band Blame Betty and drummer Brian Young), formed to open for The Dollyrots at the Blue Lamp.[6]