The Briefs are a punk rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 2000 and originally consisting of Daniel J. Travanti (guitar/vocals), Steve E. Nix (guitar/vocals), Lance Romance (bass/vocals) and Chris Brief (drums/vocals). They play punk rock music, influenced by acts such as Buzzcocks, The Undertones and The Adverts. They released their first full length album, Hit After Hit, in October 2000 via Dirtnap Records. The band was courted by and reportedly signed with major label Interscope Records, following their 2002 release of Off the Charts, but that deal fell through. The Briefs surfaced on California's BYO Records with the release of 2004's Sex Objects and the reissue of their Dirtnap-era full lengths. They most recently released Steal Yer Heart in 2005. The Briefs have released a prolific number of 7" singles during their career, on several small independent labels.In 2004, the Briefs went on a European tour without Lance Romance, who stayed behind to get his GED. In his place went bassist Steve Kicks of Vancouver, British Columbia's band, New Town Animals. Lance rejoined the line-up for the 2004 release party of Sex Objects, but retired from the band in 2005. Kicks has since become a permanent addition and was a full member for the follow-up, Steal Yer Heart.Lyrically the Briefs have carried on many themes prevalent in `77 era punk rock. The Sex Objects single "Orange Alert" gained notoriety as a seething criticism of the Bush administration and the of the culture of fear in post-9/11 America. It is one of a number of their songs critical of the U.S. Government, including "No More Presidents" and "Destroy The USA" from Sex Objects, and "We Americans" from Off the Charts. The band has also written a number of love songs in a consciously off-kilter style, similar to the Buzzcocks' "Orgasm Addict." With songs like "Dolly Parton", the band has also illustrated their penchant for light-hearted absurdity.In 2007, the Briefs released a feature length documentary about the band, entitled The Greatest Story Ever Told, which was directed by the punk filmmaker, Lewis Smithingham.The Briefs are currently on hiatus while Chris Brief is in Germany. Travanti has relocated to California and has joined two other bands. The first, Sharp Objects, has released a 7" single entitled "Zero Ambition", sounding somewhere in the vein of early 80's LA punk. A full-length album from them is reportedly slated for late 2010. The second band is called Modern Action, in which Travanti is joined by members of the bands The Bodies and The Shifters. Modern Action has recorded 2 7" singles, "Modern Action" backed with "Bleeding Red", and "Radioactive Boy" backed with "Problem Child", as well as a full-length LP/CD, Molotov Solution, all of which have been released on Modern Action Records, a label that Travanti co-founded.Nix and Kicks both play in another band called Steve E. Nix and The Cute Lepers, playing a very similar style of music to t
$12 Million
