The Top Albums Recorded at the Legendary Blasting Room

While the word "iconic" is thrown around far too much, it definitely applies to the Blasting Room, the Fort Collins recording studio founded by Descendents and ALL drummer Bill Stevenson in 1994. Numerous punk-rock heavyweights such as NOFX and Bad Religion have made the trek to the legendary music institution to record, and it has also become the home base to a large number of Colorado bands, including Reno Divorce, Flobots and Teenage Bottlerocket.

Musicians have made some of their best music throughout the history of the Blasting Room, and some might even consider the studio a breakthrough location in their recording career: Rise Against's first Blasting Room album reached the Billboard Top 10 and garnered international acclaim. Others, like Mustard Plug, have realized the Blasting Room is the only place to record: "Every time we don’t go there, we’re slightly disappointed," the band's lead singer told us. "And when we do go there, we’re happy with it.”  With more than 1,000 LPs on the Blasting Room discography, it's hard to narrow down favorites. We spoke with several music veterans to weigh in on the most noteworthy albums recorded there, so take a look at our picks below, share with friends and rock out: Everything Sucks
Descendants, 1996
“You can’t talk about the Blasting Room without talking about Descendents,” says Greta Cornett, co-founder of the Fort Collins Musicians Association. "Since [Everything Sucks] was the band’s first album at the Blasting Room and the first with Milo Aukerman since he left the band to literally 'go to college' in 1987, it stands out as most meaningful.”

When Bill Stevenson and his ALL bandmates moved to Fort Collins, the band used its record deal advance to build the practice space and recording studio that became the Blasting Room. After ALL recorded the album Pummel there, Descendents reunited for Everything Sucks, which became a major album for the band.
Evildoers Beware!
Mustard Plug, 1997
Evildoers Beware! is the first album Mustard Plug recorded at the Blasting Room, and the ska band's third full-length release. The record went on to sell 90,000 copies, leading to Mustard Plug's loyalty; the band went on to record several additional albums at the studio. A key player in the ska-punk scene that kicked off in the early ’90s alongside such bands as Rancid and Less Than Jake, Mustard Plug fully developed the horn section for Evildoers Beware, adding more depth to its raw sound. At the same time, the fast tempo and hard-driving guitar chords on such songs as “Never Be” represent a powerful punk vibe. The following track, “You,” maintains that frenzied, horn-rich composition that would make for an intensely fun mosh pit.
You and Me
Open Hand, 2005
The talented musicians of Open Hand, an indie-rock, post-hardcore band out of Hollywood, were confident enough to have put a sticker reading “Epic Masterpiece” on their initial CD release of You and Me. For Dead Pioneers drummer and Music District technical operations manager Shane Zweygardt, this album is an excellent example of the Blasting Room's production quality. When the album came out, "I couldn't stop listening to it on repeat — the track order just flowed perfectly," he says. "It's one of those albums where there isn't a single bad song. The guitar tones are perfect, the drum tones are perfect,  and the final song of the album, 'Hard Night,' is one of my favorite heavy guitar riffs ever. It's just a fantastic heavy rock record that is epic in all ways.”
The Sufferer & The Witness
Rise Against, 2006
The Sufferer & The Witness is Rise Against's third album, and its first recorded at the Blasting Room. The LP was a real game-changer for the band, launching a career that had reached a respectable underground status up to that point.
“This is the one that cemented how the Bill Stevenson/Jason Livermore team brought out the best in the band and really established the band and studio as a creative team,” Cornett says.

The "perfect melodic punk hardcore record,” Zweygardt adds, “catapulted Rise Against into a class of their own and solidified the Blasting Room as the studio bands seek out when they want to take their sound to the next level." Like so many Blasting Room recordings, the drums sound crisp and clear, which is a testament to the attention of veteran punk-rock-drummer-turned producer Stevenson.
Canyoneer
No Trigger, 2006
The first album from hardcore band No Trigger, Canyoneer is a great example of hardcore punk rock steeped in rich melodies. "This record is simply amazing. Every song rules, and the band is really underrated," says Felipe Patino, the owner of Green Door Recordings and guitarist for Bricheros who interned and started his career as a sound engineer at the Blasting Room.

For a debut album, Canyoneer is incredibly tight, with the production team working closely alongside No Trigger to honor its raw sound while amplifying its strengths through the recording process. No Trigger had recently signed to Nitro Records, and Canyoneer comprised the "perfect blend of melodic hardcore and punk,” Patino says.
Wolves in Wolves' Clothing
NOFX, 2006
After NOFX announced that it was officially calling it quits after this year’s tour, fans and critics are now reminiscing over the old-school punks' entire discography. While the band recorded numerous albums at the Blasting Room, Wolves in Wolves' Clothing stands out for numerous reasons, not the least of which is the smooth production. In fact, during the Punk in Drublic tour, NOFX singer Fat Mike has even told audiences that he thinks Wolves is the band’s best recording.

The tenth studio album from NOFX “is just a timeless classic," says Blasting Room sound engineer Chris Beeble, "and ‘Seeing Double at the Triple Rock' is a favorite mix...that has gotten many spins via mix referencing alone.” Both musically and thematically, Wolves covers the gamut of NOFX’s style and themes.
They Came From the Shadows
Teenage Bottlerocket, 2008
The Blasting Room was the perfect home for Teenage Bottlerocket, a pop-punk group from Laramie, Wyoming, and the band’s fourth album, They Came From the Shadows, is arguably the finest example of its Ramones-esque sound. Like so many great pop-punk albums, the songs go from raucous and sometimes silly to raw and emotional. Flight Kamikaze guitarist and singer Jeff Howell, who shares Wyoming roots with the band, says Shadows represents the richness of the band’s sound and lyrics. The album “brought in a lot of teenage angst," he says. "Raw and fast songs like 'Fatso Goes Nutzoid' and 'Don’t Wanna Go' get me stoked, and then emotional cuts like 'The Jerk' and 'Without You' really pull on the heartstrings.”
Supporting Caste
Propagandhi, 2009
In the upcoming documentary on the Blasting Room, Green Door's Patino shares a story from when he was interning and observed Bill Stevenson “tuning a snare drum to perfection” for nearly 45 minutes. "Whoa, that guy really cares," he recalls thinking. That was the gold standard he learned in the Blasting Room’s production, and he sees it reflected in Propagandhi’s fifth full-length album, Supporting Caste. “This album is sonically perfect,” Patino says. “The songs are all incredible, and it's some of the best representation of the production level of the studio.”

"Propagandhi evolves and improves over time, and they outdid themselves with Supporting Caste," adds Elway frontman Tim Browne. "Everything from ornate arrangements and screed-like political diatribes to the guitar and drum tones; the sequencing is a masterstroke. This album solidified the band as the standard bearers — not just for radical politics in punk music, but for intelligently conceived musicianship."
American Man
The Yawpers, 2016
The Yawpers exemplify a Colorado punk band whose sound is perfectly matched to the Blasting Room. The studio’s connection to and support of local bands has always been a hallmark, even as it became one of the most sought-out studios for national punk and alternative acts. American Man is "the perfect fusion of country and rockabilly, but with a snarling punk attitude and a sense of urgency," says Corey Fruin, guitarist and vocalist for Replica City. "The recording is so clear and lively. It makes the record feel like the band is playing in your living room.”
Evening Machines
Gregory Alan Isakov, 2018
Evening Machines is a rich, deep and soulful indie-folk album from Gregory Alan Isakov that must be mentioned when talking about Blasting Room recordings. Not only was it was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album, but it is nothing like the type of music the studio is known for. "It is completely outside the wheelhouse of what people associate with the Blasting Room," Cornett says. "And that just shows how deep the talent runs at the studio with Andrew Berlin as the producer, engineer and mixer."

Isakov, who owns a farm in Boulder, has become one of the best-known musicians from the state. Evening Machines features one of the purest odes to Colorado landscapes in “San Luis,” a song that uses the vast geography of the valley to reflect nostalgically on the frivolity of life.
Dead Pioneers
Dead Pioneers, 2023
While the Dead Pioneers' self-titled debut album is barely a year old, it has the potential to reach "iconic" status one day. The Denver punk-rock band, led by artist and Native activist Gregg Deal, recently signed a three-record deal with Hassle and is planning a European tour in early 2025 to coincide with its sophomore LP release, also recorded at the Blasting Room. And the Dead Pioneers have a solid fan in Pearl Jam's bassist, Jeff Ament, who not only invited the band to play his hardcore punk fest in Montana, but also wore a Dead Pioneers shirt for Pearl Jam's recent Chicago show.

The album is a unique package that offers spoken word, punk-rock riffs and powerful social conscience. With roots in the Minutemen, Black Flag and Rage Against the Machine, this unique and innovative record is a prime example of how Dead Pioneers are maintaining punk rock’s ethos.