Lou Koller has been singing with the hardcore band Sick of It All for 20 years. Which is most surprising to him, as he says he never thought the pioneering New York group would last more than five years.
"Our first goal was to play (legendary New York club) CBGB's," Koller said by phone from his home in the Big Apple. "We did that. Then our next goal was to headline CBGB's. We did that, too. After that, we didn't have any other goals."
However, the band — comprised of Koller, his brother Pete on guitars, drummer Armand Hajidi and bassist Craig Setari — has kept the hardcore flame burning since its debut album in the '80s. Last month the band released "Death to Tyrants," its ninth full-length album.
"We took our time with the new album," said Koller. "Usually we do a tour and wait a few weeks after coming back to write some songs. This time we didn't. We knew we would be celebrating our 20 years together. So we actually wrote the tunes and made demos.
"We took the demos home and sat on them for a bit and found the things that needed to be fixed. Then we went into the studio and did them the way they were meant to be."
Another interesting part of the process is that Hajidi wrote a majority of the lyrics. "I'd say about 90 percent are his words," said Koller. "The whole project was basically a cumulation of what has been going on in the last six years in our lives and our country. We're getting more deep into situations that have left only frustrations."
Sick of It All has recently been targeted as anti-American by some people. "I went online to a blog, and someone scolded us and said, 'We're sure Saddam Hussein is proud of you (offensive slur) and your lyrics,' " Koller said with a laugh. "But we're just expressing our thoughts and feelings. And that is American."
Twenty years is a long time for a band to be in one piece, said Koller. "We found that every few years we've had to reintroduce ourselves. We have fans from way back, but the nature of the scene we represent is a hard one to keep up in. It's a very physical scene and sometimes brutal. And fans who came to our early shows don't come out to our recent shows. So we have to reach out to new audiences when it comes to live performances."
Still, the band finds fans in some interesting places. "We were the first hardcore band to play Japan and South America. In fact, I was talking to Ian McKay of Fugazi, and he said each time they play a place, thinking they're the first to be there, all the audience is wearing Sick of It All shirts. I took that as a compliment.
"It is amazing to go to a place where you never thought your record sold, and have all these kids singing back at you all the lyrics."
Playing live is where the band feels most comfortable, said Koller. "We try to play at least one song from each of the albums, but we're so much into the new album that we may have to move things around. But we have found in the past that the best sets are the mixed ones. So we'll see how this tour goes."
If you go
What: Sick of It All, Stretch Arm Strong
Where: In the Venue, 219 S. 600 West
When: Tonight, 7 p.m.
How much: $15
Phone: 467-8499 or 800-888-8499
Web: www.smithstix.com
E-mail: scott@desnews.com