Though they were only together for a very brief time in the early '90s, Function made it count. The young outfit was based out of Orange County, California, a scene that also blessed us with the likes of Uniform Choice, No For An Answer, and Social Distortion, among many other top-notch bands throughout the years.
After releasing a demo in 1992, Function landed on Crisis Records, a sub label of Revelation Records, the East Coast hardcore powerhouse that had moved to Southern California around that time. Crisis released the band's 4-song self-titled EP.
Function played shows with everyone from Unbroken to Outspoken to Strife during their run, and even did some touring with Blackspot, before parting ways soon after.
Tomorrow (August 24th), Function will be playing their first show together in 31 years as part of Gimme Some '90s, a fest in Orange County, California that will also include performances from Into Another, Gameface, Mean Season, and Verbal Assault, among other bands from that era.
With the fest happening, and a new compilation, Complete Recordings 1992-1993, hitting streaming outlets this week, I spoke with Function vocalist Matt Enright about their history and what they've all been up to in the decades since then.
Hey Matt, for the No Echo readers who might not know, how did Function come to be? Were you all friends from previous bands you played in before that?
Function started with my friend Zach and me trying to put a band together. My friend Sean Fader, who was the drummer for Blackspot, suggested I jam with his younger brother Barry, who had been playing a lot with Jason.
One day, Sean dropped Barry off, and I think we came up with two songs right on the spot. Function was actually the first band for all of us.
During the summer of ’92, we’d spend our days hanging out at Jason’s house, jamming in the garage. Once we had four songs, we went into the studio to record a demo. That was the dream back then—getting our demo up on the walls at [record stores] Zed’s and Vinyl Solution.
Describe the OC/LA hardcore scenes during the era Function was around. What were some of the bands you shared bills with? Were things not as violent as they had been a few years earlier?
By the time Function was around, the scene had really mellowed out—no violence at all. We’d occasionally run into skinheads in downtown Huntington Beach or have other minor incidents, but for the most part, shows were all about kids having fun and supporting each other.
The scene back then was packed with bands like Blackspot, Strife, Unbroken, Farside, Mean Season, Outspoken, Triggerman, and Neck Deep. It wasn’t uncommon for a typical show to have at least two of those bands on the bill. It was a tight-knit community with a lot of energy and creativity.
Listening back to the demo today, what goes through your mind? It must have been a trip to go back now that everything is coming out in reissue form.
Revisiting the songs has brought back a ton of great memories. It’s reminded me of how much fun we had recording, playing shows, and just being in Function. I think back to getting pizza at Jason’s family pizzeria, standing around with friends in downtown Huntington Beach doing nothing, and even sneaking into the Olympic high dives in the middle of the night—it was an unforgettable time.
How did the band end up on Crisis Records? That must have felt great since they were run by folks with pedigree in the hardcore scene.
We were incredibly excited to be on Crisis Records. It was a big deal for us because the label had a great reputation and was deeply rooted in the hardcore scene. Jordan from Revelation/Crisis Records was a good friend, and it just felt natural to put the release on his label.
Crisis was kind of a junior label to Revelation at the time, which made it even more special for us.
Jordan had moved to Huntington Beach about a year before, and we hung out with him quite a bit. I don’t remember the specifics of how the release ended up on Crisis, but it was clear that it was a great fit.
Did you talk with any other labels before Crisis?
We didn’t reach out to any other labels; the plan was to release a 7” on Crisis and, if things went well, eventually do an LP on Revelation. Unfortunately, the band broke up before that could happen.
How was that Function 7" received when it came out in 1992? I remember getting it at Bleeker Bob’s in NYC and instantly connecting with it.
The Function 7" really connected with people, and seeing that response was incredibly gratifying.
For our demo, once we had our four songs ready, we headed to the studio and then did some high-speed tape dubbing to make copies. We sold them for a dollar to the hardcore kids in downtown Huntington. My younger brother also played a big part in spreading it around the surf scene, helping us reach kids outside the hardcore scene.
We decided to wait a while to play our first show because we only had those four songs and felt we needed more to really do a live set justice. A friend unexpectedly put us on a show out in Riverside without asking us.
When I mentioned we weren’t ready, he suggested we play some covers. We felt strongly that you needed to pay your dues with your own material before turning to covers. Plus, we really wanted our first show to be in Huntington Beach so all our friends could be there. It took about a month to set something up in HB, and that time allowed the demo to circulate well. That first show ended up being crazy—so many kids there said it was their first hardcore show.
How did the band end up appearing on the Embrace covers compilation, Land of Greed... World of Need? That’s a classic for people in our age group!
We got really lucky with the chance to cover “No More Pain.” Josh from Trustkill Records called me up and said the band originally slated to do it had dropped out, and we could take their spot if we wanted. Honestly, if I could've chosen any song from that compilation, it would’ve been that one.
We really wanted to put our own spin on it, so we brought in Brian Balchack, the metal guitar guy of our crew. He was instrumental in helping us produce the track.
Brian, who would go on to play with bands like Eleven Thirty-Four, Ignite, and Into Another, brought a great energy to the process. We were all thrilled with how it turned out; it captured exactly the vibe we were going for.
When did Function break up exactly? What ended up happening? I know you and Barry ended up playing together again in Eleven Thirty-Four.
Function broke up when we realized we were heading in different musical directions. It was a tough call, but we made the decision the day before our last show. We were young and might have benefitted from a break, but at that time, it seemed like the right thing to do.
Barry and I ended up playing together in Eleven Thirty-Four, which allowed us to continue collaborating musically. As for the other guys, they moved on to various projects.
As a side note about the band’s history, I have an interesting story about our last batch of merch. I used to print our band shirts using Revelation Records' screen printing equipment. For our final show, I had planned to make a special Mortal Kombat logo shirt.
Although I prepared the screen, when I realized it was our last show, I didn’t go through with the printing. Interestingly, a year later, I saw someone wearing that Mortal Kombat shirt, which turned out to be from the screen I left behind. It inadvertently became our official shirt over the years, a quirky part of our band’s history.
What were your initial thoughts when Chris Lisk approached you/the band about reuniting for Gimme Some '90s? How have the practices been so far? Was it like riding a bicycle, or did it take a bit to get back in fighting shape?
While Lisk and I were chatting about a '90s show, I jokingly brought up the idea of getting Function back together. Initially, it was just a light-hearted comment—I didn’t really expect everyone would want to do it. But as I thought more about it, the idea of reuniting started to seem really fun.
When I reached out to the guys, they were all in, except for our original drummer, so we brought in Barry’s brother Sean from Blackspot.
I'll admit, I had my hesitations about getting back on stage and screaming again after all these years; it felt a bit intimidating. But now, I'm really excited about it.
We’ve been practicing for a couple of months, and it's going well, though it did take some time for my voice to adjust. Getting older means you have to warm up a lot more—it’s like that with anything, I guess.
We talked about it a bit earlier, but how did Complete Recordings 1992-1993 come together?
The idea for the reissue came up when I mentioned our reunion show to Jordan Cooper from Revelation Records. He suggested we do a vinyl pressing for the event. However, we had lost the DATs, and all we had left were vinyls and cassettes.
Fortunately, Jordan had kept the demo's 16-track reel in a closet at Revelation, but we couldn’t find the 7” reel. I remembered loaning it about 25 years ago to a friend in engineering school to experiment with, but he had forgotten about it and never returned it. Eventually, we found it under some boxes in a mutual friend’s parents' garage.
Once we recovered all the tracks, we got them digitized. Paul Miner took on the mixing, and Brian Balchack helped with the production. The result is incredible—I can’t believe how great it sounds.
The first step was to release it digitally, and now we’ll follow up with the vinyl. We want this release to be really special, documenting the era for all our friends and anyone who was part of it. We’re also aiming to capture the essence of that time for younger people who weren't there. The plan includes a vinyl package with a booklet filled with stories and pictures to go along with the music.
What’s your personal pick for all-time best OC hardcore record (album or EP)?
Inside Out is my all-time favorite. The energy of those songs is just insane. Every time I saw them play in OC, they completely blew me away.
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Complete Recordings 1992-1993 is available on streaming now via Come Join Friends. The vinyl version will be coming soon.
Follow Function on Instagram for more information.
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