Tear It Up

Tear It Up were a hardcore/thrash band from New Jersey from the early '00s. This is the tour press of their debut 7" EP from 2000. Some of the members had been in the band Dead Nation, a band who did not have any skate-related covers but did have a song titled "Skate or Die" on their LP Dead End. Tear It Up came through around 2000 and stayed at our house. We assumed that they skated since they had been in Dead Nation so we were excited to take them to the local ditch. They drove out with us before admitting that they didn't skate. Apparently the guitarist in Dead Nation had written the skate song and he was not in Tear It Up (although the singer was the same). We were bummed but Tear It Up didn't have any skate songs or imagery at that time (they later appeared on the Wild in the Streets 7" compilation) so we just chalked it up to our overzealousness. Imagine my surprise and dismay when I stumbled across this 7" in the used bin yesterday.

The other main thing I remember about their stay was that they claimed their roadie could beat Marble Madness. They were probably not expecting us to have a set up and working NES at our house as well as a copy of Marble Madness. Dude beat it first try.

Bart Simpson II

Bart returns for his fifth appearance on BPA (his second figure form). Other previous appearances include a Springfield Skateboards pin, RC Bart and Simpsons Pinball. This figure is from 1990 and is one of the few items featured here that I have had since childhood. I still remember getting this figure from a friend (the same friend who gave me the skating Felix figure).

Bugs Bunny

Bugs Bunny makes his debut appearance on BPA with this poochiefied figure from 1995. Bugs is rocking a shirt that is more or less a dress (all the worse on someone who doesn't wear pants) and has turned his hat sideways. T-shirts featuring Looney Tunes characters with hip hop fashion were fairly popular around the mid-'90s so it is no surprise that this figure exists.

B.U.S.H.

B.U.S.H. is a Brazilian thrash band from the mid '00s. This 7" is a split EP between B.U.S.H. and Bruce Banner, a thrash band from Sweden. Both bands had releases in the US on 625 Thrashcore. This EP was released in 2006 on Max Louco Records. The kid's board graphic is not discernible but check out his sweet Thrasher Floating Expression shirt.

Popeye

Popeye has a pretty unusual stance but he still cruises in style. His gigantic forearms have probably seen many an invert. As you can see from his unusual hat, this figure was a keychain. He was released in 2000 by Popeyes Chicken. A snowboarding Bluto and rollerblading Olive Oyl were also released.

Neena

Along with Del and Mr. Nibbles, Neena is one of the Del Taco mascots. This figure is from the same 2007 set as the previously featured Mr. Nibbles. This leads me to believe that there is a skateboarding Del figure that completes this set. No matter how much BPA you have, it is never OK to skate in flip-flops.

Free Beer

Free Beer were an early '80s skate punk band from San Francisco featuring Tommy Guerrero on bass. The band were featured on a couple punk comps (Not So Quiet on the Western Front, Eastern Front and Thrasher's second skate rock comp, Blazing Wheels And Barking Trucks) but never released anything further. In 2002 Alternative Tentacles started reissuing classic skate punk bands and Free Beer was the first to get the treatment (other releases include the Drunk Injuns, Los Olvidados and JFA). Skating is all over this release, from the front cover to the insert to the inner label to the music. They also do a cover of the Go-Go's "We Got the Beat" but change it to "We Are Free Beer."

California Raisin

The Commodore 64 game California Games proved that skateboarding was an activity associated with California, so it is no surprise that the California Raisins skate. This pin features a nameless raisin on an early '80s deck with a pretty sweet gripjob. The pin was manufactured in 1988. I have seen this graphic on a couple different mediums, including a cross-stitch pattern. Two raisins have been previously featured on BPA: Buster and S.B. Stuntz.

Poochie

Ah Poochie, the original dog from hell, the totally outrageous paradigm, the kung-fu hippie, the rappin' surfer... The Simpsons were still going strong in season 8 when "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" first aired in 1997. The '90s had a lot of characters who were given then-current fashion and attitude in an attempt to become relevant again (Looney Tunes was probably the greatest offender). A number of "poochified" characters have appeared here on BPA - notably Snoopy and Woody Woodpecker. Rest assured that these will not be the last (Garfield and Bugs Bunny are on the way). This figure is from the 20th Anniversary Figure Collection released in 2009.

Zed McGlunk

Zed McGlunk is the character Bobcat Goldthwait portrays in the Police Academy series of films. This figure is based on the animated series that aired from '88 - '89, just after the 5th movie was released (for those who don't know their Police Academy films, the 5th one was the one in Miami). Not too many people remember the animated series and one look on youtube will tell you why. The theme song is performed by the Fat Boys though. As you can see from detailed instructions below, there is a button on Zed's back which drops his pants.

Party Fowl

Party Fowl is a punk band from Southern California from the '00s. This is their debut EP from 2008 which I stumbled upon whilst rummaging through the used 7" bins at the local used book/record store. I knew nothing about the band but picked it up for the obvious Thrasher tribute cover. They have a surfy garage punk sound and even cover Agent Orange's "Bloodstains." I couldn't find much info on these guys so I don't know if they are still together.

Penguin Pin

This penguin appears to be pulling a Jason Jessee sized frontside ollie. This pin was released in 1990 by McVitie's Penguin biscuits, which are chocolate covered cookie bars from the UK. I believe the PP stands for "P-P-Pick Up a Penguin," which is their logo.

Smooshees

Smooshees were a line of toys from the late '80s that were small cloth animals or people that could be squished into small spaces. This guy is named Seth and is from 1987. He came with a board with a fishbowl attached to it that he can be squeezed into. He also came with a sweater for some reason. This was a line of toys that marketed primarily to girls. My sister had a turtle one which is the only reason I remember them at all.