Pepper frontman Kaleo Wassman is one of the many artists involved in a new compilation project called Operation Irie.
The album, due out October 10, will see a wide range of reggae rock artists reimagining classic punk tracks. Fans have already gotten a taste of the material, with Little Stranger covering Green Day’s “Brain Stew” and Pepper putting their signature spin on Bad Religion’s “Generator.”
READ MORE: Pepper and Little Stranger Cover ’90s Classics, First Taste of ‘Operation Irie’ Covers Album
In a new video shared with The Pier, Wassman checks in on the project, and shares a little insight on how it came together.
“These bands, in the late ’80s, ’90s, they were really the pioneers of the punk reggae genre that we all know right now,” the singer explains. “And without them, who knows what this music would be. Definitely wouldn’t be the same, I know that.”
“I remember Punk-o-rama,” he continues, alluding to a memorable collection of compilations released by Epitaph Records in the ’90s and early ’00s. “I was in Kona and we actually got this Punk-o-rama CD. It was like 1996 or ‘7, and it had like Rancid, Ten Foot Pole, No Use for a Name, Bad Religion, Pennywise, NOFX, Offspring — they all had that. And so this is like a beautiful throwback what we’re doing with Operation Irie on bringing that back because those comps kind of died.”
Wassman further noted that Pepper’s version of “Generator” is “starkly different” from the original, “but the inspiration is still there.” “I mean seriously Bad Religion really changed my life,” the singer noted.
Check out the full clip below.
View this post on Instagram
