When Pepper decided to take on Bad Religion’s “Generator” for their Operation Irie compilation, they knew it was a bold move. The track, a cornerstone of the Southern California punk canon, was sacred ground. But the Hawaiian reggae-rock trio leaned into their roots as a “punk rock band that plays reggae,” as drummer Yesod Williams puts it — and the payoff was a moment that left the band floored.
“We absolutely are a punk rock band that plays reggae,” Williams says. “Even if you listen to Give’n It, our first record, you know what I mean? There’s really a lot of like few punk rock tunes on there. There’s a bunch of Scott tunes on there. So, yeah, it’s just, uh, it’s just, uh, another, uh, branch of, of what, what we love and, and it’s absolutely full circle.”
That full-circle feeling came into sharp relief when Pepper sent their version of “Generator” to Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. “We’ve done Warped Tour with a lot of these bands like, um, Bad Religion, obviously Offspring,” Williams says. “And I’ve sent all the versions of their songs, uh, that, that, uh, any of the bands have done and, and the bands are loving them. So, um, to hear when we, when we first put out ‘Generator,’ we sent it to Mr. Brett and Mr. Brett hit us back right away. And he was like, ‘Oh my God, this is amazing. I’m so psyched.’”
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For Williams, the reaction was nothing short of surreal. “So like, like my mind was blown. I’m like, Oh my God, Brett Gurewitz just said that he likes the version of his song that we did. Like, are you kidding me?”
The experience reaffirmed Pepper’s belief that Operation Irie isn’t just a nostalgia project — it’s a celebration of the bands that shaped them and the community they’ve grown into over two decades. “It’s been, it’s been, it’s been one of those moments that just takes me back to being like a reliving just all that passion and just continuing it because that’s, that’s all we really are is just music fans first and foremost,” Williams says.
With Operation Irie out now via Law Records, Pepper’s fiery take on “Generator” stands as both homage and statement — proof that the band’s punk roots run as deep as ever, and that sometimes, even your heroes will pick up the phone to tell you you’ve done them proud.
