NOFX was an American punk band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 that, with Fat Mike's Fat Wreck Chords label, anchored '90s skate punk alongside Bad Religion and Pennywise. Punk in Drublic (1994) is the classic, The Decline EP (1999) the deep cut fans swear by, and they bowed out with a farewell tour in October 2024. Shop NOFX vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
NOFX formed in Los Angeles in 1983 around Fat Mike (Michael John Burkett), Eric Melvin, and Erik Sandin. El Hefe (Aaron Abeyta) joined in 1991, completing the classic four-member lineup. They are widely cited as one of the foundational acts of the 1990s skate punk and melodic hardcore revival alongside contemporaries like Bad Religion, Pennywise, and Lagwagon. Fat Mike launched Fat Wreck Chords in 1990 - the label became one of the most important punk rock independent labels of the 1990s and 2000s, releasing material from NOFX, Lagwagon, Propagandhi, Strung Out, and dozens of others. Their 1994 album Punk in Drublic became one of the most commercially successful punk rock albums of the 1990s. They have been active across multiple decades with international touring. Fat Mike has been open about his struggles with substance abuse and recovery, particularly addressed in his 2016 collaborative memoir NOFX: The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories. They announced their dissolution in 2023 and completed their farewell tour in October 2024.
NOFX's sound combines skate punk, melodic hardcore, punk rock, ska punk, hardcore punk, and pop punk with Fat Mike's distinctive vocal delivery, extensive technical instrumentation, and lyrical content addressing politics, drugs, religion, satire, and broader contemporary themes drawing on substance abuse autobiographical material alongside political commentary.
Epitaph Records and Fat Wreck Chords pressings of the NOFX catalog have been issued in extensive color variant editions and limited deluxe pressings, with collector demand.
Listeners new to NOFX typically start with Punk in Drublic (1994) or The Decline EP (1999).
