BEST PUNK BAND

Against Me!

In case there's any doubt that Against Me! are the definitive punk band of the Bush-Cheney era, consider this: The Gainesville, Florida, band's furious anthems are so closely tied to the outrages of the past eight years — "Condoleezza, do you get the fucking joke?" bandleader Tom Gabel howls on 2005's "From Her Lips to God's Ears (The Energizer)" — that Gabel is worried about how they'll come off in, say, an Obama administration. "I don't know how the end of the Bush regime is going to affect the band," he says. But in reality, it feels like Against Me! are just getting started. In the past decade, they've transformed from solo acoustic project to underground punk faves to major-label rock contenders whose fans include Bruce Springsteen: They recorded their latest and best album, New Wave, with Nevermind producer Butch Vig. With its plus-size guitars and beyond-punk sounds (including a dance beat on one tune), it's their London Calling, or at least their Tim. Read More...

Against Me! Get "Clarity" Breaking Artist: Against Me! Click here to listen to New Wave

Photo: Max Vadukul

Check out everything ruling the rock universe in 2008