Agent 86. current members; Mike Briggs, vocals and guitars Ms. B. Haven, drums and vocals, Ken McQueen, bass, Michael Loeks, guitar. Over the last 33 years there have been close to 50 members.

How did you pick your band name? How did you form?

I picked it cause I'm a huge fan of "Get Smart" and I was looking for a name to record with after my first band split up. We formed in Humboldt County; all students at Humboldt State.

What type of band are you?

Punk rock, melodic American Hardcore, Rastacore

If you were to describe yourself in simple word choice.. What would you say?

We are the bastard child of the Clash and Social Distortion

Do you write your own songs?

Yes we write our own songs, and play select covers. In the past I wrote the majority of the songs, both words and music. Later, and lately, I have collaborated with lyricists and have written mostly music.

. What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)

Our songs are mostly about stories of life in America. We write about events and our view on them. If the Clash and Social Distortion had a baby....

What are your immediate music career goals? (Next 1 to 3 years.)

Keep playing live shows, recording and releasing songs, and having fun doing it.

Are you looking for an independent label deal or a major label deal?

We are looking for any serious label deal, minor or major?

How is the Recording of your music done?

I've been recording the band, as well as other bands, for the last 20 years. What is new is our recording set up. I use a Zoom HD16 hard disc recorder. It can record 8 tracks at a time and has a total of 16 tracks. Has built in effects and signal processing, and can master via built in CD. It's really and all-in-one machine.

Do you all have any other hobbies besides, obviously, making music?

Smoking weed, drinking, watching movies - that's for the old folks; going to the park, eating ice cream, living life - that's for my 8 year old daughter London Briggs, who performs with us at all ages shows, and just recently made her background singing debut on our song "CNN" that is featured on the PP promo Records & Whatever68 Radio 2 Years Rockin You Compilation you can find for free download at http://whatever68radio.bandcamp.com/

What's your most embarrassing show experience?

My most embarrassing show experience was in the mid-90's in Vancouver, BC. The drummer at the time, Karl Fowler, and bassist Michelle Orgill couldn't get across the border to play, and I still wanted to play - I hate cancelling shows more than living life - so I got up and started playing. Well, several drunk Canadians thought they were gonna help me and play bass and drums with me......It sucked so hard I left after three songs.

How do you promote your band and shows?

We rely heavily on social media to promote shows. Facebook, Reverbnation, MySpace (not since they changed the format though, I cant figure out how to list shows....) Reverb is our primary music generating source. www.reverbnation.com/agent86

Describe your show, visual and musically

We are 3 or 4 working class adults singing songs about politics and playing music sonically in a different plane....lol, I'm such a hippie. Fuck.

What do you think about downloading music online?

Well, it's just one of those by-products of the internet And since the corporate monolithic record companies weren't fast enough to restrict free downloading, once you sell or give away that first CD, your music is free.

What's your outlook on the record industry today?

The only record companies left are the ones that offer tour support, that will always be important for new bands....The rest of us, I don't know.....We make what we're gonna make probably for the rest of our lives.

What advice would you give to fellow bands?

THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF ADVICE THAT I CAN GIVE TO ANY BAND, IS DO NOT PAY TO PLAY. PERIOD. DO NOT PRE SELL TICKETS, IT'S PAY TO PLAY. You may play "better" shows in your town, but you're only doing the work the promoter or club should be doing. And in the end it's only going to hurt you, and your original punk rock scene in your town. Ya, you might play with your idols on only your fourth show, but I guarantee you it's not gonna get your band "signed".

Do you think that online presence is important for fans to find you and critics to find your music to write about?

It's an incredibly useful tool for bands to use to find fans, its not even comparable to the "old days" before the internet.

Where have you performed? What are your favorite and least favorite venues?

We have performed all over the US, with the exception of the South and the extreme Northeast, all over western Europe, and some in the east. There have been many, many clubs that have treated us well and surprisingly very few that haven't.

Do you have any upcoming shows?

We have several upcoming shows at The Double Down Saloon - Las Vegas between now and Halloween. Check the Reverbnation site for the current list of shows www.reverbnation.com/agent86

Which songs do you perform most frequently? Do you ever play any covers? Do you have a set play list?

We play the songs that I like to sing the most, quite honestly.. We have also been adding brand new songs, as well as rotating a sort of "greatest hits" of our older melodic songs. We play a select few covers, most of which are available somewhere. We do have a "set" setlist, but we have been rotating songs a lot over the past year.

What has been your biggest challenge as a band? Have you been able to overcome that challenge? If so, how?

One of the biggest problems we've had over the last 34 years is finding and keeping a drummer.In the last 6 years alone in Las Vegas, we've played shows with 14+ drummers I think its around 45 drummers in the history of the band, We finally over came the problem, at least in the short term, is my wife switched from bass to drums. She really wants to go back to playing bass, but I'm not sure we could handle to uncertainty that might bring.

What song of yours are you most proud of and why?

"Was It Worth It?", "Cry Out Loud", "Never", "One Nation", "CNN", "Where Are The Children?", "Rally 'round The Flag", "Circle of Deceit" to name a few.

How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with sample songs or a demo CD? (include links)

Free songs - all of our most recent CD "Jurassic Punk" is downloadable for FREE at www.reverbnation.com/rastacoreproductions

Is there anyone you'd like to acknowledge for offering financial or emotional support?

If anyone wants to offer us financial support please get in touch! As for emotional support, I think we all thank our parents, living and dead, as well as other family members, though most of them will never see this thanks. CHEERS!

Thanks for the interview and the awesome tunes you submit to WE68!