Swindle

by Mario Mesquita BorgesAssembling in San Diego, CA, in 1994, Swindle soon emerged as one of the top punk rock acts within the local music scene. Constituted by Nick Lennen (drums), Mark Smith (bass), Gavin Kelly (guitar), and Daniel Sant (vocals), the band first started as a simple reunion of high school friends, and soon turned out to be one of San Diego's top underground squads. During the year following the band's formation, the crew played continuously throughout the local club scene, eventually gathering an enthusiastic fan base. However, shortly after the band's first year of existence, Sant parted ways with the crew, therefore defining Swindle as a trio. After releasing three 7" records, one of which was a split with blink-182, and performing on countless live shows, the band settled on recruiting the work of bassist Shaun McCutcheon. Before long, the San Diego team managed to record their first full-length recording, Within These Walls, that hit record stores still in 1996. The group's unique combination of raw and plain rhythms with powerful and flaming melodies continued to conquer a loyal and always growing legion of fans. In 2000, the quartet recorded what turned out to be their second album, Better Off Dead, issued via the Cargo record label.