Self Defense Family (shortened to Self Defense and previously known as End of a Year) are an American rock band with members from across the United States and England. The band has released six full-length albums and several EPs and splits. Their sixth and latest studio album Have You Considered Punk Music was released June 29, 2018, on Run For Cover Records.

History End of a Year started as a side project for a number of musicians based in Albany, New York, already involved in full-time bands. Having spent time in heavier bands, the initial End of a Year line-up was interested in trying something more overtly melodic. Taking their name from an Embrace song, the band's original sound was highly influenced by the Revolution Summer-era DC bands.

The band recorded a boombox demo to give out at their first show, which took place at SUNY Albany. Shortly thereafter, a more formal demo entitled "Warm" was recorded. A full-length, Disappear Here, appeared on local labels Oneohfive and Losingface Records. The band later released a split 7-inch with western Massachusetts band Three Fifteen on another local label, Slave Union. It was this record that caught the attention of Revelation Records, and the band made the jump in 2006, recording their first full-length for the California label in the spring of that year.

Sincerely was recorded with Don Zientara at Inner Ear Studio, adding to the perception that the band was striving for a DC-centered sound; the actual music, however, strayed further from that model than on previous releases.

In the spring of 2009, the band released an EP for Deathwish Inc. and announced plans for a full-length release for the label. In 2010, Deathwish Inc released the band's third full-length album entitled You Are Beneath Me.

The band regularly names songs after actual people with lyrical content that, though oblique, seems to reference the person. Some people the band has given song titles to include:

Audrey Kishline, former proponent of Moderation Management Micheal Ray Richardson, former NBA basketball player and current coach of the Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry Michael Larson, notable for his record-breaking winnings on the American game show Press Your Luck William Kennedy, author and Albany, New York-area resident Charles Rocket, late comedian and actor Marissa Wendolovske, contemporary artist Eddie Antar, one time proprietor of Crazy Eddie Electronics Philip José Farmer, American sci-fi/fantasy author Emanuela Orlandi, teenage girl whose Vatican City disappearance remains unsolved Dave Sim, Canadian cartoonist and publisher

In late 2010, the band announced that they would be "reformatting" the group to officially include all touring and session musicians they had worked with up to that point as well as changing the group's name to Self Defense Family. To go along with this announcement, they posted four songs from the You Are Beneath Me LP with Patrick Kindlon's lead vocal track removed and replaced by vocals from Caroline Corrigan, including one song that was also reworked into an acoustic version. The band's tours have since been done on the basis of whoever is available at the time, with the same attitude being taken towards picking line-ups for their studio output. This format was taken to its furthest extent early on when one line-up of the band played a gig in Connecticut while another line-up traveled to Jamaica to record music for the first 7-inch in their Island Series of singles. As such, no member of Self Defense Family has played every show or played on every recording.

Band name The group formed in 2003 under the name "End of a Year" derived from an Embrace song of the same name. After the release of their 2010 album You Are Beneath Me, the group wanted to change their name to "Self Defense". As an interim name to ease the transition between names, Self Defense went by the name "End Of A Year Self Defense Family", and occasionally "Self Defense Music". Vocalist Patrick Kindlon likened the transition to Will Oldham's name changes. According to Kindlon, Oldham's band name went from "Palace Brothers to Palace Songs to Palace Music to Bonnie Prince Billy to Will Oldham." On various vinyl releases, Self Defense used several "also known as" monikers including: Barf Spectrum, Meredith Hunter, Comforter, Pewter Wizards, and Weird Field.

Discography The band is known for its prodigious output, often releasing a full-length album and several short efforts in a single year, normally through several different labels. Among them includes 4–5 songs EP sometimes with specific themes, like the relationship focused Duets and "Superior" which is centred on the movement to make the Upper Peninsula the 51st state. They also have an ongoing series of 7-inch singles recorded on Islands like Jamaica and Iceland, and have put out splits and collaborative EPs with a wide variety of bands including post-hardcore band Touché Amoré, post-punk band Creative Adult, hardcore punk band Axis, and even themselves under the pseudonym Meredith Hunter. They have likened these shorter outputs to "one night stands".

Studio albums Album Year Label Band name Disappear Here 2004 Oneohfive End of a Year Sincerely 2006 Revelation End of a Year You Are Beneath Me 2010 Deathwish End of a Year Try Me 2014 Deathwish Self Defense Family Heaven Is Earth 2015 Deathwish Self Defense FamilyHave You Considered Punk Music 2018 Run For Cover Records Self Defense Family

Singles and EPs

Album Year Label Band name Warm 2004 self-released End of a Year We Understand Europeans Are a Sexual People 2007 Blacktop End of a Year End of a Year 2009 Deathwish End of a Year More Songs about Transportation and Intercourse 2010 Hex End of a Year The Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Emanuela Orlandi 2011 Disposable Culture End of a Year End of a Year with Caroline Corrigan 2011 self-released End of a Year "I Heard Crime Gets You Off" 2011 Run for Cover End of a Year Self Defense Family "I'm Going Through Some Shit" 2011 Deathwish Self Defense Family "Self Immolation Family" 2012 Deathwish Self Defense Family Live From Krazy Fest 2012 Head2Wall Self Defense Family The Corrections Officer In Me 2013 Family Drugs Self Defense Family You Are Beneath Her 2013 Iron Pier Self Defense Family Two Genuine Oddities From Our Distant Past 2014 Driftwood Records Self Defense Family I Tried To Make Something You Would Enjoy 2014 Triple-B Records Self Defense Family "Indoor Wind Chimes" 2014 Deathwish Inc. Self Defense Family Duets 2014 Iron Pier Self Defense Family Talia 2015 Deathwish Inc. Self Defense Family When The Barn Caves In b/w Alan 2015 Iron Pier Self Defense Family Superior 2016 Run For Cover Self Defense Family The Power Does Not Work In the Presence Of Nonbelievers 2016 Bad Paintings Self Defense Family Colicky 2016 Iron Pier Self Defense Family Bastard Form B/W Maybe You Could Explain It To Me 2017 Alternative Labels Self Defense FamilyBBC Session 2017 Deathwish Inc. Self Defense Family Wounded Masculinity 2017 Triple-B Records Self Defense Family Working People (Part 1) 2018 Run For Cover Records Self Defense Family Performative Guilt 2019 6131 Records Self Defense Family Kitten Beach 2020 Run For Cover Records Self Defense Family Jesus Of Nazareth 2020 Run For Cover Records Self Defense Family Leeds2020Run For Cover RecordsSelf Defense Family Long Island2020Iron Pier Self Defense FamilyMake Me A Pallet Fire On Your Floor b/w Local Clerics2020 Run For Cover RecordsSelf Defense Family Run The Dungeon2021 Z2 ComicsSelf Defense Family

Splits

Album Year Label Split with Band name We Mate for Life 2005 Slave Union Three Fifteen End of a Year End of a Year / Fire Team Charlie 2006 Sticky Translucent Goo Fire Team Charlie End of a Year End of a Year / Kids Explode 2007 Narshardaa Kids Explode End of a Year Adorno / End of a Year 2008 Existencia Adorno End of a Year AKA Comforter End of a Year / Red Tape Parade 2008 Cobra X Red Tape Parade End of a Year Shook Ones / End of a Year 2008 Runner Up Shook Ones End of a Year End of a Year / Segwei 2010 Alliance Trax Segwei End of a Year Split Recording 2011 Trouble Monkey Fires Self Defense Family Tigers Jaw / The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die / Code Orange Kids / Self Defense Family 2013 Run For Cover Code Orange Kids, Tigers Jaw, The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die Self Defense Family Stalwart Sons / Self Defense Family 2013 Revolution Winter Stalwart Sons Self Defense Family Self Defense Family / Goodtime Boys 2013 Palm Reader Goodtime Boys Self Defense Family Least Violent Time In Human History 2013 Harm Reduction Axis Self Defense Family Run For Cover Records - Mixed Singles Vol. 1 2013 Run For Cover Creative Adult, Anne, Grey Zine Self Defense Family Self Defense Family / Meredith Hunter 2014 Run For Cover Meredith Hunter Self Defense Family/Meredith Hunter Self Love 2015 Deathwish Inc. Touché Amoré Self Defense Family Self Defense Family / Creative Adult 2015 Deathwish Inc. Creative Adult Self Defense Family Split 7-inch 2016 Protagonist Music Null Self Defense Family

Compilation albums

Album Year Label Band nameGerman Industrial Ballads2015Bad PaintingsSelf Defense Family

Live albums Album Year Label Band nameLive From Krazy Fest2012Head2Wall RecordsSelf Defense FamilyLaw of Karma Live: Fake Shit Wins But Not Tonight2023Landland ColportageSelf Defense Family

Videos The Things You Like / I'm Going Through Some Shit (Split Music Video with Aficionado) (2011) Tithe Pig (2014) Talia (2015) Dave Sim (2015) The Supremacy of Pure Artistic Feeling (2018) Have You Considered Punk Music (2018)

References

External links End of a Year Self Defense Family Youtube Channel