Plow United's Brian McGee Ain't the Pop Punk Kid He Once Was

Photos by Greg Pallante

There’s a photo inside Plow United’s 1998 record The Dustbin of History where the three band members, then just barely in their twenties, are sitting on the steps, looking like they’re up to no good. At the forefront of the photo is guitarist Brian McGee, with a cowlick in the front of his hair and a mischievous smirk on his baby face. The photo sparked a thousand crushes among 90s pop punk girls.

Now, 16 years later, McGee is nearly 40, married, and a father to a two-month-old baby. He’s about to release a solo record, Ruin Creek, and although he isn’t playing as lightning fast as he once did on Plow classics like “Spindle,” he’s not really trying to. Having a son sort of slows life down. It forces you to be more calculated with the way you spend your time. “He requires so much attention that it’s hard to get anything done,” says McGee on a recent Thursday, one of his designated stay-at-home-dad days. “You think about all the things you want to do outside of being a parent and time is so fucking precious.”

Aside from free time, McGee is not taking the release of Ruin Creek for granted either. It was a long, aggravating process that involved him parting ways with his original label over an artwork dispute, having to buy back the master copies of his recordings that he’d done early last year with Pete Steinkopf of the Bouncing Souls, and finding a new label home. “I thought for sure that recording it in February, it’d be out by the end of 2013. Nope!” he laughs, “Summer, 2014.” Ultimately, the record got picked up as a joint release between Square of Opposition and Creep Records and will finally see the light of day in June.

While McGee loves fatherhood and his home life in Asbury Park, NJ, Ruin Creek’s opening title track seems to hint at a bit of nostalgia for being young, working in a warehouse at The Franklin Mint in Philly, and playing in a band with his best friends. Lines like “Never got in too much trouble, just enough to call it fun” feel like a call back those carefree years. “Looking back on all that stuff, the amount of freedom and the shit that’s possible… it was so easy!” McGee laughs.

Ruin Creek is an honest, heartfelt record—one that he wouldn’t have been able to write as a twenty-year-old. It’s got a depth that only comes with the perspective earned through years of experience in the real world. “Everything that was a big deal back then looks so ridiculous now,” says McGee of his early Plow years. “I’m not gonna dismiss any heartbreaking feelings about relationships or anything, but my God! All we had was time and working stupid jobs and playing in a band. It was kind of awesome.”

In addition to the solo album, McGee somehow finds time to stay active musically. The recently reunited Plow United have an EP and a pair of splits coming out soon with the Headies and the Scandals. He’s also been occasionally playing guitar in Brian Fallon of the Gaslight Anthem’s solo-project-turned-full-on-band, Molly And The Zombies, who played their first show this past December at the Stone Pony.

In the artwork for Ruin Creek, there’s a photo of McGee standing in front of a freight train. He still has the baby face with the same mischievous smirk he did back in ‘98, maybe with a few more creases around the cheeks where the years have dug themselves in. He’s still got the cowlick too, though a cluster of greys has crept its way into it. Time sneaks up on us like that.

You can pre-order Ruin Creek here and listen to the album's opening track above. Brian is on Facebook and has a few shows coming up:

May 2: DTFH Fest, Durham, NC

May 3: The Odditorium, Asheville NC

May 24-Bound For Greystone, Woody Guthrie Tribute, Roxy & Dukes, Dunellen NJ