Redd Kross

by Jason Ankeny
Inspired as much by breakfast cereal and kiddie TV as by rock music, the punk-pop cult band Redd Kross was the brainchild of Steve and Jeff Mcdonald, brothers from the Los Angeles suburb of Hawthorne (also home of The Beach Boys) who began playing music together before either had hit puberty. Fueled by a series of dubious visits to famed area rock clubs like the Roxy and the Whiskey-a-Go-Go, they formed their first band, The Tourists, in 1978; Jeff, then 15, handled vocal duties while Steve, 11, took up the bass.