Personal life
Tim was born in Oakland, November 25 in 1966, son to an alcoholic father, hardworking mother and the youngest of three brothers.
As a young kid, Tim met his future mate and one of his best friends, Matt Freeman (current bass player for Rancid) playing Little League Baseball in California at age 6. Tim and Matt grew up together in Albany, California and as a young punk in high school, Tim's favorite band was the Ramones. Tim quotes in Maximum Rancid - The Unauthorized Biography Of Rancid, that if it wasn't for the Ramones, Rancid would have never become a band. He was in the punk/ska band Operation Ivy from their beginning in 1987 under the nickname "Lint". Operation Ivy continued until its demise in 1989. He then founded two relatively unsuccessful bands called the Dance Hall Crashers and Downfall but later went on to greater fame with the very successful Rancid, founded in 1991. For a long time, Tim was very active in the Berkeley scene that grew up around 924 Gilman Street. He showcased his other artistic talents and created artwork for the INSAINTS logo. Tim married Brody Dalle of The Distillers in 1997. They divorced in 2003.
In 2003, photographs of Armstrong's ex-wife Brody Dalle kissing Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme were published in Rolling Stone Magazine. Armstrong claims he knew nothing of Dalle's relationship with Homme said he broke down when he saw the photos. Dalle and Homme married after the birth of their daughter, Camille Harley Homme in 2006. Armstrong has accused Dalle and Homme of adultery, and Homme received a series of death threats from Armstrong's fans. The conflict has divided L.A.'s punk rock microcosm.
Musical history
One of the first bands that Tim played in was Basic Radio. After Basic Radio disbanded, he performed in the ska punk band Operation Ivy under the nickname "Lint" from their beginning in 1987, until they disbanded in 1989. Soon thereafter, Armstrong helped found the Dance Hall Crashers, but left the band after a brief period of time. He was also in Downfall with Matt Freeman. In 1991 Armstrong went on to greater fame with the very successful Rancid with bassist Matt Freeman (who had previously played with Tim in Operation Ivy, Downfall, and Dancehall Crashers). Brett Reed was only a local skate punk who had been playing drums for six months when Tim and Matt asked him to be in the band.
In 1999 Tim invited Rob Aston ("Skinhead Rob") around to work on some music he had been creating by himself in his basebent, the two worked together writing and recording music, later Travis Barker (of blink-182 fame) formed the band Transplants and released their self-titled debut album, Transplants on October 22, 2002. Also in 2002, Armstrong contributed vocals to Tom Delonge's (also of blink-182 fame) side project entitled Boxcar Racer, on the track "Cat Like Thief". A second Transplants album, Haunted Cities, was released on June 21, 2005. The band's demise was confirmed by Rob Aston on January 16, 2006, when he told a reporter that the band had split.
Tim co-wrote 8 songs with Pink for her 2003 album Try This, he has also collaborated with Gwen Stefani on her debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.
In addition to his projects, Armstrong has also been known to pop up on others' albums in various roles. He's contributed vocals/guitar to tracks by bands including The Lordz, Box Car Racer, Bad Religion, Stubborn All-Stars, Head Automatica, Fefe Dobson, The Matches, NOFX, Time Again and Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards, which is a side-project of his Rancid bandmate Lars Frederiksen. He's collaborated with P!nk, the Aggrolites, Gwen Stefani and Kelly Osbourne. He has also produced several albums, including the first album by AFI, Answer That and Stay Fashionable (1995), Viking by Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and a few tracks from Decomposer by the Matches.
Recent history
Armstrong is still very active in the Berkeley scene that grew up around 924 Gilman Street. He has showcased his other artistic talents and created artwork for the INSAINTS logo. A new album by Rancid is set for an early 2007 release. He has also done a solo album entitled A Poet's Life, of which fans can download a few tracks for free on the internet. He has released two songs, and has so far released 3 music videos. In late December 2006, The Aggrolites issued a bulletin from their myspace page that the album would be available in March 2007, but this did not come to pass. After much airplay of the song "Into Action" (featuring Skye Sweetnam on guest vocals), it was decided to release A Poet's Life as a CD with a bonus DVD containing video clips for each song from the 22th May. Rancid's song "Sidekick" was also featured in a pornographic film entitled "Fuck the System".
Tim Armstrong also has a spiderweb tattoo covering his whole head.
An extract taken from hell-cat record's website about the solo album -
Punk legend Tim Armstrong has announced plans to give his debut solo album, A Poet's Life, away for free on the internet beginning April 17th. Each Tuesday fans are encouraged to hunt down new songs and videos that will be made available for download on various blogs, sites and social networks. Additionally the album will also be available for sale on May 22nd with a bonus DVD containing 10 new videos. Never a stranger to having his music suddenly and widely embraced, as evidenced by the hit songs Armstrong has created for both Rancid and his side-project the Transplants, by March it was clear that the iconic singer/songwriter had another bona fide hit with the track "Into Action." The undeniably catchy dance song became a instant favorite of fans and critics alike, with support from everyone from Myspace users to the influential LA radio stations KROQ and Indie 103.1. Continuing to sweep the nation with its infectious groove, "Into Action" is guaranteed to be blasting from every car stereo and beach boom box this summer. Be the first one to find hot new songs and videos each Tuesday! Track Listing: 1. "Wake Up" 2. "Hold On" 3. "Into Action" 4. "Translator" 5. "Take This City" 6. "Inner City Violence" 7. "Oh No" 8. "Lady Demeter" 9. "Among The Dead" 10. "Cold Blooded"
