Punk rock will be alive and swinging in State College on Sunday night, as southern California legends Social Distortion (Social D), metal-tinged Golden Staters Bullets and Octane, and U.K. art-punkers The Dead 60s pile into Crowbar, 420 E. College.

Social Distortion, formed in 1978 by frontman Mike Ness and a ragtag crew of teenaged Orange County punks, has remained one of the most popular and beloved American punk bands since its beginning. Its 1983 LP Mommy's Little Monster is considered one of the landmarks of American punk rock.

Following the death of original guitarist Dennis Danell in 2000, the band shook up its lineup, adding guitarist Johnny Wickersham and drummer Charlie Quintana. As Quintana said, fitting into the established band was exceptionally easy for the two new members.

"I played with Mike for two years prior to joining Social D," Quintana said. "And Johnny was a long-time friend of the band, especially of Mike's. So there were really no strangers involved. When we were brought into the fold, it was really natural."

Quintana, a punk-rock veteran himself as a founding member of The Plugz, said he feels really good about the band's current tour.

"It's been going great," Quintana said. "We've been out for a little over a year, and the band's firing on all engines."

Quintana said Social Distortion is for both old and new fans.

"There've definitely been people who've grown up with Social D, and maybe feel some of the things [Ness] has written about over the years as they've grown with him," Quintana said. "At the same time, we still have new kids coming to the shows who are just as excited as anybody to see us play."

The current tour is in support of Social Distortion's critically lauded 2004 release Sex, Love and Rock 'n' Roll. The album was Social Distortion's first in eight years. Quintana said he's glad to be on the road in support of a great product.

"I never had any doubts it'd be a good record," Quintana said. "I was there through the writing sessions, and I saw it taking shape. It took a little more time to get together than maybe we'd expected, but I think the end result justifies the time it took."

As president of Penn State's punk rock club The Asylum, Eric Myers (sophomore- chemistry and philosophy) knows a thing or two about the state of punk on campus. But as high profile as it is, he said he's not sure he'll be attending the Social Distortion show or not.

"When I first heard about it, I was interested," Myers said. "But the tickets are a little pricey, and there's an Asylum show the night before, so I may be spending Sunday night catching up on some sleep."

Myers said, Social Distortion is a little old for his tastes.

"Here and there," Myers said when asked if he was a Social D fan. "Lots of kids nowadays listen to primarily newer punk bands, and I definitely can't say I'm not guilty of that."

Quintana, the vet, said he's proud to be playing with a long-standing act like Social D and not the flash-in-the-pan stuff popular in punk rock these days.

"I don't concern myself with a lot of things that don't catch my ear," Quintana said. "It doesn't matter so much what grabs people now as it does five or 10 years from now, seeing who's still standing. I think fans of music see through that, but you've gotta let people make up their own minds."

And as Quintana said, he'd made up his own mind about Social D even before he was a member.

"I truly and honestly am a fan first," Quintana said. "And the chemistry between all of us is really great. We're just all on the same page."