In true punk rock fashion, Portland’s The Lovesores had no particular goal in mind when they went into the studio to record their new album, Gods of Ancient Grease — no past and no future. 

“We’ve been a band almost 10 years,” Lovesores’ bassist and backup vocalist Alex Fast tells me over the phone. “It’s kind of a well-oiled machine. Introduce the riffs, it comes out the other end.” 

Nevertheless, the album is trademark Lovesores — grease-monkey riffs and explosive, bursting-from-the-gates punk rock owing as much to Motorhead and AC/DC as to the Dead Boys. 

This time, however, there’s also a touch of glam rock in the mix, particularly on album tracks like “Wednesday Monkeys.” The song, Fast says, is a tribute of sorts to Bowie and Mick Ronson. “We’ve always had that influence,” he adds.

The Lovesores songwriting process is collaborative, Fast continues, but most of the lyrics come from vocalist Scott “Deluxe” Drake, also known for working with The Humpers and Suicide Kings. 

Gods of Ancient Grease also marks a first for the band: working in the studio with a producer — Steve Hanford, also known as Thee Slayer Hippy, former drummer with legendary Portland punk band Poison Idea. 

“There was a lot added,” Fast explains. “He did a lot of percussion and sound effects.”

Overall, Lovesores did more preproduction than usual during the recording, giving the album a slightly more-polished sheen.

Fast grew up in San Francisco and remembers seeing punks on the street and hearing the music in clubs. He liked the immediacy of the scene. 

“I was going through a lot of growing pains,” he remembers. “Seeing that whole deal. Not knowing what it is.” And while Lovesores are unquestionably classic punk rock, that’s not where their influences stop. “It’s rock ‘n’ roll that we strive for,” Fast says.

Lovesores return to Eugene alongside Portland garage rock band Tiger Touch and Eugene’s Indiscretions 9 pm Friday, Aug. 24, at Old Nick’s; $5, 21-plus.

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