The Offspring have caught us slightly off balance. This week they stormed to Number 1 in the charts with their single Pretty Fly. And you can be honest about this - how many of you had heard of them before then?~ Well fear no more as dotmusic donned their detective gear and asked the question thats on everybodys lips: who are they?

Dexter Holland (vocals) and Greg K (bass) met in very un-rocknroll circumstances: they were both in the same cross-country team at a school in Orange County, California. The boys were caught up with the burgeoning punk scene at the time, and such was their enthusiasm that in 1984 they decided to form a band, despite the fact that neither of them could play anything resembling a musical instrument. To commemorate the spirit of punk they initially named themselves Manic Subsidal. A short while later the band gained two new additions: Kevin 'Noodles Wasserman (guitar) and Ron Welty (drums) completed the line-up you see today.

1989 - the band have gone the way of many, working the club circuits, playing covers at the weekends and writing their own music during the week. But fortune was finally smiling upon them, and after deciding to change their name they signed to the small label Nemesis. Their self-titled debut album followed, and their rise to stardom had begun. With the backing of a label behind them the band were now in a position to tout their wares, and they were quickly signed to Epitaph.

1992 - their second album, Ignition, was released.

1994 - they released Smash which had the musical impact the title suggests. In the same year the single Come Out and Play attracted plenty of attention from the industry and established them as major players on the American punk-rock scene - becoming the best-selling independent record of all time.

1997 - Columbia sign The Offspring, and release fourth album Ixnay on the Hombre.

1998 - a busy year for the band, what with the release of their fifth album, Americana and the international success of Pretty Fly. The band had finally transcended geographic restraints with their infectious blend of tongue in cheek punk-rock and lyrics that reflect their fascination with the American culture that is their own. The band even managed to fit in an appearance in the forthcoming comedy-horror flick, Idle Hands. The Offspring have begun their onslaught of the British Isles - and now they have stood up and been noticed.