Noodles (musician)

Kevin Wasserman
Noodles performing live with The Offspring at the Mucuripe Club in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, on November 15, 2008.
Background information
Also known as	Noodles
Born	February 4, 1963 (1963-02-04) (age 48)
Genres	Punk rock Skate punk Alternative rock Pop punk
Years active	1982–present
Labels	Nitro Records Epitaph Records Sony BMG Music Entertainment Columbia Records Black Label Records
Associated acts	The Offspring
Website	www.offspring.com
Notable instruments
Custom Ibanez Talmans, NDM1s and NDM2s Fender Stratocaster

Kevin John Wasserman (born February 4, 1963), best known by his stage name Noodles, is the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for The Offspring.

Biography

Kevin John "Noodles" Wasserman (the nickname Noodles coming from his constant noodling on the guitar) was born in Los Angeles, California. Before joining The Offspring, Noodles played in a local band called Clowns of Death (there's been a rumor that Dexter Holland and Greg Kriesel were involved in that band). He was allegedly in The Offspring because he was the only person old enough to provide alcohol for the rest of the members.^[1] At one of the band's earlier shows, he was stabbed in the shoulder by a skinhead.^[2] During the band's early days he worked as a janitor at Earl Warren Elementary School in Garden Grove. Before Smash was released, he had planned to quit before the end of the school year, but the surprising success of "Come Out and Play" forced him to reconsider.^[3][4][5] On their DVD release Huck It (2000) as part of a mock interview, Noodles claims to like the "finer things in life" like red wine, classical music, cigarettes, and poetry. He occasionally goes snowmobiling and snowboarding in the mountains. Noodles is also allegedly color blind. For the better part of the band's career, it was a popular belief that Noodles liked to pick on and annoy Greg K, The Offspring's bassist.

He and his wife Jackie have a daughter/step-daughter, Chelsea Nicole Wasserman, who was born on December 6, 1989.

Equipment

Guitars

Noodles generally plays Ibanez guitars, having two signature models, one with a duct tape finish (type NDM1) and another with The Offspring's logo with glasses (type NDM2), and prefers DiMarzio Tone Zone pickups.^[6]

In the early days of the Offspring, he played a wider range of guitars, including Fender Telecasters, Ibanez Talmans and Gibson Les Pauls. He also owns other guitar models like Paul Reed Smith guitars, Fender Stratocaster and other Fender models, Jackson guitars and Gibson guitars. In an interview on The Offspring's Greatest Hits DVD, Noodles claimed that he gave his Stratocaster to one of the characters that appeared on the video for "Self Esteem" (from their 1994 album Smash).

Amplifiers

Noodles used Mesa/Boogie Mark IV amplifiers with 4x12 cabinets for most records. Since Splinter, these were mixed with VHT Classic Lead amplifiers.^[7]

References

1. ^ http://www.offspring.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Offspring.woa/wa/history
2. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=3R7GZ8ghL8wC&pg=PA92&lpg=PA92&dq=noodles+stabbed+by+skinheads&source=bl&ots=XfhUS3c_RF&sig=X0FTWZjINfExTLwkiJTisELQfy8&hl=en&ei=BOGkTu_4D8Xf0QHbs_nfBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CE0Q6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=noodles%20stabbed%20by%20skinheads&f=false
3. ^ Interview with Noodles of The Offspring pre Reading Festival August 1999
4. ^ Offspring Star's Humble Roots
5. ^ The Offspring Biography
6. ^ Interviews – Guitar Center
7. ^ Interview with Noodles Interview by Guitar Center

External links

• Noodles Live at Rock Am Ring 2008 – Hammerhead by Offspring

Persondata
Name	Wasserman, Kevin John
Alternative names	Kevin Wasserman; Noodles; Child C-2017
Short description
Date of birth	February 4, 1963
Place of birth	Los Angeles, CA
Date of death
Place of death