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Track listing

1. "Dear Lover" – 4:43
2. "Don't Drag Me Down" – 3:51
3. "Untitled" – 4:45
4. "I Was Wrong" – 3:58
5. "Through These Eyes" – 3:15
6. "Down on the World Again" – 3:22
7. "When the Angels Sing" – 4:15
8. "Gotta Know the Rules" – 3:28
9. "Crown of Thorns" – 4:15
10. "Pleasure Seeker" – 3:33
11. "Down Here (With the Rest of Us)" – 4:19
12. "Under My Thumb" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards) – 2:49 *

White Light, White Heat, White Trash is the fifth album by American punk rock band, Social Distortion, released on September 17, 1996, by Epic Records. The album was produced by Michael Beinhorn. White Light, White Heat, White Trash is the last Social Distortion album to feature guitarist Dennis Danell who died on February 29, 2000, of a cerebral aneurysm at the age of 38. It is also the band's last release on Epic Records. The album received Social Distortion's highest ever chart position, entering the Billboard 200 album chart at #27. Stylistically, the album is harder and considered a return to their punk roots.

The title of the album is a play on the 1968 Velvet Underground album, White Light/White Heat. The Velvet Underground record is known for being one of the most original, and probably the heaviest, records of the time[citation needed], just as White Light, White Heat, White Trash for Social Distortion has a harder sound than those albums preceding it.

Music and lyrics

Stylistically, the album signifies a shift back to Social Distortion's hardcore and punk roots. When this album was released, Social Distortion had been playing for 15 years. In that time, the music went from a hardcore Ramones-sounding punk to a more melodic Elvis/Johnny Cash rockabilly punk sound. With this album, Social Distortion came full circle to a harder sound which some consider their strongest album thus far. It was named #41 on Kerrang!'s 50 Greatest Punk Albums Ever . Some old-school fans were upset when the first single, "I Was Wrong", was widely played on the radio as record sales equals selling out to some of the elitists; however, Social Distortion is something of a legend in the punk genre and continues to receive respect and support.

The lyrics on this album are as socially-conscious as most of their previous albums with "Don't Drag Me Down" and "Down Here (w/the Rest Of Us)". There are also reflective songs such as "I Was Wrong", "Crown of Thorns" and "Pleasure Seeker". There are a couple of more personal songs for Ness on the album like "Dear Lover" and "When The Angels Sing" which is said to be a tribute to Ness's grandmother.

Anime comic, Bleach, creator Tite Kubo assigned several characters theme songs which are used to give insight to characters that might not normally appear in the run of the manga or anime. In Isshin Kurosaki's case, the song is "Don't Drag Me Down", by Social Distortion.

"Don't Drag Me Down" featured on the soundtrack for the 2000 Acclaim computer game Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX.

Cover and liner art

The cover of White Light, White Heat, White Trash features a photograph of a ventriloquist dummy/puppet taken by Leonard Myazinaki. On the back cover is another photograph by Myazinaki of religious statues. The inner liner is covered with small icons of religious and Americana nature, illustrating the album's fusion of faith and punk rock with a 1950s influence. The iconography includes dice, a 1950s-style automobile in front of a motel, a pin-up girl with angel wings and a halo, a burning cross and a Sacred Heart.

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