Everclear Cooks Band from other Portland shuns the label of ‘Rock Stars’

Whether you call them alternative, pop, hard rock or grunge, Everclear has long been a jolt in the arm of those thinking rock ‘n’ roll was on its way out.

And after a two-year stint without a Maine tour date, Everclear will bring the rock back to the State Theatre at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 16.

The trio from Portland, Ore., has developed quite a devoted following in the past decade, but singer Art Alexakis is quick to point out that music isn’t meant to be a popularity contest.

“I don’t even like the term ‘rock star,'” Alexakis said about the girls ‘n’ glam stereotype in a recent interview. For Alexakis, a musician’s job description should be short. “Play the music.”

It’s that “no frills” mentality that helped propel Everclear into the public eye with 1995’s “Sparkle and Fade.” The punchy style of the band’s punk rock anthems like “Heroin Girl” garnered fan appreciation and cemented their intrinsic value as a rock ‘n’ roll act.

A few years later, when hard rock and rapcore bands were pumping out truckloads of what Alexakis termed “thrash metal cookie monster crap,” Everclear stuck to their rock roots with 1997’s pop-friendly “So Much for the Afterglow.”

While the album wasn’t as hard-hitting, tracks like “Father of Mine” and “I Will Buy You a New Life” paved the way for the mellow feel-good form the band would adopt on last year’s back-to-back releases, “Songs from an American Movie: Volumes I and II.”

For Alexakis and bandmates, Craig Montoya and Greg Eklund, the progression of that style is just the product of good chemistry.

“We all know our place in the band and there is a mutual respect among us for what each person does,” Alexakis explained.

The future may hold a smaller fall tour for the band, but Alexakis plans to continue working with bands to his label, Popularity Records, and divide his time between a solo music project and a feature film he’s written. And then it’s on to every rock star’s true aspiration.

“I think I’ll go to cooking school,” Alexakis said.

Everclear will appear with American Hi-Fi and the Mayfield Four at 7:30 p.m. Monday, July 16, at the State Theatre. Tickets are $25.50 and are available by calling Ticketmaster at 775-3331.