FOR A BAND WITH 21 YEARS to their name, it may seem strange that The Process of Belief (January 22) is, in many ways, a milestone disc for Bad Religion. Not only does their 12th full-length mark the homecoming of founding guitarist Brett Gurewitz, it also welcomes the veteran political punks back to their original label, Gurewitz's Epitaph Records.

     After a seven-year jaunt with Atlantic -- which resulted in four full-lengths -- the band warmed to the idea of reforming with Gurewitz and Epitaph. Former Minor Threat guitarist Brian Baker has filled in for Gurewitz since his departure and will retain lead guitar duties. He tells ICE, "At the time when Brett expressed interest in 'getting the whole band back together,' it happened to coincide with our option being up at Atlantic. So it was fortuitous [And] it's certainly a lot more satisfying to have the president of the record label play guitar in your band."

     Gurewitz actually took two respites from Bad Religion: a brief hiatus in the mid-'80s and a longer respite in 1993, at which point he battled severe drug addiction. Gurewitz luckily recouped and, maintaining contact with lead singer Greg Graffin throughout, reunited with the band to co-write the song "Believe lt" with Graffin on 2000's The New America. Gurewitz's songwriting -- "hopelessly romantic," according to Baker, as opposed to Graffin's political approach -- accounts for roughly half the new disc and "tends to make the whole product not be some dogmatic

instruction manual," says Baker.

     The full track Iist: "Supersonic," "Prove lt," "Can't Stop lt," "Broken," "Destined for Nothing," "Materialist," "Kyoto Now," "Sorrow," "Epiphany," "Evangeline," "The Defense," "The Lie," "You Don't Belong" and "Bored and Extremely Dangerous."

     A first for Bad Religion, The Process of Belief features three guitars (the third axewielder being Greg Hetson). AIso, the band devoted a significant amount of time to rehearsing, which they had not committed to in the past. Says Baker, "Because we all live in different cities -- a base is being formed once again in Los Angeles because our new drummer [Brooks Wackerman] and Brett live there -- we never really had that luxury [rehearsing]." The band spent an additional month practicing on top of the six to eight weeks it took to record the document.

     "And that's partly why this record sounds so good, because we really knew what the hell we were going to do," continues Baker. "The experimentation stage was done without the tape rolling, for the most part. When you're rehearsing with three guitars, that means you've already got the overdub in real time "

     Baker suggests that The Process of Belief diverges from past Bad Religion works in more ways than one. Reminiscent of early, pre-Henry Rollins Black Flag, "Can't Stop lt" is one of the harder songs the band has produced in recent memory. "Epiphany," he says, "is basically a rock opera. lf our singer wasn't any good, it could be on a Yes record. lt is incredibly complicated and tells a great story and has various interludes, little instrumental pieces. Mind you, we're still a punk band...." Another key cut, "You Don't Belong," pays homage to a litany of individuals Graffin and Gurewitz knew in the young Los Angeles punk-rock scene.

     Still, it seems that the album title itself provides the clearest glimpse into The Process of Belief. When asked about the phrase, derived from the lyrics to "Materialist," Baker notes, "ln order to believe in something, there is a biological process, as well as a self-investigative process, that allows you to form a firm-enough opinion on a subject or concept to qualify it as a belief. And that is perfectly in keeping with all these beliefs and ideals that we've been questioning for 21 years. Also, it has a nice ring to it."