Party-Band Offspring Will Lead The Lineup Of Kndd Rockers

----------------------------------------------------------------- Festival preview

Endfest '97: The Offspring, Candlebox, Radiohead, Super Deluxe, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Cunninghams, Brad, the Dandy Warhols, Folk Implosion, Matchbox 20, "surprise Seattle band"; Electronic Pavilion: GusGus, Supergrass, BT, Lamb, Smashmouth, Buck 'O Nine, Lion Rock, Sky Cries Mary, Crystal Method, Doughboys, Cirrus; 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Kitsap County Fairgrounds, Bremerton; sold out. -----------------------------------------------------------------

For the Offspring, it's all about having fun.

You can hear it in the Orange County, Calif., band's comic, unruly, primal rock songs, especially the hits "Come Out and Play (You Gotta Keep 'em Separated)" and "Self-Esteem," both of which feature leader Dexter Holland's whiny, adenoidal roar.

The band's guitarist, known as Noodles, agreed that the Offspring is essentially a party band.

"I love getting out and playing every night," he said in a phone interview from a tour stop in Thunder Bay, Ontario. "It's awesome."

The band never expected stardom and was shocked when its "Smash" LP, which contains the two songs named above, sold 8.5 million copies.

"It's a career that kinda fell in our laps, really," he said. "None of us expected to make any money. My mom was always on me to get a job or go to school."

When "Smash" came out in 1994, Noodles (a nickname he acquired because of his guitar noodling) was working as a school custodian, and playing nights and weekends. "We're all homeowners now, but for the most part we're the same," he said.

In the interim between that hit album and the new one, "Ixnay on the Hombre," the band switched labels from indie Epitaph to giant Columbia. It got a better deal, but the Columbia disc isn't as loose and brash as "Smash." Released in February, it has sold about a million copies.

The Offspring tops Endfest's lineup, along with a "secret Seattle band" to be announced tomorrow morning on KNDD - the station has been hinting that it's Pearl Jam or Alice in Chains, but it's probably Foo Fighters. The other headliners:

Candlebox - The Seattle band cashed in on the grunge boom with the hits "Far Behind" and "You," then deservedly faded away.

Super Deluxe - Cute, likable, retro Seattle pop band but limited creatively.

Voodoo Glow Skulls - Horn-driven punk rockers whose music is perfect for head-banging.

The Cunninghams - Another retro Seattle band, with a '70s sound.

Brad - Side project of Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard, featuring rock influenced by jazz and pop.

The Dandy Warhols - Bratty Portland band with a spacey psychedelic sound.

Folk Implosion - Latest project of Sebadoh's Lou Barlow, with determinedly quirky, minimal rock.

Matchbox 20 - It was bound to happen: A Live clone. Its unctuous, melodramatic single, "Push," is huge.

Acknowledging the latest trend in pop music, the festival includes an Electronic Pavilion featuring such plugged-in, conmputer-oriented bands as GusGus (from Iceland) and Crystal Method, along with more traditional bands, including Seattle's spacey Sky Cries Mary and England's hard-rocking Supergrass.