When he's not working on his Ph.D., Bad Religion singer/songwriter Greg Graffin writes a lot of songs. Sometimes they're Bad Religion songs. Then again, sometimes they're not.

"I'm always writing music, and a lot of the stuff I write is not appropriate for Bad Religion really," said the 31-year-old Graffin by phone from his home in Ithaca, N.Y. "That doesn't mean that the songs don't have value. American Lesion is an example of songs I feel have value, yet didn't make it on a Bad Religion record."

It's not hard to tell a BR tune: Take two parts righteous, leftist political idealism. Mix with one part thoughtful wit. Add eight parts guitar and stir with anthemic melodies. There you have the recipe that the group has used to much success for a full 16 years now.

As far as recognizing those tunes that Graffin has chosen for his first solo album, American Lesion (Atlantic), due out Nov. 4? Well, that's another story. The acoustic guitars may not be such a stretch, but where in Bad Religion's name did all that piano come from? Songs such as "Predicament" and "In the Mirror" even go so far as to sound like late-'70s Billy Joel.

Most people know Graffin as the Ph.D.-pursuing singer of BR, but they might

not realize that he's also responsible for composing the lion's share of

the group's music. He said that even on Bad Religion material he almost

always writes with a piano or acoustic guitar. On American Lesion,

which he produced, he also plays electric guitar, drums and bass.

Even amid this newly exposed sonic environment, however, it's easy to

recognize Graffin's distinct watermark. "I've got strength, but it

attenuates everyday," sings Graffin, displaying typically idiosyncratic

word choice before launching into a patented BR-style chorus hook, "Time

won't solve this predicament." And don't think for a minute that just

because he's turned down the volume, that he's also toned down his venom.

"Youuuuu piece of shii-iit," he croons earnestly in "In the Mirror."

"I was always influenced very strongly by one of my heroes, Todd Rundgren,"

Graffin said. "This album is exactly the kind of thing that he put out

throughout the '70s and early '80s. Even back then, I always wanted to do

(a solo album)." While Bad Religion was preparing to record a follow-up to

1996's The Gray Race, Graffin took advantage of the relaxed schedule

to record American Lesion. He laid down the album's 10 tracks

between February and August of this year in his own Polypterus Studio in

Ithaca.

Graffin said the solo songs were written over a period of several years,

and generally not even offered as possibilities for BR. "Most of these

weren't even presented to them," he said. "I knew that they were not

adaptable in that respect."

He added that the purpose behind American Lesion had nothing to do

with looking for different vindication for his efforts. "I want to be very

clear that this CD is not about me gaining some new kind of satisfaction

from my music," Graffin said. "It's more a glimpse inside of the way that

my songwriting works, even my songwriting for Bad Religion."

The singer also said he was encouraged by fans to make the record after

word that he was considering a solo disc leaked out on Bad Religion's

listserv mailing group.

After American Lesion is released, Graffin said he plans to take the piece on the road for a series of select shows. "They'll be club dates, very small, very intimate. I'll probably tell some stories, play some songs. Play some Bad Religion songs. It'll just be me, an acoustic guitar and a piano."

Look for the singer to stop in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles in early November. [Mon., Sept. 22, 1997, 9 a.m. PST]