By the tired tone in Ron Welty’s voice, it is obvious that jet-lag and months of touring can take a toll on a rock star.Welty, drummer for the punk band Offspring, still makes time to sign autographs and talk about the band which will be performing at the Newport on Friday.It has been about two years since the group last toured, and three since the release of their last album ‘Smash,’ which sold eight and a half million records. ‘It was really unexpected,’ Welty said. ‘But, of course we were happy people liked it.”Ixnay on the Hombre,’ Offspring’s latest creation, gives fans new reason to head to the record stores as Offspring takes it on the road.Although Welty said that musically their sound is not much different from the last album, Offspring has gone through a few changes over the past months. One of the biggest and even controversial shifts was the band’s recent departure from the Epitaph record label.’We were losing control of who we were,’ Welty said. ‘It was a big ol’ mess.’The band decided to sign with Columbia. The exchange – less money – more control.Welty said many people think that ‘Ixnay on the Hombre’ refers to the band’s situation with Epitaph. But he said that is not true.’It is just Dexter’s (lead singer) way of saying ‘down with the man’ or ‘f*** the system,” Welty said.Skeptical fans argue that Offspring has ‘sold-out’ the punk scene to go for a more mainstream label. Due partly to all the recent rumors and inaccurate information going around, Offspring has started their own official website; www.offspring.com, Welty said. The site even has the first-ever band radio station which carries a constant stream of Offspring music. Web-savvy fans can now choose songs from the Offspring play list. The last change is lead singer, Dexter Holland’s, new hairstyle. His long dreadlocks are a thing of the past – but not by choice.Welty chuckled as he recalled holding Holland down on the bus, with the help of his fellow band members, and whacking off their friend’s hair.’We cut it all off,’ Welty said lightly. ‘Didn’t you think it was time for a change?’