The Music: Brought to you by the Anger Parade and Braces and Laces

It is rare for a Ska band to have made it as long as Big D and the Kids Table has. I've never heard a bad word about one of their shows, not to say it doesn't happen I mean we all have our bad days, all the same they haven't fluked into success. They are just plain good. I picked up a comp they were on about seven years ago and I was hooked. Even for those of you who don't dig on the whole punk ska thing, give 'em a chance, you won't regret it.

If you can try and track down their cover of "Little Bitch" by the Specials. It's to die for!
http://www.bigdandthekidstable.com/pages/

I'm tired of black shirts with colorful ties. I'm tired of bad hair. I'm really tired of shitty lyrics. Grown at Home have your average ska punk sound and not to be mistaken for Homegrown. The lead singer bugs me. I really like the music itself, just not when that guy speaks/sings/whines. egh...

http://www.grownathome.com/

Now here is a band. A band's band at that. Goldblade makes me want to drive fast, drink hard, and fuck the neighbors wife all at the same time. Which would seem to just be asking for trouble. Goldblade has been around for a number of years and have an extensive catalog of music. Good for me, bad for my neighbors...

http://www.goldblade.com/
link to Goldblade's video "Psycho"

Flip the Switch is good, fun ska band. They're one of those bands that would be a lot of fun to see live. A lot of bands have strayed from that Skavoovie and the Epitones kind of sound, but they do it well. Whats weird was that when i lived in Moscow I used to see their stickers on the signs downtown... hmm...

Baked Fresh Daily is the kind of ska band that this old man appreciates. They have a really good late third way sound that enjoy. They sound like something that you would see on a Asianman comp, but really good. Not to say that Asianman was bad... I'm just saying theres a lot of crap out there but Baked Fresh Daily has risen above that.

Darkbuster is an excellent band that is definitely worth checking out. A couple summers ago I wa going through a rough streak and basically the only thing that got me out of it was Darkbuster, a couple good friends, and a healthy amount of booze. They have the soul that a lot of GC5 and Social D had. At the same time there is a passion that seems lacking in music right now if you ask me. They have strong ska influence although they have more of a punk & roll sound. Darkbuster definitely deserves the Braces and Laces stamp of approval.

darkbuster.net
Link to their video "Skinhead"
Link to their video "Danny Boy"

Mikey likey. Mikey in the mood for power cords. The lyrics are a bit weak but overall they remind me of Rage Against the Machine meets Orange 9mm, little bit of funk meets a whole lotta rock. Anger is a Gift is definately my kind of drinking music, for realz.

http://www.angerisagift.co.uk/

Angry Agency is a pretty sub par ska punk band, and I say that in the nicest of ways. I enjoy a few of their songs and its possible six years ago they would have been on a mixed tape of mine. Nowadays, well, probably not. If you are hurting on your playlist then check out "Never Give Up" it is possible that with time they grow into a pretty solid sound but I have my doubts.

http://www.angryagency.com/

I am not a huge fan of techno or electronica or whatever they call it these days. That being said I was able to just sorta zone out and enjoy Audio Bullys. I wouldn't say they were bad by any means, but as the cliche goes, I wouldn't say they were great either. Although I still enjoy it enough to write about it... So what am I really trying to say here?

http://www.astralwerks.com/audio_bullys/default.html

Well they didn't lie, they are definately awful. I was a little disappointed when I sat through their set and did not recieve a waffle. I was crossing my fingers that it was a package deal. Awful Waffle is just another ska gone emo band that seems to clogging my arteries these days. So pic pi pick it up and throw it away.

I love the Bruisers. I used to have this album but I gave it to Jason to take care of for a while. Oops. Still. I love the Bruisers. It is the kind of music that makes it worth getting up in the morning.

http://www.thebruisers.net/

So the Hell Beer Boys are a Oi band from (not)Spain. That's basically what I got. If I hadn't spent my semester in Spanish running errands for my teacher maybe I'd know more than about twelve words of what they are saying. If you go to their homepage they have a track that cuts out about two thirds of the way through... I have managed to secure some of their songs and they are definately worth checking out especially if you're in (not)Spain.

http://www.hellbeerboys.com/menu.htm

I have liked the King Sized Braces for quite a while its just hard to find much on them. The first time I heard them was when they did some work with the Hudson Falcons and man was that great. "These Same Streets" has become sort of my anthem for my last few weeks in Mosocw. All around its just good ole' skinhead rock and roll that like fine wine just gets better with age.

They may sing about sweet misery, but it's music to my ears. Born to Lose is some quality kick ass punk rock and roll. They have a couple downloads available on Myspace for those of you interested. I have to try and find some more of there stuff because the few tracks I have just aren't cutting it anymore. Any music that makes your significant other "nervous" can't be all bad right?

http://www.borntoloserocks.com/

The Next Best Thing is an awesome Ska band that is really worth checking out. I'm not exactly sure where this batch of quality bands came from but I'm happy I am finding them. Okay, I do. They come from Canada which at this point is turning into some sort of theme. I asked my girlfriend if she knew anything about it and she said that time stands still in Canada. If thats true theres some really valuable stuff up there, maybe even a skinny Raven Symone.

Before I knew better I used to eat paper. Paper does not absorb alcohol, nor does it hold much nutritional value. The Valentine Failures as far as I can tell are full of booze, bad haircuts, and the power to rock. Brandon (or Bombs as he is known these days) and I used to drink together a long long time ago, so that means I own 1/114 of every dollar they make. It is true, you can ask him.

I love em', what can I say? The Street Dogs are reminiscent of the working class rock and roll played by GC5 and the Hudson Falcons, to name a few. With pro union lyrics and the rifs that we all enjoy, they are definitely a hit.

http://www.street-dogs.com/