Ska music reviews

Either this cd or hang ups is the bast goldfinger cd my fAvorate song on this cd is The city with two faces

Goldfinger's self-titlted album is near-perfect. Without a doubt, one of the catchiest punk albums I've ever heard and maybe Goldfinger's best album-to-date (although Stomping Ground is pretty damn close). This is a fun and fast cd, perfect for a drive to the beach with the top rolled down. These songs will stick in your head for a long ass time.

Two favorite songs on the album: "Here in Your Bedroom" and "Nothing to Prove". But there is not one song on the cd that is not worthy of being a hit. The cd opens with a bang and never lets up. It has a great mix of pop-punk, ska, and even a hardcore song.

Go pick up this cd right now.

Ok, so my review has a bit of a bias...I really love Goldfinger, and have since I was 15 (that's 6+ years now). I have to take a minute to give this album its due...everyone ought to give this CD a shot. I'm not going to sit here and say that the lyrics are profound...because they're not. The sound...well, it's not exactly original... Their image, ok, so it's been done before, too. There is nothing absolutely spectacular about Goldfinger... yet, there is something wonderfully addictive and fun about this first album of theirs. It's a classic in my book, and as I've grown older, I've moved far away from this type of music, yet I'll always come back to this CD and hail it as one of my best CD purchases of all time. Not to mention, these guys really deserve all of the fame they can get, because they're great guys. They really earn their money - they are amazing live, they are the most fan-friendly show I've ever seen. So give this CD a shot, I REALLY don't think you'll regret it (though it is remotely possible!), but more importantly - check them out live if you get the chance. Then you'll find a true appreciation for them!!

the band that was sublime is no more. these cats need to stop expecting long beach to be sublime- which is utterly hopeless. it is just different with brad gone. as much as we all miss him and wish he were here creating wonderful music, his passing must be accepted. long beach, as far as i know, doesn't claim to be sublime. it's evident in their music. they have progressed and really are still an excellent group. you can't hold them responsible for brad or hold them to that musical style. you can still feel a little of the old sublime with long beach, but they obviously will never be the same. well, enough about the past...right back is a really solid album. i really enjoy this album for what it is as any one must do. you will not like it if you can't accept that it's a new band, so be open minded. A must have for any collection and i find it to be extrordinarily good in the summer time

ok, for all you people saying that it sucks cuz its not sublime and bla bla bla...well. hm, maybe thats why they changed their damn name. if they were trying to make the same music as they did when they were sublime they would have kept the name. but they didnt cuz brad is gone, yeah that sucks, yes he was awesome but the rest of the homies gotta make a living so they kept goin on doin what they rock at doing. this cd is awesome, as is their next cd, buy that one too damn it.

this album is awesome. if you like reggae/ska to surf to or just kick it, then get it. and if you want brad, then buy sublime. it's all sweet as pie. chill-

Dude, this CD has absolutely no good songs on it. The tracks just seem like they were tossed together on the spot without any practice first. Not to say I don't like Sublime though, because I have their debut and it's really good. This CD however is weak and ought not to be purchased.

The insticnt to cash in on their well-earned reputation as a landmark band of the nineties was perhaps too much for the surviving members of Sublime to resist, hence this release.

Most of tracks presented here are sub-par versions of previously released material. It would be of interest to hardcore fans and others who are curious as to the evolution of their songs, but there is little else here to sustain interest over any period of time.

I have been a Sublime fan for years and I have to say this is my favorite album. It's like an old friend, when you come across it you just get so happy! This is one of those cds you can take out at any time and listen to. Of all the songs, "Badfish" just makes me happy, and I find myself missing it often. I have owned this cd probably ten times and it keeps "disappearing". I am getting ready to order it again because I can't live without it! I am also getting "Sublime" since my husband wants that one again. We have really crappy friends... Not that I blame them. The only thing that I dislike about Sublime is that they won't be making any new albums. This album is worth the $12 or so, it's also worth buying over and over again.

Dude, this CD has absolutely no good songs on it. The tracks just seem like they were tossed together on the spot without any practice first. Not to say I don't like Sublime though, because I have their debut and it's really good. This CD however is weak and ought not to be purchased.

The insticnt to cash in on their well-earned reputation as a landmark band of the nineties was perhaps too much for the surviving members of Sublime to resist, hence this release.

Most of tracks presented here are sub-par versions of previously released material. It would be of interest to hardcore fans and others who are curious as to the evolution of their songs, but there is little else here to sustain interest over any period of time.

I have been a Sublime fan for years and I have to say this is my favorite album. It's like an old friend, when you come across it you just get so happy! This is one of those cds you can take out at any time and listen to. Of all the songs, "Badfish" just makes me happy, and I find myself missing it often. I have owned this cd probably ten times and it keeps "disappearing". I am getting ready to order it again because I can't live without it! I am also getting "Sublime" since my husband wants that one again. We have really crappy friends... Not that I blame them. The only thing that I dislike about Sublime is that they won't be making any new albums. This album is worth the $12 or so, it's also worth buying over and over again.

Smashmouth was once my all time favorite band. Then around a couple years ago I was introduced to a certain band called Led Zeppelin by my dad, and I quickly became more interested in classic rock, and eventually heavy metal and alternative rock, and pretty much stopped listening to Smashmouth all together. Recently I was going through a bunch of my old CD's (Good Charlotte, Nickeback, Sugar Ray, UGH) and I managed to dig up this album. And I decided "you know what, maybe I'll keep this". So I listend to it.

Yes, although I didn't realize this until recently, the music is kinda mediocre, the songwriting is on the level with something any 8 year old could write about summer and stuff, yet, the album just makes you feel really good, it's almost like the fact that the songwriting is mediocre doesn't mean anything, now for me, this album is particuarly special...

When I bought this album, I was at the all time height of my happiness. I was 12, or maybe I was 11, doesn't matter, I was at that age were everything is set in stone and seems right before everything starts to got down during your teen years. That summer I went to Orlando, Florida for the first time ever and stayed in a buetiful hotel called the Gaylord Palms (yes, the name is weird), everything there was sunny and Florida-ish, just like the whole trip was. I had bought the album like a week earlier, and I absolutly loved it at the time, so naturally I bought my walkman with me to Florida, and whenever I got a minute to myself I listend to it, the music would fit in with my enviornment perfectly, so sunny, so innocent...

Now that I am at the point where I have gone as far as begging to listen to old school Death Metal, Smash Mouth's 'Get the Picture' album provides an alternative to the mostly darker music I prefer to listen to these days. They just bring back good memories. That's all I have to say, it may be mediocre, but it's good enough for me, and I'm glad I rediscovered this band and this album.

I don't regret buying this cd, yet I wish the overall tempo was a bit faster. The first track "Hang On" is, in my opinion, the best song I have ever heard in my life. Yet being the first song, it served to set my expectations a tinsy bit high for the rest of the album. The semi-sluggish songs like Looking for a Wall, 7th Grade Dance and especially Space Man slow down the cd's momentum. This album doesn't produce that same energy-boost that I still get from listening to Astro Lounge. Nevertheless, the rest of the cd is great; worthy of the SmashMouth name. Track one, Hang On, rocks!

different from there first 3 albums.

still very godd


you should still buy this

make another cd!!!!

to anybody reading this review new to rancid, get this album, along w/ wolves. really if you just think their okay, you could stop collecting their cd's. however if you really like them i suggest getting every album you can from them except maybe Indestructable...i downloaded that one.



onto just something i had to clear up...their was a post earlier where a man stated punk isnt about moping around and wearing black makeup...and hes absolutely right. so why did he post that on a rancid cd? and then he claimed to be the epitemy of punk, which already makes you unpunk, but this is stuff for another time...BUY THIS CD!!!

Rancid is definitely the best of all the punk acts that came out in the mid-nineties and this is one of their best albums. After listening to these tracks I wonder why any song has to be any longer than two minutes. Like most Rancid albums the first 2/3 is where the bulk of the best tracks lie, which are kind of Oi-punkish with the chant-a-long choruses, and oh, they're all catchy as hell. But since when was catchy a bad thing? People tend to discredit catchiness as if it were a signal of bad music, but while catchy is equivalent to pop, I don't think it hurts the music in any way.

I wrote this review mostly to stand up for Rancid, and to state that they are indeed very punk. They're third wave nineties punk, a class of punk in which pretty much every band had their...I guess you could call them "MTV moments." They all also wrote pretty accessible stuff. But you know, if you want hardcore you've got Dead Kennedys and Black Flag and if you want classic you've got The Clash and The Pistols. This is supposed to be different and it stands on its own as a really great punk record.

This is hands down, Rancids best. It's got twentey three songs, and was their first to feature Lars, who added a whole new dimension to the band. i also love Tim's voice, its so wierd, it sounds as if he had a speach impediment, and you can't understand a word he says, but thats why Rancid rocks!

Let me start out with a disclaimer: a lot of people love this album, and, musically it's sound. (no pun intended) FIFs constantly changing style missed me with this album, although "ugly day" was acceptable, it sounded much better on the live album...
If you're a FIF fan you'll like it. If you're not, try Electric Boogaloo or "Our newest album ever" first. (Electric Boogaloo was the best IMO, but i think i'm in the minority on that choice )

This album came during a very difficult time for Five Iron Frenzy. One of their chief song writers left the group before songs for this album were written, and the various members of the band (all 8 of them) kind of traded off on song writing duties for this album. As a result, it lacks the unity in sound that a lot of their other albums had (Electric Boogaloo has the same failing, but not to the same extent).

This is, in my opinion, the least catchy and least appealing of all FIF albums. I was a hardcore fan before this came out, I bought it on the first day and I remember sitting in the car listening to it on the way home and my girlfriend saying to me "It kind of [bad isn't] it" I hated to agree, but I had to.

For the FIF beginner go for one of their first two albums or the Quantity is Job 1 EP for their finer work. Eventually the FIF faithful talked themselves into liking this one, but without the previous FIF experience, this album will really fall flat for the uninitiated.

The only really stand out track on the album is A New Hope (and possibly Solidarity). Go buy those two songs on ITunes, and you aren't missing much of anything from the rest of the album.

Before listening to "All The Hype" all I'd ever heard of FIF was 'When I Go Out' and the Pants rock opera from Quantity is Job 1. I checked All The Hype out on a whim and absolutely fell in love with the band through it all.

While some may argue that the songwriting on All The Hype is a patchwork at best, if you look at Five Iron's other albums, it's easy to see that All The Hype does reflect and influence their other albums. For instance -- the odd recording style of "Giants" parallels FIF2: Electric Boogaloo's "Vultures". "The Phantom Mullet" continues Five Iron's quest for all-around 'fun' songs, following in the footsteps of "Blue Comb '78"and, of course, the Pants rock opera. "World Without End" echoes the uplifting feel of "Every New Day". And "A New Hope" sets the stage for Five Iron's crossover to more rock, less ska on their later albums.

The album is fun to listen to, albeit rocky in transition at some points -- 'You Probably Shouldn't Move Here' to 'Hurricanes' to 'Giants' to 'I Still Like Larry' sticks out as one of the more painful setups in Five Iron's history -- but get past all that and you'll find yourself with an album that's perfect to sing along to.

Also, it features the greatest cover of "It's Not Unusual" of all time.

So ditch R.E.O. Speedwagon and listen to "All The Hype" as you're cruisin' downtown in your Camaro.

Although I am not a Christian, I am still able to enjoy FIF's music, which is incredibly unique. On this album they have left their straight ska sound behind, and have gone down a more neo-New Wave path, a la Fountains of Wayne with horns.

In response to one reviewer who called "The Day We Killed" the equivalent of "musical Spam": you missed the entire point of the song! The vocals utilized in this song are screams because of the deep anguish the band feels for what the United States has done and continues to do to Native Americans; they are the only sort of vocals which fit this song. Crazy Horse was a Dakota chief killed by the U.S. Army, and in the song is utilized also as a metaphor for the various Native American people's. The song is certainly not about "American Indians" named Crazy Horse, and no, he didn't get beat up at school, but was murdered by the U.S. Army, as were hundreds of thousands of Native Americans. This is actually one of the best FIF songs, in my opinion.

Five Iron never fails to deliver. It took me awhile to get into it, because I was used to hearing some of the songs on their live cds.

But, that said:

There are really powerful songs on this cd, along with some goofy ones. FIF's unique style is as pleasing as always. I couldn't give it 5 stars because there's no hidden tracks -- come on, that's half the fun, getting extras! Though if you look at it from a different angle, no hidden tracks mean that you can put the songs onto a playlist without minutes of empty space.

Over all, FIF gets my applause.

If you like Five Iron Frenzy, or ska music, or Rock music, you cannot dislike this CD! This is quite possibly FIF's hardest hitting, most powerful CD to date. Though, I cannot say it is better than the others, they have all captivated me in a way no other ban has come close to doing. This band is, in my opinion, the best our gerenation has yet seen! Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

DO NOT GET THIS CD IF YOU DO NOT ALREADY OWN 40 OZ AND SELF TITLED.

I grew up on Sublime and have a great appreciation for their music, but I didnt really like this cd. It didnt seem to capture the essence of Sublime. I would get it if you have been a long time Sublime fan and need to complete your collection...if this will be your first Sublime cd, do not get this one...buy 40 Oz to Freedom or the Self titled cd (40 oz is better)...anyway yeah. I sold this cd actually...

Let's face it: Sublime had charisma; they had energy; they had it all, but they weren't exactly the tightest band when it came to live shows. Not that it mattered; Sublime's performances depended upon many things: energy; spontanaeity; and, ultimately, what their audiences gave them in return. But even then, those things didn't elevate the shows to godly heights. Sometimes... well, more than sometimes, Brad was simply off his nut, and all the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't tighten things up as they should have been.

But it probably doesn't matter now, does it?

Listening to this cd is the equivalent of hanging out at a laid back party, having a beer and a b***-hit, chillin' with your pals and groovin' to some sweet music brought to you courtesy Bradley Nowell, one of the few truly great songwriters of the last twenty years. Brad doesn't exactly nail it in every song. A lot of the time it sounds as though he's already had more to drink or smoke than you have, but hey, again, it doesn't matter, because these last few records from Sublime will have to serve as the final documents of a superbly brilliant songwriter, one the likes of which we won't see again for some time.

Nowell wrote from the heart, and he sang his heart at every step. Few singers have shown themselves to be as emotionally direct or as honest as he had been. He wasn't overly preoccupied with finger pointing, or rooting out hypocrites, as some songwriters are apt to do. He was genuine, and he wasn't afraid to wear it all on his sleeve, flaws and all.

Time will be very kind to Sublime's records.

This is by far the best of Bradley. You can hear him but his heart in every song on this cd. RIP Bradley Nowell

Unknown to many Sublime fans, Gwen Stefanie and Bradley Nowell of Sublime did two duets together. The common one most people know of was on the Sublime cd Robbin' the Hood, Saw Red. BUT, on the No Doubt Beacon Street Collection, Bradley came over and did the Total Hate 95 tune with Gwen. Check it out!

Beacon Street Collection is with out a doubt one of the best No Doubt cd's they ever produced. Second, barely, to Tragic Kingdom. the Beacon Street Collection is just great, true ska.

I'm having a hard time deciding if I like this one more than No Doubt's self-titled album. They are both excellent albums and everyone should listen to them at least once. Here's a song by song:

1.Open the Gate: Love this track. Gets really catchy near the end. 9/10
2.Blue In the Face: This song is really annoying to me; it's too slow and Gwen's buzzy bee noises are annoying. 4/10
3.Total Hate 95: No Doubt and Sublime team up to bring us this incredibly catchy and fun jam. One of my favorites from this album. 10/10
4.Stricken: Gwen's singing is so cute and catchy on this one. I love it. 9/10
5.Greener Pastures: I didn't care for this one at first, but now I like it :) 8/10
6.By the Way: This one is somewhat slow and is carried by Gwen's singing. 7/10
7.Snakes: This one's ok, not particularly catchy but the guitars on this one are great. 8/10
8.That's Just Me: I love this one. 10/10
9.Squeal: Another really fast and catchy song. I like the horns on this one. 10/10
10.Doghouse: A great finisher. I love it. 10/10

I highly recommend this album if you (1) are interested in hearing what No Doubt sounded like before Tragic Kingdom (2) you really like Sublime (3) you are just interested in high-quality albums that are generally avoided by the mass media. If you really like this one, be sure to check out the self-titled one.