THE COUNTDOWN CONTINUES...
10. Sense Boardwear Compilation Vol 5
Album Title: Unknown
Released when: Mid-April @ Sense Boardwear's 4th Annual BBQ @ The Beach in Oceanside, CA. Sense Boardwear is planning other CD release parties for this 5th Volume, with such locations as Long Beach, San Diego, Bay Area and of course Arizona.
Recording at: Paradigm Studios in Riverside CA.
Sounds Like: Reggae, hip hop and rock with that Southern Californian flavor! Mike from Sense Boardwear says, 'We're hoping to have 20+ tracks for this compilation CD, because we want you folks to get your money’s worth and this CD will contain nothing but NEW & UNRELEASED SONGS. Songs you won’t be able to find on iTunes or any other free music downloading websites. Why? Because we are recording all the songs at Paradigm Studios. No leaks over there.'
Artists to include: Mike explains, 'The TENTATIVE line up to this CD and we say TENTATIVE with all caps because it’s so early in production that the line-up may change. Thus far, we have verbal agreements with groups to let us use NEW & UNRELEASED music by:
Dirty Heads
Chapter 11
The B Foundation
Ballyhoo!
Fayuca
NoNeedz
RAC Dub
The Bredrin Daddys
Close Enough
We're in talks to have special guest appearances by Mike Pinto, Big Nes, Tim Wu of Long Beach Dub All Stars and two more names that we cannot disclose at this time, but in our mind, if they agree to join aboard this project, we feel their presence would be a HUGE addition.'
Collaboration Songs: Mike from Sense Boardwear says, ‘For most of you that know us, know what we’re talking about. What we like to do and part of the benefits of having our own studio, is our producer Justkeys or our good friend, Javier Contender, will come up with a beat and we’ll take a singer from one band, an MC from another band and put them on a track together, specifically for the compilation CD. Some collaboration songs may feature just two different vocalists or up to four different vocalists. We like to do about two or three collaboration songs per CD. This is what we will hopefully expect to see from the guest appearances of Mike Pinto, Big Nes and Tim Wu (among a couple others that we can’t disclose just yet).'
Why The Pier is excited: Easy answer. Just take a look at Sense Boardwear's track record. It has consistently released the the highest quality compliation albums in recent years and with the most exclusive tracks. The line-up for Vol 5 looks simply incredible too, with at least five bands also included in this Top 20 list alone.
Visit Sense Boardwear here: Sense Boardwear Music MySpace
9. Chapter 11
Album Title: Not Yet Known
Released when: Summer 2008
Recording at: Chapter 11's home studio.
Sounds Like: Bassist and producer Javier Contender says, 'The direction of the album will have a solid reggae and hip hop foundation....and as always we'll try different variation of other genres and try to mess them harmoniously. It will feature a few collabo tracks with various artists.'
First Single: We're getting ready to drop a new single CD in Jan 08. It will feature three-five new songs (two of them possibly being remixes). The single will also feature a song called Look What’s Happening Today that features Bobo David from Judgement Yard (Sizzla's Camp).
Interesting Tidbit: Javier says, 'We've got a new song called Burn Tonight that will be released on a Surfrock Compilation CD next month.'
Why The Pier is excited: Long Beach's Chapter 11 has really stepped up from where the Long Beach Dub Allstars left off, by seemlessly mixing reggae with hip hop beats. This release could easily be the album of the summer.
Visit Chapter 11 here: Chapter 11 MySpace
8. 3rd Alley
Album Title: Shiny Shady People (tentative title)
Released when: March 2008
Recorded at: Total Access (Sublime, Pennywise, No Doubt and Black Flag) with producer Josh Fischel, engineer Mike Sutherland (Pepper, Slightly Stoopid and System of a Down) and asst. engineer Adam Arnold.
The Players: Zack Walters (songwriting, vocals, guitars), Todd Elrod (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Todd Forman (sax, keyboards, clarinet, backing vocals), Matt Brien (bass), Tyson Parrish (bass), Kenny Ybarra (guitar) and Josh Fischel (backing vocals, melodica, tambourine).
Sounds Like: Zack says, 'You can expect eclectic rock with a twist of reggae, lo fi moody rock to disco. The 15 track album is themed by all the phoniness in the world from friends to the corporate world to the everyday party. The band is going to include acoustic versions of the entire album for the first 500 sold.'
First Single: All my Friends are Flaky or Movers and Shakers
Other Songs Include: Evil Lurks, The Downtrodden, Dirty Sponge, Bill Bixby, Amsterdamned, Lies That We Tell, Galileo, Hibernation, Battlewounds, Relatively Speaking, Let it Go, Castaway and Hello to Hell
Why The Pier is excited: 3rd Alley's debut album (After School Special) WAS something special, and if this follow-up improves on that debut then we are in for a real treat. With such a solid line-up of musicians and Mr Josh Fischel himself helping out in the control room, how can it go wrong?
Visit 3rd Alley here: 3rd Alley MySpace
7. John Brown’s Body
Album Title: Amplify (tentative)
Released when: Spring 2008 (rough time frame)
Recorded at: Drummer Tommy Benedetti says, 'We recorded at More Sound Recording Studio in Syracuse NY. The process was broken into four session blocks, each about a week long over the course of 10 months. Usually we would record three or four tracks then break for a festival or short tour. Each song was written as we went, which was great. We would take some of them out on the stage with us, like Push Some Air, but many we are saving for the release. The whole process took us about one year and now we are in the final mixing days. Everything is coming together amazingly and I could not be happier with what I have heard, really, I am super excited.'
Sounds Like: Tommy says, 'This album is a lot of what we have touched on with the last two records (Spirits All Around Us, Pressure Points). It is a culmination of Elliot’s songwriting, changes to the line-up, and taking chances. There are big steps in the progression of JBB’s sound; we really have our fingers on exactly what we want to present on a record. What you get is something melodic and lush, cutting edge with different tempos, feels, and beats. We arrived at a really nice place and have been able to capture that on this record. It’s cohesive, focused, and beautiful.'
Tommy continues, 'This is a huge record for us, it is our first with one lead vocalist, which lends itself to a different vibe. I would say its more streamlined, and makes perfect sense sonically. A lot of players on this record are in the new band we have been touring with for the last year and a half. Everyone did a stellar job on it. The record sounds like a band that really gets along, a group that has fun playing together, with a lot less tension than in the past. The feeling comes out in the music.
What Else to Expect: Tommy reveals, 'Another big difference is that we are using a lot of sounds that we haven’t used in the past….to increase the sonic palette that I mentioned earlier. We have string instruments that include not only the violin, and cello, but also the kora, which is a traditional African string instrument. Our keyboardist Matt plays tablas (an exotic sounding Indian drum) too. Mr Rourke is a good friend of ours and he contributed on turntables on a track called Make Your Move which is a new favorite of ours. There are also guest vocalists that have been part of the recording that we won’t name right now, and then of course there is always the traditional JBB crushing drums and bass.'
Songs Include: Amplify, So Aware, Make Your Move and Push Some Air
Why The Pier is excited: What happens when you lose practically half your line-up? Do as JBB does and show the world what a musical force you can still be.
Visit John Brown's Body here: John Brown's Body MySpace
6. The Bredrin Daddys
Album Title: Bag-O-Tricks
Released when: February in Japan and March in USA
Recording at: Hedway Music in Garden Grove, CA.
Sounds Like: Vocalist 1DaBred says, 'Expect the thundering mix of a lot of hardcore mashed with reggae vibes. Also this time you can expect some rootsy reggae, some funk and some straight old fashioned hip hop. There will be a minimum of 14 songs, but maybe more.'
1DaBred continues, ‘this will be our 4th full length release (our senior release if you will) and we are pulling all the stops out. We are very excited about the progress we are making while writing this album.’
First Single: The Bredrin Daddys are not sure yet, but 1DaBred says 'it will probably be About You, which is a love song with a good dubby vibe or the band may go all out balls to the wall and make it React/Respond, which is pure hardcore madness with dancehall lyrics.'
Other Songs Include: Intro (Into the Telephone), Bag-O-Tricks, Cool and Calm, Evil Opera, Flow, Funk Intermission, Hello Hello, My Life, Magic 7, Get Naughty, When You Come to Long Beach and The Sign
Why The Pier is excited: The band has never disappointed with its releases in the past, why would it start now? Having already heard half the songs to be featured here, The Pier is happy to report the Bredrin Daddys songwriting is stronger than ever.
Visit The Bredrin Daddy's here: The Bredrin Daddys MySpace
5. 880 South
Album Title: Youth Bus Sessions Vol.1 (yes Vol.2 is in the works)
Released when: Approx April 2008
Recorded at: Noise Studios - Engineered by Aaron Liebelt and produced by 880 South.
Sounds Like: Vocalist Weege says, ‘This album definitely has more reggae than in the past 880 South albums. We added some new funk, blues, jazz & bossanova vibes. Definitely has a rock edge as well.’ It will feature possibly 14-15 tracks. Some oldies came back from the demos and a few outtakes may find their way in.'
What Else to Expect: This will be the second release on Luigi Casaretto's label - Park Ave Sound.
Weege says, 'In 2008 Park Ave Sound will be releasing a total of three, maybe four albums to be announced in Spring of 2008. 880 South is obviously going through some major changes physically, but not musically. I would say cosmetically, but that's not the case. The sound will not drift from its roots, but will expand into new realms. This is our last project with drummer/engineer Aaron Liebelt.
The reason we are pushing for Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 as seperate albums is because obviously a double album is expensive to produce, manufacture and promote. We are independent at this level and the other aspect is that Vol. 1 is everything we've written to date including 8-10 brand new songs and a few reach back songs that needed work from the Floppy Rods days as well as 880 South demo tracks that needed to be re-recorded.' Vol. 1 sums up a lot of the hardships, good times and life's lessons 880 South has endured. Vol. 2 will be everything we've written prior to the band line-up changes. The music won't change dramatically because the core songwriters are still in place.
Vol. 2 will be more experimental though and is already absorbing new styles and production ideas.'
First Single: Weege says, 'We are still undecided on our first single. Considering letting the fans decide in an online poll. So far the two songs that come to mind are Apartment 28 and You Can Feel It Huh. While Apartment 28 leans more on the pop/hip hop side of 880 South, it is a song about reflection and of course reminiscent of Northern California lifestyle. The best way I can describe the song is "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence". You Can Feel It Huh is the perfect example of Greg Medeiros and Luigi Casaretto at their best. This reggae rock jam qualifies as funny and real. In essence it displays their sense of humor and talks about getting older and the funny and embarassing quirks that come with it. The song title has it's own funny story as well, you can ask Greg about that someday.
Other Songs Include: Apartment 28, You Can Feel It Huh, Baby Has Gotta Eat, City Gone Mad (remake of City Ditty), City Ditty, Trust In Me and by popular demand Stuntman
Why The Pier is excited: Weege and 880 South have been around in this game for quite some time. Just by reading the 'Ask Weege' you know the man is 'industry' experienced and knows his stuff. The Pier also has faith Weege knows what exactly 880 South needs to do make it to that next level and the album the band needs to get behind to do it. Lucky for us also we will be getting two albums in 2008 instead of just one.
Visit 880 South here: 880 South MySpace
4. Pepper
Album Title: Unknown
Released when: July 2008
Recording at: Total Access in Redonda with producer Paul Leary, the band is recording the album in January and February.
Sounds Like: Pepper webmaster, Finegreen says, 'The vibe will be a mix of Soundgarden and Black Uhuru with a little Elvis Costello. Music you can have fun too.'
Pepper drummer Yesod Williams says, ‘For this new album we are going to put a lot of songs on it and with all this material why not. It is fairest to our fans to put as much music as we can on there. So people can expect 15 to 16 songs on it.’
Songs Include: Things That You Love, Slide, Phoenix and Must of Been
Why The Pier is excited: Have you seen Pepper's live show in the last couple of years? It is incredible and if the band can capture some of that magic in the studio we can expect something remarkable.
Visit Pepper here: Pepper MySpace
3. No Doubt
Album Title: Not Yet Known
Released when: Sometime 2008
Recording in: Los Angeles
Sounds Like: No Doubt are reportedly going back to their ska roots for their forthcoming album. Band members Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont and Adrian Young have been working on new material for the band since 2006. Gwen Stefani hinted to NME that the album would go back to No Doubt's original sound. She said: 'I'm coming to the end of a chapter, doing my own dance records. I don't want to say for sure that it'll be ska but that it is where we started.’
Tony Kanal told MTV.com, ‘We’ve been doing this so long that if we try to set a place to go to, we’ll never get there. So we’re letting that road unfold in front of us. I’m sure we’ll have the same influences, all the reggae and rock stuff we grew up on, and a bunch more, so we can go in a different direction as well.’
Why The Pier is excited: Ok we all know this could go either way, depending on what direction the band takes. However, No Doubt has always been able to manage to write a great song, so if it returns to its ska/reggae roots we all may be able to put that ‘banana’s shit’ finally behind us. In saying that though its new wave rock songs on Rock Steady were some of the best rock tunes No Doubt has ever written throughout its career. Eitherway the return of No Doubt is eagerly anticipated.
Visit No Doubt here: No Doubt Website
2. Dirty Heads
Album Title: 'The album will not be called Sails to the Wind anymore and will have different artwork, but done by the same artist,' says vocalist Dirty J (Jared Watson)
Released when: Shooting for late Spring/early Summer
Recorded at: Newport Beach recording studio.
Sounds Like: Dirty J says, 'The style and vibe is, Dirty Heads at our best, the good thing about being able to do the Sails to the Wind EP and work with a label, and then bounce and go do it our own way, is we got to see how things work, the bullshit and the good. We kinda got a test run to see what we like and didn’t and what the fans like and what they don’t like. Even though we are gonna do what we feel anyway (ha ha). We also got to find out who we really are and how we like to record and how much production we like and what guitars we like or sounds or mics or pianos to record with. Even as writers you learn a lot about yourself and about writing songs in two years. Music evolves and changes quickly so it’s good to know your sound and style and who you are as a band.'
Dirty J continues, 'The album is going to be more raw and have a more acoustic/ live vibe than the EP. You know that Dirty Heads feel and sound. Probably a little less hip hop than the EP, more Stand Tall, Antelope, Driftin’, Neighborhood and I Got No Time vibe songs.'
What Else to Expect: Dirty J says, 'We have another amazing song (Knows That I) with Josh Freese on drums, probably my favorite song. There are also classic Duddy B songs that are soooooo good better than ever, but don’t like tootin’ our own horn so we will let people judge for themselves. We haven’t decided on the number of songs, we don’t know if we wanna keep it shorter and strong, like 11 songs. Some of my fav albums are only 10 songs, Beastie Boys - License to Ill, Metallica, Ben Harper or keep it normal and have 12-15, not sure.'
The album is gonna have some of the songs off the Sails to the Wind EP (the best ones and favs) and then the rest of the new album will be all new material no one has heard.'
Songs Include: Stand Tall, Neighborhood and Knows That I (tentative title)
Why The Pier is excited: It has seemed like an eternity in the making, but the debut album looks like it will be worth the wait. Anyone who has heard the Dirty Demo or the Sails to the Wind EP can testify the band has created a truly unique sound. 2008 promises to be the year of the Dirty Heads.
Visit the Dirty Heads here: Dirty Heads MySpace
1. Ballyhoo!
Album Title: Cheers!
Released when: Spring 08 (Summer comes early this year)
Recorded at: Produced by Scotch Ralston (311) at Wrightway Studios in Baltimore.
Sounds Like: Vocalist/guitarist Howi says, 'Fans can expect 18 tracks, featuring a good mix of rock, reggae, ska, funk, acoustic, and power ballads. That's right, make sure you bring your mullets!' He continues, 'We have put togther a nice mix of building on what we have have done to please older core fans, yet we are reaching to new fans too with an expansion of the Ballyhoo! sound.'
Overall, Cheers! will feature harder rock songs, tastier melodies and a few groovy jams. The horn section from Case of the Mondays have also contributed to one song, Fear of Rejection.
Includes the Singles: Phantoms, Cheers, Waiting, Somewhere Tropical and The Fool
Interesting Tidbit: Howi says, 'The drums, bass, and guitars were recorded at Wrightway, but Scotch recorded all the vocals in his RV bathroom. There was just enough space. I had to stand in the skylight with my head sticking out singing into the mic. We also went guerilla style in where we recorded - that is where we parked the van (haha). We did it in my grandmother's driveway, behind Kmart, behind Target and various other locations. It made it a lot fun as we didn’t know where we were going to record the next day. It was hard too cause Aberdeen is a military town, so you always had bombs going off and helicopters flying around in the distance, which we had to avoid picking up when recording.'
Why The Pier is excited: From all accounts the production on this album is incredible and that the band has pumped everything it possibly could into making this something memorable. Ballyhoo's previous album, Do it for the Money was a fantastic effort and The Pier is confident that now armed with the right resources Ballyhoo! has the world ripe for the overtaking.
Visit Ballyhoo! here: Ballyhoo! MySpace
THE BEST OF THE REST
The Pier is also super excited about the following band's releasing albums in 2008. As a minimum you can expect The Pier to review all these albums listed in this feature, so make sure to visit regularly for Exclusive MP3 Leaks and CD Reviews. Here is some more 'must get' albums dropping in '08:
Slightly Stoopid - The band is planning to release an all 'punk EP' this year. Amongst all its upcoming tour commitments, this release is not a sure thing at the moment. Let us hope it happens.
Pennywise - Sure the band has been pretty much making the same record over and over again, but can you blame 'em when it is so damn good? One of the most respected SoCal punk bands out there with any integrity left. This album drops March 25 and will be free on MySpace.
311 - The last couple of releases from 311 have been solid, but not up to the high standard set early on in the band's career. Vocalist Nick Hexum hinted the band was looking at trying out some funky reggae, like All Mixed Up type stylings on the new album. That sounds pretty promising to us here at The Pier.
G Love & Special Sauce - After proving that he can keep up with the young cats like Slightly Stoopid on the Summer Haze Tour. Like a fine wine, G Love seems to be getting better with age.
The B Foundation - With busy touring plans for early 2008, including an overseas trip to Japan, The B Foundation will try to fit in some serious studio time early in the year.
Outlaw Nation - Now signed to Stoopid Records, expect the new album Blood Money to be released early this year. Don't be surprised if a special guest or two pops up on this one (hint hint).
Too Rude - Dogboy will join up with his bandmates for the release of P-Force Rebels. An album Dogboy decsribes as, '70s punk meets 70 reggae'. There is also rumours abound of an acoustic Too Rude record coming out soon for double our listening pleasure in '08.
Fear Nuttin Band - This East Coast heavy rock and reggae outfit has already released a Limited Edition EP that gives an insight on what to expect on the new album produced by Terry Date (Pantera and Fishbone) and dropping in March 2008.
P-Nuckle - This essential Colorado reggae/dub outfit will drop its third album in early 2008.
Lady Sovereign - The biggest midget in the game. If all you have heard from this talented UK MC is her single Love Me or Hate Me, you are really missing out. Expect some more tasty hip hop with a dancehall influence on her next effort.
The Supervillains - Spending so much of the past year opening for bands like Pepper, Slightly Stoopid and The Expendables, gave the boys plenty of time to polish their skills. Anticipate a newie from them this Spring.
Rebelution - This Santa Barbara reggae rock outfit are planning on going into the studio soon to record a follow-up to the hugely successful Courage to Grow album.
Fayuca - These bad boys from Arizona will drop it's third album in early 2008.
Tristan Prettyman - The surfer girl from SoCal has already released a song (Madly) on iTunes, which is going to be the new single off her forthcoming album, Hello, coming out March 11th, 2008.
Stone Senses - This Southern California crew will drop its sophmore album, Live It Up, in early 2008. It will feature the lead single Room to Grow.
Hayes Field - Promising reggae rock act from Long Beach. Currently recording its debut album.
Sean Paul - Look for some more hot Jamaican riddims from the dancehall king in early 2008.
As you can see there is much to look forward to in 2008. Did we forget anyone? Let us know on our MySpace page. Thanks to the bands who participated in this feature and letting our readers in for a sneak preview of 2008. Lastly, The Pier wants to wish you all a fantastic 2008!!! We are going to keep trying our best to bring you all that is newsworthy in this amazing reggae rock scene.