I AM SO BAD AT THIS

Band: Los Furios

Country: Canada!

Notable Album: Run Devil Run

Favourite Song: "Landslide" (No link for this song, SAD)

This is ridiculous - I can't find a way to remember to do these! So sorry for forgetting 3 days in a row - but here is yet ANOTHER Canadian band, Los Furios! These guys play a wicked latin-infused blend of ska and reggae, and really stand out from many other ska bands. They hail from our West Coast, over in BC, and have been playing music since about 2000. Their lineup has changed over the years, and I'm pretty sure they re-recorded a bunch of stuff - I knew about this band about 5 years ago from a song called "Bodybag" and then forgot about them, but last year when I found them again, "Bodybag" had been re-recorded! I would assume that they didn't just re-do that one song, but I could be wrong.

Run Devil Run is Los Furios' most recent album. Each track is very original, not only in content, but in the music as well. Los Furios has once again done a great job of trying to stay away from "traditional" ska and punk-rock chord progressions - and when they do fall into that trap, their unique style of playing at least makes it SOUND original! The one complaint that I have about the album is in the lyrical content. Sometimes, and ONLY SOMETIMES, I think the lyrics are a bit lame... almost as if they just needed something to use as a rhyme and didn't really think about if it went with the rest of the idea or phrase. Other than than, the music has kept me entertained for a few months, and I just picked up another one of their albums, Warning Shot, the other day!

ALL OF THE TRACKS THAT I TALK ABOUT TODAY CAN BE FOUND ON THEIR MYSPACE PAGE, EXCEPT FOR "LANDSLIDE" :(

My favourite song on this album is "Landslide," although my all-time favourite Furios track is "Bodybag." "Landslide" is a more mainstream, poppy-ish track, but still really fun to listen to. The chromatic-ish horn line and the harmonic singing make this a great song, no matter if you even like ska or not! "Bodybag," on the other hand, is a wicked ska/reggae mix. The original version was a lot slower but now it's fast and powerful, with the horns blaring a lot harder than before! The other standout track for me from Run Devil Run was "Playing With Fire." Although the beginning sounds like a ripoff of Sublime's "Caress Me Down," SIT THROUGH THAT PART because the rest of the song is awesome!

You can buy the album here, and remember, the Canadian music scene ALWAYS needs your help!

I Missed Another Day...

Band: Keepin'6

Country: Canada!

Notable Album: Uncensored

Favourite Song: "Step Back"

So I am a lot more lame that I thought, even compared to the 3-day gap between posts a little while back - and I forgot to post again yesterday. Sorry... but here we are with letter "K!" Keepin'6 are a Mississauga ska-punk band that play a fusion of ska-punk and metal that keeps the scene refreshing, just when things get a bit boring. Uncensored was released in 2007 - I picked it up in 2008, and although they haven't released another album since, 2 years have gone by and I'm not bored of the music! The tracks are just as exciting as their live performances, which makes either way of listening just as entertaining! Although they are good friends with the Johnstones, their musical style are ridiculously different and with the Johnstones selling out as fast as a band can, these guys help me keep my faith in the future of ska and ska-punk.

Keepin'6 opening for the Johnstones and Mad Caddies
Opera House, November 2009

Uncensored is a quick, 11-track album from 2007. It's also the only full-length album that Keepin'6 has released, although at their last few shows I've heard some new stuff that didn't show up on their early split albums. So chances are that either the end of this year or the beginning of next, they'll have some fresh music for everyone to hear and enjoy! Each track on this album is an angry outburst at something or someone. But I don't think that should be a turn-off - in fact, it makes the music stand out a lot more than most ska-punk bands. I think ska and ska-punk have a large opportunity for "joke" music (much like our song "Delve") so when a band comes along with something of substance to say - no matter how angry it ends up being - I think it's always worth the listen. Especially in Keepin'6's case, when the music is also incredible, it's definitely of a quality that a lot of bands can't boast about!

"Step Back" is a super cool track, most notably for the way the guitar is played. It's strummed 6 times with each beat, with the accent on the 4th strum. This still gives it the offbeat feel, but there's so much more going on behind the accents that it's almost necessary to see it live just to understand! It's also a very short track - which is good, considering only 3 chords are used for the whole song. After about 2 minutes of the exact same thing it could get pretty boring, so the 1:51 mark ends the song. And if that's not enough for you, well, you can always listen to it again! Other tracks that I love from this album are "Scapegoat," "Forget It," "Handle It," and "TFY 634," which is a cool hip-hop kind of song.

The only negative thing I have to say about the album is that they didn't include their cover of Operation Ivy's "Yellin' In My Ear." That is definitely my favourite song by these guys, and if it had shown up on Uncensored then it would definitely be the top track. You can check that song out here - you won't be disappointed! Desmond Dekker's "Get Up Edina" is their other cover song, and it shows up on the Unity: A Tribute To Desmond Dekker compilation album.

Uncensored can be bought here, and supporting the Canadian music scene is ALWAYS A GOOD DECISION!