Chris Murray Vs. Do The Dog

From www.dothedogforum.com

Chris Murray returns to the UK in February for a series of dates & Do The Dog bands have been confirmed as support on half of the 10 shows.

Photo by www.oldhcdude.com

• 19 02 Newcastle, Trillians
• 21 02 Brighton, Hobgoblin (with Drewvis)
• 22 02 Canterbury, Farmhouse
• 24 02 Leeds, Cockpit
• 26 02 Nottingham, The Maze (with Jimmy The Squirrel)
• 27 02 Norwich, Bedfords
• 28 02 Salisbury, Winchester Gate (with Liam O'Kane)
• 01 03 Exeter, Hub
• 02 03 Bristol, The Croft (with Jack Pickering (Sadies Doll vocalist))
• 03 03 London, Camden Underworld (with The Skints)

If you can make it to any of these shows then please do. Chris puts on an amazing live performance that is not to be missed, oh & the Do The Dog bands are pretty good too!

The Skints- The Skints

2008 Do The Dog Music

If you're a traditional ska fan like myself, when you hear someone describe themselves as ska punk you may force a smile and say "that's nice." However our prejudices can often be wrong and such is the case with The Skints. They are a four piece band from London signed to Do The Dog Music.

Their 6 song self titled EP does a good job of seamlessly blending some dready reggae with punky ska. The opening song "Murderer" begins with a catchy melodica line and both male and female vocals. The second track "N55" is a good track when frustrated with the world and wanting to go for a good run. It is an uptempo track and you can definitely hear the Operation Ivy and Augustus Pablo influences meld together.

"Sociopath" is a bass heavy dread reggae track that takes on the issue of hate, probably the best track on the album. "Jungle Plane Wreck" is a funky ska/punk track that again would be good to run to or clean. It also features a nice break down calling a stop to violence. The last two tracks are a mix of ska/punk and reggae. "Misunderstood" definitely reminds me of a high school song and I could see it in a 90's teen movie. "Little Flag" makes me laugh mocking myspace users who are haters. It has a nice sax line played under lead male vocals with female background.

As somebody who doesn't typically dig ska/punk, I have to say The Skints do a nice job of blending two tone with Jamaican influences. If you're a purist you won't dig it, if you want something that reminds you of your early fascination with ska while mixing in some reggae undertones, then dig it!

www.myspace.com/theskintsuk

Rebelation Q&A

An interview with Tony Devenish

By Gabe P

Continuing our conversations with musicians on the Do The Dog Music Label we did a quick Q&A with vocalist/guitarist Tony Devenish of the band Rebelation. Another long running UK band, Rebelation have shared the stage with such bands as Bad Manners, The Selector, The Slackers, and Laurel Aitkin to name a few. This 10 peice group have 4 releases under their belt featuring dual male and female vocalists complimented by a powerful horn section. If you have not heard them you are certainly missing out.

Rebelation have been around for quite some time. How would you say the band has developed over the years?

Tony: Yeah, we've been around a while! We first started back in 1994, which is crazy to think that's 14 years ago! The band has grown in personnel over those years and the sound has developed naturally with that. We started off as a 4 piece and had a more of a punky-folk vibe with the reggae.

I'm the only one left from those days! But I think it's unusual for a band that has as many in as we do and has been playing as long as we have to have all it's original players. As the sound and personnel developed we've developed the sound into what it is today, which I'd say is pretty much trad ska, reggae and rocksteady. I don't consider Rebelation to be a retro band though, I'd like to think we bring something progressive to the genre too. And I think it's difficult for that not to happen as we're all culturally affected and the culture I've grown up in is different to one from 1960's Jamaica, obviously!!

What about the U.K. ska and reggae. What changes have you noticed over the years?

Tony: There have definitely been some changes over the years but it's funny how things go in cycles. When we started out the scene we were involved in was the festi scene.The bands that we go and see and play with would be bands like Back to the Planet, Scum of Toytown and Culture Shock/Citizen Fish and the like, we'd called it 'ska punk' back then. We'd also be big into the roots soundsystem scene in the UK with people Jah Shaka and Aba Shanti being the big ones.

The 2 Tone thing was definitely big then and has always had a hold on the UK scene. But then the US led ska punk invasion happened and most of the ska scene was made up of kids really digging that sound. I think that really killed the scene in the end due to overkill really. There were some good ska punk bands but most, if I'm honest, were pretty bad. It got to a point where kids thought that 'ska' was punk with horns. It used to really piss me off. After it died off a bit bands started getting more trad and there are some great trad bands around. It would appear that the scene has come full circle from when we first started out.

There are bands that are doing the old UK style of 'ska punk'. Bands like King Blues, Dirty Revolution and The Skints are kinda doing that sort of thing. There are some old die hards now around still who have been for years as part of the Do the Dog stable, like Smoke Like A Fish, Pama Int and The Splitters as well ourselves who are still doing it.

Any funny things that have happened to you guys?

Tony: There are many tour stories that I could tell ya but the I may need to protect the innocent! And some of them would probably have us banned from entering the USA and we would love to come and tour there sometime! But there have been customs issues crossing borders, fights, people forgetting passports, seeing the only ferry leaving as we draw up to the port, driving fast through Holland with no brakes on the van to get our ferry in heavy rain. In fact, timing and Rebelation don't really go very well together.

There was a time where we had a show in Amsterdam and we arrived at the port in the UK and just missed the only ferry that morning. So our only option was to drive another 3 hours to another port that had more regular ferries. We ended up having to drive through North France, Belgium and Holland to get to the show and we got there just as the support band was finishing. There seems to be a theme with Holland and stories but another time we'd driven through the night after a show to get the ferry back to the UK only to find that the ferries had been cancelled due to bad weather. So while most of the band slept in the van a couple of us went to the port cafe and as we were sitting there all these really hot girls started arriving. Now at the end of a tour, no sleep etc, this was quite a surreal experience, because these girls were seriously hot.

There must've been 50 or more of them. Apparently it was some model school from Holland on their way to London. So we rushed back to the van to tell them. None of them believed us, they thought it was some elaborate ploy to steal the beds in the van. To this day they still refuse to believe.

Another story that no doubt will be told many times was when we were on tour at the end of last year with The Slackers in the UK and Ireland. We had just done a show in Dublin and were on the road in a people carrier (thankfully The Slackers had our gear), on the way to Belfast straight after the show. We hit the motorway and lost control of the vehicle and it span around and rolled 2 times landing on the other side of the central reservation facing back towards Dublin. Amazingly we all survived with very little injury and the tour continued. Very sacry though. We're very thankful for still being here.

Has it been hard to keep the band motivated and together over the years? How have you endured?

Tony: It is hard for some but if someone's had enough of the travelling, the hours in the back of a van in some off place then fair do's. It's really important to keep the vibes positive and when negativity's crept in then normally that person's been destructive and leaves. The core of this band's been together for almost a fair old time now and we're pretty solid and it's the vibes and understanding that we have of each other and what we're trying do and the absolute belief is what keeps it going. It's either belief or plain stupidity!! Ask my wife!

For more info and to sample some sounds check Rebelation on Myspace
To buy their music visit Do The Do Music

New Town Kings - Sound Of New Town

Do The Dog Music 2007

If there's any band to pull me out of the slow and groovy mood I've been in for the last few months, it's got to be these guys. New Town Kings are a 10 piece Ska and Reggae band from the UK. They've been busy spreading their sound all around the UK since their formation in 2005.

Their new album Sound Of The New Town is a non-stop ball of fire, burning up a ferocious trail that'll leave you choking on the ashes. With 10 members they really use all that power to the full.

If anything stands out the most to me it's those blistering horns. All that energy nearly burst some brain cells through my earphones.
The first track really sets the pace for this 10 track album. La La World starts off slow with an ear tickling, gritty skank under eerie keys that remind me of The Silencers, The Specials, or the Dead Sixties. It slowly builds adding some sharp horn lines and the tune takes off! The catchy chorus "Living in a la la world, laaa laaa" gets stuck in my head, and I have to repeat it several times. This song really shows what they're all about.

From here the heat is kept up with an upbeat scorcher called Don't Be Deceived. Definitely here those 2-Tone influences on this one. I imagine this one is a crowd favorite on the dance floor. The same goes for the songs Right Boy, Fire In The Hole, Somebody, and Stay On Your Feet. Classic upbeat UK ska sound with a new attitude.

Don't worry, they give you a break and cool you out with some tight reggae tracks like Caesars and Pharaohs, and Alright. Plus, some soulful, rhythm and blues influenced tunes are sprinkled in and really stand out. (Look at the) Sky At Night,and Take Hold Of Me are a couple of pleasant surprises amongst most of these tunes with their powerful messages.

I have to admit, the first way through, I wasn't to thrilled with certain songs like Right Boy and Stay On Your Feet, but the more I listened, the more I was reminded of those old 2-Tone records I fell in love with as a youth.

It's no wonder they're known as one of the UK's hottest new bands. After this explosive debut, I can't wait to hear what they do next.

-Gabe

Vist
www.myspace.com/newtownkings
Buy at
www.dothedog.com

Review: Robb Blake - No Time To Waste

Do The Dog Music 2007

A few months ago, Kevin Flowerdew of Do The Dog Music sent us some cds from their catalogue. This resulted in this podcast

One of the cd's that really stood out was "No Time To Waste" by Robb Blake. Immediately, comparisons to Chris Murray and Vic Ruggerio sprang to my mind in terms of the acoustic guitar and use of harmonica. But Robb's voice tends to be a bit coarser than Chris' and drifts more towards Joe Cocker's. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)

Most fans in the UK know Robb Blake from the ska/punk outfit, Whitmore. His solo work is more mainstream, but by no means watered down.

It should, however, appeal to a wider audience.

The cd starts off with the cracking track, "What I Need" But it's the second track, "I'll Be There" that really grabs the listener by the ear. By no surprise, it quickly found a spot on my half of the Do The Dog podcast.

Some of the songs on this cd have a Sublime twinge to them. The third track, "Welcome To The Brightside" has some of that to it. The excellent "Mummy Said" has more Sublime-ish resonance, and it comes in at just the right time at track 8.

I did find that this album is its weakest in the middle. I wasn't crazy about track 4, "Breakin My Balls" nor track 7, "From Spain To Endorse It". Fortunately, "No Time To Waste" finishes strong with the aforementioned "Mummy Said" straight to "There She Blows" and "Foot In Mouth" The track "One Day Older" provides the album's denouement.

Virtually unknown in the US, I strongly recommend checking out "No Time To Waste" by Robb Blake, especially if you are a fan of Chris Murray, Vic Ruggerio and/or Sublime. If you're looking for a cd that's perfect for cruising around in your car, look up Robb Blake. He'll be there.

For more info:

http://www.myspace.com/robbblake1

http://www.dothedog.com/

http://www.dothedogforum.com/forum/index.php

Review: Skylar - Self Titled

Do The Dog Music 2006

If your a fan of music from the likes of Chris Murray, Satori, or Bedouin Soundclash you will feel this album straight away.

The liner notes have a hand written message from the band describing their band as being "made up of four friends with a shared love of all types of reggae and ska music. We have no aspirations of world wide fame and fortune playing music with each other. Both music and Skylar are all about having fun." That sentiment shines through in each and every song.

Matt's soulful vocals are chock-fulla feeling, and you very well might be that person, or been in that place he's singing about. Listen to "Eyes Don's Lie", "Wings", and "Don't Tread So Fast". These are some of my personal favorites, and they get stuck in your head for days.

"No Regrets" is one of those songs that I find myself skipping through and going back to it saying "How did I miss this one?!" The way they tie in that gritty skank, gentle keys, vibrating bass line, and smooth backing vocals is great. Definitely can soothe those rainy day blues.

They really have a way of picking up the pace and bringing it down throughout the album. "All You Say" follows with that same mellow feeling, with an upbeat skank like The Specials calmed down a bit.

Vocals with a fiery passion laid over a raw organic rhythm set a steady pace that will keep your head moving, and feet tapping. When the last song ends, you'll find your self wanting more, and you get just that with 2 bonus acoustic tracks! These bonus songs are like the quiet after the storm, leaving you with big fat smile on your face.


Note: Skylar recorded the album live in 11 hours after just 6 months of being a band & having played only 7 gigs! The band hit the road in May & August 2006 around the UK to promote the release of the CD. - www.dothedog.com

See:
http://www.myspace.com/skylar
www.dothedog.com