With a name meaning “fat guys” in British slang, there is no telling what you might get from the currently eight piece Pietasters. Loosely formed in 1990 as a punk cover band, it wasn’t long before they found there was more fun to be had in covering tunes from the likes of ska biggies The Specials and Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Ska, for those of you who are unfamiliar is known for its walking bass lines with horn riffs and a general mentality of drinking, fun-loving, and rebellion. It is also considered a precursor to reggae.
Founded in part by Stephen Jackson, who remains their vocalist today, The Pietasters released their first studio album, eponymous in name but often referred to as Piestomp. On the Slugtone label, I contend that this is still their best album to date. It has some of their catchiest tunes, their most energetic numbers, rife with the feeling and soul of true ska, and darn it, “Little Engine” is just one of my favorite songs ever.
By 1997 The Pietasters had hit indie band heaven, signing on to Hellcat, a brand new sub-label of Epitaph, created by Tim Armstrong of Rancid. Alongside touring giants and Celtic-punk band Dropkick Murphys, it was a huge move for the band and resulted in their most commercially successful album, Willis.
So here we are - seventeen years, five albums, and 14 band members later. The Pietasters are back with a sixth studio album, this time recorded with Indication Records.
I was super stoked on getting this album into my CD player the minute it hit my doorstep, hoping for some classic inspired Pietasters that would rock at their high energy live shows, one of which I was to be attending the next week.
I have to say, and it pains me to do so, All Day is not the album I was hoping, nay assuming, it would be. Much more pared down than many previous Pietasters albums, All Day is heavily seasoned with Motown, early ska, and reggae influences. There is much less of the punk-rock sensibility that many of the original members seemed to impart, and I wonder if it is the relatively newer lineup that influenced this change.
Don’t get me wrong. This is a good album if you are expecting ska set in the early years of the genre. But if you love the old days of The Pietasters, when they were experimenting with the sounds of punk, ska, rock, with a dash of the Murphys thrown in, then this will by no means be your favorite album by this band.
Article comments
1 - weston
the new album doesn't have as much energy as the old ones, but i enjoy it just as much. i saw it more as an homage to old motown records and a departure from their old stuff, but a triumph all the same. consider also that late bassist todd eckhardt wrote most all their old songs with former guitarist tom goodin. now with both of them gone, their new bassist jorge pezzimenti hasn't just made a seamless transition, he also happened to write 12 of 14 songs on All Day. with that in mind, i'm just in awe that they've managed to stay together, let alone keep making great records.
strapped live will always be my fav though of course
2 - Annamarya
It's a well-written review, but when was Ska ever the precursor to reggae? There was reggae and dancehall waayyyyyyyyyy before Ska made its way onto the scene.
3 - Kate C. Harding
Annamayra,
Thank you for the feedback and comments. I did a bit of research a while back about ska, reggae, and similar genres for an interview I was doing and found a lot of conflicting information about the origins of each. Here are some of the things I found, if you have any interest.
Perhaps referring to ska as a precursor was a bit of a misnomer, but I think it is pretty safe to say that they developed from each other.
4 - Mrotcheque
It's not reggae, it's like early ska and soul things like Jimmy Cliff etc. I think it's great album. Maybe I can say it 'cause I don't know the previous albums from The Pietasters. But this album have a hearth!