Westbound Train is a groovy soulful septet ska band from Boston. Their Hellcat Records debut Transitions is far from a modern day pop-ska and more of a fine tuned blend of ska, reggae, and R&B. The 2006 release really brings back a genre of music that many should never have forgotten about.
Let me clear this up though, this is not the throw-on-my-flight-jacket-let’s-go-skanking type of ska. In fact, I could not even imagine kids flinging their arms around to this CD. This is a chilled out, mellow ska you could sit back to and enjoy many an alcoholic — or non-alcoholic — beverage, or get out on the dance floor and have a good time to.
Lead singer Obi Fernandez’s voice, as much as I hate to admit, sometimes reminds me of the deceased Bradley Nowell from Sublime on certain tracks. Do not think for one moment that I am comparing the two bands, because I am not. Westbound Train goes in their own steady direction singing about personal events and realizations. There is no "L.B.C." with theses guys, they are much more talented. I also find it impressive that Obi is the trombonist for the band as well.
Every track on Transitions sounds so well put together and complete. The horns become infectious in tracks like “The Runaround” and my personal favorite “When I Die”. The lyrics on "Sorry Mama" portray a simple apology to mother while realizing how quick life catches up. This CD could honestly be spun over and over without myself worrying about getting sick of it.
Listening to "Soul Revival" just makes you want to get up and dance the night away. This mainly instrumental track should be considered the ska revival, and at times I was hoping James Brown himself would slip out and sing. "This is a Soul Revival", loops through out the track turning it into quite the fun jam.
Article comments
1 - A.L. Harper
Excellent article here Diesel!