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Fourth From the Last
Album Review The W's have brought new originality to the Christian ska scene with their debut album, Fourth From the Last. Their brand of ska/swing is original of other Christian ska bands and so is this band's personality. The ska scene is known to be full of funny "happy go lucky" bands. The W's are one of them, but they aren't exactly like those other bands. Label-mates, Five Iron Frenzy have been known as the most humorous Christian band there is almost. But, the W's are joining them for that ride. This band is new, but they are already getting to be very successful. They brought record crowds to their stage at summer festivals. Their live show is fun and humorous, just like their music. They are zany and crazy, yet sophisticated with their slick hair and matching W patches. They make their audience laugh and swank (their own term for doing the swing and skanking). This band makes listeners of all kinds happy. My grandma even likes them! Their album is selling like crazy now and everybody loves their catchy little hooks and licks they make with their jazzy horns. This band is one that is for everyone. Musically, The W's serve up the catchiest ska and swing imaginable. Their music can be compared to Big Bad VooDoo Daddy, Not For the Crowd, and some of the catchy horn licks can even be compared to Five Iron Frenzy. They aren't just like any of these bands though. Unlike, FIF, they don't have any punk or hardcore influences at all. The guitarist is lead vocalist, Andrew Schar, and he keeps to the fast regae/ska beat rather than going off into fast punk and power chords. The horn section stands out the most with their creative and catchy hooks. The horn section is made up of Bret Barker a.k.a. "Smiley" on the trumpet, James Carter a.k.a. "Yabbo" on alto sax, and Val Hellman a.k.a. "Valentino" on tenor sax and clarinet. The drums done by Brian Morris a.k.a. "Nigel" come on with catchy jazzy beats. This band's music is, in fact, very jazzy and extremely catchy In all, they mix the catchiest ska with the catchiest swing to be available to the ska or swing fan. |
Lyrically, like Five Iron Frenzy again, their songs are all fun. Frank talks about a freaky contractor who opposes the W's music constantly posing the haunting question: "Frank was a contractor. Is he after you?" J.P. talks about some teenage guy who refuses to give up video games, drinking slurpees outside Circle K, and flipping nasty burgers at the local drive through. King of Polyester is where they get their bowling antics from about a great bowler who smoothely knocks down all the pins. Then Alarm Clock is about a guy who seems to have a very exciting life when he says that these things all happen on an average day: he saves five people drowning in a lake on the way to art history class, gets a call from the president for help, and lands 5 or 6 million dollars on the lottery. Dexter is a song that bassist Todd Gruener wrote about a town of "simple people just like you and me." The song Hui is about a fear of mean surfer guys that ends when someone messes with them and wins so they will be able to come back and surf one day. Perhaps the most stand-out crazy song is found on the bonus track which is about Five Iron Frenzy and Five Minute Walk where they say, "Five Iron Frenzy are good friends. They will be there to the bitter end," over and over and in the end they say "Rock on London. Rock on Chicago. Five Minute Walk Recordings. Love God, Love Others, Take Time to Listen!" Of course, not all their songs are just about crazy subjects. The hit song The Devil is Bad is about fighting temptation and telling the devil to just "skid-il-ly-doo," meaning to "just get out of here." Open Minded is about how people label us Christians and refuse to accept God, because they are so stuck in their ways. Moses is about how God chooses the least likely people, who are at the bottom of society, to do his will and bring people to Him. Pup is about wanting to be friends with someone who won't "come out and play." Jason E is about a person who is lost with no direction and needs a "helping hand" and a "purpose to stand." The band touches on serious subjects that need to be addressed without being boring at all as well as touching on happy-go-lucky subjects that don't even really matter. They always manage to bring a smile to the listener.
In all, this record is fun! It makes everybody happy and the music is catchy and able to reach listeners of all musical backrounds. I recommend it to everyone who is looking for happy catchy music and originality in the modern ska scene.
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