Posted on: Friday, September 22, 2006
Oi! Two bands skank like it's 1991
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
You'll think the '90s upchucked all over the '00s this week when two largely unsung veteran indie bands representing two coasts and two near-obsolete genres of music arrive in town for some retro-reminiscent shows.
Buck-O-Nine offers its revivalist ska-punk with a twist of guitar rock. The Casualties will have you believing Oi! was at least as important a rock movement as, say, prog.
Should you go, here's what you should know:
BUCK-O-NINE
Hometown: San Diego
Formed: 1991
Influences include: Fishbone, The Mighty Mighty BossTones, Operation Ivy, The Clash, NOFX, The Pogues, REM
What do they sound like? The kind of sun-kissed rock and ska-punk revival band "The OC's" Seth Cohen might whine like a little girl about if he found them playing at his beloved Bait Shop.
Why should you care? Because bless our skankin' Fishbone- and old No Doubt-lovin' hearts, Honolulu is world-renowned as one of at least a half-dozen cities where big love for ska-punk hasn't died the swift death it did everywhere else. Plus, Buck-O-Nine throws down a mean ska cover of Musical Youth's "Pass the Dutchie" if you're, you know, into that sort of thing.
Where'd they get that name? At a loss for finding that special kind of moniker that says everything one needs to know about a band, the guys settled for a term someone used in a joke shared at rehearsal. No further light bulbs went off above anyone's heads, so the name stuck.
Notable CDs: "Libido" (1999), "Twenty-Eight Teeth" (1997)
Best CD title: "Songs in the Key of Bree" (1994)
iPod worthy: "My Town," "Awkward Girl," "Pass the Dutchie," "Something Funny"
Please listen to our music: "We don't approach an album with a theme in mind, and we've never really been activists. In general, though, you will find a recurring theme of irreverent humor, combined with an attitude that 'anything is possible.' " — from Buck-O-Nine's official Web site.
Typical lyric: "I got the tunes in my pocket / in an old Walkman / walking to the beach / with a bottle of black and tan" from "My Town" (1997)
If you go: 9 p.m. today, Kemo'o Pub, $12, 21 and older only, with Black Square, Pimpbot and Upstanding Youth; 9 p.m. Saturday, Anna Bannana's, $12, all ages, with Golfcart Rebellion and Ex-Superheroes
THE CASUALTIES
Hometown: New York City
Formed: 1990
Influences include: Metal, punk, reggae, thrash and Oi!
What do they sound like? A hard, fast sonic attack of revivalist punk rock for the iPod Nanos of folks operating jackhammers or heavy machinery while still nursing NyQuil hangovers. Dig the loud, rowdy and simplistic Oi! style shout-along chorus of cheesed-off young males accompanying just about every track on The Casualties' 2006 disc "Under Attack."
Why should you care? Because The Casualties' brand of old-school New York-style punk and Oi! is about as rare a live find in Honolulu clubs as Scandinavian metal.
Where'd they get that name? Look at those faces in the picture at right. Make up your own sordid story.
Notable CDs: "Under Attack" (2006), "On the Front Line" (2004), "The Early Years: 1990-1995" (2001)
Best CD title: "En la Linea del Frente" (2001), a disc also sung entirely in Spanish. Soy!
iPod worthy: Like the rainbow of colors in a bag of peanut M&Ms, if you like one tune from The Casualties, you're sure to like 'em all.
Please listen to our music: "We are comfortable as a band. If one day punk isn't popular anymore, we're not going to stop doing it. We look it, we love it, we live it." — first-name-only guitarist Jake to AMP magazine (February/March 2004)
Typical lyric: "Under attack! / We're under attack! / Under attack! / We're under attack!" from "Under Attack" (2006)
If you go: 9 p.m. Wednesday, Anna Bannana's, $9 advance, $10 door, all ages, with The Enhancements and 2face4
Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.
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