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Westbound Train | |
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Origin | Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Genres | Ska, Reggae, Soul |
Years active | 2001–present |
Labels | Megalith Records Stomp Records Hellcat Records |
Members | Obi Fernandez Rich Graiko Gideon Blumenthal Thaddeus Merrit Eric Novod Luke Penella Alex Stern Alex Brumel |
Past members | Josh Cohen Jesse Hayes Michael Freeman Jeff Pierce Chaz Calvo Chris Brunnelle Henrik Holmlund Tom Roslak John DeCarlo |
Website | Westboundtrain.net |
Westbound Train is a ska band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 2001. [1] Their name originates from the Dennis Brown hit song by the same name.
Westbound Train released their first album, Searching for A Melody , in 2002. [1] The band self-released their second album, Five to Two, in 2005, which featured guest appearances from Alex Desert of Hepcat and King Django. The album was re-released by Stomp Records on March 14, 2006.
Westbound Train were featured on the Hellcat Records compilation Give 'Em the Boot IV in November 2004. In January 2006, Hellcat announced that they had signed the band. A third full-length, titled Transitions, was released in September 2006. [2]
Westbound Train played the Summer of Ska tour in the summer of 2006, along with Suburban Legends, Big D and the Kids Table, Voodoo Glow Skulls, and Catch 22. Westbound Train also played the Fall of Ska tour in the fall of 2006, along with Reel Big Fish, Streetlight Manifesto, and Suburban Legends.
Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, former members of the band Operation Ivy, Rancid is often credited as being among the wave of bands that revived mainstream interest in punk rock in the United States during the mid-1990s. Over their 32-year career, Rancid retained much of its original fan-base, most of which was connected to its underground musical roots.
Timothy Ross Armstrong is an American musician, singer, songwriter and producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup Transplants. Prior to forming Rancid, Armstrong was in the ska punk band Operation Ivy.
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The Slackers are an American ska band, formed in Manhattan, New York in 1991. The band's sound is a mix of ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub, soul, garage rock, and jazz. The Slackers' notability is credited to their prolific career, tours of North America, Europe, and elsewhere, and signing to notable punk label Hellcat Records.
Choking Victim was an American punk band formed in New York City, which lasted from 1992 to 1998. They played a mix of hardcore punk and ska. Following the breakup of the band, which occurred the same day as the recording of their only studio album No Gods, No Managers, members went on to form Leftöver Crack and INDK, among others.
Leftöver Crack is an American punk rock band formed in 1998, following the breakup of Choking Victim. The band is currently signed to Tankcrimes for CD releases, and Alternative Tentacles for vinyl releases. Leftöver Crack spans several different music genres including hardcore punk, ska, and crust punk. They write mostly political lyrics of a radical leftist nature, opposing religion, capitalism, and authority. Members of Leftöver Crack reside in the C-Squat on 155 Avenue C in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City. Natives of New York City, band members have a well-documented history of back-and-forth conflict with the NYPD which precedes the band's formation. The name "Leftöver Crack" is explained by Stza as being "an oxymoron", based on the idea that crack cocaine addicts are known for vigorous use and are unlikely to have any "leftover" crack.
Voodoo Glow Skulls are an American ska punk band formed in 1988 in Riverside, California, by brothers Frank, Eddie, and Jorge Casillas and their longtime friend Jerry O'Neill. Voodoo Glow Skulls first played at backyard parties and later at Spanky's Café in their hometown of Riverside, where they played shows with the Angry Samoans, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Firehose, Murphy's Law, and The Dickies.
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Suburban Legends are an American ska punk band that formed in Huntington Beach, California, in 1998 and later based themselves in nearby Santa Ana. After building a fanbase in the Orange County ska scene through their numerous regular performances at the Disneyland Resort, a series of lineup changes in 2005 introduced elements of funk and disco into the group's style.
F-Minus was an American hardcore punk band formed in 1995 in Huntington Beach, California, United States, started by Jen Johnson and Brad Logan. F-Minus was known for their dueling male and female vocals in songs that were sometimes as short as 12 seconds. Before breaking up in 2004, their last album was recorded by Steve Albini. Throughout their career, they covered such bands as Antidote, Black Randy and the Metro Squad, 7 Seconds, Negative Approach, and Agnostic Front. Brad Logan currently runs his own record label Blacknoise, and is also member of the New York band Leftöver Crack. Jen Johnson currently is the designer and owner of clothing label E.C. Star, and also is a member of the California band Ammunition Affair.
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Scott Sturgeon, also known as Stza Crack or simply Stza, is an American musician and artist who has fronted several ska-punk bands in the New York City area, the best known being Choking Victim and Leftöver Crack. The stage name Stza is a tribute to the Wu-Tang Clan, members of which would take their stage names from the Supreme Alphabet of the Five-Percent Nation, such as GZA and RZA - Stza's name would therefore be Self Truth ZigZagZig Allah.
King Django is an American bandleader, singer, songwriter, arranger, engineer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, especially in the genres of ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub, dancehall, rhythm & blues and soul. Other influences in his music have included traditional jazz, swing, klezmer, hardcore/punk rock, hip-hop and electronica.
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The Aggrolites are an American reggae band from Los Angeles, California, United States, which formed in 2002.
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