History
YSIG began first as punk band School Jackets. Formed in the spring of 1997 by the four members of Nuts & Milk along with former Fruity frontman Jun "JxJx" Saito, the band pioneered a raw, frantic blend of thrash, funk, punk, ska and soul. Saito said that he had wanted to create a blend of The Jackson 5 and Charles Bronson. Most songs remained under 1 minute - most under 30 seconds. Despite increasing popularity, the band decided to call it quits and reinvent themselves.
From School Jackets' ashes, Your Song Is Good was born in 1998 with all of the same members intact. They initially took to a melodic hardcore direction influenced by late 1980s DC bands such as Dag Nasty and early 1990s emo . But this again was short-lived and they quickly left this sound behind to reinvent themselves once more as an instrumental post-rock band. Exploring the instrumental form, it was from this state that the band would grow into what they are today. Ska influences from their previous bands - in particular The Specials - would soon resurface and a trombone player (Hattori) would be added to the fold. As their musical goals came into focus, they came to the realization that they may not be ready to play what they heard in their heads. It was at this time that the band went seemingly quiet.
After an extended period of intense practice and honing an entirely new musical direction, Your Song is Good re-emerged. Combining elements from ska, soul, funk and calypso, they distilled their punk energy into a refined and uniquely Japanese sense of melody. Your Song is Good was now a tight and polished dance machine.
Their first properly recorded effort was released in 2002 as a 7-inch EP called "Big Stomach, Big Mouth". This would also serve as the first record on their new label, Kakuba Rhythm. It would prove to be the first crucial step for a band - as well as a label - whose popularity would grow exponentially in the following years.
Fishbone is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1979, the band plays a fusion of ska, punk, funk, metal, reggae, and soul. AllMusic has described the group as "one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the late '80s. With their hyperactive, self-conscious diversity, goofy sense of humor, and sharp social commentary, the group gained a sizable cult following".
Goldfinger is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1994. In their early years the band was considered a contributor to the movement of third-wave ska, a mid-1990s revitalization in the popularity of ska. However, the releases of Open Your Eyes and Disconnection Notice saw the band shed most of the ska influence, and they have been more commonly placed in the punk rock genre in later years.
Ska punk is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music. Ska punk tends to feature brass instruments, especially horns such as trumpets, trombones and woodwind instruments like saxophones, making the genre distinct from other forms of punk rock. It is closely tied to third wave ska which reached its zenith in the mid-1990s.
The Toasters are one of the original American third wave of ska bands. Founded in New York City in 1981, the band has released nine studio albums, primarily through Moon Ska Records.
Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainesville, Florida, formed in 1992. The band consists of Chris DeMakes, Roger Lima, Matt Yonker (drums), Buddy Schaub (trombone), and Peter "JR" Wasilewski (saxophone).
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.
Spouge is a style of Barbadian popular music created by Jackie Opel in the 1960s. It is primarily a fusion of Jamaican ska with Trinidadian calypso, but is also influenced by a wide variety of musics from the British Isles and United States, including sea shanties, hymns, and spirituals. Spouge instrumentation originally consisted of cowbell, bass guitar, trap set, and various other electronic and percussion instruments, later augmented by saxophone, trombone, and trumpets. Of these, the cowbell and the guitar are widely seen as the most integral part of the instrumentation, and are said to reflect the African origin of much of Barbadian music.
People from the Caribbean have made significant contributions to British Black music for many generations.
Roger Charlery, known professionally as Ranking Roger, was an English musician. He was a vocalist in the 1980s ska band the Beat and later new wave band General Public. He subsequently was the frontman for a reformed Beat lineup.
Versus is an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 1990 by vocalist and guitarist Richard Baluyut, bassist Fontaine Toups and drummer Edward Baluyut. Richard Baluyut and Toups remained the two core members throughout the band's history. The band was noted for their marriage of indie pop songwriting and vocal harmonies to the "loud-soft" dynamics of grunge and alternative rock. They were also noted for their proficient and disciplined musicianship and for their credo of "meat, sports, and rock", none of which had much currency in the early 1990s American indie scene. The band was named after the Mission of Burma album Vs.
Byron Lee and the Dragonaires are a Jamaican ska, calypso and soca band. The band played a crucial pioneering role in bringing Caribbean music to the world. Byron Lee died on 4 November 2008, after suffering from cancer for a sustained period.
Beat Crusaders were a Japanese rock band active from 1997 to 2010. During all promotional appearances, their faces are masked by drawings resembling themselves as printed by a dot-matrix printer.
"Wooly Bully" is a song originally recorded by rock and roll band Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs in 1964. Based on a standard 12-bar blues progression, it was written by the band's frontman, Domingo "Sam" Samudio. It was released as a single on the small Memphis-based XL label (#906) in 1964 and was picked up in 1965 by MGM. The song was recorded at Sam C. Phillips Recording Studio at 639 Madison Avenue in Memphis, the successor to Phillips' original Sun Studio. It proved to be the only recording made at the studio to achieve national success.
Howards Alias were a band in the turn-of-the-millennium UK underground punk scene. They formed in 1999 in Southampton, England, and blended an eclectic mix of rock, progressive, punk and ska influences into their own musical output. They permanently disbanded in April 2008.
"Sweets for My Sweet" is a song written by the songwriting team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, originally recorded by American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal group the Drifters.
"Shame and Scandal in the Family", also known as "Shame & Scandal" for short, is a song written by calypso singer Sir Lancelot for the movie I Walked with a Zombie in 1943 and originally titled "Fort Holland Calypso Song". Sir Lancelot issued his recording of it in the late 1940s. The Sir Lancelot version was covered by folksingers Odetta and Burl Ives. In 1962, Trinidadian calypsonian Lord Melody wrote new lyrics for the verses while keeping the melody and the chorus. The Historical Museum of Southern Florida said of Lord Melody's version, “No calypso has been more extensively recorded.”
Wha'ppen? is the second studio album by British ska band the Beat, released in 1981 via Go-Feet Records in the United Kingdom and Sire Records in the United States. After the critical and commercial success of I Just Can't Stop It (1980), which mixed ska, reggae and punk rock with social lyrics, the band changed direction on Wha'ppen?, taking influence from many other musical styles which were intriguing the band, including African, steel band and dub music, while keeping reggae at its core. The fast pace of the band's previous work is also exchanged for a slower, mid-tempo pace. Accompanying the music is the socially conscious and political lyrics. The band recorded the record at Roundhouse Studios with producer Bob Sargeant.
Yasuhiko Fukuda is a Japanese composer and keyboardist.
"Settle Down" is a song by American rock band No Doubt. It is the first single from their sixth studio album Push and Shove (2012). Written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont, and produced by Spike Stent, it was released on July 16, 2012 by Interscope Records. The song is a combination of many styles, such as reggae, ska, dancehall, Latin and Caribbean-tinged beats, merging with American pop and rock music. Lyrically, the song is about confidence and about feeling good, adjusting yourself to unfamiliar circumstances.
"New Season" is the debut single by Japanese singer Chisato Moritaka. Written by HIRO and Hideo Saitō, the single was released by Warner Pioneer on March 25, 1987. The song was used as the theme song of the 1987 Toho film Aitsu ni Koishite, which also featured Moritaka's acting debut. It was also featured in the Fuji TV drama special Gakuen Jōhōbu H.I.P., also starring Moritaka.
