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Revision as of 13:08, 6 April 2006
| Reel Big Fish | |
|---|---|
| Members | Aaron Barrett Scott Klopfenstein Matt Wong Dan Regan Ryland Steen John Christianson |
Reel Big Fish ("RBF") is a southern California ska punk band who broke into the mainstream in the mid to late 1990s after the success of No Doubt and Sublime. Reel Big Fish are now more well-known, but not quite mainstream in the USA and Europe. Reel Big Fish has previously engendered criticism from some ska fans who claim it is merely a pop band riding the coat-tails of ska's '90s popularity. However in more recent times this opinion has become less popular, due largely in part to Aaron Barrett's side project The Forces of Evil, through which he hoped to breathe life back into the fading ska-punk scene. Although not entirely successful this endeavour did serve to highlight the band members' belief in, and love for their genre.
Members
- Aaron Barrett - vocals and lead guitar
- Dan Regan - trombone, and vocals
- Ryland Steen - drums
- Matt Wong - bass guitar, and vocals
- Scott Klopfenstein - trumpet, guitar, piano, and vocals
- John Christianson - trumpet, and vocals
Former members
- Ben Guzman - vocals
- Robert Quimby - trombone
- Adam Polakoff - saxophone
- Andrew Gonzales - drums
- Grant Barry - trombone
- Tavis Werts - trumpet
- Carlos de la Garza - drums
- Tyler Jones - trumpet
- Justin Ferreira - drums
Band history
Their debut album, Everything Sucks, was an underground hit and led to a deal with Mojo Records, an indie label. Turn the Radio Off established the band in the underground music scene, and they began touring throughout the US. After the single "Sell Out" began breaking into the mainstream, including MTV, the album made an appearance on the charts. The ska revival was short-lived, however, and Why Do They Rock So Hard? (1998) did not lead the group to the mainstream.
Why Do They Rock So Hard was the last album for three members of RBF: trombonist Grant Barry and trumpet player Tavis Werts were either fired or left the band voluntarily, depending on the source, while drummer Andrew Gonzales left the band to spend more time with family. Electing to replace only Werts and Gonzales, RBF opened the door for a rotating cast of drummers and trumpets over the next six years.
In 2002 the group released Cheer Up, which fared much better on the rock charts, particularly because of the horn-less single "Where Have You Been". Former Suburban Rhythm drummer Carlos de la Garza helmed the drum kit, while Tyler Jones took over lead trumpet duties (Jones actually played only two tracks on Cheer Up, as Werts had already done the majority of recording before his departure). De la Garza would leave the band to pursue other career paths, with his last show on June 20, 2003 at the House of Blues in Anaheim. That show was later released on DVD (The Show Must Go Off). Jones was then fired in August 2004. After a succession of fill-ins (at one point, Barrett claimed online that Werts and Barry had rejoined the band and left again without playing a single show), the band settled on John Christianson (a.k.a John Evil) on trumpet and Ryland Steen on drums. On April 5, 2005, Reel Big Fish released their fourth album on Mojo Records, titled We're Not Happy 'Til You're Not Happy.
Well-known for their cover songs, RBF have been known to cover such songs as the Cure's "Boys Don't Cry" , Reggae Classic Talkin' Bout a Revolution and "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town" live. They have even recorded a cover version of "It's Not Easy" from the Disney film "Pete's Dragon" for a Japanese Disney rock tribute album called "Mosh Pit on Disney." They have appeared on many film soundtracks, most notably that of BASEketball with their cover of A-ha's 1985 hit single "Take on Me" (as well as performing their single "Beer" in the movie itself), and The Wild Thornberrys Movie soundtrack with a cover of Toots & the Maytals "Monkey Man".
In 2005 Reel Big Fish guest starred in an episode of the online cartoon Waterman. They played their song A-W-E-S-O-M-E with Waterman, Pal, Roybot, and the others rocking out in the background.
In early 2006, Reel Big Fish parted ways with Jive Records. Though currently unsigned, they hope to return to an independent label as well as their DIY roots.
Discography
Albums
- Everything Sucks (1995, reissued in 2000)
- Turn the Radio Off (1996)
- Why Do They Rock So Hard? (1998)
- Viva La Internet/ Blank CD (2001)
- Favorite Noise (2002) - Europe only
- Cheer Up (2002)
- We're Not Happy 'Til You're Not Happy (2005)
EPs
- Keep Your Receipt EP (1997)
7" vinyl records
- "Vacationing In Palm Springs"
- "Teen Beef"
Compilations
- Dead Bands Party: A Tribute to Oingo Boingo - Track 5, "We Close Our Eyes" (2005)
- Take Warning: A Tribute to Operation Ivy - Track 2, "Unity"
- The Duran Duran Tribute Album - Track 6, "Hungry Like the Wolf"
- Baseketball Original Sountrack - Track 1, "Take on Me", Track 10 "Beer"
- Where is My Mind? - A Tribute to the Pixies - Track 9, "Gigantic" (1999)
- The Wild Thornberrys Soundtrack - Track 9, "Monkey Man"
- Metalliska - Track 3, "Kiss Me Deadly"
Band members' other projects
Scott Klopfenstein and Dan Regan are also members of The Littlest Man Band. Aaron Barrett and John Christianson are also members of The Forces of Evil (now defunct), along with former members of Jeffries Fan Club and other Orange County ska musicians. Before they were members of Reel Big Fish, Aaron Barrett, Scott Klopfenstein, and Grant Barry were members of a band called The Scholars. Scott Klopfenstein was also a member of a ska band called the Nuckle Brothers.