It’s pleased me that there’s recently been a gamut of quality ska music from these fair shores, from $up’s frantic skacore madness to Sonic Boom Six‘s eclectic genius and Duff Muffin‘s sheer brilliance. As such there’s a palpable sense of the bar being raised in terms of new bands, as the ska scene struggles to wrest back some credibility after the explosion a couple of years ago. Workin’ Lunch display their ska credentials with this diverse release, spanning the whole range of the genre from a swing-orientated Cherry Poppin’ Daddies sound right through to the contrasted aggressiveness of a more ska punk clatter.
‘Jaxx Can Burn’ is pure Sublime with a real groove to it that’s pounded through by the catchy bassline. It’s the most confident track on the CD, as it moves fluidly from brooding off-beats to a full-on punk rock ‘let’s see how fast we can play without falling out of time’ fest, and as such it’s a fantastic indicator of Workin’ Lunch’s talents in crafting catchy songs. ‘VS’ adds a reggae tinge to proceedings as the keys take the lead in creating the summery melodies that is augmented no end by the playful bass and guitar – it does descend slightly into over-indulgence as the protracted jam takes hold but it’s easily redeemed by the fantastically laid-back final chorus. You can feel the influence of the Mad Caddies on these slower tracks, but without the country edge that characterised the Caddies’ latest offering, but it stays right on the boundary between homage, rip off and inspiration.
There’s more energy to ‘Subtle Jealousy’ but the horn lines are somewhat uninspired in comparison to the danceable rhythm section and that’s perhaps where Workin’ Lunch come undone. It’s indubitable that they’re a vastly talented ska band, but it feels like the brass isn’t working hard enough on ‘You Think You Know Someone’. It’s not like they’re not playing interesting lines, it’s just that they’re overshadowed by the melodies of the guitar and vocals – horns should always soar and augment the guitar but here they tend to meander about without really kicking off. There’s evidence on ‘Jaxx…’ and ‘VS’ of the brass really coming into their own, with innovative and catchy harmonies but for half of the CD they seem to be more and more superfluous.
I haven’t mentioned the opening track ‘Losing’ because it sounds like a watered-down version of ska that does the band no favours. It’s totally out of register with the rest of the EP, which is generally a very promising demo and shows a hell of a lot of potential for the band. There’s definitely a very strong bedrock of talent and ideas here but at times the execution is just a touch sloppy.
Ben
www.workinlunch.com