54. Sugar Ray (w/ Eichlers)
Is Sugar Ray Ska? In order to answer this earth shattering question, CPSC welcomes back thirdtimer, and HyperSka Superstar, Eichlers! But first, Ike catches the crew up on his last year, his tour of Japan and what new music he's listening to. Then, Rob, Celine, Engineer Joey and Ike dig in on the entirety of Sugar Ray's career with a focus on the larger than life exploits of lead singer and bon vivant, Mark McGrath. You might say... the story is unbelievable.
Eichlers
If you’ve been following me and BTR for a while you know that I’m a lifelong ska fan, musician, and appreciator of the genre in all its many forms. Not to over hyperbolize, but me listening to Eichlers for the first time was what I imagine it’s like for a chemist discovering a new element... for the first time in a long time I was hearing something truly original in the ska universe. It was familiar enough to fall under our ska umbrella but in an entirely different way than I imagined it could be done. In the same way that I love brutal, heavy, and weird skacore on one end of the “alternative” ska spectrum, Eichlers seemed to be balancing this out on the complete opposite side with dreamy pop sensibilities, triggered drums and hi-hats, and aesthetic-driven auto-tune. And to my own surprise, I found myself loving it just as much.
I started asking around about Eichlers, and it turned out that while his music was brand new to the scene… the person behind it, Russ Wood, was definitely not. Almost every band and Bay Area music person I talked to had a connection to Russ, whether it be from his days of playing guitar in a touring emo band, interning at Asian Man Records, or just being in the crowd at 924 Gilman st. When I had the pleasure of meeting Russ I understood why he had accrued so much good faith from the scene… he’s down to earth, funny, humble, and absolutely with his whole heart loves the DIY music community. Any single conversation with him about ska reveals that he is also a lifelong fan and student of the genre, having been raised on two-tone by his parents, molded by the 3rd wave ska-boom, and nurtured by local ska scenes in the Bay Area and Salt Lake City. We got along instantly, and exactly 5 seconds into hearing track 1 of the new album he was making, I knew I wanted to help bring this record to the world.
“My Checkered Future” is a poppy, emo, electronic adventure through Russ Wood’s brain, all connected by a through line of ska upbeats and rhythms. There are trap beats, intricate flowy guitar licks (Russ IMO is an extremely under-rated guitar player), insanely catchy hooks, lyrics that will make you feel the heartache, and lyrics that will make you straight up laugh and smile. The double meanings and Easter eggs hidden in Russ’ words are one of my favorite parts about this record, and are one of the things that will keep the casual ska fan anchored as they wade through what might be a new experience in the world of Hyperpop.
The kind of music Eichlers is making is exactly what ska needs to keep growing and evolving. We need to keep reassessing what’s possible, what other genres and communities can mix with our own, and how we can avoid stagnating and burning out like some of our predecessors. Ska doesn’t need to be played one way, and without experimentation it would have none of the varied history we’ve all come to love.
-From Bad Time Records
