Huntington Beach, CA · ska-punk

Reel Big Fish

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Third-wave ska's most reliable good time — horns, self-deprecation, and a set list that knows exactly what it is, 'Sell Out' forever.

Reel Big Fish formed while its members were still in high school in Huntington Beach, California, starting out as a cover band before releasing a 1992 demo. After original singer Ben Guzman departed, Aaron Barrett, then on backing vocals, took over as frontman, and the band shifted its sound toward ska.

The band became one of the defining acts of third-wave ska, the horn-driven, punk-inflected style that broke into the American mainstream in the mid-1990s. Barrett has fronted the group throughout, pairing upstroke guitar and a full horn section with lyrics that swing between self-mockery, romance and grievance.

A self-released debut, Everything Sucks, spread by word of mouth and led to a deal with Mojo Records. The resulting album, Turn the Radio Off (1996), went gold on the strength of "Sell Out", a satire of major-label ambition that became an MTV and radio staple; the band also appeared performing in the crowd scenes of the film BASEketball and covered a-ha's "Take On Me" for its soundtrack.

The ska wave faded quickly, and 1998's Why Do They Rock So Hard? sold poorly by comparison, coinciding with a trombonist's firing and a drummer's departure. The band lost its mainstream footing but built a durable cult following, and has operated independently since 2006.

Lineups have turned over considerably since, with Barrett the only constant, but the band has toured near continuously for three decades. Its live show still runs on fast tempos, between-song banter and a crowd that knows the catalogue by heart.

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ska-punk