A bunch of cool ska bands have come together on a compilation album that raises money to help those affected by the 2023 Hawaii wildfires, Black Sand Relief – A Benefit for Michelle Ska and The People of Maui. The announcement reads:
Michelle is a resident of Lahaina and was able to escape the flames with a car and the clothes on her back. Her home and the school where she worked as a special educator were completely destroyed. The goal is to not only help Michelle, but the Maui community as a whole. Half of the proceeds will go to a local Maui charity. The ska focused comp was put together by group a of friends, musicians, and others with deep ties to both Michelle and the Ska/Punk community. Led by Jeff Loddo, a long time friend of Michelle’s; with huge assistance from Matt Flood of Asbestos Records, Sammy Kay and Joe Gittleman of The Kilograms, and Chris Malone of The Pandemics.
The comp features songs by The Slackers, Westbound Train, Pilfers, The Porkers, Rude Girl Revue, Bite Me Bambi, Hub City Stompers, and more, and it also features two new bands made up of ska veterans: The Kilograms and Barbicide.
The Kilograms is the new project of Joe Gittleman (of the now-defunct Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Avoid One Thing, who’s also been doing solo work lately) and Sammy Kay, and their contribution is their first-ever song, a soulful, vintage-style ska song called “Who Am I.”
Barbicide is the new project of Brendan Tween and Mikal Reich, founding members of Satanic ska legends Mephiskapheles, with Irena Hyena, (Crackersnatch) on bass/vocals and original Mephiskapheles horn players Al McCabe and Osho “Hollywood” Endo. Their debut album Songs About Heartbreak and Nazis comes out next week (10/13), with contributions from Aggrolites organist Roger Rivas and veteran trombonist Buford O’Sullivan (Skatalites, Scofflaws, etc). Its eponymous lead single is on the comp, and it finds them in driving ska-punk territory.
Check out the video for the Barbicide song and stream the full comp below…
Tracklist
1. The Pandemics – Reset Reject Repeat 03:24
2. Some Ska Band – Keep On Moving 02:40
3. The Kilograms – Who Am I 02:33
4. Los Mal Hablados – Give It Up 04:45
5. Westbound Train – We All Need Rescue (Relic Room Version) 04:42
6. The Resignators – Finale 03:19
7. The Maxies – Racist Grandma 02:57
8. Pilfers – Conscience Never Bother Them 02:50
9. Hub City Stompers – Wild One 02:38
10. The Slackers – Come Back Baby (Reggae Version) 04:10
11. The Porkers – Beer Garden 02:54
12. Ava Kash – No Show 02:55
13. Rude Girl Revue – Unruly Ways 03:57
14. Coolie Ranx – Incredible Dub 04:17
15. Blame Sydney – Just Stand Still 03:48
16. Eastern Standard Time – Hobowein 02:16
17. Bite Me Bambi – Let Me Love You 04:27
18. Barbicide – Barbicide 02:54
19. Rudie Crew – Maui Fyah Dub 05:26