Syracuse Ska Forum

The Toasters are great for many reasons but I was just thinking about a few aspects of their sound. One thing is that their lower end, and I'm talking about the drums and bass, simply don't overplay. They always lay down the appropriate foundation for the song. Their current drummer is one of the best musicians in the scene IMO, most of his beats are steady and danceable with minimal fills. If you pay attention he adds incredible subtlies each song, mostly on the high- hat but nothing attention grabbing. And their bass player, whoever it happens to be, always locks his bass lines to perfectly complement the drum beats. younger musicians should take note of the toasters rhythm section when given the chance, it's a golden opportunity to sit down, take notes (right...) and absorb a lesson on how to get people to dance to your band, if that's what you desire. many younger drummers feel the need to play flamboyant beats, but there's really no need when a simple straight-up rhythm adds fuel to the fire. and ska bass players need to think about the foundation first, you can't build shit without this or everything will collapse. Now if we're talking about the traditional ska backbone, this is similar too, however, a slightly different subject.
So if you like the Toasters, why are they so dope????

Too many bands now days (and in the past) try to have flashy drummers and bass players that play all over the neck. More drums or bass strings doesn't make a good band. Musicians that know what to do with what they've got does.

EVERY great reggae,ska, & dub band has a rock solid drummer and bass player who can groove and lead the rest of the band. No exceptions.

speaking of sweet bassists, listen to the bassist from the specials, just block everything else out and listen to the bass- especially in concrete jungle after the breaking glass sound and in little bitch, oh and i guess every other song too


go and be amazed



end transmission


pete

My favorite part about the Toasters is the guy on stage that gets smasherd, hits on girls, and occasionally chimes on choruses, but that is considered to be the least of his duties

and even better, he's front and center stage, the biggest attraction, so everyone that's seen them live and thinks of the toasters, instantly thinks of him.

I tried to tell my parents that would be my ideal job, but they didnt take it well

You mean the toaster?


I don't know, man. Yeah, they're tight & talented, but their shows (or, for that matter, CDs) have never done that much for me. I've seen them a mess of times, and they've never made a lasting impression on me. So I don't feel at all bad any more missing them.

And if you think their back end is good, you should check out old Skatalites records, among many many others. Lloyd Knibbs & Lloyd Brevett = awesome.

thats what he's called? the toaster? i always called him "the drunk"

Well, he's a toaster - which is a Jamaican name for what has now become known as a rapper. So, yeah. And I'm not sure if it's still the same guy, but their toaster used to be Jack Ruby Jr., who was the son of a fairly well known toaster himself.

Jack ruby was a record producer and sound system owner. dunno about a toaster.

http://www.reggae-reviews.com/jackruby.html

Oh yeah, I'm fairly sure that that's right - my mistake. It's been an awfully long time since I've thought about either one of them.

Whoever mentions the skatalites rhythm duo aint joking, it's something to actually see them live.

Coolie Ranx toasted for them for a while didnt he?

Coolie did indeed toast for the Toasters for a while back in the Dub 56 days...


...Back when the toasters put out good albums.

my favorite part about toasters is how well they warm up pop tarts, as well as the occasional bagel.

Care to elaborate?

'Nite Klub' has one of my favorite bass lines of all time. It rocks.