Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 04/01/2003
Before
No Doubt made
ska suitable for new millennium
pop kids,
Fishbone was first to mess things up with its
reggae-tinged,
punk-inspired rambunctious
rock sound. This Los Angeles-based six-piece spent the 1980s composing a healthy, funkdafied beat that was part
metal and part
pop. The college scene found the band highly amusing years later, not to mention an infectious live act, so naturally
Fishbone cemented a place in what would become "
alternative rock" in the decade to come.
The Essential Fishbone is a look back at band's rowdy
rock party, a definitive selection of classics for the casual fan, but also a decent collection for
Fishbone loyalists. Early hits
"Party at Ground Zero" and
"Skankin' to the Beat" -- rooted in
Fishbone's signature frantic
ska -- are featured, as well as the bass-driven staple
"When Problems Arise." Other highlights consist of
"Freddie's Dead" and
"Bonin' in the Boneyard," but fans will be pleased with the chosen cuts from 1991's stunning release
The Reality of My Surroundings. Everything after that, with the exception of
"Unyielding Condition" and
"Lemon Meringue" from 1993's lackluster
Give a Monkey a Brain and He'll Swear He's the Center of the Universe, is ignored. That's OK though, for
The Essential Fishbone is solid enough to last without the oddly
experimental moments made on
Chim Chim's Badass Revenge (1996) and
The Psychotic Friends Nuttwerx (2000).
~MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide
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