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Real Big Fish Interview by Emilee Petersmark |
No one is safe from the powerhouse of Third Wave Ska, Reel Big Fish. Even after over a decade of tours, six studio albums, numerous member changes and label switching, Reel Big Fish remains an unstoppable force and maintains their place as one of the biggest names in the genre of ska. Founded in 1992 by frontman Aaron Barrett, the Los Angeles-based ska/punk band has been going strong ever since, pioneering the Third Wave and combating the modern stigma surrounding contemporary mainstream music with a conglomeration of fantastic musicianship, a brass section powerful enough to destroy entire cities, tongue-in-cheek lyrics, and all-around face-melting awesomeness.
The six piece symphony of ska had been an underground hit in the early 90’s, eventually experiencing a taste of mainstream fame with the songs “Sellout” and “Where Have You Been?” At the height of the Third Wave, they’d also been featured in the movie BASEketball playing “Beer” and a cover of A-ha’s “Take On Me.” The band now continues its legacy by producing music on their own label and playing shows with other giants of the genre, such as Less Than Jake, Streetlight Manifesto, and Catch-22, proving that Ska is most certainly not dead.
Coming off of Warped Tour, Reel Big Fish has announced dates for a Western Hemisphere tour, with many shows in Canada and South America to promote their newest album, Monkeys for Nothin’ and the Chimps for Free.
Amid the manic insanity backstage and behind the scenes of Warped Tour ’08, Wide-Eyed’s Emilee Petersmark caught a few words with Aaron Barrett and second-in-command, Scott Klopfenstein, before their set to discuss the deeper workings of the band, the development of their genre, and Gwen Stefani’s harajuku girls.
Wide-Eyed: You guys have been around for about fifteen years — what was it that made you want to get involved in music?
Scott Klopfenstein: Oh, that’s easy.
Aaron Barrett: I just love music. I love music so much that it wasn’t enough to just to listen to it and to watch bands play. I wanted to do it, too, and make more music. I don’t know, I just needed to play it, I needed to make music. I couldn’t just listen.
SK: Ditto!
WE: Where and when did you first hear ska music and what was it about it that made you want to play that music specifically?
AB: Well, for me, growing up in the 80’s I heard a lot of ska music on the radio. You’d hear Madness and you’d hear The English Beat and stuff, and I didn’t really realize that there was a thing called “ska” until much later. And then I went back and I was like, “oh man, I’ve been listening to ska this whole time!” And also, just being in the Orange County scene — I just started going to shows and they just happened to all be ska shows. And any weekend you’d go see No Doubt or Sublime and all these rad bands so it was kind of unavoidable for me.
SK: Yeah, pretty much. Ditto!
AB: (points to Scott) And this little kid, in school he played the horn, so the ska bands grabbed him up.
SK: You’ve got to play ska.
AB: Yeah. It’s the best.
SK: I had started listening, but once again, I had no idea that it was called anything, but, you know, you hear it on the radio. And then a friend of mine in seventh grade gave me the very first Fishbone album and I was like, “This is AMAZING! This is, like, the greatest thing I’ve ever heard of.”
AB: Best four songs I’ve ever heard.
SK: Yeah. Six. Six songs.
AB: Oh, I don’t listen to those other ones. I skip “Modern Industry” and, uh… what’s that other one?
SK: (shrugs exaggeratedly).
WE: So is it hard writing music for a band with six players, including an entire brass section? How do you guys do it?
AB: Ever since I’ve been writing songs it’s been for a lot of people. It’s kind of what I’ve always done, so it doesn’t seem hard to me. It just seems like if it was only a guitar, bass, and drums it wouldn’t be enough. Like, “We need more stuff on top of this,” you know?
SK: It’s like painting… you get more colors, and you get to make it a little more interesting. You can add movement and texture in different ways.
WE: Then do brass players write their own parts?
AB: It depends on the song, who writes what and how it unfolds. It’s different every time.
SK: We all kind of partake on the arrangement, though, of like harmonies and counter-melodies. Stuff like that.
WE: Where does your inspiration come from? Are there any particularly weird, tragic, or funny stories that have become Reel Big Fish songs?
AB: Yeah, I mean, we just kind of write about life sometimes, write about funny stuff sometimes. It just depends on what’s going on, and whether we feel like talking about what’s going on or just making up some funny story or some random thing or just doing complete nonsense.
WE: Well, you guys have a fantastic fan-base…
AB: Yeah, we do, absolutely!
WE: What’s the weirdest thing a fan has ever said to you or done at a show?
SK: There was a guy a couple of days ago, and I don’t know, this struck me as probably one of the funniest things I’ve personally ever heard. He was standing there at the signing and he’s like, “Wow! I can’t believe I’m here! It’s like seeing Bigfoot!” {Laughs} I thought that was awesome. Comparing us to Bigfoot.
WE: Well, do you believe in Bigfoot?
SK: You know, I don’t know. Could be out there.
AB: I don’t not believe in Bigfoot.
WE: So, do you guys have any advice of the legions of ska bands and unsigned hopefuls looking to make it big in the ska world?
AB: Well, I guess don’t worry about making it big and don’t worry about trying to get a record deal to validate yourself as a band. Just keep making the music that you love and just keep playing. Get out there and play in front of people as much as you can. Always have music available.
SK: Yeah. Always try to push the art form forward. Learn more-- as much as you can-- about ska music and where it’s been and where it could possibly go. See what other people have done with it.
AB: But also, don’t just copy the bands that came before you.
SK: Venture out of the ska world to see where you can draw influence from other things as well.
AB: Yeah, I think that’s what has helped us out the most. We listen to all kinds of music and we don’t only listen to ska. A lot of bands do that. They start up, like, “we love Reel Big Fish so we want to be Reel Big Fish, and we’ll only listen to Reel Big Fish.” And you can’t do that.
SK: You know, think about it… The Police were a punk rock band that was heavily influenced by ska and reggae. So we need to be ska and reggae bands that are heavily influenced by other things.
WE: Are there any particular bands that aren’t ska that really influence you guys?
SK: {Laughs} Yeah, like a bajillion.
AK: Bajillions. I don’t even know where to start.
SK: You name it… it has probably been an influence in one way or another.
WE: Are there any bands that you haven’t toured with that you’d like to?
AB: I’d like to be on that No Doubt comeback tour.
SK: That’d be awesome.
AB: I’d like to go on tour with Rancid… we played one show with them, but I’d like to tour with them, too.
SK: Yeah, that’d be fun too.
WE: No Doubt, huh? How do you feel about Gwen Stefani’s harajuku girls?
AB: That’s kind of weird, don’t you think?
SK: They’re cute, though.
AB: It’s an interesting gimmick, I guess.
SK: I hope she’s nice to them.
WE: Seems a little shady to me. Like fancy slavery.
AB: {laughs}
SK: I bet they’re treated pretty well though. They get to tour around, probably get paid for it, and they get to wear wacky clothes.
AB: Are they really from Japan?
SK: I don’t know. I don’t know much about it.
AB: Are they really harajuku girls? I mean, are they authentic?
SK: I don’t know. I don’t know much about it.
WE: So, what’s your favorite thing about being on tour?
AB: Well, the Warped Tour is different from all the other tours.
SK: Yes, yes… it’s outside, it’s hot, you only play a half hour…
AB: It’s all day. But, I think that’s what makes it fun. There’s always something to do.
SK: Keeps you busy.
AB: On a normal tour you just sort of wait around until 10 o’clock at night.
SK: The best part about any tour, though, is definitely playing music every day, or as many times as you can.
AB: That’s the best part of my life. I get to play music. All. The. Time.
WE: What do you miss from home when you’re touring?
AB: My dog.
SK: My wife.
AB: My dog’s wife.
