EP: New Riot

As far as ska punk goes, you won’t find too many bands like New Riot. This brass pumping, punk rock roller coaster has certainly had an interesting journey building up to the release of their new EP, “Raising The Stakes”. After touring with ska punk legends Reel Big Fish, the band shifted numerous copies of their more ska punk rooted material and devised a new plan; to create an EP which combines pop punk and ska punk in a manner to tickle the taste buds of a wider range of fans.

The outlandish opener “Land of Opportunity” echoes the likes of Kids Can’t Fly, which is no doubt due to the not so recent addition of talented trombone player and vocalist Ryan Stanikk who used to co-front the band. I’m not sure how welcome this comparison will be, so I’ll move on to mentioning the sheer depth this EP has already offered. They have clearly shelled everything they possess at this project, as the EP sounds fresher and fatter than any American bakery. Although elements to their sound do eventually become slightly jaded, there’s no doubt that the injection of The Hype Theory’s front woman, Katy Jackson in “The Better Days” adds a dimension to this EP that steps things up more than a notch. The feisty vocal styles of Miss Jackson (pardon the Outkast reference) coincide with Tommy Saunders’ soaring tones in exquisite style. It would have been nice to hear her sing alone, but you can’t have it all.

After such an extensive list of incredible shows with legends of their genre, it was natural that the expectations would be high for this band, but luckily New Riot have managed to spawn an EP which is not only professional and bursting with energy, but also yields the commercial viability to break free from the dying ska punk ethics we’ve lost. Ska is not dead as long as New Riot are around.

Video