Ska’s dead…

No, not quite. You have to search hard, but ska bands can still be found.

A Billion Ernies is one of these bands, but they’re not only ska. They incorporate hardcore and screamo into their music, giving them a new twist.

For those who don’t know, ska is a form of reggae gone punk, or something similar to that. Ska bands usually have the regular guitars, bass, and drums, along with the nice addition of trombone, trumpet, and maybe even saxophone.

A Billion Ernies started the band to play at a talent show at their high school, and continued from there. The band consists of bass, guitar, drums, two trombones, a trumpet, and a saxophone. Oh, and you can’t forget their vocalist. Yes, that’s a total of eight people in one band. Crazy, but true.

The seemingly large number of people doesn’t seem to tax on their musical talent. It only adds to it, giving them a great overall sound.

In the music, the trombone is the most prominent brass, backed up by the trumpet. The sax is hard to hear unless you listen closely.

Their influences are other ska bands like Reel Big Fish and Five Iron Frenzy, along with hardcore band Norma Jean. They have a twist of hardcore music similar to Thursday meets Blindside’s styles.

Being a little new to the scene, they only have two CDs out. Those would be “Stop Calling Us Ska”, featuring their hit song, Stop Calling Us Ska, and their more recent CD released, “Please Do Not Reveal the Ending”. Recently, their song Stop Calling Us Ska was featured on HM Magazine’s sampler CD. It is hard to find A Billion Ernies’ CDs in stores, but you can buy them on their website at http://abillionernies.com or listen to them at http://purevolume.com/abillionernies.

Right now they’re on tour in the UK, but they’re booking shows in the US so look for them to be coming this way soon.

They definitely have a very unique sound that is hard to compare to anyone else. And props to them for going through and reviving the ska movement. Who knows? Maybe there will be a fourth wave of ska coming through in the near future, led by A Billion Ernies! And they’ve got the great name to do it, too.