Voodoo Glow Skulls

Voodoo Glow Skulls are well aware that some people are over the whole ska thing. They even canonize one of the detractors of their beloved genre (a band member’s girlfriend) on “DD Don’t Like Ska.” It’s a playful standout on their latest album, in which they continue to infuse their roots in Mexican music into a speedy brand of SoCal ska-punk. In a time of downsizing, they’ve added a third horn, resulting in a septet with apparently boundless energy. It’s clear why they were a formative influence on such fellow Californians as No Doubt.

Carrying on in their bilingual tradition -- three of the album's songs are sung in Spanish -- the Glow Skulls tackle a variety of usual targets, from the government to the music industry. Their multi-hybrid sound also gets quite manic, as on “Disaster,” an apocalyptic punk rant that is reminiscent of the madmen in The Goblins (“Disaster! Disaster! You’re flirting with disaster!”). Frank Casillas has never had a “pretty” voice, and 16 years in the band hasn’t given him any polish. It also hasn’t mellowed him any; he’s as rambunctious as ever, though he and the band wisely offer a few lighter, swinging ska songs (“Smile Now, Cry Later”) to offset the speed and aggression.

Their choice for a cover this time is Guns 'N Roses' immortally aggravated “Used To Love Her,” which in its ska reinvention sounds a lot happier than it probably should. The mid-song break into “Sweet Child O’ Mine” is a nice touch. - Adam McKibbin

You have to respect a band for sticking with it. While the aggressive, energetic, sometimes sophomoric hybrid of skacore is limited by the very traits that make it great, Voodoo Glow Skulls continue to make strong albums. They might not innovate, but they always entertain. The longstanding Inland Empire combo returns to Victory Records for Adicción, Tradición, Revolución, their seventh album and latest blast of hardcore-derived chording smashing into punchy horn charts and the raucous, often bilingual vocal chants of Frank. Whereas 2002's Steady as She Goes suffered from weak production, VGS get it right with Adicción. The guitars are thick and gritty, the drum sound is way past live, and the horns tingle with treble. "We did not use protools or any other computer programs to record this album," the liners state, and the stance is another illustration of the band's proud, almost defiant aesthetic stance. Yes, there are limitations to the skacore sound. Yes, Voodoo Glow Skulls still have a bit of trouble filling out a whole album. But none of that matters to their fans, and there's more than enough here to please. "Ghettoblaster" stutters into its upbeat, classicist skacore groove after a Clockwork Orange vamp, while "Mayhem and Murder" and "Smile Now, Cry Later" ably present two sides of the band's sound, the former unleashing a steely guitar line, while the latter is flavored with an easygoing Studio One lilt. The horns are Spanish-tinged for the hardcore rant "Día de los Muertos," while "We Represent" and "Musical Pollution" are later-album standouts in the same propulsive vein. A relentlessly driving album, Adicción, Tradición, Revolución could've used a couple more tracks like the lighter "Smile Now, Cry Later." As that track proves, Voodoo Glow Skulls are as good at subtlety as they are at creating exciting volatility. They do end the record with a fun, ska-fried version of Guns n' Roses' "Used to Love Her," and that's a nice breather after the heavy lifting. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide