Reel Big Fish

Reel Big Fish: Why Do They Rock So Hard?Why Do They Rock So Hard? (1998)
EMI Group

Reviewer Rating: 4.5

User Rating:

Contributed by: WussEmoRockWussEmoRock
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on February 7th 2003"Why Do They Rock So Hard?" "The question is, why doesn't every band rock this hard?" "Oh yeah, huh...good point." Let's just cut to the chase... This CD is a must have for anyone that likes good, fun, happy music. With songs that range from reggae/hip hop to some of th.

"Why Do They Rock So Hard?"
"The question is, why doesn't every band rock this hard?"
"Oh yeah, huh...good point."

Let's just cut to the chase...

This CD is a must have for anyone that likes good, fun, happy music. With songs that range from reggae/hip hop to some of the best ska out there, you are bound to never skip a track.

With classics like "Somebody Hates Me" or "I Want Your Girlfriend to Be My Girlfriend Too," you are surely expected to be singing along in no time. If you are judging this album on the single you heard from it (I know I know, 4 years ago haha) called "The Set Up," then think again...because in my opinion, that is one of the worst tracks on the album. If you don't believe me go download the song "She's Famous Now," a catchy little number about a girlfriend who dumps her boyfriend because she gets famous, and is now too good for him.

The lyrics on this disc are the same great RBF lyrics that we have all grown to hate or love, talking abut girls, being cool, joke around songs, and the all too serious classic "We Care," a tribute song to all of their fans and enemies out there that have gone to the shows and either liked it or spit on them.

If you want good music, trust me (I know that may be hard for some of you)...go out and purchase this record. It won't disappoint.

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

neffernin (June 6, 2007)

A great follow up to RBF's first album.

Where do you get that these guys aren't ska? While much of their stuff is better classified as rock (none of it is pop, I'm still not sure where you guys get that from) the majority of it still is ska. Then again, someone down below did say that Gypsy Hill wasn't ska... maybe everyone is as musically declined as that guy.

pasha (November 13, 2005)

the lyrics may be kinda stupid, but this is one of the greatest ever ska-punk CDs

Anonymous (August 31, 2005)

The best bosstones album that Dicky and co. never made.

Anonymous (August 3, 2004)

Not very good in my opinion. Turn The Radio Off was so much better.

lostinthecrowd13 (June 11, 2004)

Great CD but Turn Off the Radio is one step above. I'm surprised no one has ever reviewed that yet.

Anonymous (April 7, 2004)

this cd is really good. just listen to it. it's infectious.

Anonymous (April 7, 2004)

the title is just a pun. lighten up. the best song on this cd is thank you for not moshing. i love that song.

Anonymous (April 7, 2004)

the title is a joke... they constantly poke fun at all the bands that do rock really hard and they hate mosh pits. the end.

Anonymous (February 8, 2004)

i love this record. its so god damn catchy you will want to throw up.

-benz

Anonymous (January 20, 2004)

I loved this record back in 98. Still do. These dudes are tight. Get a grip you bad ass "true punks."

sk8punx4evr (February 13, 2003)

aha, that last comment by krowdsurf owned.

i liked this cd when i was 14, and even then it wasnt all that great. also, i dont get why everyone rips on wuss all the time. granted, it appears that hes an easy target but its just cause the majority of you elitist bastards have differing views/tastes than he does. lay off, its annoying.

im expecting an elitist comment in reply to this.

krowdsurf (February 12, 2003)

"Why do they suck so hard?"

Bwa-ha-ha! Why do they, ha, SUCK so hard! That's great! HA HA HA HA HA! See, you took their album title, "Why do they ROCK so hard?" and instead of the word "rock" you replaced it with the word "SUCK!" Ha ha ha ha ha! Oh man, "Why do they suck so hard?" That's great. Whew!

Anonymous (February 12, 2003)

Why do they suck so hard?

tsubmachine (February 12, 2003)

if he was a buddyhead worshipper he would know who ramo was. dont be jealous kurt.

and to add my piece,
all music should be emotional. if not, people wouldnt relate to it. the emo youre trying to classify is just a laughable, marketable and sterile trick on you motherfuckers who are trying to classify it so you can still get away with beating off to pictures of chris carrabas. and yes the review sucked.

Kurt_F (February 12, 2003)

Oh great, a Buddyhead worshipper. Killer brah!

krowdsurf (February 11, 2003)

This score is for the guy who just used the phrase "the new hotness."

Anonymous (February 11, 2003)

I don't argue that at all, my point is that the definition has changed, and the common masses currently indentify with it as what i just dscribed it as.

Agreed.

pope_schlomo (February 11, 2003)

Wow, D.P. while playing Double Dragon at the same time have a siamese axe twirling up in the air. Oh shit, the new hotness.

Ramo

Anonymous (February 11, 2003)

Gawd, this CD is awful.

First of all, half the songs are over-done retreads from their self produced "Everything Sucks", which were decent songs but the thick production just ruined them.

Secondly, the other half of the songs suck balls. Big hairy ones. Not even master DJ Coolie Ranx can save this pile of crap. They should have kept the original title, "Sophmore Jinx".

--Cos
(PS. This is great--bickering over has-been ska bands. Buddyhead might call this "The two biggest geeks in school fighting over the Han Solo action figure")

Anonymous (February 11, 2003)

I don't argue that at all, my point is that the definition has changed, and the common masses currently indentify with it as what i just dscribed it as.

-sickboi

Anonymous (February 11, 2003)

I'll make the emo arguement to the day I die.....Yes emo is a subgenre, which can be defined. Screw what anyone says, the english language is based on common words defined by the masses. Emo is thought of by most people as the whiny, wanna be punk rawk. Plain and simple. DC, Get Up Kids, Saves the Day, the list goes on..... all emo. The definition may have changed over the past few years, but thats the case today, as this is what most people identify it as. You lame-ass scensters can whine as much as you want about what "real emo" is, but the fact of the matter is that it can be described in 2 words...."pussy punk".

Actually, no. It's not. "Emo" was just basically hardcore when it first started, it was rather intense stuff, actually. You could just call it hardcore hence "Emotional Hardcore". There wasn't ever a real need to put that "emotional" tag on it.

It's now affiliated with GUK, D.C., etc.

Boy, if all these emo kids really knew how the music started as, they'd be shocked and they'd probably cry.

Kurt_F (February 11, 2003)

"To the guy that said that Big D wasnt ska on Gypsy Hill, havent you listened to Scenester? Have you heard Wailing Paddle? New England?"

I thought Wailing Paddle was a song by The Rudiments.

Oh, and for the most part, RBF IS pop with horns, with heavy ska influence.

And emo=emotional hardcore. Period. Think Indian Summer, Embrace, some Rites Of Spring. NOT Dashboard, JEW, STD, etc. I DO NOT care what society views it as today.

And yes, genres and labels do matter.

insinceredave (February 11, 2003)

Knowing what emo is and is'nt is so interesting. You guys should be commended on your constant and thought provoking theories to the world of punk.

-insincere dave

evildeadalive (February 11, 2003)

this score is for double penatration

waste_elite (February 11, 2003)

this score is for double dragon

FortyMinutesWest (February 10, 2003)

This score is for double guitars!

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

i wouldnt really consider leftover crack (who i saw 2 days ago yay!) ska anymore. maybe when they were choking victim but now they r hardcore with occasional ska guitar parts. long live l.o.c!

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

I'm a bit curious, why is everyone such a jerk to Wuss Emo Rock? I can assume I dislike every band he likes, but his reviews are better than your nothing.
-loserjames

sickboi (February 10, 2003)

Because I don't do anything to try to be cool...I say whats on my mind, dress how I want, and listen to what I want without giving 2 fucks about the opinions of cocksuckers such as yourself.

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

Bright Eyes is about as emotional as you can get.

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

and you're not a "lame-ass scenster" because....?

WussEmoRock (February 10, 2003)

I' with Chris

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

pwfanatic (February 10, 2003)

the comment below me is so true.

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

degenerate (February 10, 2003)

great cd. not a bad review for wuss, a thousand times better than his day with ataris review.

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

Emo never existed in the first place. Just a stupid label for people to try label bands with.

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

Yeah, DC ain't emo, I think your perception of whom is the idiot is grossly inaccurate. (And try to give me the whole nonsense about what is "real emo", we're referring to the current definition)

-sickboi

Luzzew (February 10, 2003)

Bright Eyes isn't emo, it's indie rock... You are an idiot if you think Bright Eyes, Dashboard Confessional, Cursive, etc is emo...

WEZ

Anonymous (February 10, 2003)

great cd it got me into ska now im the biggest ska fan around and started my own ska band

Anonymous (February 9, 2003)

No, emo is still going strong. Maybe it's just where I live, but the emo kids must be breeding like rabbits or something. They're EVERYWHERE. I couldn't count how many horn rimmed glasses paired with scarves and Bright Eyes shirts i see everyday at school.

Anonymous (February 9, 2003)

I picked up that RBF cd for two bucks out of a used bin, one of the best buys I have ever made music wise.

Anonymous (February 9, 2003)

Meh, emo started dying in 2002 when every single band considered "emo" refused to call themselves that. It wasn't even a genre to begin with, it's just something people call certain indy rock, hardcore, or accoustic bands. I havent seen an emo kid in ages, I guess crying isn't cool anymore

Luzzew (February 9, 2003)

Don't limit yourself to one genre? your six favorite bands are either "punk" bands or ska/punk bands.... that's pretty limited...

Don't get preachy motherfucker.... :)

WEZ

heybarmold (February 9, 2003)

you know i never understood this whole ska kids turned to emo shit. The people i know who are emo now were the ones who were into AFI before they were big, and hate them now, cause their sister likes em or something. But emo is becoming the next thing, so of course everyone who just jumped onto ska but only liked the radio bands are gonna jump onto emo, but SO DID TONS OF RAPMETAL hos. and whatever comes next after emo goes back underground in 2004, they'll jump on that too.

Anyways, my 6 favorite bands are Mad Caddies, Saves The Day, Fishbone, RBF, Rise Against, and Finch. The important thing is the music, don't limit yourself to one genre, live damnit!

joeg (February 9, 2003)

wuss, you DID indeed describe the album. but it was half assed no question about it. this review probably wouldn't change anyone's view of the band or the record. i personally have always hated rbf so it wouldn't have mattered to me anyways.

TJmoney (February 9, 2003)

http://www.punknews.org/reviews.php?op=albumreview&id=1407

I found it...they reviewed duck and cover by the mad caddies and called why do they rock so hard this great epic ska punk cd...duck and cover is better than wdtrsh in my opinon. Losing Streak by LTJ, Destruction by Definition by the Suicide Machines, Good Luck by Big D...plus alot more better than wdtrsh. Wdtrsh isn't a bad CD either.

WussEmoRock (February 9, 2003)

Wez, I know that.

Evil, I understand what you're saying, BUT I did describe the album, and I listed facts about the band. It is more than just opinion based.

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

Luzzew (February 9, 2003)

Just so you know, when they made this album, the black trumpet player wasn't there, as Spring Heeled Jack was still together...

WEZ

evildeadalive (February 9, 2003)

Wuss, I was seriously not trying to start an arguement when I made my comments, and I certainly follow no trends. I have a genuine love for music, and I will appreciate any form of music no matter what it is if I feel it's sincere, and obviously, if it appeals to me. I don't think you really explained the album at all, you were basically just giving you're opinion for people to go on, which simply put, is not going to change anyones mind. Other than 13-16 year olds (which this site seems to have a lot of) I'm pretty sure almost everyone has already made up their minds on weather or not they like RBF. All I was trying to say is, if anyones gonna change someones opinion without really describing how it sounds, it sure as hell ain't gonna be you.

WussEmoRock (February 9, 2003)

Their trumpet player is black.

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

gutterhippo (February 9, 2003)

this is my favorite rbf album (which isn't saying much, but anyways..) I just wish they would stop writing songs about the music industry and their fame. Oh, and the CD does slow down and get kinda boring near the end, but there's still 13 or 14 great tracks on this cd

*arvind!
http://thenoradssuck.cjb.net

gutterhippo (February 9, 2003)

um...tyler is black, but i don't see why it makes any difference that they didn't have a black person in the band back then

*arvind!
http://thenorads.cjb.net

heybarmold (February 9, 2003)

"Anybody else here like ska when black guys performed it? Imagine that! Black guys were in ska bands at one time..."

Remember when punk was bands like new york dolls, blondie, velvet underground, and the ramones? Music has to start somewhere, but its NEVER gonna stay the same forever.

This review was kinda weak tho, but most reviews are, not matter who writes em

Luzzew (February 9, 2003)

The Specials were so good it hurts...

WEZ

Anonymous (February 9, 2003)

"You don't like RBF, because they're white?"

No. I don't like them cos they suck. I was just reminding everybody where the genre came from... Whiteys can go ahead and make ska. I dont care. No more black rudeboys though.

Anonymous (February 9, 2003)

So you don't like white people? You don't like RBF, because they're white?

joeg (February 8, 2003)

well, there is an asian guy in reel big fish. . . . not black, but at least he's not white!

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

Anybody else here like ska when black guys performed it? Imagine that! Black guys were in ska bands at one time... the Specials rule. Rude boys beat up people. gah.

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

I'll tell you what's disgusting. This fucking review.

WussEmoRock (February 8, 2003)

nope, wasn't me. This CD and Turn the Radio Off have both yet to have been reviewed on this site. disgusting if you ask me.

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

TJmoney (February 8, 2003)

Turn the Radio Off is better....Wuss...didn't you review this CD a while back and you called it the "most epic ska-punk recording ever" or something to that extent...maybe it wasn't you but someone did that.

reeko (February 8, 2003)

I'm with Wuss this time

GregSka (February 8, 2003)

Man this bullshit about "not being ska" is the most retarded thing in the world. Shut the fuck up and stop whining. Things change over time and it's unevitable, if music can only be classified as what it was when it was in its first stages of creation, then technically everything after Buddy Holly can't be considered rock. Reel Big Fish? Yeah they play ska. Stop eating up all the b.s that Bucket or any other music snob tells you and GET A LIFE FUCK FACE. Thank you

adam (February 8, 2003)

Wuss, if there's one thing I'll give you its that you stick to your guns with far more than most of the anonymous people who can hide their tastes and history from post to post.

...and this is one of those few chances where I actually agree with you. I really like the Reel Big Fish and always have.

adam

WussEmoRock (February 8, 2003)

Evil,

you are a complete moron. Reviews are someones opinion on a disc, but they give more than just an opinion of whether it's good or bad (most of the time), they explain what the band sounds like, information on them, and the style of the songwriting and lyrics, etc. My opinion being valued has nothing to do with someone reading this review and then saying "oh wuss likes it, now I won't." the only people that do that (including yourself) are people who just follow the trend, and can't distinguish between an opinion or a fact on a band that has nothing to do with the user's "punkness" on the site.

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

evildeadalive (February 8, 2003)

Wuss, no offense, but I think it's pretty pointless for you to even write reviews anymore. I don't think there's a single person who values your opinion at all on this site. I'm honestly not saying that to be mean, but lets face it, you're not gonna influence anybody's opinion on anything.

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

rock hard . . . .

cock . . . .

gay sex

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

i dont getwhy people don't like rbf. i mean, it seems to me that they are the embodiment of all the resons for why people listen to ska. their music is fun and catchy and easy to skank around and dance to, and that's rbf's purpose. just relaxing and having a good time, not taling anything real seriously. and they have a good live show.

-reeko

TheOneTrueBill (February 8, 2003)

boy have they gone downhill

It's pretty sad when a song like "Rock N Roll Is Bitchin" is the ebst song on an album

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

This is the fuckin most retarded music ever recorded. Someone needs to pay for this monstrosity!

WussEmoRock (February 8, 2003)

RBF's old stuff, I meant

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

WussEmoRock (February 8, 2003)

I reviewed this disc because it has yet to be reviewed on this site, and I thought that was A) an insult to the band for making such a good record and not having it reviewed on here, B) thought it could help people who want to check out RBF's new stuff if they just got into them. Deal!

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

this cd came out like 10years ago! WHO CARES review something new

WussEmoRock (February 8, 2003)

Dongrom

So because I said a CD was good and "praised" it, the review sucks because you think the band is bad? Get a fucking clue, it's an opinion buddy.

*****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

Stop reviewing albums Wuss, your reviews are fucking horrible. I mean, Jesus Christ that review was generic mundane, and overly praising. And the CD sucks ass anyway.

DonGrom

yellowtrash (February 8, 2003)

This album is pretty ska. I don't see why it wouldn't be. Anyways, this is a pretty good album compared to their older stuff. It's definately different from Turn the Radio Off, but I think they were going towards a very straight forward pop album with this.

Anonymous (February 8, 2003)

Fuck this shit.

I'm about to go and review a fuckin' Clash or Ramones album. We're getting some awful reviews here.

That Misfits review a few weeks ago was a pleasant surprise.

Haha.. that's funny. Anyways, Reel Big Fish really is a good band if you like this style be it pop with horns, ska, ska punk or whatever. They are really catchy and extremely talented... dare I say far more talented than alot of these "punk rock" bands you guys seem to think need reviewing. but at the same time talent really isn't the biggest deal, the music is.. and for what rbf is they are catchy and fun, but I could also see how alot of people might not like them, as they aren't very heavy or fast, or serious.

Ryan
www.emoisdead.net

BostonMusicGuy (February 8, 2003)

To the guy that said that Big D wasnt ska on Gypsy Hill, havent you listened to Scenester? Have you heard Wailing Paddle? New England?Oh yea, RBF. Ehh, I like Turn the Radio off Better.-BostonMusicGuy

pope_schlomo (February 8, 2003)

Not even one mention of "Thank you for not moshing"??? I hate you Wuss.

Ramo

nailedshutpunk (February 8, 2003)

yah its a song we all "should" know unless your some kinda teeny bopper pussy shit and if you are just disregard ever reading the post and dont insult me anymore wiht your presence