The Pietasters

The Pietasters: Don't Wanna KnowDon't Wanna Know (2007)
Indication Records

Reviewer Rating: 4

Contributed by: GlassPipeMurderGlassPipeMurder
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on July 3rd 2007Having been tossed around from label to label, riding the ska craze to the end, and losing almost all original members, some bands just need to hang it up. The Pietasters, however, are clearly not one of them. After a phenomenal but abbreviated stint on Fueled by Ramen (which is now putting out .

Having been tossed around from label to label, riding the ska craze to the end, and losing almost all original members, some bands just need to hang it up. The Pietasters, however, are clearly not one of them.

After a phenomenal but abbreviated stint on Fueled by Ramen (which is now putting out "phenomenal" material from Paramore and Cute Is What We Aim For), the Pietasters were left with no label and no label support, save for a rarities collection from the short-lived VMS Records, which folded earlier this year. Never one to succumb to a challenge, in May the Pietasters announced the launching of Indication Records (named after their Zombies cover that appeared on 1992-1996?), partnered with DownloadPunk.com to provide Don't Wanna Know for free, and the Pietasters were officially back.

After 15 years, it's hard to really be taken aback by the Pietasters. They've been too good for too long, and chances are they always will be. Don't Wanna Know suffers only from brevity, and the three tracks showcased are a superb paradigm of the Pietasters' impeccable range and classic songwriting.

The upbeat title track bats lead-off, with a punchy hornline and lyrics that every Joe Beendumpedbefore can relate to: "I don't wanna know where you spend the night / 'Cause if it was known, then baby I just might / Find your little friend, and tell him who I am / [...] / If I ever meet him, I might just have to beat him / 'Cause that's the way I treat 'em / And I don't wanna know." The production level isn't nearly what it was on earlier records like Awesome Mix Tape #6, but unsurprisingly, the Pietasters seem to thrive at any production level. "Dream of You" follows with a placid reggae tempo and the soulful crooning of Stephen Jackson over a chorus of "oooo"s.

In 2003, the Pietasters were tapped by the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, as his backup band for a sold-out gig in their hometown of Washington, D.C. "Fozzy Pt. 1" is a feel-good Motown punk tune that remains inventive while rooted in classic songwriting formulas, with a driving rhythm and horn-based structure.

Don't Wanna Know is just a small taste of the Pie, but like any good vendor, the Pietasters know that even a small sample is enough to get hooked. For when the full-length comes out, there's going to be a lot of hungry fans eager to gorge themselves on the delectable sounds of the Pietasters.

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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.

Anonymous (July 6, 2007)

Awesome! You can tell the band was really going for an old Jamaican style sound in the production (at least on the first 2 tracks). I love it. This honestly may be the best stuff they have ever done.

Anonymous (July 5, 2007)

actually technically it was all different labels:

the pietasters (pie stomp)-slug tone
oolooloo-moon ska
willis-epitaph
awesome mix tape volume 6-hell cat
turbo-fueled by ramen
all day-indictation

the farthest stretch i could see would be:
1-slug tone
1-moon ska
2-epitaph
1-fueled by ramen
1-indictation

either way you slice it, it's still impressive.

SumWon (July 5, 2007)

Wow, this is great. Fozzy is up there with Maggae Mae in my book for best Pietasters song.

Anonymous (July 5, 2007)

"6 studio albums on 6 different labels."

2 on Moon.
2 on Hellcat
1 on F.B.R.
and this one on Indication

Anonymous (July 4, 2007)

and for the record...

1.Willis
2.awesome mixtape #5
3.oolooloo
4.turbo
5.their old 'piestomp' shite

Paul (the epitaph/hellcat years were the best). score's for the band overall and their live show.

Anonymous (July 4, 2007)

the production sounds like butt, much like oolooloo, great songs kind of mired in local band 8 track style home studio budget sound...I guess it give's it a 'vintage' feel to the tunes, but it works a lot better for Hepcat, whom REALLY sound vintage.

regardless, i'm stoked for the first new pietasters album in 5 years. it's been a long stretch, but with new albums coming from RBF, buck 0 nine, mustard plug, hepcat (rumored), pietasters and LTJ still hanging in there, solid albums from new school ska bands the mad caddies and big D, streetlight manifesto still going strong and gaining ground...I'd say ska is back stronger than it's been in over 5 years. unfortunatly, the "emo" scene is gaining ground at an exponentially higher and alarming rate.

fuck the haters, ska kicks ass and the pietasters are far from your generic "ska-punk" 3rd wave crappy band. These cats bust out very strong material in the R&B vein, reggae, ska, etc. Much like the Caddies, they trancend the genre.

Paul

Anonymous (July 4, 2007)

this the same pietasters that were on epitaph for a second? or hellcat, whatever.

I like that album. 'yesterday's over' is an amazing pop number. Most of that record is good.

"After a phenomenal but abbreviated stint on Fueled by Ramen"

The dick york/dick sargent swap of the decade. Where did the impeccable label that put out frodus, blueline medic, and pietasters go, and how did these clowns keep the label name?

wyzo

CCSummers (July 3, 2007)

good shit

Anonymous (July 3, 2007)

Is it a requirement for ska bands to have shitty names?

Anonymous (July 3, 2007)

how is this fake ska. screw that guy, this is good.

Anonymous (July 3, 2007)

witty (crap word) no. but tired of fake ass ska - yes. ska is dead and your only hanging on. for fucks sake listen to real jazz or better yet , real reggae

klonny (July 3, 2007)

ska is dead

I bet you think you're real fucking witty.

Anonymous (July 3, 2007)

ska is dead

sweetsuperior (July 3, 2007)

this is surprisingly great.

Anonymous (July 3, 2007)

didn't even know this was out. thanks for the review.

fattony (July 3, 2007)

Here's the download page: http://www.downloadpunk.com/?webaction=AlbumDetail&albumid=18131

6 studio albums on 6 different labels. That's pretty impressive. I've never really listened to these guys since Willis, but I'm digging this EP.

skaboom (July 3, 2007)

You forgot the most important part - that this EP is sponsored by Jagermeister, so you can download it for free.