The Pietasters

All Day (2007)

Keenan

The Pietasters have been jumping from label to label for quite some time now. They released their best to date, Ooolooloo, reached their mainstream peak with Willis on Epitaph and made three other albums that spanned different types of styles. 2002's Turbo showed a sign of things to come, while All Day takes on Turbo's style and lowers the punk aspect and cranks up the soul. Being James Brown's backup band has definitely helped craft their style, as apparent on this record.

The recording on this album is a little shoddy, but it gives that feeling of listening to big-holed 45s, the same kind of records that line the packaging of the CD. The album opens up with one of the best songs on the album, "Change My Ways," and it would have fit perfectly on the radio back in the `60s. This is a great representation of the rest of the songs on this album. Things slow down with the next two tracks, both very good, then things pick up with the excellent "Triflin'," which has a great horn line.

Things keep a steady pace over the next couple of tracks, all of which have a great mix of ska and soul. Then comes "Fozzy Pt.1." This song is straight-up Motown. It is really well-written and recorded, giving it the signature Motown sound. The next track is interesting, as it is a cover of "Listen to Your Heart" by Tom Petty. The Pietasters give the song a dub rhythm and some excellent horns to make a rather good cover. The next track, entitled "So Long," is a rock and roll type song, drawing influences from `60s British rock bands, complete with the odd, twangy guitar solos. Be careful -- this one may get stuck in your head for a while. The next song, "Ordinary," takes this formula, slows things down and adds horns during the chorus. "Ordinary" stands out as one of my favorites on the album.

This album is a great throwback and has tons of replay value. It mixes soul, ska, motown and rock just right to make an amazing album. It even throws in some instrumentals, "Sketch Dub" and "Anj Gil," for good measure. I cannot express how good this album is. It even pays tribute to the great Oolooloo by naming a song after it. I definitely recommend picking this up as soon as possible from Indication Records, the label the Pietasters started up recently.