#48: No Doubt

You wanna catch a peek but they look at you like you're such a freak

Next up is No Doubt. You wouldn't be surprised I like them if you heard their first three albums.

Wiki Says: No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album, No Doubt (1992), failed to make waves. The band's diamond-certified album Tragic Kingdom helped to launch the ska revival of the 1990s, and "Don't Speak", the third single from the album, set a record when it spent sixteen weeks at the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart.

Following this the group released its next album, Return of Saturn, four years later. While a minor success commercially it could not match the success of their previous album and underperformed both commercially and critically. Fifteen months later, the band reappeared with Rock Steady, which incorporated reggae and dancehall music into their work. The album was primarily recorded in Jamaica and featured collaborations with Jamaican artists Bounty Killer, Sly and Robbie, and Lady Saw. The album produced two Grammy-winning singles, "Hey Baby" and "Underneath It All".

No Doubt released the compilation The Singles 1992–2003 and box set Boom Box in 2003, both of which contained a cover version of the Talk Talk synthpop song "It's My Life". Frontwoman Gwen Stefani launched her solo career the next year with several collaborations, including bandmate Tony Kanal as well as Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes, while guitarist Tom Dumont began his side project, Invincible Overlord. During its career, the band has won two Grammy Awards and sold 28 million records worldwide to date. The band embarked on a US national tour throughout the summer of 2009.

Discovery: No Doubt (1992)

The Beacon Street Collection (1994)

Tragic Kingdom (1995)

Return of Saturn (2000)

Rock Steady (2001)

TBA (2010?)

Other contributions: A Very Special Christmas 3 (1997)

Burning London: A Tribute to The Clash (1999)

The Singles 1992-2003 (2003)

Rock Against Bush volume 2 (2004)

Look At All the Love We've Found: A Tribute to Sublime (2005)

Favorite Songs: 10. Comforting line

9. Brad New Day

8. Paulina

7. Spiderwebs

6. Oi To the World (Vandals Cover)

5. Excuse Me Mr.

4. Hateful ft. Billy Idol (Clash Cover)

3. DJs (Sublime Cover)

2. Sixteen

1. Total Hate 95 ft. Bradley Nowell from Sublime

Years Active: 1986-Present

Never seen them live

No Doubt is received very differently amongst punk/ska fans. While they are, without question, the biggest band to make it out of the ska scene from the mid 90's, they did it by going to a much more pop-oriented way. But that doesn't really bother me. Their ska isn't amazing, but it is really enjoyable. In their older days they had a big "fuck you" attitude, and they still know where they came from. They still play live with horns, play both their old punk/ska songs, play punk/ska covers, and go pretty wild on stage.

I could not decide which music video and which live video I wanted to go with. So, I instead decided to post several of both since they really capture No Doubt's whole career. First is a music video from their first album (No Doubt), then one of their biggest hits from their first successful album (Tragic Kingdom), then a cover of a Vandals song from 1997.

For the live videos I have them from Warped Tour in 1995 with Bradley from Sublime (WHICH THEY PLAYED LAST SUMMER ON TOUR), covering the Beatles in 1997, covering Sublime in 2009, and playing a song from 1997 in 2009.

Up next: A band that couldn't be further from No Doubt in terms of success

#49: Long Beach Dub Allstars

Well I've woken up in too many beds with girls I didn't know

Just cracking the top 50 are the Long Beach Dub Allstars who came along following the end of Sublime

Wiki Says: The Long Beach Dub Allstars were a dub reggae/ska/rock band formed in 1997 and disbanded in 2002.

Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh met in childhood (in 1979) and later started their first garage punk band, consisting of drums, bass and vocals. They later formed Sublime with Brad Nowell. The Long Beach Dub Allstars (LBDAS for short) were founded after Nowell died in 1996 of a heroin overdose (frequent contributors to Sublime including Michael "Miguel" Happoldt, Todd Forman, and "Field" Marshall Goodman are also members of the band).

Eric Wilson says, "We will never replace the greatness that Sublime did or what Brad has done." The band was originally a 10-piece and they recorded their debut recording called Right Back, which shortly after completion in 1999 saw the departure of three members. Their second album, Wonders of the World was recorded and released in 2001. It featured "Sunny Hours" featuring will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas.

In 2002 rumors that the band had broken up began to surface. Apparently the band had taken a hard-drug-free vow and some of the band's members had broken this vow, which caused Bud Gaugh to quit and join Eyes Adrift with Krist Novoselic of Nirvana and Curt Kirkwood of Meat Puppets. Gaugh was also playing with Kirkwood and Michael Happoldt in the band Volcano.

Eric Wilson, Trey Pangborn and RAS-1 formed Long Beach Shortbus with former Slightly Stoopid and temporary Sublime drummer, Kelly Vargas (later replaced by Damion Ramirez). Jack Maness and Opie Ortiz formed Dubcat, with members of Hepcat. Shortbus has had slightly more success than Dubcat, though the latter has yet to release an album.

Their feel-good song "Sunny Hours" was used as the title track for the sitcom Joey.

Discovery: Right Back (1999)

Wonders of the World (2001)

Other contributions: Take Warning: Songs of Operation Ivy

Favorite Songs: 10. Lies

9. Life Goes On (Featuring Chali 2na)

8. Lonely End

7. Rosarito

6. Listen To DJ's

5. Saw Red (She's Mine)

4. Take Warning-Operation Ivy Cover

3. Sunny Hours (Featuring the Black Eyed Peas)

2. Rolled Up

1. My Own Life

Years Active: 1997-2002

Never seen them live

Following the end of Sublime, Long Beach Dub Allstars picked up where things left off, and were able to make diverse songs featuring some of the more famous names in punk, reggae, and hip hop. Most Sublime fans have never heard of them, which not only proves that they are fraudulent fans, but is unfortunate because all that LBDA brought to the table. Since their break up, Bud and Eric (original Sublime members) have gone to form Sublime with Rome, their current act who are touring in Baltimore next weekend, but I will not be going.

Up Next: Without question the most commercially successful band on this list

#50: I Voted For Kodos

I'm not old school but I still wear my Chucks

1/3 into the countdown we get to I Voted For Kodos, who I got into an online dispute with. Oh, and I'm going to start to take parts from Wikipedia to make them better for this

Wiki Says: I Voted for Kodos (often abbreviated IV4K) was a ska punk and pop punk band, signed to Snapdragon Records.

Their name comes from an episode of The Simpsons, "Treehouse of Horror VII", in which Homer Simpson says, "Don't blame me—I voted for Kodos." Although known for their tongue-in-cheek material (they have noted that celery is the band's official vegetable), their song lyrics have also tackled serious issues such as murder and teenage depression. Their first album, Close Enough for Ska, is considered the success story of a small independent record label, Close to Nothing, which was founded by three teenagers

Discovery: Close Enough For Ska (2001)

Not Penis Cream EP (2003)

My New Obsession (2006)

Other Releases: My Other Girlfriend Says I Have To Leave You

Favorite songs: 10. Calc Lecture Girl

9. On The Phone

8. Gunpoint

7. Where Are We Going To?

6. You Never Asked Me To

5. http://www.dumped.com/

4. Just Want You To Know

3. My Other Girlfriend Says I Have To Leave You

2. She Hates Ska

1. Todd

Years Active: 1999-2007

Seen Live: Twice. May 2005 and January 2006 in Montclair, NJ

I Voted For Kodos and I had a oddly personal relationship. I met my first girlfriend at one of their shows. I loved them, they were going strong. Then, something weird happened. They started writing new music, that was very different from their older sound. They stopped using horns, and on their Myspace they listen themselves as "Pop/Rock/Powerpop", no mention of ska. Then they were on the ballot to be voted to play at the International Ska Festival or something like that. I said to them via Myspace that I would vote for them if it was the International Pop/Rock/Powerpop festival but since they were afraid to be ska I couldn't.

Well, they actually replied. First to the message saying they took ska off as to "not scare away record labels". I then said they were doing the exact same thing that a Jersey band (coming up soon), The Superspecs (then renamed The Specs) by dropping horns and playing generic rock. This is how they replied, retrieved via my Myspace comments.

Dec 9, 2005 8:01 PM
We are not like the Super Specs (not that that would be a bad thing, because the specs rock). We still play ska, we also play some rock, and there's a ton of horns to go along with both. That's just the way it's going to be. Can you still love us?

Well, that was the end of them more or less. They stopped playing in late 06 and had a farewell show in 2007. They even said on their Myspace that they wish they could have done a farewell show in Montclair at Bloomfield Ave Cafe due to how much they were loved there. The shell of the band I loved, I miss.

Up Next: A band that only lasted for 2 albums, but more or less are back now

#51: Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution

And once again we're off to war, but I can't agree with what we're fighting for

At 51 are Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution, who was at the time of their EP a Catch 22 side project but now are a Streetlight Manifesto side project.

Wiki Says: Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution, or BOTAR, is a musical collective of a varying and undefinable genre which includes influences from ska, punk, classical, and eastern European music. It is composed of former Catch 22 members Tomas Kalnoky and Jamie Egan, in addition to Nick Afflitto, Marcy Ciuffreda, Rachel Goldstein, Layton Hayes, John Paul Jones, Achilles Kalnoky, Paul Lowndes, Chris Paszik, Mark Rendeiro, Dan Ross, Pete Sibilia, Shane Thomson, and Natalia Ushak. Unlike other quasi-similar bands of today, which combine primarily ska and punk, BOTAR blends in a bit of classical music, taking the form of an entirely acoustic ensemble.

Discovery: A Call to Arms EP (2001)

99 Songs of Revolution Volumes ? (TBD)

Favorite (and only) Songs: A Call to Arms

Dear Sergio (Catch 22 cover, this version later covered by Streetlight)

Here's To Life (Later covered by Streetlight)

It's a Wonderful Life

They Provide the Paint for the Picture Perfect Masterpiece That You Will Paint on the Inside of Your Eyelids (Later covered by Streetlight)

Years Active: 2001, Sometime in the near future again

They don't play live

Oh BOTAR, why did you have to make this post so confusing for the people. BOTAR released an EP as a side project with members who would go on to be Streetlight Manifesto. In the album booklet for "A Call to Arms EP", it was stated that the Keasbey Nights Trilogy was to be "Keasbey Nights" (Catch 22 in 98), "Everything Goes Numb (Streetlight in 02), and then BOTAR with "99 Songs of Revolution". Then 8 years passed with Streetlight becoming successful and BOTAR left in the dust. "99 Songs of Revolution" is in fact happening, but not as originally planned. Streetlight has 2 of the 8 albums, as will BOTAR (the other 4 coming from 2 other Streetlight side projects). It is 99 covers in total, and the first release features Streetlight covering BOTAR, who will also be in this project. So...we'll see what comes next in 99SOR Volume 2! Hell, for the video, the best I can find is Streetlight playing a BOTAR song live.

Up Next: A band named after the Simpsons who didn't suck (as badly) as Fall Out Boy or Evergreen Terrace

#52: The Descendents

I'm proud and ashamed, every fourth of July

Number 52 are the Descendents, who feature the smartest man in all of punk rock

Wiki Says: The Descendents is an American punk rock band from Hermosa Beach, California.

Thanks Wikipedia. I'll add in that lead singer Milo Aukerman has a Ph. D in biochemistry, and that the band is 3/4 of the members of ALL, who formed during their hiatus without Milo

Discovery: Milo Goes to College (1982)
I Don't Want to Grow Up (1985)
Enjoy! (1986)
All (1987)
Everything Sucks (1996)
Cool to Be You (2004)

Other notable contributions: 'Merican (2004)
Rock Against Bush Volume 1. (2004)

Favorite Songs: 10. Sad State of Affairs
9. Dry Spell
8. Everything Sucks
7. Talking
6. Thank You
5. Coffee Mug
4. Sick-O-Me
3. 'Merican
2. Mass Nerder
1. Nothing With You

Years Active: 1978-89, 1995-1997, 2002-Present

Never seen them live.

The Descendents are punk legends in their own way. They more or less invented nerd-core. Like I mentioned earlier, they disbanded with Milo went to get his Ph. D and ALL, who I don't like quite enough to make this list, was formed. They're essentially the same band with different singers, and are very close. The song in the live video, "Hope", is covered by Sublime on " 40 Oz. to Freedom"

Next up: A side project that formed from a band that was already on here and is now the side project of a band that will be coming up later