Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

For The OC Supertones, 1999 started with a gig opening up for the Pope when he visited America. Not being from the USA, His Holiness was probably confused by the ska revival since skanking hasn't been a serious European activity since The Beat stopped beating. In America, the '90s ska revival has spawned a host of Christian bands jumping on the bandwaggon. The best of the pile has to be The Tones who deliver a third album in the wake of their excellent 'Strikes Back'. 'Catch The Sun' tops everything they've previously done and the wise choice of Red Hot Chilli Peppers producer Garth Richardson has encouraged the band to spread out their sound a tad. An immediate favourite is "Hallelujah" which swaggers along with fat horns, bugging rhythms and great organ fills. It's hard not to dance, in fact, hang on...I think I will! Sorry, just had to do that! Sometimes this is rock ska that belts along but the band have spread out their sound so that you get a surf-influenced instrumental "Revolution", the delicious ska guitar sounds of "Dedication" and the exploding spat out vocal delivery of "Grounded". More shocking is the acoustic ballad "Refuge" which closes the album and sounds like a concert closer too! The title cut is a bit of a surprise too, with dance rhythms and drum loops and a rap style vocal! Even the ubiquitous Crystal Lewis makes an appearance on the gentle "Away From You". Nothing like covering all bases eh? Just in case ska is a fad that loses public interest, the' Supertones have plenty of choices for future direction!

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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