The Upbeat is a band formed in 1985 in the small beach-side community of
Carpinteria, California
Carpinteria (; es, Carpintería, meaning "Carpentry") is a small seaside city in southeastern Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, it had a population of 13,264 at the 2020 U ...
. Heavily influenced by the
2 Tone
Two-tone, two tone, or 2 tone, etc., may refer to:
Audio and sound
* Two-tone analysis, in nonlinear system measurement
* Two-tone attention signal
* Two-tone chime, such as the "ding dong" sound of a doorbell
* Two-tone sequential paging, sel ...
Ska of the late 70s and early 80s, the group was formed by Alfredo “Fredo” Peralta (lead vocals), Mike "Oreo" Organista (lead vocals), Eric "Scaric" Vallen (rhythm guitar), Brandon "Hossinn" Seider (bass guitar), Grant "Saxpa" Cox (saxophone), Mike "Pussard" Honeyman (trumpet), Chaska "The Weasel" Slawson (drums), and Mark "Sparky" Gonzales (Merchandise Master/Designated Driver). 2011 saw the introduction of new members, ska/reggae/rocksteady legends Zac Pike (lead guitar) and Dan Boer (keys), from the bands Sandollar Sounds and Dynamic Pressure, as well as Brian "Polar Bear" LeBlanc (drums), from Santa Barbara's Civil Unrest and Makai. Their members Dan Boer and Zac Pike created music for
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...
's ''
Chowder''.
Immediately after the band started, they began to play local parties in the nearby college town of Isla Vista, CA (University of California at Santa Barbara), as well as accepting opportunities to play gigs at more famous clubs such as
The Country Club
The Country Club, located in Brookline, Massachusetts, is the oldest golf-oriented country club in the United States. (The Philadelphia Cricket Club, founded in 1854, was the first country club for any sport.) It holds an important place in ...
and
Fenders Ballroom in Los Angeles and
The Stone and
Slims in San Francisco. After being exposed to the many iterations of the ska genre, the band began to be known for playing a unique blend of
ska
Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...
,
roots reggae, and
rock steady
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish ...
, with politically and environmentally conscious lyrics. In 1993, driven by their desire to promote the music they loved, The Upbeat released their debut 5 track demo under the moniker "Upbeat Recordings". This stark freshman effort garnered them airplay across the country and a series of compilation offers from the likes of
Epitaph
An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...
/
Hellcat Records,
Moon Records, and
SRH Presents.
In 1995, the band released their first full-length album which sold 5,000+ units with virtually no promotional support or distribution. By this time their live reputation preceded them, sending them into a series of surf, skate and snowboard videos including
Transworld Skateboarding and
Transworld Snowboarding Video Magazine Trans World or Transworld may refer to:
Companies
* Trans World Airlines (TWA)
** Trans World Connection, a affiliated brand name of the airline
** Trans World Corporation, a holding company for the airline
** Trans World Express, a regional carrie ...
and
Fox Sports Net, which brought the band even further praise, securing them a worldwide fan base and setting the stage for the band’s subsequent, prolific west coast touring. During this time, The Upbeat shared the stage with the likes of such varied artists as
The Skatalites,
Burning Spear,
Sublime
Sublime may refer to:
Entertainment
* SuBLime, a comic imprint of Viz Media for BL manga
* Sublime (band), an American ska punk band
** ''Sublime'' (album), 1996
* ''Sublime'' (film), a 2007 horror film
* SubLime FM, a Dutch radio station dedic ...
,
Sugar Ray,
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, they ...
,
Bad Manners
Bad Manners are an English two-tone and ska band led by frontman Buster Bloodvessel. Early appearances included ''Top of the Pops'' and the live film documentary, ''Dance Craze'' (1981).
They were at their most popular during the early 1980 ...
,
The Specials
The Specials, also known as The Special AKA, are an English Two-tone (music genre), 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall (singer), Terr ...
,
The Wailers
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
,
Fishbone,
Steel Pulse, and
The Twinkle Brothers
The Twinkle Brothers are a Jamaican reggae band formed in 1962, and still active in the 21st century under Norman Grant's lead.
History
The Twinkle Brothers were formed in 1962 by brothers Norman (vocals, drums) and Ralston Grant (vocals, rhythm ...
, to name a few.
"Backyard Knowledge," The Upbeat's second album, was released in 2000, and ten years later (2010), a host of new songs were released on their album, "Shuku". The title song, Shuku Power, is a tribally influenced testament to the band's respect and admiration for the Native
Chumash that walked their hometown ground, many years before them. More specifically, the Shuku were a people that inhabited
Rincon Point, which happens to be a popular surf spot often frequented by the band's members.
The band continues to forge their own unique path, making their mark on the road of ska, reggae and rocksteady. Their new song, "Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone? (WHATRBG?)" (B. Leblanc / The Upbeat) is an anthem style tune that is part reminiscent of the ska days of old, and part look forward to the rude future ahead. It is currently available on 7" vinyl and can be downloaded for free at: https://soundcloud.com/the-upbeat/where-have-all-the-rude-boys-gone
Current Lineup
*Mike Organista - Vocs
*Brandon Seider - Bass Guitar
*Eric Vallen - Rhythm Guitar
*Zac Pike - Lead Guitar
*Nathan Dowdall - Organ/Electric Piano
*Grant Cox - Saxophone/Vocs
*Mike Honeyman - Trumpet/Vocs
*Chaska Slawson - Drums
Previous Members of The Upbeat (in order of past appearance)
* Lennie Price - Trumpet
* Jon Wilcox - Trumpet
* Brian Leblanc - Drums
* Eric Lundy - Lead Guitar
* Nathan Dowdall - Organ/Keys
* Alfredo Peralta - Vocs
* Rodney Teague - Trombone
* David Lombera - Organ/Keys
* Gabe Cheshire - Baritone Sax
* Brett Keller - Trombone
* Paul Torres - Vocals
* JJ - Drums
* David Granada - Drums
* Eric Herzogg - Drums
* Collin - Drums
* George Manuras - Drums
References
External links
* https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Upbeat/33799128924
* https://soundcloud.com/the-upbeat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Upbeat
American ska musical groups
Musical groups established in 1985
Musical groups from California
1985 establishments in California