The Aggrolites
The Aggrolites are a 21st century ska band on a mission to remind modern audiences what proper ska sounded like, whether in Kingston in 1963 or in London in 1979. The Aggrolites formed in 2002, originally getting together as the backing band for a one-off Los Angeles show backing Jamaican music legend Derrick Morgan. Gathering members from two minor Southern California reggae acts, the new band consisted of vocalist and lead guitarist Jesse Wagner, rhythm guitarist Brian Dixon, organist Roger Rivas, bassist J. Bonner, and drummer Korey Horn. The concert was a success, and the band stuck together to record an album with Morgan that was never completed.
Emboldened despite the recording setback, the band took the name the Aggrolites ("aggro" being a slang term of the ska-loving skinhead subculture of Britain in the 1960s and '70s, meaning pent-up aggression, and "lites" in tribute to the greatest ska band of all time, the Skatalites) and became the go-to guys on the West Coast ska and reggae circuit, backing a wide variety of golden-age Jamaican and British artists on their American dates, including the great Prince Buster and Culture lead singer Joseph Hill. On their own, with Rivas' funky organ work taking the instrumental lead in substitution for their lack of a horn section and Wagner taking vocal duties, the Aggrolites recorded their debut album, Dirty Reggae, at a live-in-the-studio session in 2003.
Replacing Horn with new drummer Scott Abels (formerly of the popular third wave ska band Hepcat), the Aggrolites signed to the Epitaph Records subsidiary Hellcat Records in 2005. Their second album, The Aggrolites, was released in May 2006, with their third, Reggae Hit L.A., following in June 2007, by which time drummer Horn had returned to the fold along with new bass player Jeff Roffredo. In 2009, the Aggrolites released IV; it was their last album for Hellcat Records, and their fifth LP, Rugged Road, was issued by Young Cub Records in 2011. After releasing a live disc in 2012, the group's release schedule slowed, but in 2017 they teamed with Dela of Slightly Stoopid, backing him up on his debut album, Opening Night. By this time, the Aggrolites' membership had shifted again, with Rivas, Wagner, and Roffredo joined by rhythm guitarist Ricky Chacon and drummer Alex McKenzie. This lineup was responsible for 2019's Reggae Now!, the band's first full-length release in eight years.
© Stewart Mason /TiVo
Discografia
13 album • Ordinato per Bestseller
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The Aggrolites / The Slackers
Ska e rocksteady - Pubblicato da Badasonic Records il 29 gen 2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Aggrolites
Rock - Pubblicato da Hellcat - Epitaph il 9 mag 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
IV
Musica alternativa e indie - Pubblicato da Hellcat - Epitaph il 5 giu 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Reggae Hit L.A.
Rock - Pubblicato da Hellcat - Epitaph il 5 giu 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live from the Compound
Reggae - Pubblicato da Pirates Press Records il 25 dic 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dirty Reggae
Reggae - Pubblicato da Pirates Press Records il 25 nov 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Aggrolites (Live at Sugarshack Sessions)
Reggae - Pubblicato da Sugarshack il 21 feb 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
REGGAE NOW!
Reggae - Pubblicato da Pirates Press Records il 24 mag 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Unleashed Live Vol. 1
Reggae - Pubblicato da Brixton Records il 2 nov 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Soundclash Series 1
Reggae - Pubblicato da Fat Beats Records il 2 apr 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Freedom Street (Live at Sugarshack Sessions)
Reggae - Pubblicato da Sugarshack il 25 feb 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pound For Pound (Live at Sugarshack Sessions)
Reggae - Pubblicato da Sugarshack il 31 gen 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fu Manchu (feat. The Aggrolites)
Reggae - Pubblicato da Milk River Music il 1 lug 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo