The Witzard

DOOM REgulator painting (ART CREDIT: Ryan Callisto @moonofjupiterart) Operation Ivy—often, affectionately know as simply "Op Ivy" —were only active for two years in-between 1987-89, but have remined one of the most influential Ska Punk/Hardcore eevr since their all too brief tenture. Op Ivy's Lint AKA Tim Armstrong and Matt McCall AKA Matt Freeman would go on to play in Rancid together, who are still actively recording and touring some 32 years later. Armstrong and Op Ivy vocalist Jesse Michaels briefy reunited in 2013 on a song called "Living In A Dangerous Land" as part of his extensive Tim Timebomb & Friends singles series and again in 2022 to play a rendition of "Sound System" as backed by The Interrupters at Musack's Rock "N" Roll Carnival. Armstrong & Michaels additionally co-wrote a handful of songs together for UK Punks Grade 2, which appeared strewn across Graveyard Island , Graveyard Island: Acoustic Sessions, and Gr...

Vic Ruggiero performing live music (CREDIT: Matt Kursmark) Victor "Vic" Ruggiero is a musician, singer/song-writer, producer, and multi-intrumentalist hailing from New York City. Ruggiero has been recording, making, and playing music since about 1998 with his bands The Slackers, Stubborn All-Stars, The Silencers, SKAndalous All-Stars. Sic + MAD, Da Whole Thing, The Mooks, Vic & Kepi, The Witch & The Burro, Reggae Workers of The World, and more. The last time we spoke to Vic, it was in 2018 coinciding with the release(s) of The Slackers' "Nobody's Listening" B/W "Sleep Outside" 12-inch and Live At Ernesto's! 2xLP re-issue. Since then, Ruggiero has released projects with The Slackers, Reggae Workers of The World slightly re-branded as R.W.W., Kepi Ghoulie, lauren.napier, The Mooks, and other odds, ends, and curiosities on his personal Bandcamp page that launched in 2020. Stuff In My Pockets is the latest solo project from the aways ...

The Crew 18x24 Acrylic/India Ink (CREDIT: Ryan Callisto @moonofjupiterart) Just yesterday afternoon, we recieved word the world was gaining one more Los Angeles-based Punk/Hardcore super-group. The Crew somewhat amazingly features Punk Rock lifers Fletcher Dragge & Byron McMackin of Pennywise, Mike Muir of Suicidal Tendencies, and Tim Armstrong & Matt Freeman of Rancid. The Crew's debut single, "One Voice," is being billed as "a rousing Punk Rock anthem about unity." Vocalist and guitarist Fletcher Dragge shares: "collaborating with Tim Armstrong, Mike Muir, and Matt Freeman has been an awesome experience; obviously, Byron McMackin & I go way back. Byron & I had a demo of "One Voice" laying around for couple years and I thought it would be cool to bring a couple old friends on board to breath some new life into it." Fletcher continues, "watching these guys lay down their own personal trademark styles on this song wa...

Victor "Vic" Ruggiero is a Bronx, New York-based musician, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, who's best-known as the keyboardist and frontman of beloved Ska band, The Slackers. Ruggiero has, also, spent time playing with Stubborn All-Stars, Sic & Mad, SKAndalous All-Stars, Crazy Baldhead, Da Whole Thing, The Silencers, The Mooks, and Reggae Workers of The World. He's released several solo albums, EP's, and singles and has, additionally, been featured on recordings by Rancid, Transplants, P!NK, Tim Timebomb, and more. The Slackers recently released their latest 12-inch/digital single, "Nobody's Listening" B/W "Sleep Outside," as well as a vinyl re-issue of 2000's Live At Ernesto's! originally a CD-only release on Hellcat/Epitaph, with Pirates Press Records. Just a few months ago, we purchased a digital copy of Lauren Napier & Vic Ruggiero's collaborative Duets, Vol. 1 EP released on Chicago-based imprint Happy As A La...

Pick It Up! Ska In The 90's , which is being billed as "the definitive Third Wave "Ska-cumentary'" (AKA a Ska documentary) is now available on DVD, Blu-Ray, digital, etc. Whether they're presently aware of it or not, anyone from about the age of about 28-45 should have either vague or vivid memories of Ska/Punk in the 1990's; most people are familiar with either No Doubt , Less Than Jake, The Mighty Might Bosstones , Reel Big Fish, or Rancid/Operation Ivy . 90's Ska is commonly known as Third Wave Ska, following in the traditions of both First Wave Jamaican and British Two-tone/2 Tone Ska through the 80's. For me, personally, I would say one of my earliest memories of Ska was hearing Goldfinger 's "Superman" on the in-game soundtrack for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (1999) which, also, included selections form Dead Kennedys , Primus, Suicidal Tendencies , The Suicide Machines, and The Vandals . Pick It Up! was directed/produced by ...

Self-Titled by CHARGER Christian Wagner from Emeryville, California -based Pirates Press Records has been sending us digital promos and EPK's for a year or so now, via email, but within the last few months, he's been sending us physical promos, as well: Lenny Lashley's Gang of One 's All Are Welcome , Harrington Saints' 1,000 POUNDS OF Oi!, and most recently, CHARGER 's debut self-titled EP AKA "S/T" EP . Oddly enough, CHARGER 's S/T EP is the third Rancid -related release recently issued by Pirates Press ; Landfill Crew 's self-titled 2x7-inch EP features long-time Rancid frontman Tim Armstrong , The Old Firm Casuals' Holger Danske features Lars Frederiksen of both Rancid and Lars Frederiksen & The Bastards , and CHARGER features Matt Freeman (bass/vocals) of Rancid , as well as genre-shaping Operation Ivy . Just today, Friday, May 10th, Pirates Press are, somehow, releasing CHARGER 's S/T EP , Harrington Saints' 1,...

Landfill Crew is a fictional animated Punk Rock band set during the mid-80's heyday of the formative East/West Coast Punk & Hardcore scenes. Landfill Crew AKA LFC 's self-titled debut 2x7-inch EP was originally recorded on March 12, 1987 in Bagga's Basement , although, it was just properly released earlier this week on Pirates Press & Hellcat Records . According to the record's inserts, Landfill Crew consists of frontman Anthony "Hux" Campbell , guitarist & vocalist Bagger "Bagga Bullets" Russell , drummer Jennifer "Jenny" Arellano , guitarist Cliff "Pakman" Esmond , and bassist Horace "Baby" Harringtton . Its reverse sleeve denotates the 2x7-inch EP was produced by Tim "Timebomb" Armstrong , with artwork & layout by J Bonner , and sends a very "special thanks to Clarence for bringing the donuts." However, much in the same vein as like-minded animated Alternative Rock/Hip-Hop b...

I think it'd be legitimately "safe" to say that a [Third Wave] Ska-Punk Fusion band like Rancid would not even exist without vets, Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff . Fuhgeddaboud Bob Marley & The Wailers for a minute, Jimmy Cliff was the true originator of the 2 Jamaican -bred Reggae musicians; Cliff is widely known for his beautiful, honey-drenched Soulful harmonies... and was recently recognized as one of the few Reggae -tinged Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees (March 2010). Past mainstream hits have included "The Harder They Come," "I Can See Clearly Now," and "Many Rivers to Cross." Dr. Cliff is currently putting the finishing touches on a 2012 full-length, Existence . Jimmy Cliff effectively teamed up with Rancid-Transplants frontman, Tim Armstrong to record what would become his first proper studio release in nearly 8 years, Sacred Fire EP . The by-product of 6 arduous months is a set of 5 songs... produced by Armstron...