★★★★★
While I'm not the biggest ska listener these days, when I do decide to turn on some island image conjuring reggae tunes I steer towards the late '60s end of the scale. Toots & the Maytals, Desmond Dekker, any of the old Trojan Records bands. When I want ska, I want the Jamaica sense of irie. I want a beer in hand, an ocean at my feet, the smell of coconut sun tan lotion baking on my skin...The Pietasters may be from modern day Washington D.C...
- www.ink19.com
2009-07-20
★★★★★
If you're bound and determined to listen to ska, you'd better listen
to something good. Awesome Mix Tape #6 is a step in the right direction.
The sixth (I'm pretty sure) full length from these DC rudesters, AMT#6
folds dub, surf and punk-rock influences into its mass and then adds a whole lotta soul, creating a laid-back siesta-style mood that's capable of exploding into skronking action at a moment's notice...
- www.splendidezine.com
2009-06-08
★★★★★
Throwing elements of funk and acid jazz into the mix, the Pietasters' third album veers even farther away from the alternative ska scene -- a genuine, melodic, warm, life-affirming spray of classic soul and modern rock. Luckily, the band's Motown/reggae edge isn't sacrificed as a means to an end -- the music is as tight as ever, particularly on the opening double threat of "Told You the First Time" and "Set Me Up," both complete with glittering horns and healthy, gospel-driven backing vocals...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
The Pietasters have undergone personnel changes since being formed in Washington, D.C., in 1990, but they have seen their greatest upheavals in recent years, which may help explain why All Day is their first studio album of new material since 2002. Already by the time of the release of the previous album, Turbo, they had suffered the loss of bassist and songwriter Todd Eckhardt, who died of a heart infection in November 2001, although this was not reflected on that disc...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
Awesome Mix Tape #6 is a perfect example of a CD that is as derivative as it is enjoyable. Greatly influenced by British punk/ska/reggae outfits like the Specials, Washington, D.C.'s Pietasters aren't innovative or groundbreaking -- this album often sounds like it could have come out in the late 1970s or early 1980s instead of the late 1990s...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones' Dicky Barrett would like to take all the credit for this album, and he certainly reached out a helping hand when the Pietasters were at their lowest. His influence may also be creeping into Stephen Jackson's vocals, which have decidedly altered from slightly gruff to notably gravelly. The Bosstones may even be responsible for the more prominent guitar featured on this set, but there again, guitar was always an important facet of the Pietasters' mix...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
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