Rebelation “State Of The Union”
Album Reviews | Jun 28th, 2007

Record Label: Do The Dog Music
Genre: Ska/Reggae/Rocksteady
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com
After listening to their EP “Pounds and Pence”, I finally got the chance to sit down and listen to a full-length by the 10 piece out of Norfolk, England.
What I found was an eclectic mix of trad-ska, rocksteady, reggae and dancehall. The overall vibe of the album was very mellow and laid back almost to the point of a Skatalites album. Rebelation does manage to change things up when you’re least expecting it. “State of the Union” starts off with a very mellow instrumental but is followed up by one of the fastest, more two-tone inspired tracks on the album titled, “Reggae Woman” and then slows right back down with a nice reggae number called “Angels and Sinners”.
Personally, I think that Rebelation has one of the best horn sections that I’ve heard in quite some time. Trumpets, trombones, saxophones…all the key elements in a traditionally influenced ska band are there. Rebelation also switches the vocals around with just about every member of the band getting a chance to sing…whether it’s a small verse on a particular song or an entire song…they spread the vocal chores around while maintaining their sound.
If I had anything bad to say, it would be that, for only twelve songs, “State of the Union” runs a bit too long. I could have done without the instrumental tracks, but that’s just me. Other than that, I don’t have any other bad things to say about it.
So if I had to sum up “State of the Union” in twelve words or less, I would say…good mix of great music equals one head-bopping good time. “State of the Union” sounds a lot like Hepcat’s “Push N Shove” but offers much more variety. Search and find good music, you shall.
Bottom Line: Very good trad-ska, boss reggae with a little two-tone inspiration for good measure.
Notable Tracks: Reggae Woman, Angels and Sinners, Liberator, Daventry
Overall Rating: