 Ruskabank
by Jason Meier
The second band to hit the stage on Sunday was the second
representative from Manhattan to play the Spirit Fest.
I have watched and listened to the smooth ska sounds of
Ruskabank for about two years now. The band started in October of 1995 as a two-piece and
went on to grow into an eight-piece band by March of 1996. They have played all over this
area of the state and have opened for such big names as Goldfinger, The Urge, MU330, The
Decepticonz, and Buck O' Nine among others.
They have also played with just about every local ska band
in the area, including The Norman 360, O'Phil, The Rayguns, Six Percent, The Rowskabouts
and the Lowbrows. They have also played with a couple of the bands on this bill, such as
Ulitmate Fakebook and 8 Degrees.
The members of Ruskabank are: Dave Spiker - vocals & guitar; Jayson Sullivan - bass;
David Darby - drums; Donnyves Laroque - keyboards; Jaime Rogers - trumpet; Ben Schierling
- tenor sax; David Studnicka - alto sax; and Chris Mayne - trombone.
The brand of ska that these guys play is very much along
the traditional vein, but is also very very poppy. It has a very distinct 1950s style of
rock and roll sound to it. Mix that along with some jazz and reggae influences and you get
the Ruskabank sound. These guys also put on an entertaining show.
Dave and Donnyves in particular have a good time
interacting with the crowd. Set highlights included older songs like "HotHead",
"Speedy Gonzales", and "Wishing Well" as well as a couple of newer
ones like "Give it Up" and "How I Spent My Summer."
On the song "Speedy Gonzales," Chris Mayne and
Jamie Rogers took over the lead vocal chores and sang a very funny song. The band had
people skanking hard, despite the very hot weather. This was one of the tightest sets I
had ever heard from these guys as it sounds like they are really starting to come
together. It was also nice to hear them outside cause it makes it a little easier to hear
all the horn parts.
"It's hard to consider this an outdoor show,"
said Dave Spiker. "Yeah it's really hot, but with this huge covering they have over
the stage it's not that bad really. It could be much worse."
In the last few months, the Manhattan music scene has seen some major changes. First off
was the loss of Bombers when it burned down, destroying what was probably the best stage
in Aggieville. Add to that the fact that many of the local favorites have gone the way of
the dodo; and Manhattan legends, Sufferbus, have all graduated, essentially relocating the
band to KC.
On top of that, the success story of Ultimate Fakebook
would normally be seen as a positive sign for the Manhattan scene - but like every story
there are two sides, and their regional success will probably also mean more time spent on
the road, and less time in Manhattan.
One might become concerned about all of this, but not the
Ruskabank boys.
"We still have Rustys," said Dave Spiker.
"We also have some newer bands that are starting to do some good things - like
Podstar, Pomeroy, and Porphyria."
Jayson Sullivan also added, "The other thing to keep
in mind is that Manhattan has a lot less resources than places like Lawrence and Kansas
City, which can make it a little bit more tough. But like any music scene, things go
through phases and Manhattan's scene will be just fine."
During the last few months, Ruskabank has been busy breaking in their new drummer, Jeff
Bilberry, and have also just finished recording 14 tracks for their first CD at Mercy
Studios in Lawrence. They hope to have it released in October. (Of course, Synapsis will
be reviewing this CD as soon as it comes out.) But now that they have the CD in the bag,
they are going to start playing a lot more shows.
Upcoming gigs include: September 20th with MU330, O'Phil
& 6 % at The Bottleneck and September 22nd w/ Rubber at Last Chance in Manhattan.
You can e-mail Dave at dspiker@ksu.edu
or call (785) 776-0726. Also make sure you visit their web page at www-personal.ksu.edu/~das3957.
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