Synthetic Elements

The April 2007 review of Standing Still, a previous release by these ska-punkers, declared, "There's nothing new in the band's sound, but the players channel old styles so well that the album is kinda fun despite itself." And while the group's membership has changed since then, its basic characteristics haven't...

By Michael Roberts

April 16, 2009

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The April 2007 review of Standing Still, a previous release by these ska-punkers, declared, "There's nothing new in the band's sound, but the players channel old styles so well that the album is kinda fun despite itself." And while the group's membership has changed since then, its basic characteristics haven't. Trashed Out Paradise, which gets the CD-release-party treatment on May 1 at the Gothic Theatre, sounds great thanks to the crew at Fort Collins's Blasting Room, where it was cut, and if the players' "Wooly Bully" cover is disappointingly rote, other tunes pick up the slack — especially "How Far," with its rampaging battalion of riffs, and "Evelene," a piratical rouser with a yo-ho chorus sure to please all ye hearties out there. Standing still seldom sounds so entertaining.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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