We Are the Union Skank It Up at North Hollywood's Knitting Factory
Did you know that there is an explosion of Ska happening in venues all over the country? It’s been going on for a while but it’s on the edge of busting out wide and right there, at the forefront are We Are the Union.
I caught them at the Knitting Factory for the Los Angeles portion of their headline tour and they were nothing short of spectacular. The small stage in North Hollywood could barely contain the energy, cuz if you’ve ever been to a Ska show, you know…it’s a party.
A ska show is about moving and dancing and shouting and singlng and Mistress of Ceremonies Reade Wolcott let us all in on the festivities while making sure we knew that this was a place of full acceptance and, if you don’t like it…there’s the door. Their 2021 album, Ordinary Life, is a semi-concept album exploring Reade’s journey through transition and it was well represented during the show as well as nuggets from their more punk past.
Multi-instrumentalist recording artist Skatune Network, who also plays with one of the openers, New Orleans’ Bad Operation, is a proven power dynamo on the Trombone and, with Sax sensation Emily Williams, provide the requisite brass melodies and punctuation which add to the controlled mayhem that is a We Are the Union show.
The Knitting Factory was brimming with support and enthusiasm all night and, yes, a circle mosh broke out led by Skatune and Emily.
A really great Ska show should feel like a basement party where the adults are hanging out and skanking along with the kids and this was no exception. From the opening band, Half Past Two, which featured a surprise guest vocal from Catbite’s Brittany Luna for a rousing rendition of the “Three Small Words” from the Josie and the Pussycats movie to raucous punk of Suzi True and the amazing New Orleans Ska band Bad Operation, which now features Luna on vocals and Jer (Skatune Network) on horns, the evening was a non-stop all ages festival of joy and celebration of diversity and you would do well to show up the next time these bands come around to your town.
Review & Photos by: @areallulu
Like what you read? Follow our social media and playlist for the latest in independent music:
