Four-Song EP Available for Streaming, Download
Boston-based ska and rocksteady band The New Limits released their debut EP entitled “Pressure Up” on January 27th on Date Night Records. The EP is now streaming in all platforms.
Formed in just the fall of 2012, The New Limits is composed of veteran ska musicians. Guitarist Jake W-M convened with trumpet player Kosta Zavras, friend and former bandmate, in the hopes of revisiting traditional ska, rocksteady, and reggae beats. Seeking to play the breadth of sounds under the ska umbrella, the band’s primary influences are The Slackers, Westbound Train, The Planet Smashers, The Toasters, and The Specials. They found inspiration in revival bands like Deal’s Gone Bad, Go Jimmy Go, Green Room Rockers, and The Aggrolites, peers who valued the same timeless rhythms. The horn section is filled out by Brad Hewitt on trombone, John “Tibbs” Tibbets on tenor saxophone. Completing the rhythm section were long-time friends and bandmates Alex Chiasson and Tom Vezeau of Waltham. Matty C, known for his performances with The Allstonians, Mass. Hysteria, and Big D and the Kids Table, brings his unique tenor voice and supports the horn section on trumpet. Rounding out the rhythm section and filling out their big sound is keyboardist Matt MacLeod, former lead singer and pianist of The Heavy Beat who currently also supports touring ska band The Snails.
“The band is anchored by a tight rhythm section laying a foundation for soulful vocals and a horn section that knows exactly how to complement a song.”
-Steven Bauer, ReadJunk
Matt MacLeod handled this recording’s engineering, tracking and mixing in his home studio in Rockland, MA. Legendary musician and engineer King Django (Stubborn All-Stars, Skinnerbox) took from there for mastering. With only four songs, this EP could only hope to capture a slice of the band’s versatility. “Pressure Up” kicks off the EP with a high impact ska beat, a skinhead reggae guitar, a bluesy horn lick, and a response against those that would bring you down. “Compass” delivers a familiar two-tone, 80’s era ska sound and nod to the different directions our lives might send us. The mood then lightens with the bright, swing sound of “Saturday Morning” and the long nights of partying that leave us in questionable states. The EP closes with the skinhead-reggae-meets-third-wave song “You’re Not Ready,” an uptempo wake up call to the under-motivated and unaccountable.
“The New Limits were certainly raised on the tunes during the heyday of American ska; however their take on the genre is no carbon copy.”
-Ska-Boom.com
The New Limits have performed at such Boston staples as The Middle East Upstairs and Downstairs, O’Brien’s Pub in Allston, The Midway in Jamaica Plain, and the Allston Street Fair. They’ve shared the stage with such acts as Westbound Train, The Allstonians, Bim Skala Bim, The Beatdown, and Deal’s Gone Bad. 2015 finds them conquering New England, and joining The Slackers for their annual Boat Cruise around the Boston Harbor on July 17.
Physical CDs available at live shows and via the band’s web store.