Westbound Train

Boston’s Westbound Train certainly didn’t invent ska and reggae, but they sure as hell have managed to put their stamp on the genres.

Four records and eight years in, the seven piece has figured out how to blend classic American Soul to the Caribbean genres, bringing the echoes of bands like The Specials and The Skatalites to a generation of kids who thought Goldfinger and Reel Big Fish were the Alpha and Omega of ska.

The band is about to release Come and Get It, an album that front man Obi Fernandez describes as his favorite so far.
Fernandez spoke with InSite recently about what makes this new record different from the others, new line up changes and a summer plans that include plenty of BBQ.
What can you tell me about the new album?

We are all very excited about the new album. Everything that went into making the record seemed to happen completely natural and organic. We recorded at Sea Side Lounge Studios in Brooklyn, NY and just fell in love with the place as well as the people there. Dave Hillyard of The Slackers came on to produce the album and that was just amazing. He knew exactly where we were headed and didn't let us lose any focus on the sound and the vibe of the record that. The record has tons of soul influence. Old Stax and Motown have always been a part of what we do but on this record we actually recorded some straight up soul tunes. Come and Get It has definitely been my favorite album to make. We did it live over the span of about two weeks. No matter what you are into this album has something for everyone. Fifteen songs that will hopefully get ya party feeling great.

This is your fourth record. Has writing the albums gotten any easier?

Well, you always try to keep writing but I think it does seem to get a bit easier as you go. I think with this record I've really found my voice and have a much easier time communicating what I want to say. The more you write and with each record you put out it seems like each record gets more and more honest. Probably because you've just seen more of the world, lived a little more life. Touring enables you to have this enormous canvas of experiences to paint about.

You guys were on the road a lot after Transitions. Did you take any time off before working on the new one?

We did take time off before making this record. We were just going non stop and needed to take a break. We needed to charge up and make a couple changes to our roster. We'd been spending so much time together and going through a bunch of rough times together that everyone needed to just step out of the situation in order to think about things a little more clearly. We needed to sit in a room and hash a lot of things out and at the end of look at one another and be like "Wait a minute these dudes are my friends first not my colleagues". After we were able to work out the kinks the next thing to do was start writing a new album. It was really great to go through that and start writing for a new record because it really just brought us closer together. We were stronger now, so we really went into this project together and focused on making great music. We didn't have to worry about submitting for tours, van calls, what were our next 10 steps... For the first time in a long time it was just purely about the music.

You mentioned some changes to your roster.

Yeah we picked up Eric Novod and Luke Penella since Transitions. Both people are incredible people and add to the dynamic greatly on and off stage. Eric is a huge soul and jazz fan and when he came into the band our sound just changed automatically. He played a really huge part in allowing us to go into that soul direction that we've been wanting to go in for so long. Luke is an incredible sax player and one of the funniest dudes you will ever meet. Having the both of them has allowed us to really step up our game. They both bring such an arsenal of talent that totally forces everyone to always bring their A game.

You guys have toured with some amazing ska and reggae bands like the Skatalites and The Toasters. Ever get intimidated at all playing with these bands?

I've been intimidated before but in the way that it just inspires you to want to give you absolute best. Bands like that that have really carved out a path and in all that we do we want to be completely respectful of those who came before us. The Skatalites are probably one of the bands we listen to the most. If it weren't for them we would be even further away from nailing the style of music that we play.

Anything else you want to add?

We just want to make music for everyone regardless of what you are into. We want to show people a great time and set off dance parties all over the world. Please pick up our new record Come and Get It. Be sure to keep visiting www.myspace.com/westboundtrain and http://www.westboundtrain.net/.