Hepcat

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(1989 – present)

Hepcat are a third wave ska band formed in southern California in 1989.

Their soulful harmonies and mellow rhythms were unlike those of contemporaries and more akin to musicians from the heyday of 1960s jamaican ska, also referred to as the first wave.

Hepcat’s debut album, “Out of Nowhere” was released in 1994 on New York-based ska label Moon Records. Two years later, they followed it up with “Scientific” on BYO Records. In 1998, after signing with Epitaph Records subsidiary Hellcat Records, they released “Right on Time,” scoring a modest hit with the swinging “No Worries” and scored a spot on the Vans Warped Tour. 2000 saw the release of “Push n’ Shove,” their first album without founding members Raul Talavera and Alex Désert, although the latter appears as a guest vocalist on two tracks.

The band went on indefinite hiatus after 2000, and no new material has surfaced since. Trumpeter Kincaid Smith formed Soul Traffic, a five-piece funk band. Drummer Scott Abels has played with the Rancid side project Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and the southern California reggae act The Aggrolites. Vocalist Alex Desert has had a successful career in film and television, appearing in the movies PCU, Swingers, and High Fidelity; and the television show Becker.

In early 2004, a remastered version of Out of Nowhere was released with two additional bonus tracks, an early version of “Nigel” and “Club Meditation,” both of which appeared on their first single. Occasionally, Hepcat reconvenes to play a few shows a year in the California area. Often, this lineup is that which performed on “Scientific.”

Tagged as:

ska, reggae, rocksteady, third-wave ska, trad ska
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Scientific
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Out of Nowhere
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Push 'n Shove
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Top Tracks

1	Country Time full track	100
2	No Worries	73
3	The Secret	70
4	I Can't Wait	60
5	Marcus Garvey full track	59
6	Riding the Region	58
7	Bobby & Joe full track	57
8	Black Sky full track	54
8	Dance Wid' Me	54
10	Right On Time	53
11	Rudies All Around	47
12	Home full track	46
12	Prison of Love	46
14	Hooligans	44
15	Goodbye Street	43

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Elementree1 wrote:
15 days ago

YO POSITIVE PEOPLE!! If you like Hepcat and Rock/Reggae/Dancehall/Ska with a concious message please check out our music. We are a fresh new band out of Cincinnati Ohio, genre bending music and a message that must be heard. Our last fm page is: http://www.last.fm/music/theohms Our myspace page is: http://www.myspace.com/ohms. Feel our music

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Maagikki wrote:
19 days ago

Aw hell. It'd be so awesome to see them live, but I'm guessing that they ain't stopping round here...

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longball2no1 wrote:
23 days ago

Euro dates!

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vruilova wrote:
last month

Come on! Baby Dance Wid' Me!

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fuckxyeahh wrote:
August 2009

Ska'd for life.

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MacTony wrote:
August 2009

don't care about beefs,race,or anything other than the the sound/feel/groove of the music.these cats are just that HEP.

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Porgeface wrote:
July 2009

I love right on time, especialy no worries!

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talkloud wrote:
June 2009

So was their beef with King Django real or what?

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gunowakonski wrote:
April 2009

Hooligans yeah!

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Maagikki wrote:
March 2009

"To point out the fact that they're white is to miss the entire fucking point of the genre." Not to mention the fact that the band was almost entirely composed of blacks & hispanics...Fuck race. Where's the fucking unity?

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ediroi wrote:
February 2009

muy vuena banda skaskaska

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jackspirit wrote:
December 2008

The song "Beautyful" is one of the best I`ve ever heard. Grooving and hot, yet simple...gives me a big smile every time I listen to it.

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YogurtJalla wrote:
December 2008

nickwafers comment is so much fail it's far beyond epic. HAHAHAHA! Great band btw.

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johnnytwotone wrote:
December 2008

To point out the fact that they're white is to miss the entire fucking point of the genre.

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nickwafer wrote:
December 2008

wow, a white boy ska band I actually like (aside from the specials).

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aforonda wrote:
November 2008

Scientific!

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EDNIRRIS wrote:
November 2008

i love!!

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talkloud wrote:
August 2008

1 across on yesterday's USA Today crossword: "Jazz Fan", 6 letters. :)

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UeberseeRecords wrote:
November 2007

Hi everybody! In Oct/Nov Los Kung-Fu Monkeys (MEX) and Wisecräcker (D) shared the stages across European venues. Read what Bernie (singer of LKFM) has to say about his first trip to the old world...

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Luuttuaja wrote:
November 2007

Rest in peace, Dave.

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