Album Review: Get Together

In some ways it’s a bit of a shame WOMAD Taranaki is taking a hiatus this year. Because this outfit, Battle‑Ska Galactica would be the perfect party band for that festival. This high‑energy seven‑piece ensemble from Te Whanganui‑a‑Tara / Wellington, New Zealand brings it, hands down. Ska, Reggae, Dub, etc have always been popular in the Capital. Many great acts have found their happy place between the harbour and the hills: Fat Freddy’s Drop, The Black Seeds, Newtown Rock Steady, Roots Foundation, The Nudge, etc have all paved the way for party orientated conscious groove. And Battle‑Ska Galactica live up to that legacy with their own take – dropping retro‑futuristic flair, interstellar themes, and delivering crowd pleasing, explosive live shows. They’ve earned a devoted following across Aotearoa and beyond.

Since their earliest performances, Battle‑Ska Galactica has become a festival favourite, appearing at events across Aotearoa including Auckland Ska Festival, CubaDupa, Newtown Festival, Gardens Magic, ToraToraTora, Marchfest, and more.

Their 2012 debut album, Everybody’s Got An Opinion, received enthusiastic reviews. They followed it with well‑received singles, notably the self-deprecating Living a Lie (2020), which charted on ska podcasts and web‑radio internationally. If you like that one you’ll also find it on the new album, too.

Battle‑Ska Galactica blends classic Jamaican ska roots with the punchy drive of 2 Tone revival and the edgy energy of contemporary ska‑punk. The band’s second album, Get Together, which just dropped this month, captures every element that makes this crew worthy of your time, from your ears to your dance hall shoe leather. Vibrant grooves, fierce horn driven old skool tunes, reminiscent of the 80’s ska revival when Madness, The Specials, The Selecter, The English Beat, Bad Manners and Special AKA ruled the airwaves.

While every song on this ‘all-killa-no-filla’ selection is irresistibly upbeat and smile inducing, their lyrics can be a bit of a Trojan horse, infusing into these infectious jams incisive social and political commentary – globalisation and capitalism (a cathartic anti-corporate Quick Buck, Growler), environmental issues, mental health (in the appropriately manic Anxiety), prescription dependency (Doctor Doctor), and media messaging and corporate manipulation (World Wide Pain).

The album came to life through a shared effort – tracked at guitarist Saali Marks’ home studio in Wairarapa, shaped further at Dr. Lee Prebble’s famed space, The Surgery in Wellington, and rounded out with contributions recorded in the lounges and home studios of band members all across the city (also some mastering by Chris Chetland at Kog Studios).

As to be expected with such a large outfit, membership changes about. The current lineup includes Tom Scrase (drums/vocals), Ben Hunt (trumpet), Dayle Jellyman (keys/vocals), Saali Marks (guitar/vocals), Frankie Curac (sax/vocals), John Downes (bass), Damian Forlong (trombone).

This band is most definitely the sum of its parts, with a collaborative sound and communal fusion across all their music. It’s a tight and efficient unit that handles the fast and the slow tunes with equal dexterity. I loved each and every tune.

That said, there are opportunities to hand out a few extra bouquets. Such as Curac’s delivery of a particularly ‘unhinged’ solo on the sax that perfectly sums up the theme and vibe of the song, along with the intensity to a T (for terrific!). Or Saali Marks’ ironic, accusatory tone on Quick Buck, especially when he takes the moral high ground and asks ‘What would your mother think’ about cutting corners to make a quick dollar for the shareholders?

My personal fave? A Message From The Meters – serving serious Skatalites energy with a slick little 70’s cha‑cha‑cha shimmy running underneath. And don’t even get me started on Ben Hunt’s trumpet solo… absolute velvet. Honestly, I’d take an extended edition of that moment alone. The surf‑guitar intro on Living A Lie is another treat – I was fully bracing for a rockabilly revival romp when it kicked off, and I’m delighted to report I was gloriously, fabulously wrong.

The album’s central message, echoed in its title and promotional notes, is the need for unity – especially right now when the world’s trying to race the proverbial too-hard-basket at breakneck speed or as put in their publicity: “in a world gone mad, the only thing to do is to get together and try to love one another.” If the messaging all gets too much, they’ve got that covered in the outgoing tune, Battle Goes Ska, with a blissful, old-school instrumental homage to ska’s Jamaican original – when music was freestyle, warm, rhythmic, and super laid-back.

Get Together is poised to resonate powerfully with Battle‑Ska Galactica fans, standing as their most focused and fully realised release to date. It delivers a fierce blend of driving energy, thoughtful lyricism, and emotional depth – yet never forgets to be a full‑tilt party record. It’s an album that hits the dance floor hard while still carving out moments for genuine reflection. The band plays with unwavering precision – tight, funky, and completely locked‑in – while their trademark cosmic swagger shines brighter than ever. So, step up, skank fans, onto the galactic dancefloor, moving as one and embracing the shared pulse of collective rhythm.

Yeah, well, we won’t get our ska fix at WOMAD this year, but if you’re in Welly next weekend, come get super hyped at CubaDupa, because the Battle-Ska’s will be in the house (or on the street, rather). And then you can see for yourself, what all this fuss is about.