Rock steady with the beat! For those of you who haven’t heard of them, the Mad Caddies should be your favorite skankin’ partners with their mix of punk, jazz, blues, and ska. We caught up with Keith after his Agora Hills show, and he kept us grooving to the ska sounds long after the concert.

Suburban Horror: So what do you say to people who say ska is dead?

Keither Douglas (Trumpet): I think that I will leave unnamed tried to kill ska, but I think ska can never die because it’s such a timeless sound, hence their being a first and second wave. I won’t honor there being a third wave, really. I think it’s more spin-offs of two tone. Sure, ska had a revival, but it because something that was too contrived, I think. So, ska is definitely not dead. I think our sound has kind of diversified away from ska; it certainly has nothing to do us fearing that ska was a bunk medium or something. Things just got a little out of hand, and it became identified with pop music. It’s not a bad thing – pop means popular, and if you are doing well for yourself then fine. We just stuck to our roots, and I guess I’m going on a tangent; you caught me a little buzzed here! But, ska is definitely not dead.

Suburban Horror: How did you get started playing the trumpet? Why the trumpet?

KD: Well, I don’t think anyone out there is going to be partial, but I initially wanted to play saxophone. I was in 5th grade, and it was the hip thing – Hewey Lewis and News were totally cool. So I was like, “Oh, right on!” All these 80s songs were driven – like Madness too – by ska, like second-wave, two-tone ska was not really in the mainstream anymore, at that age. Saxophone just seemed like it was incorporated into rock music at that time, so I wanted to play sax. Our band director said, “We got too many saxophones; we need more trumpets. Why don’t you guys play trumpet?” I had a couple of buddies at the time so we played trumpets. And, I kept playing it, and about 19 years playing it, I’m still playing it, which is a good thing otherwise I’d be in construction, nothing wrong in that. But, I just messed my finger up the other day. So, I’m glad I’m on the road. Actually, I’m still doing construction but I’m on the road now, and I can do what I love.

Suburban Horror: What’s with the pirate themed song "Weird Beard"?

KD: That was pretty random. It actually just sort of sprung out of jamming on some sort of folky, polka-y stuff. And, it started to feel like some seafaring kind of hymn. And then, Chuck, just pulled this voice, our singer, and started singing about loose women and whiskey and whatnot. And we were like, “All right! That works!” and some sort of sea shanty, and that was history. Then, somehow that whole album became based on us playing pirate music, but it never did. We had written another pirate song for the record, but it never made the cut.

Suburban Horror: Is it going to make "Keep it Going"?

KD: There’s nothing particularly pirate-y. But, I have to say we live like pirates. And, that was another parallel that we thought was appropriate. I don’t want to go into details, but I’m willing to argue that one with anybody.

Suburban Horror: What’s your favorite song to play live?

KD: Right now? It might be the very first track that were releasing on our new record on May 1st, called “Keep It Going.” We’re starting the set with it appropriately, because it’s an intro track. It’s kind of a Dixieland dirge thing that we collaborated with our friend from Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, the pianist, on. It has a very kind of New Orleans meets punk kind of sound. Hopefully, that’s something that we do that’s different from other bands, bringing in the ragtime. And, yeah it’s just fun to play, it’s good to be out there doing our new songs live, doing our material live. A lot of the new songs we’re playing now is what I’m enjoying playing live the most because it’s fresh.

Suburban Horror: And you haven’t played it live a million times.

KD: Yeah, and I mean I still love playing our material for the most part. I won’t go into any detail on that either. For the most part, but yeah the new record, we really put all our heads together on this one, and it’s something that we’re really stokes to have come out so soon. Yeah, all those songs are really the ones that are really firing us up and rejuvenating the band because we worked on it for so long.

Suburban Horror: Is “Monkeys” really the first song that you guys wrote together?

KD: No. “Monkeys” is relatively early, that’s for sure. I believe the first song that Chuck and Sasha ever wrote together is “Preppy Girl.”

Suburban Horror: I love that song! Wearing corduroy instead of Diesel jeans!

KD: Right on! At the time it was Bongo jeans, and that’s what’s on the first record, which is really funny. It dates us: we’re old mother fuckers!

Suburban Horror: Did you guys go Santa Barbara or are you from Santa Barbara?

KD: I’m actually the only guy from Santa Barbara. But, Santa Barbara has been our hub forever. Sahsha... the core band is from Santa Inez, which is just like a small, Santa Barbara is the closest city near there, it’s 45 minutes north. All those guys they moved out, Santa Barbara was the big city, they all moved that way. I met our trombone player at Santa Barbara City College, and our former trumpet player, who was a good friend of mine actually that’s how he got in the band. We’re all from the area. Well, our drummer is actually from Colorado, and our trombone player is from L.A., Whittier. But, Santa Barbara is definitely our hub.

Suburban Horror: "Drinking for 11” is definitely my favorite song. I think it’s a lot slower than the rest; it’s definitely got a more reggae tone. What inspired you to write “Drinking for 11”? As you guys said, “It’s a love song”?

KD: It’s a tongue-in-cheek ode to booze. But, more so it is about someone. Lyrically, I wasn’t really involved, you’d have to ask Chuck about that. I’ve got my theories, but I can’t really dive into that it’s his song. I know as far as the reggae, we’re definitely influenced by a lot of rock steady. I mean, there’s no way you could mention Bob Marley and a lot of old school ska like Skatalites, which really is, I mean ska is what initially inspired reggae music. So, yeah, it definitely does have a much more reggae feel. Even bands right now that are doing more modern sounding reggae, more dancehall meets rock steady, like Seed from Germany, they’re a big influence on us, and you wouldn’t think Germany you wouldn’t think quality rock steady. But these guys are incredible, and they were a big influence at that time. The new record has gone the direction of a little more reggae, so I guess you’re stoked. It’s not necessarily more down tempo, it’s more like you’re going to hear all the sounds that you’ve always heard from us, but there’s some stuff that’s a little more mid-tempo and more dubbed out, and we had a lot of fun with it.

Suburban Horror: Are you guys doing Warped Tour this year?

KD: I’m not going to assume anything. We have a good relationship with the people who organize the tour so… I don’t see us doing the whole thing, but there is a possibility that we could jump on some date, hopefully in southern California as well, especially. We will try to keep you posted on that!

- Magic Stick Mish