Third-wave ska is at long last rotting in its checkered grave, and the new millennium finds many of the rude boys trading in their upbeats for "straight-up rock with horns." Buck Enterprises, formerly just Buck, is one of these bands. The opinion floating around seems to be that their new album is reminiscent of The Altar Boys, which is as good a description as any, although they never quite reach the level of blind, youthful zeal that Mike Stand and Co. mined.
Overall, Buck Enterprises' genre switch is fairly successful. Their new sound doesn't sound forced, and though that familiar ska guitar part rears its ugly head on "Barriers," the band more than makes up for it with a sublime cover of The Beatles' "Got to Get You Into My Life." Unfortunately, the band's lyrics haven't improved much ("Barriers" is once again the biggest offender), which can make the album a little hard to listen to at times.
Count Business as Usual as a transitional piece — it's better than the band's self-titled debut, but obviously not as good as Buck Enterprises is capable of.
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Olin JenkinsIs ska dead? No, but it smells funny. Buck has changed its name from its acronym for "Building Up Christ's Kingdom" to Buck Enterprises and has had wholesale personnel and genre changes. Consumers would be better off supporting this band by buying a copy of its self-titled project, which is vastly superior to the inconsistent Business As Usual. Buck Enterprises is no longer a ska band, as the…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Andy ArgyrakisBuck is back in action after a bout with annoying record label red tape, release date delays, and membership changes. Luckily, such problems turned into triumphs for the band, which seems to have picked up the pieces and moved on with a lyrically hearty and musically mature project. The opening cut "All I Need" starts out in the band's classic "high-octane rock with horns" vibe. On this release,…Similar sounding releases
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