The Aquabats

Biography

From Lastfm:

The Aquabats are a musical ensemble from Huntington Beach, California formed in 1994 known for their humorous lyrics and outrageous live shows, during which the band is often attacked by supervillains onstage.

Starting as a parody of the booming third-wave ska scene in Southern California (their first show, reportedly, was played with fourteen members, at least half of which were wielding horns), The Aquabats played third-wave ska with a surfy, b-movie-esque twist that set them apart from the sped-up two-tone/pop-punk mash-ups most bands of the time were playing. Over time, their sound became even more eclectic, dropping much of the surf guitar leads and ska rhythms for more varied influences, including (but not limited to) new wave a la Oingo Boingo, power pop inspired by Cheap Trick and Pixies, and lots of They Might Be Giants-esque weirdness.

Their current sound blends upbeat rock and roll, new wave-type post-punk, and ska/rocksteady with synth replacing their horn and woodwind section. Notable influences upon The Aquabats are Devo, Oingo Boingo, Madness, and Toy Dolls.

The Aquabats' current lineup is The MC Bat Commander (vocals), Ricky Fitness (drums), Crash McLarson (bass), Eagle 'Bones' Falconhawk (guitar) & Jimmy the Robot (keyboards/tenor sax). Former Aquabat Prince Adam (guitar/keyboards/trumpet) has been known to come back into the fold for the occasional show, most recently a benefit show for Bikeride's Tony Carbone on February 2, 2008. Other former members of the group have turned up in such bands as blink-182, GOGO13, Bikeride, The Transplants, and +44. Recently, the band has played a handful of shows with an expanded lineup featuring former members Chainsaw, The Prince of Karate and Catboy.

As of now, the band is shopping the pilot for their episodic combination live-action/animation TV show, The Aquabats Supershow! to various networks.

The MC Bat Commander is friends with Mega64, and has licensed their music to be used in the show.

From Wikipedia:

The Aquabats are an American rock band formed in Orange County, California in 1994. Throughout many fluctuations in the group's line-up, singer The MC Bat Commander and bassist Crash McLarson have remained regular fixtures. Since 2006, the band's members also include keyboardist Jimmy the Robot, drummer Ricky Fitness, and guitarist Eagle "Bones" Falconhawk.

Easily identified by their masks and matching costumes, The Aquabats are perhaps most recognized for their theatrical persona in which they claim to be crime-fighting superheroes. This theme serves as subject for much of the band's music and as part of their stage shows, which regularly feature comedic stunts and fight scenes with costumed villains and creatures. Musically, The Aquabats have continually evolved over the course of their career, starting as an eight-member ska band before reinventing themselves in the early 2000s as a synthesizer-driven rock quintet. The band's present musical style blends elements of rock, punk, New Wave, ska, and synthpop.

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