The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – The Magic of Youth

In the film industry, the movies that are crafted to be critically acclaimed and Oscar contenders are always released right at the end of the year in time for the Oscars push. It makes the holiday season a venerable grab bag of movies to choose from and many of those films will make it onto critics’ year end lists.

The music industry is different. Often times those late releases are overlooked when people start compiling their year end lists. Sometimes they don’t hear them in time to be added to the list or other times, the albums just haven’t been around long enough to determine whether it’s strong enough to deserve a spot in the year end review.

It’s too bad, because some great albums are overlooked that way. Look no further than The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’ ninth studio album The Magic of Youth for proof of that. Released in December last year, the album wasn’t around long enough to seep into people’s subconscious. I, myself, got it in the last week of 2011 which was too late to get into my year end list but it has barely left my CD player since.

The Magic Of Youth won’t convert any new fans or haters; but on the album, the legendary Boston ska band shows why it is that they are legendary and have been able to maintain a career over twenty five long years.

Tighter than any band around these days, nothing on The Magic of Youth goes to waste. Dicky Barrett’s vocals are still as strong as ever, he may not be singing as vehemently as their early material but he doesn’t need to. Controlled and restrained, his vocals dig their way into your memory instantly with an unwavering confidence.

Confidant is actually a strong descriptor of the album. They know when they ramp it up and when to pull it in. They let the horn section shine when they need to (They Will Need Music, Sunday Afternoons on Wisdom Ave. and The Upper Hand are the prime examples). They’re equal parts nostalgia, hopefulness, sillyness and seriousness and everything ties together in one cohesive package.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones are to ska what The Bouncing Souls are to punk: they are an institution in an off themselves; and they still aren’t losing a beat as these eleven songs will slip in perfectly into any live concert right next to even the band’s earliest material.

Ska fans rejoice for The Mighty Mighty Bosstones prove that ska can still be viable – even after twenty five years.