Sublime - Santeria

Another Friday has stumbled into existence via the drudgery of the working week, and you all know what that means by now – yes, it’s time to play “Which Punk, or Punk-Adjacent Track, Has Eddie Picked Out for Us This Time?”, a terrible gameshow with an even worse name. I know, I know, but I promise you’ll like this one or your money back! (Editors Note: No refunds will be given for this free service, but we do apologise that Eddie only listens to about three genres of music).

Yes, this week we are taking the groove meter up by way of Sublime, the Californian reggae/ska punk project that you may remember from influencing everything that was even remotely similar that came after it. They were an absolute phenomenon in the charts, selling an unheard of amount of records for any band associated with punk rock at the time and still popping up on lists of the most influential bands of the era to this day. The band produced its unique brand of reggae-infused punk and rock for eight years, before the untimely death of lead singer and guitarist Bradley Nowell of a drug overdose in 1996. After the breakup of the band following it (their hugely successful self-titled third album, which this week’s pick is taken from, continued to sell gangbusters even though the band technically weren’t a thing anymore), the surviving members created a semi-reunion called Sublime With Rome, that still exists to this day, in a less popular but still just as fun way.

I’ve already touched on the album that this track was taken from, but onto the song itself. Santeria, released in 1997 as a radio single, tells the tale of a jilted lover in the most traditional way possible – through the medium of ska punk. Despite the fact that it straight up re-uses the guitar line from one of their earlier songs, 1994s Lincoln Highway Dub, Santeria has become one of the band’s most well-known and well-loved tracks, featuring on everything from movie soundtracks to video games. Now, it’s my treat to you on a Friday that I hope has been made a little bit more lively thanks to its inclusion. Play it through the speakers on your work computer, and see what your boss thinks! (Again, we interrupt Eddie’s ramblings to sincerely recommend that you don’t do this at work. Get it through your headphones!).