The '90s ska revival will taunt ephemerality again later this year when Reel Big Fish release their follow-up to the gold-selling Turn the Radio Off. |

But recent history isn't on the Fishes' side: punk/ska outfit Goldfinger was unable to duplicate the success of their debut, and the Specials' reunion hasn't been so, well, special.

So far, RBF aren't feeling any of the heat -- other than the hot stuff the summer sun provides -- and are busy in a Los Angeles studio adding horns to the 20 songs the septet has begun recording, 17 of which will make the final cut. "We're still trying to figure out what we're doing," says RBF vocalist/trumpet player Scott Klopfenstein. "It's what we have been trying to figure out -- the mix between pop, ska and rock, and really getting a mix of the three."

The band is considering several titles for the album, though Fun in the Sun falls off the tip of Klopfenstein's tongue. "We're procrastinators," he says. "We don't figure anything out until the deadline and [the powers that be] are like, 'we have to have an answer now.' [We'll say], 'Oh, we'll do it this way, OK? How's that? You happy now? You have your answer.'"

Once again, John Avala (Oingo Boingo), who co-produced Turn the Radio Off with RBF, is manning the console with the group. "He's probably one of the nicest, most patient people I've ever met," Klopfenstein says. "We're not into too many producers, and we don't know too much about we're doing. We just knew we wanted to do it ourselves and John was somebody we definitely trusted."

So far, Klopfenstein is particularly enthralled with the tracks "Somebody Hates Me," which he ironically calls "extremely festive," and another with the working title "Song 3." "We figure Fugazi had a "Song #1," Blur had "Song 2", Reel Big Fish can have "Song #3," he explains.

He also says the album has a theme of sorts. "[On Turn the Radio Off] we've been complaining about making it big, being successful and being in a rock 'n' roll band," he says, "and this [new album] is what happened. These are our songs from the road. This is all the stuff we wrote while we were on the road and learning to do this wacky, wacky, wacky thing."

Among the wackiness is the decision to record a slew of cover tunes the band has played live but never gotten on tape. Reel versions of the Cure's "Boys Don't Cry," Lita Ford's "Kiss Me Deadly" and Sublime's ""DJs" may appear on Fun in the Sun B-sides or a future all-covers album. "We like playing other people's songs," Klopfenstein says. "We get bored playing ours."

Reel Big Fish have been in the studio for more than a month now and expect to finish recording in mid-July. The album is slated to hit stores by October and the road beckons soon after. (Blair R. Fischer)