Ska Pilots

Save Ferris could use a day off. When the seven band members gathered to rehearse at a studio here earlier this week, exhaustion had clearly set in. Trouble is, the popular Orange County ska-pop-swing band faces an even more taxing schedule in the weeks ahead.

Its major label debut, “It Means Everything,” hit the stores Tuesday. Its current single, “Come On Eileen,” has been getting steady airplay for several weeks on modern-rock stations. And Sunday it begins a six-week tour supporting fellow Orange County skankers Reel Big Fish in Chicago.

But instead of popping open champagne, the band has spent the past few days making merchandising decisions, attending in-store promotions, giving press interviews and on-line chats and practicing their act for sold-out gigs at the Barn in Riverside and the Palace in Hollywood.

“We all high-fived each other,” trombonist Brian “T-Bone Willy” Williams said matter-of-factly, describing the group’s pitiful celebration. “That was about it.”

Perhaps all the hype has yet to sink in?

“It’s weird; people will tell us, ‘Wow, you guys are getting pretty big,’ and I think, ‘Really?’ ” said trumpeter Jose Castellan~os. “We never get the chance to hang out and reflect on it all. I mean, we’re a constantly working band with business to take care of.”

Brian Mashburn, guitarist and chief songwriter, had to agree: “Yeah, I guess we don’t have much of a social life these days, huh?”

But the band--also featuring singer Monique “Mo” Powell, bassist Bill Uechi, drummer Marc Harismendy and alto saxophonist Eric Zamora--understands that its time is now, with the third wave of ska still going strong.

“A few weeks ago, I wanted to spend my [22nd] birthday at home [in Garden Grove] with family and friends,” said Powell, the sultry, sometimes wacky front woman. “But we were on the road driving all day in a van. So I said, ‘Can we please stop tonight for pizza and have dinner together?’ The guys put a candle on the pizza, and that meant a lot to me.

“Because you have to give up so much of your personal life, you really have to love what you do,” she added. “It’s easy to feel overwhelmed at times.”

The dawning of Save Ferris dates back to 1995, when a group called Los Pantelones unraveled. Surviving members Mashburn, Zamora, Uechi and Castellan~os played a few casual gigs together as Save Ferris, a name taken from the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

Within a month, the foursome had recruited Harismendy as its drummer. The search for a vocalist ended when Mashburn persuaded Powell to leave her band, Larry, for Save Ferris. T-Bone Willy is a pal of Powell’s and a former trombonist in the band Knuckle Brothers.

In 1996, the group recorded and independently released the seven-song EP “Introducing Save Ferris.” Two of the tunes, the lighthearted “Spam” and the angry “Under 21,” became popular concert sing-alongs, helping them develop a local following.

Then, late last year, Save Ferris was selected to compete in the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Grammy Showcase. After winning the local and regional competitions, the band took the big prize, the “best unsigned band” award in February in New York.

When the group returned to Orange County, it had landed a recording contract with Epic Records as well. Completed in only a few months, “It Means Everything” includes six new songs plus five tracks from “Introducing Save Ferris.”

The new album offers plenty of the infectious rhythms and upbeat vibe you’d expect from a horn-powered ska band. But also among the mix is the reprised, noir-like “Superspy”; a reggae number titled “Lies”; the swing tune “Goodbye”; and a hummable but rocking version of “Come On Eileen,” the Dexy’s Midnight Runners hit from 1983.

“I first heard that song on a local alternative rock station [KROQ-FM] when I was 8 years old,” Powell said, explaining the attraction to “Eileen.” “I just loved the melody and vocals. Now, to hear our version on the same radio station . . . it just gives me chills.”

The forthcoming tour on unfamiliar turf will tell if Save Ferris--and by association ska--can find a broader national audience.

“Ska has been around so long, and it’s not like this wave just started last year,” T-Bone Willy said. “It’s developed an underground scene that’s so well-rooted that it’s not going to disappear overnight or anything. It’s kind of like punk, where its fan base is so loyal that the music has endured. I mean, it kicked off in the late ‘70s, and here it is going strong today.”

Mashburn looks at the outing to the Midwest and East like a recruiting trip.

“Right now, everything’s really happening here,” he said “So it’s our chance to win over new fans. That’s the challenge we face.”

And can they convert those who complain that all ska sounds alike?

“It is light, fun music that people can dance to,” Castellan~os said. “But at the same time, it can go in so many directions. Look at Goldfinger, they mix in a lot of punk. And swing and rockabilly bands with elements of ska have popped up. Besides us, there’s Royal Crown Revue, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies. To say all ska sounds the same is just uninformed.”

The band members agree that, regardless of what’s “hot,” ska is the music closest to their hearts. T-Bone Willy summed it up:

“We have to play the music we love, no matter what anyone else thinks or likes. If ska wasn’t big right now, that’s still what we’d be playing. That’s who we are.”

But then came a voice of dissent:

“Nah, Bill and I would definitely have to go country,” Castellan~os said. “Chaps but no pants--and cowboy hats!”