… Read Full Bio ↴One Cool Guy, or OCG, was a third wave ska band from Union, New Jersey.
OCG was founded in 1997 by a group of Union High School musicians. The group's members were Stuart Kamratz, Keith Eberle, Nick Afflitto, Peter Sibilia, Mark Fonseca Rendeiro, Dave Paiva, and Mike Struening. Later that same year, Chris Paszik joined the band along with technician Jeff "Johnny Benitez" Pereira. With the break up of New Jersey ska band the Royalties, Dan Ross was added to the line up.
The band played a fusion of ska punk, jazz, ska-core, and what many refer to as ska-rap. OCG followed up the success of their 7 inch record "7 Inches of OCG" in early 1998, with the release "From Downtown", both released on the Pinball Records label. Hits such as "Bill Kozby You", "Xample", "Be With You", and "Skank Away" were popular with high school teenagers, often belonging to the straight edge movement. Despite many of OCG's songs' lyrically supporting the idea of having fun without the use of drugs or alcohol, only a few of the band's members were in fact straight edge.
The group broke up in September 2000 at the height of their popularity. The band had appeared on various compilations and toured the eastern United States with the rock band Midtown. While popular in New Jersey, Long Island, eastern Pennsylvania, and Florida, the band remained largely unknown, despite the rising popularity of the third wave ska movement.
Many of the bands OCG played alongside went onto future mainstream success, including the aforementioned Midtown, Catch 22, and New Found Glory. Several other bands went onto moderate success, including Inspector 7, the Pilfers, King Django, Edna's Goldfish, Professor Plum, Taxicab Samurais, and Foil.
In 2001, some of OCG's former members collaborated with former Catch 22 frontman Tomas Kalnoky on the studio, post-ska project Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution, recording the album "A Call to Arms". Following its release, an even smaller group under the direction of Kalnoky formed the band Streetlight Manifesto and recorded the album Everything Goes Numb.
Today the band remains in relatively loose contact, with members still based in the New Jersey area. Some members remain in the music business, working behind the scenes for New Found Glory and Taking Back Sunday. Rendeiro has relocated to Amsterdam where he is one of the pioneers of podcasting and podjournalism via his program Bicyclemark's Communique.
Although remaining in contact, a reunion is highly unlikely. Rumors have circled that local New Jersey promoters, most notably Heath Miller of Excess DB, have offered in excess of $10,000 for OCG to play a one-off reunion show to also be recorded. Nothing has come of this.
Mankind
One Cool Guy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Listen when you want change?
Now why can’t you just understand that this is stuff we just don’t do?
Now why can’t we just hang around when you’ve got nothing better to do?
We’re equal ‘cause we can’t trust each other, man you call this free?
Mankind is blind
He got that eight wheels on his feet
Twenty-four all together now I said just a having a seat
Here we go…..
You’re drivin’ in your van you think you’re so tough
You’re drivin’ in your van you think you’re so rough
You’re drivin’ in your van you’re just a bunch of chumps
Now my man is paranoid
So now that your night’s complete
You had them at your feet
You didn’t want their money
Just want to show them the heat
You drive around and open the door
You and you’re boys think you’re hardcore
So now they ran to hide, and you took my man’s pride
The lyrics of "Mankind" by One Cool Guy reflect on the flaws and problems within society. It starts with a questioning and urging tone, asking the listener if they really want to walk around blind and if they truly desire change. The tone then shifts into a frustrated one, expressing how there are certain things that society doesn't do, hinting at certain immoral behaviors. The singer then touches on the topic of equality and how it's ironic that people can't trust each other yet still consider themselves to be living in a free society.
The second half of the song is directed at a specific group of people, who are driving around in a van and acting tough. The lyrics suggest that they're not actually tough but rather just a bunch of chumps who are paranoid. The lyrics describe how this group ended up hurting the singer's friend, taking away his pride. Overall, the song expresses frustration, disillusionment, and a call for change within society.
Line by Line Meaning
Now ask yourself, do I really want to walk around blind?
Are you content with being ignorant of the world around you?
Listen when you want change?
Are you willing to pay attention when people are asking for change?
Now why can’t you just understand that this is stuff we just don’t do?
Why can't you comprehend that some actions are unacceptable?
Now why can’t we just hang around when you’ve got nothing better to do?
Why can't we just spend time together without needing an agenda?
We’re equal ‘cause we can’t trust each other, man you call this free?
Is this really freedom if we don't trust each other as equals?
Just a having a good time
We are casually having fun.
He got that eight wheels on his feet
He is wearing roller skates.
Twenty-four all together now I said just a having a seat
There are a total of 24 wheels between both of our roller skates and we are sitting down.
You’re drivin’ in your van you think you’re so tough
You are over-confident while driving your van.
You’re drivin’ in your van you think you’re so rough
You act tough while driving your van.
You’re drivin’ in your van you’re just a bunch of chumps
You are foolish while driving your van.
Now my man is paranoid
Now my friend is extremely anxious and fearful.
So now that your night’s complete
Now that you have finished your night out,
You had them at your feet
You had people enthralled by your presence.
You didn’t want their money
You weren't interested in their money.
Just want to show them the heat
You just wanted to intimidate them.
You drive around and open the door
You drive around and swing the door open.
You and you’re boys think you’re hardcore
You and your friends believe you are tough and unyielding.
So now they ran to hide, and you took my man’s pride
So now they fled to avoid you, and you damaged my friend's self-respect.
Contributed by Reagan M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
barletta
Where did you get this? This is awesome! Do you have more of this?? Cheers for the uploading!
Robert Poole
I truly miss this band! They were the Ska band or in my opinion to come out of NJ (yes I am from NJ so I can say that). I want 1 last album from these guys
ENNZ
Damn you are a legend for these videos.
Eric Hajdu
Dave Coster taught geometry at my high school!
benjula2008
so good!
eatroffles
whoa