Victoria BC Ska Society is proud to have Satori (members of RX Bandits, Link 80 & The Exit) play at Victoria's Annual Ska Festival for the first time. Steve Borth II has made Satori a full-time project after years of playing in the RX Bandits among other bands. Steve has a great relationship with ska icons such as Chris Murray and David Hillyard whom have helped produce his albums and played live at certain shows.

Victoria's own reggae/blues powerhouse Current Swell will add very nicely to this bill.

The Victoria-based band is only a couple of years old, but have already attracted national attention, including a gig at the Victoria Folk Festival and a coveted spot on the coast-to-coast TV network, MuchMusic. They have also shared stages with established bands such as Bedouin Soundclash, Beautiful Girls and Moka Only, and have toured around western Canada.

Macaque is a also another Victoria powerhouse band that is unknown by most but will soon be discovered by many after this festival appearance. For those hip with the jazz side of the reggae-ska spectrum, be sure to get a grip on Macaque. This Vancouver Island ‘ska little-big band’ channels the old-school vibe of the Skatalites with modern compositions and arrangements, covers and originals, and is heavy on the horns.

Born out of the Van Isle Ska-Jazz Orchestra, which rocked the Victoria Skafest Mainstage show in 2004 to killer reviews, Macaque draws from a pool of established ska and jazz musicians on Vancouver Island. Heading the list is lead arranger and trombonist Dave St. Jean. St. Jean, of the Kiltlifters, has led award-winning jazz combos, played with professional big bands, and is notable as an on-call musician for Skafest, including his performance with Fishbone in 2005.