So where are all the everyday, penny-pinching superheroes?

Ralph Darden is one. Between jiu-jitsu sport-fighting and maintaining his own alter ego DJ Major Taylor, Chicagoan Ralph Darden is just as busy as Peter Parker and Clark Kent ever were. Despite his other eclectic interests, Darden's main focus is fronting reggae dub-rock trio The Jai Alai Savant, which was formed in Philadelphia in 2003 as a solo project of sorts and now includes bassist Dan Snyder and new drummer Michael Bravine following Jeremy Gewertz´s exit beginning 2007 (formerly of An Albatross, Reversal of Man, and The Deadly). Mike Ali, a former member, played on much of this new record. Did we also mention he mentored Hollertronix's Low-Budget with DJ'ing and he's gotten features in The FADER and Time Out just for being … errr … Ralph! He was the first to do genre-less dj nights in Philly with his long time friends coming through in the early days (Diplo, Low Budget, Amanda Blank, Spank Rock, etc), which of course later turned into an internationally acclaimed movement. Diplo: "wow ... well ... Major Taylor (Ralph) was one of the djs/musicians in Philly that inspired Hollertronix ... he's like one of the true sources of that party."

The first The Jai-Alai Savant EP Thunderstatement was put out on Mars Voltas Omar Rodriguez' label Gold Standard Lab in 2005, later in 2006 City Slang released the Scarlett Johansson Why Don't You Love Me EP in Europe. The debut album Flight of the Bass Delegate will be released in April 2007. The varied content of the album provides a glimpse into the “science fair for the creatively insane he hosts inside his head,” as The FADER Magazine put it in a recent interview. While songs like the dub-heavy “Akebono” and reggae-rocking “Scarlett Johansson, Why Don't You Love Me?” take their inspiration from the daily grind of working and ex-girlfriends, most of the songs on Flight of the Bass Delegate, like the two singles “White On White Crime” and “Arcane Theories”, are centered around a dark, semi-autobiographical concept involving a “superhero who loses his mind and is forced to leave his city as it is attacked by mechanical invaders,” as Darden describes.
Darden is also quick to point out his love of Batman and his heavy influence on him. “He's just this normal dude who is very human, and really dark sometimes,” says Darden. “Superman is your All-American Quarterback that everyone loves to hate, and Batman is that guy that sat in the far corner of the lunch room that no one knew; the guy that wore all black and was in some hardcore band. >>

Flight Of The Bass Delegate, is already destined to be one of the outstanding records of 2007. It's a genuine piece or music that stands on it's own rather than as a sum of all it's parts, actually it is nearly impossible to define or put an exact finger on the sound of The Jai-Alai Savant, but their punk-rock meets dub-reggae blend is certainly very indicative of Darden's mile-a-minute personality and unique musical roots. “I grew up in a black family in Philadelphia, and the radio in my house was always on to the mostly black stations,” says Darden. “You know, R&B, funk, disco, and groove. I even remember when the first hip-hop song was first played on the radio; I danced around the living room with my mom to 'Rapper's Delight'.” Darden also took an interest in reggae and the punk rock scene, cementing early on what would later become The Jai- Alai Savant's definitive sound. “A lot of people always ask me what it was like being the only black kid at punk shows, but man, this was Philly! There were always 5 or 6 of those kids there that were black, so it wasn't that strange.”