2/1 Slim's: Ska is Dead Tour IV

Ska is such an obscure genre of music that Microsoft Word does not recognize it. There is no official origin of the word. Ska began in the early 1960’s in Jamaica. It later experienced a revival in the late ‘70’s in England, and a third revival (wave) in the ‘80’s. I love ska. I love dancing to it. I love ska outfits. I love ska boys! In addition to a type of music, there is also a style and social sentiment (sometimes) that goes along with ska. Ska is all about black and white (often checkerboard), and this comes from its history as one of the first genres to include both black and white musicians on the same stage. Many ska bands call back on the same themes, and I really like that for some reason. Ska is not sappy; it is tough (skinheads like ska!) but not shitty (did you know that most skinheads aren’t Nazis? True!) These days ska doesn’t get much respect, and it’s mostly played by high school bands who don’t know what they want to sound like yet. The Specials, No Doubt, and Sublime are all bands which incorporate ska (and you might have actually heard of.)

Co-headlining this year’s Ska is Dead Tour were The Toasters and Voodoo Glow Skulls. In support were Monkey and Deal’s Gone Bad. Deal’s Gone Bad is a very fun band. They play ska with an impressive soul influence-- considering they don’t have any black people. They got a horn section, and a guy who rocks the back up vocals and pompadour. I like bands that have pompadours.

So basically I love the Toasters. They have been around since 1981, and that is just bad ass. Ska would not be the same without them. They’ve had a lot of changes in their line-up over the years, but they still sound good. They start to play, and people start dancing. It’s pretty straightforward. After so many thousands of shows, they know how to pace it and how to interact with the crowd. This is something I’ve really come to appreciate after nearly passing out from dancing, and seeing band members embarrass themselves on stage. I don’t really know how to explain how pleased I was seeing them. I got the feeling that it’s something to brag about. I have about a dozen ska compilations from the late 50’s through the 80’s, and I really wish I could see some of those bands. The Toasters are one of them, and they are still touring while managing not to be washed up. If dancing and having a good time doesn’t appeal to you, then don’t see them. Some people feel very strongly against ska, but I think those people don’t know much about it. Reel Big Fish is not the epitome of ska.

The crowd thinned out when Voodoo Glow Skulls came on, and that’s always awkward. Their sound is on the SoCal/south of the border side. They are more manic/punk. That can be really fun, especially if you are a hyper 16 year old. They describe themselves as “West Coast ska-core.” These guys have been around for 20 years, and I really expected more out of their live show. I blame the drummer, but perhaps it was another member of the band who was responsible for the lack of rhythm. Seriously, something was off. I respect that they’ve been around for so long, and I respect their fan base, but I was wildly unimpressed with their performance. There is no excuse for how they played, and I would like to have a word with whoever let them play after The Toasters. Also, they’re from Riverside. Yeah.