Welcome to “Ska, Punk, and Other Junk!” With this monthly column, I’ll highlight all of the cool things I discovered in the ska and punk scenes each month. And, because I listen to more than just those two genres, I highlight some other junk I discovered along the way too! (NOTE: Not actually junk. I just wanted to go with the rhyme). There’s so much cool music out there these days. This is my attempt to cover as much of it as possible.
Hopefully, you find your new favorite band – or at least some cool new tunes to enjoy.
July was a huge month for music. I honestly could’ve created a weekly version of this column weekly and still not have written enough to cover all the bands I enjoyed this month. That’s what made whittling down the list so challenging. For every band I included, I had to get rid of one or two others. So, as you prepare to read this month’s column, just know all everything that made the cut is truly special.
Ska
Atlas & Oracle – Sad Songs With Happy Endings
Atlas & Oracle’s latest release, Sad Songs With Happy Endings, collects seven tracks featuring some amazing guest musicians in the modern ska scene. I first discovered Atlas & Oracle early on in the pandemic and was immediately taken aback with their fresh take on ska. But that’s just one piece of the band’s sonic puzzle. You also get melodic pop music, new wave synth, jazz, and indie rock. That unique blend of genres, mixed with Atlas’s smooth, velvety vocals, continues to get refined and sound better with each new release coming from this ska- pop collective. Sad Songs With Happy Endings is the best yet and excites me for what’s next.
While Atlas & Oracle focuses on some pretty intense feelings with their songs, I’m always left with a newfound inner strength and affirmation after listening to them. On “Goodness Gracious,” they sing about trying to rekindle that lost confidence you once had. The song also features Jess from Flying Raccoon Suit in one of her strongest vocal performances to date. Honestly, I had goose bumps the first time I heard this song. The album also equally features amazing songs from the likes of Common Sense Kid, Lumpy, and Mega Infinity.
Beat the Smart Kids – Hot Death
I’m likely showing my regional bias, but the Midwest is home to an absolutely amazing ska scene. For example, Chicago’s Beat the Smart Kids is an amazing ambassador for Midwest ska-punk. Clocking in at just under a half hour, BTSK’s latest, Hot Death, is going to appeal to fans of bands like Public Serpents, Joystick, Slapstick, Mephiskapheles, and The Suicide Machines.
The ten-track album comes right out swinging. “Twist the Knife” has punk, hardcore vocal breakdowns, catchy horn riffs, wicked solos, and danceable ska sections. It’s a great opener because it offers a little taste of everything you’re going to get on your 25 minute journey. Then again, every song on this album could be a lead single, as there are absolutely no B-sides to be heard at all. I also love the maturity in the song lyrics as well. Sure, there’s a song about getting hungry after getting high, but that is a palate cleanser of sorts because of other topics covered on the album. Hot Death is one of the best albums to come out of the Midwest this year. It’s a great representative of what that region excels at.
Crazy Baldhead (featuring Ali Presses) – “Love on Loop”
For the uninitiated, Crazy Baldhead is the alter ego of Agent Jay from The Slackers. As Crazy Baldhead, Jay’s music is heavily influenced by traditional ska, rocksteady, reggae, and dub. This time around, he’s teamed up with Ali Presses from New York’s Stop the Presses. While Crazy Baldhead frequently collaborates with a variety of musicians, the chemistry is right with Ali, as Agent Jay worked on her band’s last two albums. On this track, the collaboration gives us a new sultry, down and dirty club hit. I can imagine it playing inside a sweaty dancehall on a hot summer night. On the surface, it’s a great dance song, but the double entendres and imagery evoked from the lyrics takes the track to a whole new level.
Devon Kay & The Solutions – Fine: A Ska EP
Until Fine, Devon Kay & The Solutions mostly created music that fused power pop, pop punk, indie, and self-deprecation. They’ve dabbled with ska from time to time but had never actually released a tried-and-true ska song. Their days of being ska-adjacent are over now with Fine: A Ska EP. Switching genres for an album is a breeze when you’re the best band in the world.
Devon Kay & The Solutions are extremely talented musicians. While their music is always tight and composed, they complement amazing musicianship with clever songwriting, humor, and self-deprecation. The band’s combination of talent and chemistry makes everything they do so damn good. Sure, the songs on this EP are technically ska, but they’re so much more. Each song has a certain gravitas because this band has so much to give.
My favorite song on the EP is “Millennial Homesick Blues.” Even though I’m technically part of Gen X, I can relate to everything they’re singing about in the song. I’m addicted to my phone, and it makes it hard for me to do anything productive during my free time. Maybe the song will be the kick in the ass I need to reprioritize some things in my life.
Mustard Plug – “Fall Apart”
I started listening to ska music in the mid to late ’90s. Because of that timing and where I’m from, Mustard Plug has always been one of my favorite bands. Big Daddy Multitude and Evildoers Beware! influenced my tastes as a ska fan all those years ago. As one of the still-active legacy bands, it would easy to just rest on your laurels and play the hits, but that has never been Mustard Plug’s style. Instead, they’ve embraced the evolution of ska music over the last 25 years and used their status within the scene to help elevate newer bands. That’s why Bad Time Records is a perfect landing place for their first album in almost a decade.
The first single off their upcoming new album is “Fall Apart.” Lyrically, it highlights a band that has matured even more since their last album. There’s also a sense of welcome familiarity with the track. Lyrically, the song hovers around the ideas of aging, regret, love. Dave’s voice sounds as good as ever, Colin’s guitar still shreds, and the horn section continues to show why they’re one of the strongest in all of modern ska punk. When you add in the legendary Bill Stevenson as the producer, the song becomes a can’t miss. To be honest, I’m expecting the entire album to be a declaration of Mustard Plug’s dominance in the ska punk scene.
Poindexter – Treats
There’s an over-arching theme present throughout Treats. In some shape or form, most of the songs that make up the band’s full-length debut focus on wanting an escape from the struggles of everyday life. It’s a desire to find relief from the trauma that rears its ugly head on an almost daily basis. The subject matter makes sense for Poindexter, as the band is now split between California and Michigan. They also worked on most of this album remotely during the pandemic before heading into the studio to record. Write what you know, right?
While they’re billed as a ska band, Poindexter also have shoegaze, indie, and pop music in their tool kit to create a fully realized sound that combines the best of all those worlds. On the surface, the album has melancholy undertones, but the overarching theme is finding the strength and power to overcome life’s obstacles.
Sometimes, the method used to escape isn’t ideal. The title track touches on this as it highlights falling into a cycle of addiction to cope with everyday life. “Be All You Can Be” is an up-tempo ska punk song that criticizes hustle culture. The tune “Body Like That” shines a light on gender identity, dysphoria, and ultimately acceptance.
The next time one of your friends sends you the mozzarella sticks meme, send them Poindexter’s Treats. A prime example of how the stereotypes about ska are incorrect and invalid, it’s a thought-provoking album that has caused me to re-evaluate certain aspects of my life. It’s is an engaging ska record that makes you think while you’re tapping your toes with a lot to digest on this album – both thematically and musically.
Scott B // Ska Bees – Self-Titled
Scott Brown created Scott B // Ska Bees as a solo project. He plays most of the instruments himself and arranges them all accordingly so each song sounds fully realized and complex. While the project is technically ska, Brown also blends a bit of Latin influence, new wave, synth, and post punk. It’s Fugazi meets Elvis Costello meets Fun Boy Three meets The Specials.
I went into this EP absolutely blind as Scott B // Ska Bees is completely new to me, When I hear a new ska band, I want to hear how they differentiate themselves from the general perception of what ska sounds like. Don’t get me wrong: I like bands that stick with specific waves, but I’m even more interested when bands experiment and deviate from the norm. Brown does this on every single track. The entire project is ska, but it’s so much more. Each song is filled with so much nuance and life that it’ll take multiple listens to absorb everything Scott Brown is putting out into the world. Discovering this EP was an absolute treat.
The Belmarks – Ain’t No Coming Back
The Belmarks are a brand new ska band from Detroit, Michigan. While the group has only been together for a short time, they come with a certain pedigree as some of the band members come from such Metro Detroit powerhouses as The Tellways, The Solid Eights, and The Articles. Ain’t No Coming Back is their first official recording, and if it’s any indication of what’s to come with this new band, we’re in for a treat.
Heavily influenced by traditional ska, rocksteady, and reggae, the songs on Ain’t No Coming Back ooze with love and admiration for those sounds. The EP has three songs total – two more upbeat vocal tracks with a soulful Motown feel and an instrumental. The two songs with vocals remind me of The Freecoasters, while the instrumental shows a lot of love to bands like The Skatalites. The future is so bright for this band. I can’t wait for more music to be released!
Thirsty Guys – …Out to Lunch!
I started listening to Thirsty Guys once I found out they share members with The Best of the Worst. Where Best of the Worst are more in the ska-core spectrum, Thirsty Guys tends to be closer to the ska-punk side of things. That’s not to say they don’t have breakdowns (they do), but they’re much less frequent than they are in The Best of the Worst.
I’m always for musicians spreading their wings and trying different styles in adjacent bands. Thirsty Guys is very up-tempo ska punk with synth and keyboards. It’s what I imagine The Hippos might have sounded like if they were more punk-forward with their songs.
One of my favorite tracks on the album is “Half Passed,” as Liz Fackelman joins for trombone and vocal duties. Her voice is just amazing, and it’s a perfect complement to this song. “Blue Check Mark” is also a timely song and serves as an indictment of Elon Musk and his monetization of Twitter Blue.
If you’ve listened to Thirsty Guys since Parched, then you’ll also notice the growth shown on …Out To Lunch! Even though the recording sounds better, and they’ve matured as a band since 2019, it’s refreshing to know they haven’t lost their independent spirit and unconventional attitudes. For instance, instead of doing promotion and marketing leading up to the release of this album, it just appeared one Friday. That’s bad ass.
Punk
Breezy Supreme – “Contact Me”
Breezy Supreme is a newer voice in punk rock that needs to be heard. Hailing from the Washington DC area, Breezy is right on the verge of blowing up. After listening to his music, he should definitely be part of the big pop-punk package tours going around the country this summer. In my humble opinion, he blows most of those bands off the stage in terms of talent.
“Contact Me” should be played loud with your windows down while driving down the freeway on a warm summer evening. It’s a fast-paced and extremely catchy pop-punk love song with an anthemic chorus, driving drum break, hip-hop, and plenty of melody. Think Magnolia Park meets 2000’s Blink-182.
It’s an absolute crime that Breezy Supreme isn’t more popular. But it’s only a matter of time before that happens, so jump on the bandwagon now while there’s still some room.
Diesel Boy – Gets Old
Before streaming, I learned about most new bands from two sources – watching them open for a band I went to see or from compilation CDs. In 1996, I heard a song called “Titty Twister” from Diesel Boy. It was fast, driving, and had unforgettable lyrics. I had to hear more, so I went out and bought Cock Rock. After listening to it a few times, I was hooked, and for a few years, I bought all of their new albums when they came out.
After a while, the music stopped, and Diesel Boy kind of faded away. I assumed they called it quits and went back to civilian life. Well, no matter what happened then, Gets Old is here now, and it’s wonderful. After 20 years away, Diesel Boy is back to reclaim their spot in the ranks of skate-punk’s best bands.
One thing I’ve always enjoyed most about Diesel Boy is their sense of humor, and it’s immediately on display in the album’s opener, “Lost Decade.” It pokes fun at the idea of them reuniting, asking the question if it’s a reunion if no one cared they left or came back. (Well, I cared!) Their humor also shines through again on “Internet Girl.” Diesel Boy’s sarcasm is definitely present throughout the album, but the songwriting shows a level of maturity that wasn’t there in the ’90s. It’s a nice balance – a nice homage to the past, but also a kickstart into the future. Diesel Boy sounds as good as ever, and I’m glad they’re back.
Guardrail – Content
Even though Guardrail calls their music “diet punk,” it’s anything but. Heavily influenced by multiple styles of punk, I think of them as a nice punk casserole. The band’s sound features pop-punk, skate-punk, post-punk, and even some hardcore breakdowns thrown in for good measure. Showcasing so many subgenres can often lead to a mess with no real identity, but never happens with Content.
One of my favorite tracks is “Down At The Bottom.” It tells a relatable tale about accepting who you are and where you are in life. I struggle with comparing myself to my peers, which sometimes depresses me because they’re more successful. The truth is that I’m doing OK as well. This song helps remind me that it’s just fine to live your life in the middle. Another highlight on the album is “Guilt Trip,” a bass-forward song that highlights the immense talents of Alyssa Laessig as she takes over lead vocal duty. I bet that song is going to rip live.
Sweet Gloom – Reverie
I’ve been listening and following Mike Park’s recommendations for over 25 years now, and he hasn’t missed yet. So, when his label, Asian Man Records, announced Reverie by a band called Sweet Gloom, I had to check it out. As expected, I wasn’t disappointed by this a power-pop-punk trio from Los Angeles with a big sound. This group may just end up being my favorite new-to-me punk discovery of the year.
Melody is king with Sweet Gloom. Musically, I would put the group somewhere close to Blind Adam & The Federal League, The Menzingers, The Lawrence Arms, and Hot Water Music. They fit right in with those bands because of the gravelly crooner vocals and the focus on musicianship. You won’t hear “whoa-ohs” or anthems per se, but you will hear a band that sounds like they’ve been together for decades, even though this is their debut. If you’re looking for a fresh take on punk music from a fresh face, look no further than Sweet Gloom. Besides, how can you go wrong? They have the Mike Park seal of approval.
Other Junk
Maggie Cubillos – “Slow Motion”
There’s an aching familiarity with the subject matter on “Slow Motion,” the latest single from singer-songwriter Maggie Cubillos. The song is one about pushing the fear away and finding the strength to move on as Cubillos projects an innocent beauty with her multi-layered vocals. The song starts out subdued but absolutely soars once she hits the first chorus. As the tune continues, it becomes even more full of life, as if she is gaining more confidence in herself. It’s an incredibly beautiful track that will appeal to fans of Phoebe Bridgers, Sarah McLachlan, and the folky side of Taylor Swift.
The American Hotel System – “Tripping”
Mental healthdoesn’t get enough support in this country. Sure, when there’s a mass shooting, politicians and pundits say that we need more focus on mental health. The problem is that it’s very hard for some people to ask for help and even harder to find it. Not all insurance consider mental health part of their coverage, so folks are left to their own devices to solve their problems.
This disconnect between the need for mental health coverage and the accessibility of said help is absolutely tragic. As a society, we need to first erase the stigma for needing help before things will improve. Songs like “Tripping” by The American Hotel System are an important tool to help tear that wall down.
This melodically beautiful guitar-forward rock song focuses on the journey to better mental health through therapy. It’s a gentle reminder that it’s okay to not be okay, and it’s even better if you can take the next step to get better. It’s an acknowledgement that no matter how alone you might feel, you aren’t. Coming out of the pandemic, we’ve seem more and more people feeling alone and isolated, so this song is not only a great listen, but it’s a great call to community and collective problem-solving as well.
If you want me to listen to your ska, punk, or other junk, please feel free to contact me here. You might just see yourself in a future column!