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. Since I listen to more than just those two genres, I also 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.
Fall finally arrived, and with it came a month of absolutely amazing music. Don’t get me wrong, there have been personal standouts for me throughout the year. But there really hasn’t been a month yet where I had to make tough editorial decisions to keep this column from becoming too unruly. However, September was an embarrassment of riches musically. I covered two standouts via interview (Black Guy Fawkes) and standalone review (Matt Wixson). There’s a lot of music to be excited about this month. This column covers what excited me most.
Ska
Lesser Rockstars – Broken Bones and Makeshift Homes
California ska punk band Lesser Rockstars mix political and community-centered lyrical content with a sound that would entice fans of The Suicide Machines, The Best of the Worst, Less Than Jake, and Leftover Crack. Another highlight from this EP is a feature from Eevie Echoes. If this EP is any indication of what to expect from Lesser Rockstars, we’re in for some amazing albums in the future.
Los Kurados – Historias de Barrio
Throughout this EP, I love how the band faithfully translated the energy and passion from its live shows on every song. Los Kurados doesn’t get the appreciation and exposure they deserve. They blend ska music with cumbia, reggae, and punk rock to create a sound that is all their own. The group cares so much about the music and the culture that encompasses their worldview. Their passion jumps out in every tune and pulls the listener right in.
Mad Apple Circus – WRITTEN IN CAPITALS
The UK ska scene is so diverse and dynamic these days, I enjoy discovering a “new to me” band whenever possible. This month’s UK hotness comes from Bristol’s Mad Apple Circus, and it combines uptempo rapping with powerfully soulful female vocals. The group has created an engaging dynamic that’s equal parts Sonic Boom Six, The Streets, The JB Conspiracy, Streetlight Manifesto, Liz Fackelman, and The OC Supertones. There’s a lot going on with this album in all the best ways. It’s big, funky, and filled with high energy ska.
Panteon Rococo – Sonora
Every ska fan needs to learn about Panteon Rococo. They’re absolute icons and influential to so many bands in the scene. On Sonora, the group shows off their stylistic diversity with plenty of ska, rockabilly, big band, funk, and jazz. If you’re new to Panteon Rococo, Sonora is a great entry point.
The Best of the Worst – New Dead Ends
Holy shit, this band just keeps getting better and better. New Dead Ends is the new standard for skacore music. For every peppy upstroke, The Best of the Worst delivers a devastating breakdown filled with aggression and a cathartic release. I loved Better Medicine so much when it came out. This album takes everything the group accomplished with that album and leveled up in every department. New Dead Ends includes everything I’ve grown to love about The Best of the Worst … but better. It’s like they know exactly who they want to be now as a band, and it just sounds so refreshing and effortless.
Punk
Deaf Club – We Demand a Permanent State of Happiness
Deaf Club’s new album is a violent punch in the face to the status quo, especially people who are complacent during America’s march towards fascism. It’s pure id formed with hardcore punk, grindcore, and thrash. Powered by the blast beats of drummer Scott Osment, the songs on We Demand a Permanent State of Happiness are a manifesto against what our society has become. It’s an angry call to action filled with machine gun drums, chunky and melodic riffs, sharp songwriting, and just enough weirdness to put the listener on edge and evoke a visceral reaction.
Guilhem – A Good One
Hailing from Montreal, Guilhem offers up highly infectious, and highly personal, indie and power-pop-infused folk-punk. Each song on A Good One is catchy as hell, even when it’s a song that confronts mortality in a humorous way, like “Hangover Cure.” The songwriting remains sharp throughout, as each song tackles an aspect of what it means to be alive right now. Sometimes it’s messy, sometimes it’s absurd. But, no matter how awkward or uncomfortable life can be, Guilhem focuses on the hope at the heart of the human experience.
Norcos Y Horchata – precious little album
Norcos Y Horchata is an underground Detroit treasure. The band captures the raw energy and power of the ’60s and ’70s garage punk bands like The Stooges and MC5. They then expand on that sound with a modern sense of sensibility and fun. A sonic assault in the best way possible, precious little album is an absolute ripper. Guitar, bass, and drums gel together in a fast-paced arrangement that matches the intensity of something in Motorhead’s catalog. From there, you’re treated to some of the most solid garage punk you’ll hear this year – anthemic choruses, velvety vocals, and a giant party.
Pulley / Fire Sale – Split Personality
Split Personality features two tracks from well-known skate punk band Pulley and melodic punk supergroup Fire Sale. Pulley has been around for as long as I’ve listened to punk rock, and it’s amazing to hear new music from them. Lyrically, they’re maturing as they get older, so Pulley remains as relevant and relatable as ever.
On the flipside is Fire Sale, a band that carries the spirit of Tony Sly with them every where they go. No Use For a Name is my favorite punk band, so it’s always a special moment when I hear new Fire Sale tracks because they give me NUFAN vibes every single time.
Ricky Rochelle – Second Layer
Lead singer of The Young Rochelles, Ricky Rochelle, is back with another solo album. Second Layer features his blend of power pop punk with more adult themes. The album will connect with the folks who grew up on Blink-182 but just can’t relate to songs about high school themes any longer. Musically, Rochelle moves away from the more formulaic punk sound of bands like Ramones and The Queers by expanding to something more dynamic and engaging. He remains a dynamic lead singer with a voice that’s engaging, inviting, and charming. There’s no denying his brand of punk rock is catchy, melodic, and filled with great hooks!
The Dreadnoughts – Polka Pit
Polka Pit is a call to action. It’s filled with infectious punk rock, folk punk, pirate sea shanties, Celtic music, tarantellas, and polka. The Dreadnoughts have created an album that will delight their fans, as well as extend a warm welcome to new fans. Sure, the band delivers raucous punk anthems that invite mosh pits and rowdy behavior. But they also tell sad tales that will prompt locking arms with the guy next to you as you sway and raise a pint in remembrance.
The Iron Roses – AGITPOP
AGITPOP starts with an urgent call to action in “Class War Cheer Squad.” In that two and a half minutes, The Iron Roses perfectly express what I’ve always thought about the issue with politics today: It’s not left vs. right, it’s the elite vs. everyone else. Those in power spend their time keeping everyone mad at each other so the masses don’t organize against them. The Iron Roses take up the mantle of cheer squad to start breaking down those walls between us. After “Class War Cheer Squad,” the band keeps up the pressure with a rousing anthem called “Fight Back.”
My only gripe here is that AGITPOP is only three tracks long. I need more, and I need it as soon as possible. A band that sounds so good and has such an important message shouldn’t tease us with a mere three songs. But it’s very cool to hear Colin Clive’s guitar work on record for the first time though. Now we need a new full-length.
Tired Radio – Hope in the Haze
Hope in the Haze is the therapy session I didn’t know I needed. The acoustic, gut-wrenching “Seem OK” served as a warning that I was going to be in my feelings for the entire album. What resulted was a melodic punk psychiatrist hitting all the beats of what haunts me on a daily basis. Listening to Hope in the Haze caused a lot of self-reflection that I wasn’t ready for yet, but I’m glad I was pushed into.
This is an absolutely beautiful album filled with infectious guitar hooks, grooving basslines, and introspective lyrics that are essential for a fractured psyche in 2025. While Tired Radio’s music confronts a lot of painful subjects, like the album title suggests, there is hope in the haze. Red Scare Industries struck gold when they signed this band.
Worlds Scariest Police Chases – Tell my mom and dad I love my mom
It’s been a while since Worlds Scariest Police Chases put out a full-length, and lots of things have changed in the world and with the band since then. Most notably, co-lead vocalist Andy Tomaskovic left the band, leaving Dan Rock to take over the mantle alone. This change resulted in a darker, more serious project. The album’s title and the first track immediately set the tone for the band going forward.
Not afraid to lament how sometimes life just sucks, Rock and the band tackle topics like strained paternal relationships, generational trauma, and how the good old days may not have actually been as good as you remembered. It’s the perfect hardcore punk rock album for the confused, angry, and disillusioned … so just about everyone in 2025.
1876 – Pow Wow Punk Rock IV
In the three years since I discovered 1876, they’ve become one of my favorite punk bands. There’s something raw, authentic, and original about their music that blends ’90s skate punk with indigenous drum circles. Pow Wow Punk Rock IV concludes their EP series, service culmination of five years of development as a band and further proof that 1876 is right on the verge of blowing up. Also, shout out for including Hans Gruber and the Die Hards on a track!
Other Junk
Dave Hause – … and the Mermaid
I’ve been a fan of Dave Hause since his work with The Loved Ones. His latest album, recorded with his band, The Mermaid, continues the punk rock ethos from earlier in his career but raises the stakes to Bruce Springsteen levels of Americana. … and the Mermaid is an absolute triumph of songwriting and musical composition. After focusing mainly on singer-songwriter songs for the past few albums, Hause plays the role of Prodigal Son, returning to a bombastic, yet sincere rock and roll sound.
Working with a permanent band again finds Hause surrendering to the collective muse of where the music wants to go. From start to finish, … and the Mermaid is a shared and collaborative experience, resulting in one of the best albums Dave Hause has released in his career. I was lucky enough to see him play some of these songs live before the record came out, and I still remember the goosebumps “Look Alive” game me the first time I heard it live.
Maura Weaver – Strange Devotion
From Mixtapes and Ogikubo Station, to The Homeless Gospel Choir and The Mimes, I’ve listened to Maura Weaver for the better part of the last 15 years. It wasn’t until 2023’s I Was Due For a Heartbreak that I heard music that was 100% authentically hers. Building on that solo album is Strange Devotion. It feels like Weaver is more comfortable experimenting with what kind of solo artist she wants to become. The songs on this album all hover around the idea of taking control of your life and reclaiming the type of person (and artist) you want to become.
The result is an intimate offering that digs deeper into fuzzy indie pop sensibilities. Think Liz Phair meets Mazzy Star meets Teenage Fanclub. The melodies and storytelling give the listener a vulnerable, yet powerful picture of who Maura Weaver is in 2025 … and who she’ll be in the future. Strange Devotion is the continued evolution of a songwriter and musician who was already at the top of her game when she first burst on the scene back in the late 2000s.
Norman Sann – Abnormally Norman
Norman Sann is easily my favorite hip hop discovery of 2025. Abnormally Norman is his second album this year, and it’s the better of the two. Filled with a truly independent spirit, Norman Sann makes music for himself and his fans, instead of a record label. His rhymes are clever, thought-provoking, and filled with a flow that is unique and engaging. His beats complement the words perfectly, shuffling between boom bap and trap.
Summerbruise – Infinity Guise
While I’ve mostly gotten over my crippling fear of death, it’s still something I think about more than I really should. While listening through Infinity Guise, it’s pretty evident that Mike Newman, the leader of Summerbruise, has a similar predisposition. He confronts his fears with humor and absurdity, which helps someone like me continue to not put death on a pedestal.
That’s not to say Infinity Guise is all doom and gloom. Far from it. Musically, it’s catchy as hell with plenty of power pop and emo structure. It’s the kind of album you can listen to, bop around, and have a good time with no matter how dark the subject matter can be. While most of the songs are autobiographical, one of my favorite tracks on this new Summerbruise album isn’t: “Cookie Monster Snapback,” which features Tades Sanville of Hot Mulligan.
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! You can also reach out to me on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, and Facebook.