John Norwood Fisher remembers hearing Two Tone Ska for the first time. It was the early 1980s, and fellow Fishbone member/trumpeter "Dirty" Walter Kibby introduced him to The Selecter and The English Beat. The bassist's reaction? "I was disappointed. We didn't invent Ska?!" Fishbone barely profited from the cachet they earned as the style's U.S. elders (the cultural focus shone on younger bands like No Doubt and Mighty Mighty Bosstones), but the group has rocked steady for 25 years.
by Mike Breen
10.24.2012
Music Tonight: The Toasters
Legendary NYC Ska group brings 30th anniversary tour to Cincy for free show
American Ska legends The Toasters perform a free show tonight at MOTR Pub in Over-the-Rhine. Showtime is 10 p.m. and — sorry, kids — you must be 21 or older to get in.The band was one of the leading inspirations behind the "third-wave" Ska explosion of the ’90s, but the band actually began 30 years ago, influenced by the 2-Tone Ska movement in the U.K. The Toasters blend of NYC Rock and 2-Tone made them cult heroes in the Ska underground, as did the band's D.I.Y. approach; founding member (the sole one in the current lineup) Robert "Bucket" Hingley formed the influential Moon Ska Records in 1983 to release his own albums, as well as those by acts like Mustard Plug, The Slackers and Hepcat. The label's various compilations also gave a boost to up-and-coming, non-Moon acts like Less Than Jake and No Doubt.Here's The Toasters' first music video, for the tune "Radiation Skank" off of the band's debut release, 1985's Recriminations EP (which was produced by British singer/songwriter Joe Jackson; he is to The Toasters what Elvis Costello was to The Specials). And here is "Modern World America" off The Toasters' 2002 release, Enemy of the System.
Fishbone Skanks Down Memory Lane
The 25-years-young band keeps the old-school Ska rhythms moving
1 Comment · Monday, February 22, 2010
Friday Pick: The Pinstripes
The ska's the limit with this Cincinnati joy band
0 Comments · Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Tight but never slick, fun but never goofy, intense but never serious, The Pinstripes combine Ska, Reggae, Dub and Soul to create something that's genuinely lacking in a great deal of contemporary music: joy. The band's latest album, 'Midwest Soundclash,' just dropped this month.
Manifesto Destiny
Streetlight Manifesto separates from their Ska roots
0 Comments · Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Ska just isn't what it used to be. After the third wave of ska soared into the American mainstream in the 1990s, it's more likely to be identified with bland Punk Rock mixed with some horns. This shift is especially pertinent to Tomas Kalnoky, lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of Streetlight Manifesto.
Ska's the Limit
The Pinstripes want to change the perception of Ska
0 Comments · Tuesday, December 23, 2008
The word Ska conjures up differing responses, and many are sadly negative. Whether through sub-par bands or knee-jerk reactions against the genre's '80s commercialization, the mere mention of Ska rubs some people the wrong way. To that end, The Pinstripes have a mission.
