Bomb the Music Industry Returns to the Middle East Dec 20

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Everyone’s favorite punk/ska/folk/etc collective/band/guy/party play at the Middle East Downstairs on Thursday, December 20th. Last time I saw them was almost a year ago at Irving Plaza in New York City with The Slackers and The Pietasters. Between their commitment to playing affordable all-ages shows and general party atmosphere (Bring Your Own Band tour anyone?), I’m a fan. Oh and every song is a sing-a-long. Oh and their fans know every word. Every. Word. I’m always impressed by the dedication of their fans.

Thursday, December 20, 2012
Bomb the Music Industry! (special guests  tba)
All Ages, $10, 7 PM Doors
Tickets – Facebook Event

UPDATE 12/3/12 8:00 PM: Math the Band added to this bill! Hooray!

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New Music Monday: The Causeway Bandits – High Horse

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One of my favorite tech blogs, Mashable, runs a Music Monday feature. I know I’m always in need of fresh tunes on a Monday morning. The Causeway Bandits have released another song on YouTube, this time it’s a far more punk rock sound than the so-ca reggae tune they debuted with. Sounds like they’ve been … Read more

The English Beat Comes to Johnny D’s in Somerville, Jan 29

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The English Beat in NYC, August 2010 / photo by Bryan Kremkau, Skapunkphotos.com, used with permission

About 6 years ago I was living in Tucson, AZ, going to shows at the Rialto and Hotel Congress. The hotel was having a Halloween Block Party of sorts with a few different stages of music, including a special outdoor stage on their back patio. There were a ton of bands playing, but the only one I wanted to see was The English Beat. I had a handful of questions that needed answering: when did they start playing again? Who was in the band these days? Who was still interested in seeing this band?

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A New Class of Boston Ska/Punk Bands

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Poor Jeremy | Boston Ska

Having only been in Boston for a few months now, I’m not exactly an authority on the scene (yet). It’s not necessarily my place to decide who’s new and old, but the following three bands all introduced themselves as new in the Boston Ska Facebook Group.

This may say more about my own interests or how plugged-in I am (read: my age), but I find it interesting how much ska/punk seems to be coming out of Boston right now. It seems like the other scenes seem to still be generating more traditional ska or reggae revival acts. I think I’m partial to the later, but I’m also stoked to see new faces interested in ska of any sort.

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Hometown Throwdown Openers Announced; RadioBDC Giving Away Tickets

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Late last week, RadioBDC told us that Dicky Barrett was going to be on the radio with a huge announcement. The announcement itself was (yawn) that RadioBDC was going to be presenting Hometown Throwdown 15. The best part about it was that Dicky wasn’t even so sure of the announcement himself. Sounds like he got the memo but didn’t read it so closely. Listen to the awkward conversation:

What was significant was that they posted a few more openers for the Hometown Throwdown on their website (and possibly on the radio show but I tuned out shortly after they went back to music). So far we know: Dogmatics open Dec 29, Bouncing Souls on Dec 30, Big D and Amazing Royal Crowns on Dec 31. I’ve got tickets to the 29th so I naturally had to go listen to the Dogmatics. They’ve got a garage-y Ramones thing going on.

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November/December Ska Shows and News

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Welcome to first post on Boston Ska (dot) net. Let’s call this a soft launch. I’d been blogging at jacobwakeup.com and decided to start this sucker.

I missed the first couple weeks of November but there’s still a decent amount going on. I wasn’t able to make it to The Toasters on November 3rd at Johnny D’s. Did anyone catch any video from the show? I wasn’t able to find any on YouTube. It’s okay, The Toasters will be at TT’s in March.

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Boston Ska News Roundup October 2012

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Originally posted at jacobwakeup.com

So the Obi Fernandez CD release show was awesome. Soul Rebel Project was tight but didn’t quite move me, Riki Rocksteady was a blast, and of course Obi Fernandez KILLED it. They played mostly new stuff, as far as I could tell, some Westbound Train tunes, and some great covers. Specifically, they opened with a sick rocksteady version of “The KKK Took My Baby Away.” Obi was giving out download cards for his new record. Stream it on Spotify or buy it directly from Paper + Plastick (it’s worth it to buy it, and purchases are without a doubt, better for the artist). And of course now I’m all the more stoked for The Aggrolites on Tuesday.

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October Ska Shows [And Other News]

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Originally posted at jacobwakeup.com

So I sort of blinked and noticed there’s a handful of great ska shows in Boston this month. And then I noticed they weren’t all listed anywhere. In the event that Bostonska.com doesn’t get around to posting them, I wanted to pull them all together. So, risking being the new guy who rolls into town and pretends he knows what’s up, I’ve got a very incomplete arbitrarily compiled list! Feel free to add more in the comments that I might have missed.

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