Various Artists – Ska Is Dead

For the past five years, ska fans have been told that ska is dead. It had hit its peaked and was now over with. It was no longer commercially viable and venues no longer had faith that the style would pull in a crowd. Mustard Plug, Big D & The Kids Table and Planet Smashers wanted to disprove that fact – and thus began the yearly Ska Is Dead tour. Now, three years, four tours and 60,000 tickets later, those three bands have proved that ska is still alive and kicking in the underground. Working hand in hand with ska label STOMP Records, those three bands have compiled a collection of twenty three bands that definitely prove that ska is, in fact, not nearly dead.

Kicking off with Noise Complaint by Big D & The Kids Table, the Ska Is Dead compilation is a non stop roller coaster ride full of skanking good times. It has some big named ska acts plastered throughout the release like Catch 22, Planet Smashers, Buck-O-Nine, Fishbone, MU330, Mustard Plug, The Toasters and Streetlight Manifesto who supply a live version of A Better Place, A Better Time but at the same time a nice collection of new comers into the ska environment like Subb, Bomb The Music Industry and The Johnstones. This combination of new and old acts just helps cement the idea of how the style and culture of ska will never actually die – it just may not make a huge splash in the mainstream.

Of course, just like punk, ska has it’s offshoots – and this compilation successfully captures though too. Instead of just the third wave ska style, the album slows it down with some reggae tunes courtesy of acts like Go Jimmy Go, Westbound Train, King Django and the one-man-ska-band Chris Murray. It also has some more street punk influenced ska acts that spit out the upstroke beats at a lightning fast speed like Florida’s Against All Authority and Ontario’s The Flatliners

This is a great ska record for any ska fan; while there’s definitely a few acts in here that I feel are missing (Less Than Jake, Know How, Reel Big Fish,and The Mighty Might Bosstones as examples; although since the Bosstones broke up it does make sense that they fail to make an appearance here) there’s also a wide selection of acts in here that I hadn’t heard before but am extremely glad I have now. The female led Tip The Van is one of the highlights of the album and tracks by Deal’s Gone Bad, King Django and The Porkers were all songs that I was glad to hear.

Anyone who likes to move to the music, kick their knees to the air and skank like you just don’t care, Ska is Dead is for you. It’s been going strong for over forty years now and it sees no end in sight.