In Defense of Ska

Expanded 2nd Edition

By: Aaron Carnes

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Paperback | 29 October 2024

At a Glance

Paperback
468 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.24 x 2.64

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One of Pitchfork's 11 Best Music Books of 2021

Recommended book in Rolling Stones June 2021 Issue

With an additional 30,000 words of compelling stories, research, and analysis, music journalist and In Defense of Ska podcast creator/host Aaron Carnes presents the case that ska never died, by jumping headfirst into ska’s "lost years," i.e., the period after the ’90s third-wave ska boom.

New topics covered include LA’s ongoing vibrant traditional ska scene and how young Latinos are keeping the ska torch aflame, how the devastation of Hurricane Katrina inadvertently kicked off a thriving scene focused on keeping community alive in New Orleans, a deep review of Christian ska group Five Iron Frenzy, who broke a Kickstarter record in the ’10s while making progressive activists out of their fan base, a close inspection of a hipster rocksteady scene in Brooklyn that grew so popular it nearly kicked off a nationwide revival, and more secret ska past revelations with none other than Fall Out Boy lead singer Patrick Stump-who has a story that, up until recently, was carefully guarded.

Plus, the book re-explores several bands featured in the first edition, revealing new layers and more details about all the bands fans love, like Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Operation Ivy, the Slackers, Hepcat, Mephiskapheles, and Reel Big Fish. With 30,000 additional words, this is the complete ska package.

Industry Reviews

"Aaron Carnes mixes reporting and memoir-esque essays in this deep dive, bringing new meaning to the underground legends like Operation Ivy." -Rolling Stone

"Third-wave ska in general is an unfairly maligned genre…this is a point Aaron Carnes makes in his new book, In Defense of Ska, which is an excellent read." —Esquire (Dave Holmes)

“In Defense of Ska does what it says on the tin. It champions not just the critically acclaimed, punk-adjacent two-tone bands of the late '70s and '80s, or the pioneering Jamaican bands from the '60s. In Defense of Ska offers a full-throated defense of ska's third wave. That means Reel Big Fish, Operation Ivy, Fishbone, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and more.” —NPR (Cannonball/Bullseye w/ Jesse Thorn)

“Aaron with this new book has put together an impressive assembly of bits of history of the genre, various opinions about the genre, its formation, its fall from grace in a way, and where it can go from here.” —Anthony Fantano (The Needle Drop)

“Lately, the whole ska narrative is changing. The author Aaron Carnes wrote In Defense of Ska, an intelligent look at the much-maligned genre and its various ‘waves,' from 1960s Jamaica to today.” —GQ (Jason Diamond)

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