Notes From the Road – Ska is Dead IV
The first leg of the Ska is Dead IV tour came to a close last Sunday in San Diego. The last several shows featured The Toasters, Voodoo Glowskulls, Deal’s Gone Bad, and Buck-O-Nine. In addition, local openers such as Arizona’s 2 Tone Lizard Kings in Tempe, AZ and Chase Long Beach at the Anaheim show demonstrated that ska is once again gaining a foothold at the regional level. I procured a copy of the Lizard Kings’ album, which I’ll be reviewing in a future post.
Saturday’s show, being combined with the LA version of 3 Floors of Ska, featured a variety of acts including Raskahuele (Spanish for scratch-n-sniff), Hub City Stompers and Rice Rokit, in addition to DJ’s spinning ska, soul and reggae.
Of the six shows I attended, the LA 3FOS show was the highlight, as ska fans from all over southern California converged on The Knitting Factory to make for a sold-out show and high energy throughout the night.
Even the Victorville show boasted a fairly decent turn-out, and judging by the feedback from the bands, I’d say this tour shows that ska is anything but dead. Sure, ska may have slinked back into the musical underground (and perhaps that is where it belongs – at least for a while), but the core fans came out in force and showed their appreciation night after night.
Voodoo Glowskulls mentioned several times that this tour represented a full spectrum of ska; something that was quite evident given the variety of ska that was showcased by the headliners, and the warm reception received by all the bands on the bill each night.
What follows are just a few photos from some of the shows…
The Toasters at 3FOS, Los Angeles
The Toasters at 3FOS, Los Angeles
Bucket plays to the crowd, 3FOS, Los Angeles
Chicago’s Deals Gone Bad, 3FOS, Los Angeles
2Tone Lizard Kings warm up the crowd in Tempe, AZ
Raskahuele ruled the second stage at 3FOS, Los Angeles
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Glad you enjoyed the 3FOS show!
It was an awesome night!