The first time I saw Shackleford live, two things came to mind. First, I thought “These guys probably are probably the stupidest, most hilarious band I’ve ever seen live”. And secondly, I thought “Wow, how do they sound so good?”.
After several years touring on the back of their two EPs – the imaginatively named I and II – they’ve pulled their socks up and put together a full album.
A lucky happenstance found me in sunny London town this week, so I took the opportunity to visit the New Cross Inn for the first time.
For those of you who don’t know, the New Cross Inn is the spiritual home of much of the UK ska scene, with basically every band ever having played there nineteen times, it hosts the incredible Level Up Fest and, of course, its operated by the lovely Paul Smith and is the oft-home of the Be Sharp Promotions gang.
It was a delight to have the wonderful ANDY B ON THE SHOW! He is hot off the release of his new Andy B & The World album “The First One”!
That’s right, you heard it here first, it’s ANOTHER WARRINGTON SKA PUNK PODCAST!! We got Dave Emmerson of Visions Press back on the show. Mostly because we couldn’t get anyone better…
We discuss Wizards, Dave’s Christmas presents, the barely-even-a-genre that is “Noise”, and about five minutes of both of us going “URRRRGGGGHH”. Plus Dave’s zine, that was basically my idea.
Shout Louder have organised a fitness challenge to get our scene ready for gigs again!
Warrington Ska Punk’s very own Chris is running 150km during March… That’s the distance from his house to The Salty Dog in Northwich. 7 times!
Click here to help MVT with yer dosh!
EPISODE 6 is here! We are delighted to have Sarah from Shout Louder with us! We talk about sleep, and tiredness, and the hopes and dreams we have for 2021. Sort of.
POOK IS BACK! Our usual eclectic mix of ska music, music that is definitely not ska, and arguing about technical support issues is here!
Pook shares a little about what’s going on with Pookout Records, including the very exciting upcoming Andy B & The World release – you heard it here first! Except you didn’t, because we recorded it months ago but didn’t put it out early enough…
I need to start this review with a confession. Cards on the table time. It’s this: I love what TNS Records represent, absolutely. I absolutely love who they are in the scene, I love their DIY ethic, their stand out values, their inclusivity. But… I struggle to love a lot of the music they release. The problem’s not them – its me.
They’re just a bit too ferocious for me. Their music? It’s wild, it’s untamed. It’s punk with the limiters taken off. And, I’ll be honest, I spent most of yesterday evening reading by the log burner, listening to Nina Simone, and some very chilled out Pama International reggae. And so, the brutal reality is… TNS Records are too punk for me?
My friend Dave joins us for episode 4! Unfortunately, Dave apparently only listens to hardcore. Which makes him a rubbish guest for a ska show. He also runs the now defunct Zap Records, and loads of cool/weird zine stuff at Visions Press!
We cover a variety of things including his experience being homeless and how a degree in Archaeology is exactly what led him there. (Not true, before I get shouted at for joking about such things. His homeless experience was to improve his empathy, whilst he is still waiting for his Archaeology degree to lead him anywhere at all!)
Rootin’ and tootin’ round the town with Colin Clark from Colin’s Punk Rock World
We cover a variety of captivating topics, such as “unexpected aisles in Sainsbury’s” and “what I have for Christmas dinner”. Plus I discover my new favourite game – putting Colin on the spot!
