The Singles Jukebox

Remember ska? It’s back! In Pog form!

[Video][Website]
[4.86]

Taylor Alatorre: I pay fairly close attention to the punk scene (or at least the punknews.org scene), but never gave a second glance to the Interrupters because I perceived them as the epitome of a derivative, though not necessarily bad, ska-punk band. Turns out I was right. Yet somehow, behind my back, a derivative ska-punk band got to #7 on the Alternative Songs chart. All this tells me is that not enough people in my generation have listened to …And Out Come the Wolves, because otherwise there wouldn’t be as much demand for a distaff facsimile of it. But hey, at least it’s not the Dirty Heads.
[5]

Julian Axelrod: It’s truly mind-boggling to hear a straightforward ska song in 2018. But it’s even more mind-boggling to hear good ska in 2018: earnest and exciting, with well-rounded harmonies and a kickass guitar solo livening up the formula. Unless I move to Long Beach and get really into longboarding, I probably won’t listen to this again. But I appreciate that it exists.
[7]

Ian Mathers: If you’d said to me, “Ian, here at the end of 2018 would you like to know what ska punk sounds like now?” I’m not sure whether I would have said yes, but I would have guessed pretty much exactly like this. I’ve listened to the basic chassis of this song so many, many times over the years that it still goes down extremely easy, but there’s nothing particular seizing my attention and it’s not exactly shocking that this isn’t likely to grab many new converts.
[4]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: People in the YouTube comments are clamoring for a fourth wave of ska, but shouldn’t a new ‘wave’ of any genre constitute growth in some shape or form? The Interrupters make ska punk for people who are nostalgic for it — they even have multiple songs with Operation Ivy members — and make zero effort to deviate from its tried-and-true formulas. This is frustrating because so many second and third wave ska bands weren’t really doing anything beyond adding some horns and guitar skanks to basic punk, rock, or pop punk songs. What is “Kerosene” but a shallower version of something that was already puddle-deep? And you’re expecting a wave from that?
[2]

Tim de Reuse: Ska pop-punk with the kind of expensive-sounding vocal harmonies most often heard on 21st-century bro-country. Play this to me with no context and I’d assume it was a stylistic parody of some genre I’ve never heard of — but, no, they’re totally sincere. Well, uh, you guys keep doing you. I can respect that.
[4]

Edward Okulicz: To say that there’s nothing new under the sun in ska-pop may or may not be true — I don’t follow the genre closely — but if there is anything new, I can’t tell from this, and it could have come directly after Rancid’s “Time Bomb” on a mixtape. But that’s fine, because “She’s Kerosene” has lots of energy and has a catchy rhythm and a decent melody. It’s well-produced and arranged too, drum fills and harmonies and organs pop out of the speakers. I can imagine the me of 20 years ago bopping along to this at a gig.
[7]

Juan F. Carruyo: “If there was a new Tony Hawk game, this would be on there 100%” – Jordan L from YouTube
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