What is Ska? Ska-Punk?

You like upbeat music? You like the aggressiveness of punk music? You like dancing in a circle while pushing people and being pushed? This genre might suit you. Ska is a music genre originated in Jamaica in the 1950s with its slow tempo upbeat style which led to the creation of Reggae and Rocksteady music. Since then there have been many variations of Ska throughout the world in the 60s England brought in their own version of ska with bands such as “The Specials”, “Madness” and “The English Beat”. In the 90s the U.S. had its own version of ska with the creation of 3rd wave ska and ska-punk with bands such as “Buck-o-Nine”, “No Doubt”, “The Aquabats” and “Sublime”. Today the genre sits in the back burner when it comes to mainstream popularity, but the scene and spirit still remains very much alive. Now a days you can find a ska show in some cities throughout the U.S.mostly metropolitan cities with larger populations. As for dancing to this genre there are many ways as I mentioned before it can consist of a “Pit” or some might say “Mosh Pit” or dancing in place and enjoying the vibes brought by the band. If opting for a more chill and laidback experience dancing in place always works this consists of swinging your arms side to side and moving side to side while staying in place or if you want to add a little pzaz to it you can “skank” in place. Skanking or Skank is the name of the dance you do when Viking out to some ska in some cases you can do a type of running man dance motion mixed in with some shuffling(yes the dance from 2010s) in place. Now mix the running man dance motion while going in a circle and you got yourself a ska pit. While this might seem a little scary to some it’s really not and it really depends on the tone of the music. When I’ve attended ska shows in the past the aggressiveness of the ska pit is measured by the music the band is playing, if the band is playing a little slower and upbeat the chances are the pit will move much slower and everybody will be dancing and enjoying themselves. Now if the band is playing fast and aggressive then the pit will get much faster and everybody in it will start pushing one another and getting their aggression out. You might be thinking what if I fall or trip in the pit will I get trampled? No, there is also a sense of community at shows from what iv’e experienced and seen so if you do so happen to take a tumble those around you will make sure you don’t get trampled and lift you back up and push you back in the pit. Overall I would really recommend this genre to everybody you can find a song or two you might like on the much more laidback side or if you like some aggression in you music then on the punk side of ska.