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Tag: Ska

  • In Case You Missed It Vol. 3

    In Case You Missed It Vol. 3

    Folks, it has been 6 months since the last volume of In Case You Missed It. I thought I would take this time to talk about some singles that have recently dropped or otherwise caught my eye. If this is your first installment of, In Case You Missed It, this is the general vibe of this series. I hope you like it.  

    “Free Dom” by Bad Operation; March 06, 2026: This song has everything I think a perfect song should contain. It is politically engaged. The overall message of the song is fantastic and most importantly, for me anyways, the chorus has a solid call to action. On top of all that, the music is just so good. The bass line that opens the song is peak. There is something about organ driven ska that just gets me fired up. Honestly, if I went all mad scientist and sat out to distill the new tone ska movement into its pure essence, I am almost positive that something close to this song is what would come out that mad science. Free Dom was the first single off of Bad Operation’s upcoming album releasing on April 24, 2026. If this and the other single are any indication, this is going to be a must have album.

    ‘Peachy‘ By Chromarama; March 19, 2026: Chromarama is a hardcore punk band from Indianapolis, Indiana. Peachy is their newest single. If hardcore is your thing,, this single is definitely worth a listen. As expected, the music is intense and goes hard. The vocals are screamy with just a hint of anger. A perfect pairing for a song that is about the ceaseless onslaught of life, and how we (humans) are wired for better or worse to keep grinding along relentlessly in spite of all the hardship inherent in life. This song is a battle anthem that I can see myself fire up the next time I decide to go to war with life.

    ‘Liar’ by Omnigone; March 28, 2026: I have since I started this blog missed several opportunities to cover Omnigone; much to my chagrin. They are a band out of California with strong Ska and hardcore influences and this song is no different. It’s got the must have ska guitar licks punctuated by a pretty gnarly guitar solo at the end. The song is about how liars use hate and deception to stoke division and bigotry. Based on my parasocial understanding of the type of person Adam Davis is, I am going to venture a guess that the song, while vague, is aimed at a particular type of modern political actor. I like it. I like it quite a lot, and I think that y’all should definitely give it a listen.     

    Panorama by Mike Honcho; May 21, 2024: Mike Honcho is an electronic music artist based out of Boston, Massachusetts. Panorama is shining bit of instrumental electronica. The thing I find most intriguing about this track is the click rhythm line that flows through the piece. The synthesized whir gives an almost alien feel to the composition. Combine this with the rest of the multilayered sounds and they coalesce to bring together an otherworldly contraption of electronic music that offers seemingly endless opportunities to find something new every re-listen. Panorama can be found on Mike Honcho’s up coming album, “Day to Day” releasing May 01, 2026. Pre-orders are currently available on Bandcamp. 

  • Harmonic Convergence by Mega Infinity

    Harmonic Convergence by Mega Infinity

    Album: Harmonic Convergence

    Artist: Mega Infinity

    Released: March 3, 2025; Say-10/Direct Support Music Group

    If ska infused progressive rock is your kind of jam, then you probably know all about Long Island 4 piece Mega Infinity. They have been a staple of the current DIY Ska scene for many years. Their signature style features sick guitar riffs, meaningful and engaging lyrics and a community centered outlook that always brings a good time. Their newest full length album “Harmonic Convergence” released last Tuesday.

    My favorite song on the album is “When You Get Home”. It is a highly relatable and an extremely sweet love song. Maybe I am just a sucker for that kind of thing but it honestly makes my heart melt a little when I listen to it. There is also some stellar saxophone in the song which I of course absolutely adore. The vocal performance is very sincere and honest. The thing that gets me right in the heart is the story of the song. It starts with a couple who is dating. The boyfriend has to leave and the girlfriend wants him to call when he gets home. The song then goes on to explain how she loves him and how safe he makes her feel and how she wants him to be safe as well. Again, it is very sweet and sincere. The next verse the couple is married and reminiscing about back when they dated and then they wonder about their future together. In the last verse, the couple has a kid and you are treated to more snapshots of their lives as the kid grows up and becomes an adult. Then, the song goes back to the, now mom, asking her child to call her when they get home. It is then that you realized that what you have just witnessed is love make a complete cycle from romantic love for a partner, to parental love for a child. Honestly, it’s beautiful, god tier storytelling. Also, shout out to my wife who this song very easily could have been written about. She is exactly the way POV character of the song is portrayed and still to this day asks all our adult children to tell her when they get home. Perhaps that’s why I fine it so relatable.

    “The World” is another really well written song about finding love and acceptance among friends and community. It is a really upbeat pop-punk song. It also has a really awesome guitar solo during the back half of the song. I think it is the perfect track 1 for the album as it really sets the tone for what follows.

    Gerilyn Hayes-McCloskey of Böndbreakr provides additional vocals on the song “In Bocca Al Lupo”. Her vocals are fantastic and add a level of visceral empowerment that takes the song to another level. The prog rock guitar that intros the song is also great at stoking the energy needed to address the subject of the song. It recounts the story of Medusa and uses it as a metaphor for overcoming trauma and then from there setting out to protect others. It’s a song about survival and empowerment; an utterly marvelous message.

    Lastly, I just wanted to briefly mention the song “The Crowd Goes Mild”. It is a scything rebuttal of how big tech has a straggle hold on the music industry and generative AI. It talks about how this hurts the music scene. Most importantly, the comment on how to combat this by finding solidarity with other artists and by making real music with real people.

    This “Harmonic Convergence” marks their second full length release since “Rainbow Heartache” released in 2021. The almost 5 years was worth the wait. Everything presented in this album is an improvement on their first album and even their 2023 solo EP and takes the style they are known for and kicks it up to 20.