This Could Only Happen in England: A Conversation with Josh from The Skints
Ska and reggae are global genres but also take on the unique properties of the musicians that play them. Today, we direct our focus to British reggae-ska band The Skints, who pull from many UK subgenres. These are such specific niche influences, that The Skints are a band that could only have happened in the UK. They’ve created a very cool and very distinct sound unlike any other group playing at the moment.
We bring on the group’s guitarist/vocalist Josh Waters Rudge to dissect the group’s influences. It helps illuminate the Skints’ sound, but it also is a window into several distinctly British subcultures: the early 2000s UK ska-punk scene, grime, garage, lovers rock, British dancehall, and more.
We also get a sense of how big The Skints have gotten in recent years, discuss their US tours, talk about collaborators like Tippa Irie, the influence of British pirate radio, how Capdown influenced the group, and we try to figure out just how many instruments member Marcia Richards plays in the group.
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If you like our theme song, go download the EP Lives by Slow Gherkin. They wrote the opening and closing songs for our podcast. You can get both tunes from their Lives EP. Also, check out Dan P and the Bricks two LPs. They provided the mid-roll ad transition music.
Support the In Defense host Aaron Carnes by purchasing a copy of his book, In Defense of Ska. The 2nd, expanded edition of In Defense of Ska will release in Oct 2024.
Co-host Adam Davis has a band called Omnigone. Their latest record, Against The Rest released on March 31, 2023.
The In Defense of Ska editor Chris Reeves runs a record label called Ska Punk International. They have new releases coming out all the time.
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