Trad ska band Lollypop Lorry formed in Yekaterinburg, Russia in 2008. Last year, they played their biggest headlining show ever…in Mexico. Today we talk to two members of Lollypop Lorry: Ivan Gogolin (guitar) and Simon Shiriaev (drums). We listen to their interesting story: How they went from playing to tiny audiences in Russia to packing venues in Mexico—and they only speak a little bit of Spanish. 

We talk about the group’s love for Jamaican ska, how their cover of Keith & Ken’s “I Won’t Let You Go” garnered millions of views and streams, their Live at Octopus record, and why they decided to dub out jazz tunes on their record Goes Dub (with help from Victor Rice). 

We talk about the group’s collaborations with Inspector and Out Of Control Army, the jazz scene in Mexico, the music scene in Russia and who exactly the other Russian ska bands are. We learn about their cover of Millie Small’s “My Boy Lollipop” and we learn which Skatalites record inspired them to go all in on ska. Plus, we find out what if they’ll ever tour the US. 

If you want to hear what it’s like for them to be a Russian band amid the war in Ukraine, sign up to the In Defense of Ska Patreon and listen to our extended interview with the group. 

Listen to Lollypop Lorry on the In Defense of Ska podcast. Then, follow the series wherever you get your podcast. Fans can also get early and ad-free episodes by joining the IDOS Patreon, and don't forget to check out all the Consequence Podcast Network series here.

You can also support the In Defense host Aaron Carnes by purchasing a copy of his book, In Defense of Ska. The 2nd, expanded edition will be released in Oct 2024.

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. 

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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