Things I Can't Forget: A Slackers Podcast

You know him as a modern-day dub master and ska producer, but now we're calling him "professor" as Victor Rice takes us to production school.

Ricey shares his advice on composing, performing, recording and mixing your music- it's like Masterclass but for ska kids.

Rebroadcast of an episode of the Monster Boogie Show, originally aired March 5th, 2024 on WCSB 89.3FM Cleveland

Cleveland native and trombonist Greg Robinson (Mephiskapheles) guest hosts the Mikal Reich Memorial Show. For two hours, Greg spins rare, early Mephiskapheles tracks from 1992-1996, along with vintage ska from the 1960s that Mikal loved, and a few selections from the bands Meph toured with back in the early days. In between, there are brief interview segments from the Mephiskapheles circle as well as guests from the NYC scene who knew Mikal and pay tribute to him on-air. Together, we remember this brilliant, creative person who touched so many lives significantly with his friendship and his enthusiasm for ska music and living life to the fullest. We hope you'll find time to listen and remember Mikal too.

Guests: Mike Drance, Dave Martinez, Andre Worrell, Mike Bitz, Rob “Bucket” Hingley, Brendan “Brendog” Tween, Irena Hyena

RIP Mikal Reich (Mephiskapheles, Barbicide)August 28, 1965 - February 20, 2024

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra (TSPO, or Skapara) has been making records since 1990, but their music has been hard to come by in the US for much of their career. However, after their Supernova debut, and the availability of their entire back catalog for streaming, TSPO is finally getting the recognition they deserve.

JJ and Matt have decided to become experts on the legendary band, and with the help of Chris Malone from The Pandamics, The Pilfers, and Bigger Thomas, they will take you through the history of TSPO.

Matt recently had the opportunity to hop on a Zoom with Coolie, Vinny and Nick from The Pilfers! Their seminal record from 1999, Chawalaleng is available for streaming for the very first time, and this coincides with a reunion of the band's original lineup.

This is Coolie Ranx's third visit to Hornpod, check the feed for episodes 027 and 028 for the full Pilfers' Saga.

It's been a fantastic year for ska music and we have been making lists. JJ and Matt welcome the curator of the BIG 2023 Ska Releases Spotify playlist, Cody Freedom and author/blogger of Ska, Punk and other Junk, Dane Jackson to the show.

We each share our own Top Ten lists, find some common overlap and reflect on another year in ska.

It's Christmas time again! Yes, again. Some folks were disappointed that nothing was added to the Ska Canon in the last episode. We're fixing that with a self-proclaimed Christmas Ska expert, Sean McCabe from Rocky Sullivan, Psy D and Bomb The Music Industry!

JJ and Matt are in a Christmas mood, so we've brought on Jesse Wagner (The Aggrolites) and Eitan Avineri from Western Standard Time to talk about their new record, Bluebeat Holiday. It's a classy mix of Big Band, Ska and Christmas favorites.

And in Ska Canon, we try to find some Christmas Ska that's worthy to be inducted.

Guests, James McDonald, I-Peace Unikue and their band Eastern Standard Time are playing Supernova Ska Festival 2023!  More than that, they’ll also be backing up Sister Nancy and Dr. Ring-Ding!

Eastern Standard Time joins JJ and Matt to tell us what it’s like infusing traditional Ska with non-traditional amounts of Jazz- and finding the right balance over their nearly 30 years together.  We get into the nuances of playing Ska-Jazz, and also, when things get too far out.

JJ and Matt are joined by Victor Rice and Kristoph Toth to discuss their new project, Heritage: On Bartok's Path, which combines ska with traditional Hungarian folk songs. A true ska visionary, Rice conceived of the new genre-mixing album years ago, and enlisted Toth's band, the Pannonia Allstar Ska Orchestra to make it a reality.

We talk Scofflaws! We talk about Samba Rocksteady! And of course, we talk Bela Bartok!

The Prizefighters are a Minneapolis band who really studies Jamaican music. This has led them to be picked to back living Jamaican legends including Stranger Cole, Patsy Todd, Roy Panton, Yvonne Harrison, Charlie Organaire, and "King of Ska" Derrick Morgan. Aaron, Tony, and Courtney from the band join us to discuss the nuances and particulars of playing Jamaican music and the ways it has and hasn't been done since the 1960s.