Ska kicks ass. Not nerdy, third-wave revival ska like Reel Big Fish and the Aquabats, but legit stuff like the Toasters and the Slackers and the Specials. Unfortunately, the aforementioned third-wave groups made a big stink in the mid-’90s and subsequently left an awful taste in most music fans’ mouths. It’s a real shame. Because good ska is great music.

Monkey play good ska. Here’s a review penned by a NASCENT…associate…in the East Bay Express that attests as much. Ska may not be cool, but it sure is fun. Monkey knows this. Their goal is not to become the subject of a major-label bidding war or to sell out back-to-back nights at the Great American Music Hall (though we assume they wouldn’t reject either circumstance), but simply to make great music and keep ska healthy. For four years now, the Ska is Dead tour has been playing with the idea that ska is a stale remnant of pop culture past, killed by third-wave backlash and a severe shortage of checkerboard Vans. Most non-delusional ska bands today are painfully aware of the genre’s lack of mainstream and popular cache.

But judging by Monkey’s organized list of 33 influential bands on their MySpace page (“MONKEY is mostly influenced by traditional ska pioneers, but there are lots of other musicians and music styles that we encorporate [sic] in to our own brand of Northern California Ska music!”), the band is more interested in shedding light on ska’s rich history, drawing attention to their peers, and building a strong and proud community of ska fans and musicians, than they are in getting ahead as an individual band. And that’s really refreshing.

SKANK ON:
-Monkey consists of six members and features guitar, drums, bass, trumpet, trombone, keyboards, and saxophone.
-Riding the popularity of the third-wave revival, Monkey won the coveted California Music Award in 1999.
-The group has been together for 10 years, played around 200 shows per year, and recorded three full-length albums.