In Defense of Ska

One of picks for Pitchfork’s “11 Best Music Books of 2021.”

 (Other picks included A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance by Hanif Abdurraqib & New York Times bestseller 

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner) 

 Recommended book in Rolling Stones June 2021 issue (Along with The Double Life of Bob Dylan by Clinton Heylin and A Man Named Doll by Jonathan Ames)

“Drummer-turned-journalist Aaron Carnes mixes reporting and meomoiresque essays in this deep dive from CLASH Books, bringing new meaning to underground legends like Operation Ivy.” -Rolling Stone (The Future of Music Issue, Top 10 RS Recommends, June 2021) 

“Third-wave ska in general is an unfairly maligned genre…this is a point Aaron Carnes makes in his new book, In Defense of Ska, which is an excellent read.” -Esquire (Dave Holmes) 

“In Defense of Ska does what it says on the tin. It champions not just the critically acclaimed, punk-adjacent two-tone bands of the late '70s and '80s, or the pioneering Jamaican bands from the '60s. In Defense of Ska offers a full-throated defense of ska's third wave. That means Reel Big Fish, Operation Ivy, Fishbone, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and more.” -NPR (Cannonball/Bullseye w/ Jesse Thorn) 

 “Aaron with this new book has put together an impressive assembly of bits of history of the genre, various opinions about the genre, its formation, its fall from grace in a way, and where it can go from here.” -Anthony Fantano (The Needle Drop) 

 “Lately, the whole ska narrative is changing. The author Aaron Carnes wrote In Defense of Ska, an intelligent look at the much-maligned genre and its various ‘waves,’ from 1960s Jamaica to today.” -GQ (Jason Diamond)