More Vans Warped Tour 2010 footage from Canterbury Park in Shakopee, MN!  This one is of the perennial ska-pop all-stars Reel Big Fish playing the song “In The Pit” from their album Why Do They Rock So Hard? According to our own Pit Reporter, Patrick Larson, the crowd at the Main Stage to watch RBF was one of the largest of the day.  Big thanks to Patrick for shooting this video!

You can check out the video on YouTube HERE

Third-wave ska darlings Reel Big Fish have detailed an upcoming greatest hits album which is due out on July 20, 2010 exclusively through Best Buy.  Entitled A Best Of Us For The Rest Of Us, the album includes 22 tracks chosen by the fans.  All of the tracks will be re-recorded for this album since Jive Records owns the master recordings of some of their older songs.

A couple years ago, Jive Records attempted to put out a Reel Big Fish Greatest Hits album without the band’s consent, a move which lead singer Aaron Barrett called a way to “cash in” on the band’s music due to the popularity of their self-released LIVE album.

A Best Of Us For The Rest Of Us will also include a separate 14-track “skacoustic” disc.

Check out the track listing after the jump.

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Coming this summer as a joint effort from Asbestos Records, Underground Communique Records, and the nice folks at Skaisdead.com will be an amazing little project that combines our obsession with dead genres and dead formats. Each series will be a set of 6 split 7”s from some of our favorite bands that **gasp** have the audacity to still play ska, and ska influenced punk rock in the year 2010. Available by subscription only, every other month you will receive two brand spanking new 7” records featuring both established, and up and coming acts including Reel Big Fish, Mustard Plug, Big D & the Kids Table, Bomb the Music Industry!, The Slackers, Sonic Boom Six, and more! So get out your dad’s old suit, and your mom’s old turntable and get stoked for the best 7” club of the year!

Please Note: this is a PRE-ORDER and your first installment will not ship out until late July/Early August.

You can PRE-ORDER the series HERE.

“SPRING HEELED JACK IS BACK.”  These words were posted by Pete “JR” Wasilewski (Less Than Jake) on his blog (JR’S BLAHG).  After posting a brief history of the third-wave ska band from New Haven, CT, JR goes on to say that Spring Heeled Jack has a reunion show (or two) in the works for this year and they are currently beginning the booking process.  To celebrate this occasion, the band is re-releasing both of their albums, Static World View and Songs From Suburbia, on vinyl via Asbestos Records.

Spring Heeled Jack features members that have played in The Mighty Mighty  Bosstones, Reel Big Fish, Less Than Jake, and the Pilfers.  The band broke up in 2000 and played a benefit reunion show in 2002 to raise money for a scholarship fund in the name of their late drummer Dave Karcich.

MNSKA.com is proud to present our latest contest courtesy of Rock Ridge Music.  The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies have released a brand new full length album Susquehanna and a compilation of all of their ska tunes called Skaboy-JFK.  In honor of this occasion, MNSKA.com and Rock Ridge Music are giving away both albums, along with an out-of-print signed 7″ vinyl split with Reel Big Fish entitled Vacationing In Palm Springs!

To enter the contest, simply email us at mnskanews@gmail.com and include Cherry Poppin’ Daddies Contest in the subject line.  When you enter the contest, you will also be added to the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies mailing list to keep you up to date on upcoming tour dates and events!

Grand Prize: A signed 7″ vinyl split with Reel Big Fish Vacationing In Palm Springs, Skaboy-JFK CD, and Susquehanna CD

Second Prize: Skaboy-JFK CD, signed Cherry Poppin’ Daddies poster, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies T-Shirt

Third Prize: Susquehanna CD, assorted Cherry Poppin’ Daddies pins and stickers

On February 1st, I will randomly select the winners.  What are you waiting for?  You gotta play to win!  Best of luck!

We barely have our ass in the door for 2010 and we already have a number of bands confirmed for this summer’s Vans Warped Tour.  Typically there are the token punk vets on the bill (from Fat Wreck Chords or Epitaph) and in recent years there have been a growing number of ska bands on the tour.  This batch of confirmed bands has hardly any bands from column A or column B.  The only confirmed ska-influenced bands on the list so far are Deal’s Gone Bad, Reel Big Fish, Chase Long Beach, and Tip The Van (apparently 3 word ska bands are all the rage).  The good news is that there are even more bands yet to be confirmed.  We at MNSKA.com will keep you up to date with the latest confirmations.

The Vans Warped Tour is coming to Minnesota on Sunday August 1st at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, MN.  The only confirmed ska bands for that tour date is Deal’s Gone Bad and Reel Big Fish.  A current list of confirmed bands (and the dates they are appearing) can be found after the jump.

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Part 1: Reel Big Fish

I recently discovered that someone has uploaded an out of print VHS called The Best of 3rd Wave TV.  It features these fine US ska bands: Reel Big Fish, Mobtown, Let’s Go Bowling, Skankin Pickle, Easy Big Fella, Isaac Green and the Skalars, The Toasters, Big Rude Jake, Ruder Than You, Blue Meanies, and engine 54.

You can check out the ENTIRE 16 part series after the jump.

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Today’s video is from third-wave ska rockers Spring Heeled Jack.  It was from a performance at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City in 1998.  This band featured quite the horn section, including Pete “JR” Wasilewski (Less Than Jake) on tenor sax, Tyler Jones (Reel Big Fish) on trumpet,  and Chris Rhodes (Bim Skala Bim, The Toasters, Mighty Mighty Bosstones) on trombone.

On the AV Club Twin Cities site this week, Jason Heller wrote a column about the endearing and lasting qualities of ska music.  The article is centered around the latest ska-punk bands due to the recent Reel Big Fish show.  Heller describes what it’s like at a ska show:

There’s no way to play it hip at a ska show. And that’s its inherent saving grace: You can only act so tough with a trombone shoved in your face. You can only stand there with your arms crossed for so long—with everyone skanking like maniacs around you—before you’re the one who looks like a dork.

You can read the rest of the article HERE.

MNSka.com is proud to present the LAST QUESTION in our trivia contest to help promote the upcoming Reel Big Fish/English Beat concert TOMORROW Tuesday, August 11th at the Minnesota Zoo Ampitheater.  If you are the first to correctly answer today’s question, you will win Monkeys For Nothing And The Chimps For Free, the latest full-length album by Reel Big Fish courtesy of Rock Ridge Music.

Question 6: What Reel Big Fish album was released WITHOUT the band’s permission? (Exact album title)

To win, you must post your answer on the MNSKA FORUM.  GOOD LUCK!

UPDATE – We have a winner!  Thanks to all who entered the contest over the past 2 weeks.  Hope to see you all at the show TOMORROW!