Checkered Past: The Ska'd Cast

It's CanCon baby! CP/SC finally gives the card to the man and the band that started it all for Ska in Canada... King Apparatus! To help the discussion, Rob and co-host Engineer Joey welcome Courtney and Aaron of Trad-Ska band The Prizefighters! They discuss their checkered pasts, the dark ages of ska and the generally made up divide between trad and ska-punk. Then the foursome breakdown King Appar...

The CP/SC spinoff, Witchy With Michi returns for episode 2! For this iteration Celine and her co-host, Michi (of Mega Infinity) welcome tarot reader/intuitive/spiritual translator Jenny The Mermaid Mystic! The BB Witches do Checkered Past with tarot followed by tarot readings from their guest and ending with a game of tarot taboo and listener questions. Hosts: Celine and Michi Engineer: Joey Edito...

Time to re-enter the Jeff Rosenstock-verse as Checkered Past dives in on the highly influential and brief run of Long Island Ska Punkers, Arrogant Sons of Bitches! To do this, Rob and Celine welcome Ilan of Indica In Decay and Sad Snack to break down the band's entire run from their rough hewn debut, to their flurry of EPs to their problem-riddled final record and the lasting influence they had on...

One month of Rancid wasn't enough! The CP/SC crew this week blind listens to all 16 tracks of the influential band's 2023 album, Tomorrow Never Comes. To make it interesting, Rob, Celine and Joey prepare a secret bingo sheet for the episode to make a game within a game! Will Matt get a hardcore song all to himself? Will there be any Ska at all? Will Celine's sheet be for sure real, not at all impr...

It's the end of this pod series and I feel fine! Checkered Past welcomes back Chris Ruckus of Skacore band Dissidente to finish their discussion on The Suicide Machines! First, Rob, Celine and Chris discuss Chris' harder side, Shonen Jump manga and what's on the map for Dissidente. Then, the trio dig in on the final 4 albums of The Suicide Machines from the contentiously recorded Steal This Record...

All the Centenarians stand up! CP/SC breaks off their 101st episode by celebrating their first 100! In this TromBonus, Rob, Celine and Joey field listener submitted clips of... basically anything! From songs to voice memos to skilfully edited clips the crew blind listens to 20 of these winners and reacts in real time! It answers the question: the Checkerheads are just as deranged as the podcast! H...

We're going to party like we're trolling Celine in 2021! Checkered Past begins the long awaited deep dive into the legendary Fishbone! To help out, they welcome Kenny and Justin of Michigan-based Ska band Poindexter. First, the Poindexters discuss their Checkered Pasts, the culmination of their new album on Ska Punk International and the changes in the Ska scene. Then, Celine, Rob, Justin and Kenn...

It's the debut episode of Celine of Checkered Past's spin off podcast, Witchy With Michi! In the podcast, Celine welcomes Michi of the band Mega Infinity to explore all things Astrology, Tarot and Witchcraft. They open with their spiritual backgrounds, compare birth charts and end with an on-air reading! It has all the Checkered Past goofiness, but now it's Celine's element! Hosts: Celine and Mitc...

You've been waiting for it! Checkered Past proudly presents, in honor of their 2nd year anniversary, the entire set Live From SPI Fest 2023! In addition, Rob, Celine and Joey tell about 90 minutes of stories from the trip and play supercuts of the fabled Back Alley Interviews. This is a monster episode, so buckle in! Please forgive some of the live audio... DIY amiright? Artists Featured: Hans Gru...

Remember when music players really whipped the Llama's ass? Remember when peer to peer software made Lars Ulrich cry in agony in his mansion? Well Checkered Past remembers! Rob, Celine and Joey get down and dirty listening back to the songs from the early 00's that no one properly gave credit to the correct artist and try to figure out what went wrong in the days before streaming, google and non-d...

C-P-S-C-P-O-D! Hail satan as Checkered Past discusses the 90’s era of jazzy ska-metal iconoclasts, Mephiskapheles! To break it down, Rob and Celine welcome their first ever puppet, Jerrell of podcast and youtube channel Puppet Perspectives! Jerrell touches on his history with Ska, the origins of his show and his puppet influences before delving into Mephiskapheles trio of albums from the two tone...

All the rudies get the pods in the back! Checkered Past returns to a TromBonus to finish discussing the discography of No Doubt! They discuss their albums starting in 2000 with the dark wave of Return of Saturn to the pop dancehall of Rock Steady to the under-the-radar Push and Shove. Along the way they have typical tangents like the glory of the tv show The Traitors, Dungeons and Dragons and igna...

Give high fives to all the guys at Disneyland cause Checkered Past is back in the O.C. to discuss the dancing divas of disco-ska, Suburban Legends! To help out, they invite Matt Vest of fellow Ska-Pod On The Upbeat to break down the bands full length catalogue. First, Matt talks about his Checkered Past, the impetus of the Ska podcast and his deep connection to the Southern California Ska scene. T...

BREAKING SKA NEWS! Rob from Checkered Past has been corresponding with a man simply named "Rockview" who claims to have written nearly every major Ska song from the 90s and has never received credit. Thanks to cutting edge technology and a nose for the truth, CP/SC has acquired these recordings from 1989 - 1991 and will ascertain whether this claim holds ice water or is telling another one. This i...

It's the moment we've all been waiting for... the final episode to determine once and for all what the greatest Slackers song of all time is! Who better to bring along then Ali and Danny of New York's Stop the Presses? Before that, the duo discuss their checkered pasts, Danny's Cuban journey through Ska and their new album, Got It. Then, STP and CP/SC crack into the final 4 songs and go until a wi...

Weapons of Destruction? That's Rob and Celine of Checkered Past: The Ska'd Cast! For the quarterfinals of Madness March 2023: The SlackBrack, the skankin' sibs invite comedian Brandie Posey on to progress four more matches to determine the greatest Slackers song of all time. Before that, the trio discuss Brandie's checkered past, reality TV binges and her podcast Lady to Lady. Then they make some...

I can say that you DO know what you're doing and you DO have the time for Checkered Past: The Ska'd Cast! For Round 2 of Madness March 2023: The SlackBrack, Celine, Rob and Joey welcome three timer, Common Sense Kid to eliminate 8 more songs on a quest to determine the greatest Slackers song of all time! Craig breaks down his new album A for Effort E for Attainment (on Ska Punk International), his...

Round 1 of the SlackBrack is not over yet! The CP/SC crew continue to eliminate track after track in a no-holds-barred contest to declare the greatest Slackers song of all time. Some of the band's most popular songs go head to head including fan favourites Wasted Days, Have the Time and International War Criminal with no shortage of surprise eliminations! Plus: a King Django edition of Skarmen Ska...

Madness March 2023 begins in full as Checkered Past looks determine the greatest Slackers song of all time... it's the SlackBrack! In the first episode, Rob, Celine and Joey run through the first 16 songs seeded into a bracket based on This is Slackers from Spotify. They list out their criteria for each song, blind listen to the tracks and advance 8 songs to Round 2! They finish the episode off wi...

This pod will make you hard it'll make you high! Checkered Past heads south of the equator to Australia to do a shallow dive on Skadjacent Jazz Rockers, The Cat Empire! Rob, Celine and Joey go through 13 Ska and Ska-ish tracks by the prolific artist from their upbeat early days to their jazzy exploits to their more experimental later days. All the while going off topic in whatever way they see fit...

Put down your guns, suits and bulletproof vests, Checkered Past is going through the early years of influential Skacore band Catch 22. To help breakdown this era of third wave Ska, Rob and Celine welcome Laptop Ska musician, Nina aka Yours, Sincerely who talks about her new album on Ska Punk International, her history with Ska and gear. Then, the trio go through the Checkered Past of Catch 22 from...

It's been a year since Madness March 2022 when the ultimate Madness Single was picked and One Step Beyond was crowned as #1. It's time now for Checkered Past to return to these hallowed halls and crown a new champion in a new bracket... but what band will they choose for 2023? This TromBonus they announce the bracket and do a pre-show detailing all the satellite projects related to this new subjec...

This podcast is a band-aid for your soul! Checkered Past begins their exploration of ever-evolving Prog-Ska act, The Pharmaceutical Bandits! To help out, Rob and Celine welcome return guest Chris Reeves of Ska Punk international who gives an update on his label, his upcoming festival and the future of the scene. Then, the trio dig in on the most-ska years of Rx Bandits from their OC debut to their...

Fans of Euro-Ska rejoice! Checkered Past does a 101 course on the Mano Negra inspired pseudo-genre of Patchanka! Rob acts as Ska Professor (adjunct, no qualifications) as he showcases to Celine and Joey some of his favourite mainland Ska from the international sensations Manu Chao, Ska-P and Talco to the more niche offerings of La Ruda Salska, Russkaja and the Benuts. Its a playlist style episode...

It's time to JAM! Checkered Past returns to Japan to continue their long-running series on prolific Ska/Jazz group Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra! To help discuss, Rob and Celine welcomes their home town heroes, Paint Bomb of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada! First they discuss Paint Bomb's checkered past, the impetus to start a Ska band in the prairies and their plans for the future. Then, they dig in on...