Ska Boom Stories - The X-Streams: Sex, Drugs & 2 Tone Ska

Welcome to Ska Boom! Stories, which is the audio companion to my new book Ska Boom: An American Ska & Reggae Oral History now available through DiWulf Publishing.   Click here to order: http://www.diwulf.com/books  The X-Streams remain the band I wished I had seen live and their story is one that continues to draw me in. Perhaps because they came so close to success before self-destructing. Perhaps because they brought an energy and intensity that was both mesmerizing and a little bit frightening to those who saw and heard them. Perhaps because for one brief moment they may have been the best hope for what an American 2-Tone era ska band could have been. The story of The X-Streams is a difficult one to tell. The band never achieved the kind of broad popularity or success that they deserved. Sadly, the band was plagued by infighting, drug addiction, a nasty love triangle involving the singer and the band's two guitarists and a penchant for self-destruction that seemed to keep them from ever reaching their full musical potential. Nevertheless, they made a mark for themselves in Arizona and L.A. and are best remembered for their raw and edgy take on new wave styled ska.  Please note: The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, and news reporting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Om Podcasten

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast is hosted by Marc Wasserman, author of Ska Boom: An American Ska & Reggae Oral History published by DiWulf Publishing. Wasserman helped to found Bigger Thomas -- the first ska band from New Jersey -- in 1988 and had a front row seat to watch the growth of American ska. Ska Boom is the audio companion to the book, which tells the origin stories of 18 American ska and reggae bands and one national tour from the early 80s through the mid 90s that helped to give birth to and define a uniquely American version of ska and reggae. The podcast explores the impact of ska and reggae on popular music and features interviews with key ska and reggae musicians, audio documentaries about the history of ska and reggae and special episodes based on news and developments in the world of ska.