IN DEFENSE OF SKA Discussion at B&N Philly 12/5 @ 6pm

Join us for a discussion of with author Aaron Carnes, musician Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz, and WXPN's Jim McGuinn on Thursday, December 5th at 6pm.

With an additional 30,000 words of compelling stories, research, and analysis, music journalist and In Defense of Ska podcast creator/host Aaron Carnes presents the case that ska never died, by jumping headfirst into ska’s “lost years."

We ask that all interested attendees register for a ticket through Eventbrite and purchase their copy of the book at our Center City Philadelphia location.

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For Seated Tickets: Limited quantity is available and will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Purchase of a ticket guarantees entrance to the event for the discussion and signing. However, this ticket may not necessarily guarantee a seat at the event, as later arrivals may be placed in a line behind the seated audience.

For Standing Room-Only Tickets: Limited quantity is available and will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Purchase of a ticket guarantees entrance to the event for the discussion and signing. Ticket holders will be granted a standing view from behind the seated audience -- some views may be more limited/obstructed than others.

• Please arrive on time according to your ticket in order to secure your seat in the event space. Late arrivals may only have access to standing room and may not have the opportunity to enter the event space.
• The exact time at which the event ends will be determined on the day. To avoid disappointment, we strongly advise you to arrive on time for the event.

• All event guidelines are subject to change.

• If you have any additional questions, please can call the store directly at: (267) 234-9790.

• Barnes & Noble may cancel this event at any time with or without notice to the ticket holders.

Please note that Eventbrite is the only authorized dealer for this event.

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New topics covered include LA’s ongoing vibrant traditional ska scene and how young Latinos are keeping the ska torch aflame, how the devastation of Hurricane Katrina inadvertently kicked off a thriving scene focused on keeping community alive in New Orleans, a deep review of Christian ska group Five Iron Frenzy, who broke a Kickstarter record in the ’10s while making progressive activists out of their fan base, a close inspection of a hipster rocksteady scene in Brooklyn that grew so popular it nearly kicked off a nationwide revival, and more secret ska past revelations with none other than Fall Out Boy lead singer Patrick Stump—who has a story that, up until recently, was carefully guarded.

Plus, the book re-explores several bands featured in the first edition, revealing new layers and more details about all the bands fans love, like Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Operation Ivy, the Slackers, Hepcat, Mephiskapheles, and Reel Big Fish. With 30,000 additional words, this is the complete ska package.

Aaron Carnes is a music journalist based out of Sacramento, California. His work has appeared in Playboy, Salon, Bandcamp Daily, Sierra Club, Noisey, and Sun Magazine. He’s also the host of the In Defense of Ska podcast because he can’t stop talking about ska.
When he’s not defending ska, he enjoys traveling, backpacking with his wife, Amy Bee, and talking about music from every existing genre. Ska will always be his favorite.

Like Jeff Tweedy in the 80's Jim McGuinn bought a Black Telecaster (for the same reason – because that’s what Joe Strummer played!) and played in a band, worked at a record store, interned for labels, wrote for his college paper, and became a College Radio DJ. After college, Jim worked in commercial radio that took him to Rhode Island, Vermont, St Louis, then Philadelphia, where he was the Program Director and host at WDRE and WPLY (Y100), before joining WXPN for the first time in 2006. He had a blast at XPN, eventually holding down afternoons. He played in a local band called Cordalene and got married to Christine and had a son named Jameson, naturally. After moving to Minnesota, he helped a station called The Current (KCMP) find its sound. Along the way, he met Prince and learned to play hockey. He returned to Philadelphia in 2022 as Assistant Program Director at WXPN, where gets to play songson the radio for XPN listeners, some of the best musical friends in the world. When not at WXPN, Jim finds his happy place in record stores, making music, playing hocky, traveling, or hanging with his family - including his dog Winston and cats Webster and Woody.

Sadie Dupuis is the guitarist, songwriter & singer of rock band Speedy Ortiz, as well as the producer & multi-instrumentalist behind pop project Sad13. Sadie heads the record label Wax Nine, edits its poetry journal, and is a regular contributor to Spin, Tape Op, Talkhouse, and more. She holds an MFA in poetry from UMass Amherst, where she also taught writing. Mouthguard, her first book, was published in 2018 (Gramma); Cry Perfume, a second poetry collection, was released in 2022 (Black Ocean). She is an organizer with United Musicians & Allied Workers and its local UMAW Philly.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Barnes & Noble - Philadelphia, 1708 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, United States