Major confession, long time coming

Ok. When I was around 16, 17, 18, I don't remember exactly, I got into grunge. That's no secret. I loved it and I probably always will. But it was my introduction to all things that I would later think were cool. I was a little late to get into grunge, which makes sense because kids in Alabama are generally forced to be late to everything...or they were before everyone did nothing if it wasn't use the internets. The point is, that getting into grunge was such an upheaval from all sounds that had previously been in my universe, that I couldn't stand to hear anything different. And, I decided that everything else that was out at the time was crap. Based on what little I had heard of "everything else going on," this was an unfair assessment. I'm getting to a point here. What else I did know was going on, at that time and for the next few years, was ska, in the vein of the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and swing. What a stark contrast those bosstones made to my beloved Kurt Cobain. I decided it sucked, Kurt would have hated it, and I would have no part of it. I officially HATED ska.

But something unknown was lurking inside me.

See, as a very young kid, I had been blessed with what were probably the world's coolest older siblings. They listened to tons of music at home, and I loved most of it, Madonna excluded. I'm still getting to a point here. The point is, that while I didn't remember it between the years of 1996 and 2000, two of the bands I loved the most as a young kid were ska bands. They just were a hell of a lot better than the Bosstones.

I still hate the Bosstones (maybe I wouldn't if I could lose the mental block). I think I still hate all the bands of that wave of ska. But the truth is, I LOVE ska. I always have. When I was three, my favorite band was the Police, and my favorite song was Message in a Bottle, one of their most ska-influenced songs. When I was eight, my favorite band was the English Beat. I would sneak into my brother's room when he wasn't home and listen to Mirror in the Bathroom on vinyl over and over again. Today, I've come to terms with it. I love ska. I love it when people who can move limbs in coordination skank. I love Operation Ivy. I love Rancid. And more. I bet, if I went back and actually gave those second or third wave ska bands a chance, I'd love them too.

It may not seem like a major confession, but to me, it is. I went so many years partially defining myself by the fact that I hated ska, that it was hard to realize I had been wrong all along. I just had my grunge ears on at the time that ska was revived, and it didn't work out for me. I had a lot of fun listening to Nirvana and Mudhoney during those years, but I reckon I missed out on a lot too. But the great thing about life is that the music is still there, pressed onto records and CDs that I will always be able to go back and hear. When I'm 80, I might decide I really love Less Than Jake. I might skank dance in the nursing home with my walker. And that'll be just fine.

It's fitting to cap this by saying that today is the 15th anniversary of the day Kurt Cobain's body was found. I don't normally keep track of that, but this morning I woke up with Kurt Cobain in my head, for the first time having thought of him in a long time. It was coincidental and strange, and lovely too in a way.