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SKA SMACKDOWN II
Live at Garden Amp
January 13th, 2026 Review by Kevin Gomez
Mustard Plug helped host the first ever Ska Smackdown nearly one year ago to the day at the Garden Amp in Garden Grove. They brought along a few returning friends, but mostly an all-new star-studded lineup of ska that took over both stages.
The first band of the day was Calypso’s Curse, which got things going in the Locker Room. The band has a ska with Caribbean feel to their sound.
The youngest band on the lineup, the group has only been touring for less than a year. They opened with “Lead Me” and “Drive,” then closed with “Death,” the last track on their self-titled EP.
The Goodwin Club showed up dressed like a bunch of elderly women with singer Tami Demaree joking, “We’re The Golden Girls!” Local legends that they are, “Everything” and “Sorry Not Sorry” got the whole crowd skanking and singing to every word.
Charles Grey – who looked like he could win a Mrs. Roper lookalike contest – had a nasty guitar solo to close out “Little Girl.”
They nailed a skankified cover of Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off” and closed with “Turkey Tit,” featuring a brief cover of Op Ivy’s “Sound System” as Chris Graue played trumpet walking through the pit and through the stands.
Hooray for Our Side was another returning favorite, once again showing up in the Locker Room.
They played “Devil in the Details” and “Better Off Gone,” the title track from their EP, which drops next week. They did their cover of Jimmy Buffet’s “Margaritaville,” and finished with “Outatime.”
The Iron Roses featured Mustard Plug’s Colin Clive playing double duty as he’s also the group’s guitarist. Vocalists Nathan Gray and Becky Fontaine came out to Chumbawumba’s “Nazi (The Day the Nazi Died).”
They opened with “Old Guard” and “Soldier of Fortune.” Gray said, “Fuck ICE! Fuck Trump!” before starting the next song with the opening, “1-2-3-4, I declare a class war!” before “Rebel Soul Sound” Gray introduced the song by saying, “This is about kicking all the Nazis out of your scene by any fucking means necessary.” They closed a fiery and impassioned performance with “Fight Back” and “Screaming for a Change.”
Chencha Berrinches had one of the most intense sets all day. Mixing together ska and heavy metal bringing to mind bands like La Pobreska and Voodoo Glow Skulls, who played last year’s Smackdown. The horns blared with Latin Flair and lead singer Chris Suicide spit lyrics at a rapid pace in a devil luchador mask. It was ska-core en español, yet their message seemed to transcend language barriers and the crowd was amped to mosh and skank in unison.
Orange County’s sweethearts, Half Past Two played to a packed crowd of loyal fans. The band started with “Proximity” and went into fan favorite, “Scratched CD” featuring a brief breakdown cover of “A Message to You, Rudy.”
They shared a new, unreleased song, “Nightmares of You.” Singer Tara Hahn mentioned that 2026 is 20 years of Half Past Two. She welcomed out her daughter, Neely to help her sing the chorus on “Dominoes.” They closed out with the hardest song of their set, “Curse The Universe” which saw several stage divers and crowd surfers, including members of the band Chudson.
Moving back to the Locker Room where Lo(u)ser had started playing. Think of a video game about ska music that came to life and formed a one-man band and you’d have the brainchild of Chris Graue. He’s accompanied by an 8-bit video game character on screen named Looty as Graue played guitar while various video game graphics show on a projector.
He did “Set it All on Fire” followed by “Overtime,” which featured a montage of sports games. He played “Me vs. Me” as a video shows clips featuring Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi.
The night’s co-headliners The Toasters graced the main stage. They got things going with “2-Tone Army” that formed a huge skank pit. Robert Hingley said one of the best things about growing up in England was the pirate radio, which of course lead into them playing, “Pirate Radio.”
They were then graced by the legendary Angelo Moore of Fishbone on saxophone as they played the aptly titled, “Weekend in L.A.,” which featured a blazing hot solo from Moore. The Toasters played “Talk is Cheap” and brought the house down with their performance of “Don’t Let the Bastards Grind You Down.”
I’ve heard a lot of buzz in the past year but this was my first time seeing Chudson, who closed out the Locker Room. I can see what all the hype is about.
A blistering set from a band that feeds off its fans’ energy and vice versa that packed in this tiny room. Later that evening Mustard Plug’s Brandon Jenison said, “I have seen the future of ska and it is Chudson.” Playing “Batman” and “Off the Hook” as well as new tracks, “Apathy” and “Freedom.” Their live performance will do more than I ever could writing here, please go check them out immediately.
Mustard Plug played a set as tight as any I’ve seen at the Garden Amp. Launching into “Someday, Right Now,” and “Vampire” with Dave Kirchgessner warning, “There are vampires out there… who will apparently shoot you in the face. But they will be defeated.”
Kirchgessner introduced “Hit Me! Hit Me” by saying, “This is about the power of music to get you through the good times and the band times.” He introduced “You” as their big ‘90s hit.
It was cool to see Moore and Voodoo Glow Skull’s Eddie Cassillas catching their set from the side stage.
Greg Witulski kicked of the bass intro to Fugazi’s “Waiting Room” as the band absolutely demolished that cover.
Colin Clive had incredible vocals on “On and On” and “Mr. Smiley” as Kirchgessner wielded a toy meat cleaver.
Clive’s iconic ska guitar paired beautifully as the band closed out their set with “Beer,” while being joined by members of Half Past Two, Chudson, and the Iron Roses.
Once again, Ska Smackdown ruled the Garden Amp and I certainly can’t wait for next time.
FESTIVAL PHOTO GALLERY
by Todd Markel Rock Images
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SID 260108 | TRACI TURNER | EDITOR
