In Defense of Ska Ep 30: Dan Potthast

At one of the first out-of-town shows that St. Louis ska band MU330 played, booking agent Steve Ozark, approached them, interested in working with the band. MU330’s members were excited and told him yes! But only if he agreed to book them as much as humanly possible. From Ozark’s perspective, it was a strange request, but one he was happy to meet. For much of the 90s, MU330 hit the road as much as they could. Even with these many stages they played, they still hovered at cult status, though they released some of the best ska-punk records of their time.

As MU330 was winding down, lead singer and guitarist Dan Potthast stayed very active, both as a touring act and in terms of his creative output. He released solo records, formed new bands, and in recent years, joined Jeff Rosenstock’s group. On this episode, Dan joins us to discuss different moments in his musical career.

Much of the conversation revolves around Dan’s time in MU330, but we also talk about his role on the SKA DREAM album, discuss what it’s like to tour people’s homes as a solo artist. And we get to hear the epic tale of how MU330 crossed paths with the band Crazy Town.

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This week, you can hear our extended conversation about Adam's former bandmate, Steve Borth. Adam shares several road stories during his time on the road with Steve when they both played in Link 80 together.