In Defense of Ska Ep 44: Jordan Morris (Jordan, Jesse, Go!, Bubble, Good Mythical Morning)

In Jordan Morris graphic novel Bubble, a character finds a flyer for the hip new DJ in town, a person that was in Mighty Mighty Bosstones for a short stint and won’t shut up about it. And yet, in the strange post-apocalyptic world of Bubble, this ex-Bosstones DJ dude is cooool. It’s a tiny detail that makes Morris’ book such a fun read. However, the primary story is quite unsettling. A monster-filled planet where humans live in culturally appropriate bubbles, and make ends meet by working relentless gig economy jobs. Terrifying! 

Jordan, our guest today, is also a long-time ska fan. He grew up during the OC ska heyday and was deep in the scene. He saw all the big names, and he also went to Christian ska shows at churches. He was a part of all these different sides of this ska, and he lives to tell the tale. 

We discuss his time in the scene, his graphic novel, and also his time co-hosting the podcast Jordan, Jesse, Go with Jesse Thorn, who, in the early days, frequently teased him about loving ska. Jordan also tells us about how recently, amidst the pandemic, his love for ska has been reawakened. There’s just something about the world being horrible and no longer caring anymore what anyone thinks, that brings you right back to ska.

If you’d like to support us and listen to early access, ad-free episodes with bonus content, check out our Patreon! 

If you like our theme song, go download the EP Lives by Slow Gherkin. They wrote the opening and closing songs for our podcast. You can get both tunes from their Lives EP. Also, check out Dan P and the Bricks two LPs. They provided the mid-roll ad transition music. 

Support the In Defense host Aaron Carnes by purchasing a copy of his book, In Defense of Ska. The 2nd, expanded edition of In Defense of Ska will release in Oct 2024. 

Co-host Adam Davis has a band called Omnigone. Their latest record, Against The Rest released on March 31, 2023. 

The In Defense of Ska editor Chris Reeves runs a record label called Ska Punk International. They have new releases coming out all the time.