Eleven Steps to Power

One of the New York bands that burst onto the scene of the mid-1990s third wave ska explosion, the Insteps boasted an unapologetically old-school sound (abetted on their debut album by reggae legends King Stitt and Glen Adams), horn-driven and energetically skanking. Drummer Eddie Ocampo and trombonist Dave Nelson would become mainstays of the New York scene, but this seems to have been the only time we’ve heard from the very fine singer Noah Roy, whose smooth but intense voice brings emotional power to songs like “Everything I Ever Loved” and “The Sufferer.” This is a great album from a band that broke up too soon.