Pop Punk, Ska, and OI! Boss BBQ with The Bad-Ups, Bad Assets, and The Old Breed.
The Bad-Ups at Boss BBQ in Detroit 06/13/2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
Let me start by saying that this was a 2-day ska festival (primarily). I wasn't planning to avoid the ska bands; I'm just a huge fan of The Bad-Ups (pop punk). I came down early on Saturday to make sure I caught them, and two Oi! bands just happened to bookend their set. I did see The Belmarks, who were unmistakably ska, open the festival on Saturday, but from there on out it was all punk and Oi! for me.
The Old Breed are from Toledo, OH, so not too far, and I was surprised I had never caught them before. Before their set, I talked to them at their merch table and asked which CD I should buy (they had quite a few for sale), and they recommended "No Hope For Glory." I bought it and am looking forward to checking it out. The weather was beautiful, and this was an outdoor venue with a large stage area. There was room by the stage for quite a few people to stand (or mosh), but there were also rows of picnic tables where the patrons could order food and beer (the venue is actually a brewery) and watch from the shade. There was a mix of both (people standing and sitting at the tables), and even a few people doing some light moshing. They played a 12-song set, with my favorite being "Drinking Tonight." The sound was great, and the multiple vocals really brought out the Oi! sound. This is definitely going to be one of my favorite semi-local Oi! bands going forward.
The Bad-Ups were the reason that I was there. After I reviewed their outstanding 2024 pop-punk (with a touch of ska) album "Life Of Sin" (check out "Lowes," "Paloma," and "Underground"), I promised myself that I would go see them if they ever came to town. Before the show, I got to talk to the band, and I bought a shirt (which was a Green Day parody design) and immediately put it on. That may have been a mistake, as it prompted several people to strike up conversations with me about Green Day! It was all worth it as their 11-song set included "Lowes," "Paloma," and "Underground." They brought the energy, the sound was great, and there isn't much better than seeing a band this good play outside in the fresh air and bright sun. Hopefully, there is more to come from these guys.
My original plan was to only stay for a few bands, but after finding out that the band following The Bad-Ups was not only another Oi! band but also included singer Ralph Smith, who also fronts hardcore bands Death In Custody and Stacked Deck, I had to stay. The day was really coming together, and a reasonable number of people were actually moshing. During the set, Ralph ventured out into the audience and hopped onto a few picnic tables (one of which collapsed). I talked to him later, and he ended up donating $200 out of his own pocket back to the brewery to replace it. As always, he had the giant straight-edge X's on his hands and had members of the audience joining in for a few songs that hit home for the local crowd ("Detroit Diamonds" and "Motor City Violence"). I had to head out after their set, with a bunch of killer Ska bands still to come, but it was an afternoon well spent.
