Introduction to Skanking
"What is skanking?" one might ask. Skanking is the type of dance that one does to ska music. Also, recently moshing/slam dancing has been added to the list of dances one might perform while listening to ska, but traditionally third wavers skank. It is an intricate dance, so much that if one does it correctly, and they are not listening to ska music, they will look like a flailing idiot. "It involves pumping your arms and legs in wide, swinging motions with your knees and elbows bent, and moving in a sort of herky-jerk fashion" (DeRogatis 78). Some people do not like ska simply because of this dance. They feel that the silliness it has acquired is obscure, but it is really the only time anyone gets to act crazy and have an excuse for it. "Skanking is the dance that pretty much everyone seems to do to the third wave ska" (Ska: The Third Wave 1). However, it can also be done to ska from the 2 tone era, or even the first wave! "It's not as hard as it sounds" (DeRogatis 78).
HOW TO SKANK
There is no real way to skank, but the way that the "west coasters" do it is like so: first, bend your elbows and your knees, not so much that you look like a skiier but like you are about to run off sprinting. Clench your fists so you can into the real attitude of the dance. Then twist your body at the waist, first to the left. Bring your left knee up to where your right elbow almost touches it. Then, untwist your body and twist to the right. Bring your right knee up to where your left elbow almost might touch it. Repeat these steps over and over, and voila, you are skanking! You may also want to put a little bounce into your skanking. It creats more character. If these steps do not help, you may want to modify them to your own personal style. See, isn't it fun! Enjoy! =)
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