Richard “Sammy” Brooks has been playing ska longer than most bands the average ska fan listens to.

Long before Save Ferris and Reel Big Fish ignited the Orange County ska revolution, bringing ska to the radio waves, members of the New York group The Scofflaws were plugging away on their horns.

And if it weren’t for bands like The Scofflaws and fellow New York natives The Toasters paving the way, ska wouldn’t even have survived into the ’90s.

As tenor sax player and lead vocalist for The Scofflaws, a band that has been around more than a decade, founding member Sammy Brooks has seen the whole ska scene change and grow over the years.

“It used to be that everyone knew everyone that was in on the scene. Now that [ska is] a widespread thing, you just can’t know everyone,” Brooks explained. “It’s a little less personal now, but it’s still good because with all of the regional bands out there it’s possible for us to get around more and make it happen.

“You don’t see as many of the old-timers,” he added. “It’s just something that’s got to happen. It’s got to change and get a new audience.”

As the concept of “selling out” remains a taboo for bands in the worlds of punk and ska alike, Brooks said he does not want to denounce any bands just because they have become popular.

“Who am I to judge bands?” Brooks asked. “If they’re doing it and they’re having fun and they’re successful, that’s just the way it is.”

But The Scofflaws are a band that has developed a large fan base just by constantly touring and releasing albums.

In fact, The Scofflaws are finally starting to get some airplay with the song “In the Basement.”

The group released its latest album, “Record of Conviction,” Tuesday, following last year’s live album “The Scofflaws Live! Vol. One.”

It is the first album of entirely new material the band has put out since 1995’s “Ska in Hi-Fi.”

“It’s a little bit of a departure from what we’ve done before,” Brooks said. “We’ve changed and grown over the years, and each individual musician matures musically — so it all affects it.”

Brooks explained that the band takes a casual approach to song writing, with band members bringing songs they have written into the studio and seeing what results.

There were a few out-takes for the new album, but for the most part, he said, the band used all of its material.

He added that on its current tour, the band is playing a lot of new songs as well as old favorites.

The Scofflaws will be making a stop in Ames tonight, playing two shows at the M-Shop at 8 and 11. Tickets for each concert are $8 for students and $9 for non-students. Small Mediums at Large are scheduled to open the show.