Check out our Reel Big Fish slideshow here!
Chase Long Beach, Starpool, Suburban Legends, Reel Big Fish
September 18, 2010
Grove of Anaheim
Third-wave ska, that unapologetically goofy genre, was born and raised in Orange County. Turn on the radio in the mid-1990s, and there was no way to avoid a tune from local acts, such as No Doubt, Sublime, Save Ferris, The Aquabats or Reel Big Fish.
Any mainstream interest in ska died off around the time boy bands and other slick acts of the new millennium started getting popular, so was a treat to witness, last Saturday night, that big ska shows haven't disappeared yet: The fans are still there, and ska is not dead.
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The Show: It really was all about the local love; even the lesser-known
local ska bands had a warm reception. Of course, the frantic upbeat
rhythm and bold brass of third-wave ska kept the crowd moving, no
matter which band was bringing it.
Openers Chase Long Beach had
no standout songs, but their stage presence was strong and their sound
was catchy. Their trombone and trumpet players thrashed while Karen
Roberts, their lead vocalist, belted with a Gwen Stefani style tremolo.
The following band, Starpool, was even more infectious-although their
brass section didn't blast as hard, they quickly won over the audience
with rocksteady rhythms and sexy vocals.
Suburban Legends made
quite an impression with their bizarre blend of ska-punk and
disco-funk. Fast beats and squealing guitars fueled synchronized dance
moves and badass poses. It's so dorky that it's cool, especially with
the rockstar swagger of lead vocalist Vince Walker.
For many of
these bands, a lot of time has passed since their last album, let alone
their last hit. The fact that they're still playing, and still met with
such enthusiasm by their fans, is endearing. Occasionally, they'll even
come up with some new stuff. Or, as Vince said, “You know how sometimes
you go into a pizza place, and you end up waiting like, 45, 55 minutes
for a pizza, and you're like, goddamn, where the fuck is my pizza? And
then, when you finally get it, you just wanna, like, dive into it,
'cause it's so amazing. Well, with this next album, we're giving you a
deep dish pizza.”
After Suburban Legends' bombastic set, a
banner unfurled for Reel Big Fish. Rude boys got ready. Delicious
appetizers were set aside, and it was time for the deep dish pizza.
From
the opening bars of “Sell Out,” my heart skipped a beat-here was the
Reel Big Fish I knew (and loved) as a teenager. They're as solid as
ever, and their songs from '95 sounded as fresh as those from '05. Even
a cover like “Brown-Eyed Girl” was infused with their trademark
ebullience. Frontman Aaron Barrett added, “You may have noticed that
one's not as good as the other ones we've been playing. That's 'cause
we didn't write it.”
Aaron Barrett is the core of the band, the
charismatic Peter Pan to his band of Lost Boys. With his muttonchops,
checkered sunglasses, cargo shorts and bright flowered shirt, he looks
the part of the eternal goofball; perhaps belying his genuine chops for
songwriting, singing and guitar-playing. Equally talented is his
partner-in-crime, trumpeter and vocalist Scott Klopfenstein.
“You
guys smell good!” Scott told the kids in the front pit. “You guys smell
like lilacs, like a fresh-baked apple pie–” (this was a blatant lie, as
it smelled like sweat dripping from underneath porkpie hats and
checkered tweed coats) “–you smell like…lesbian porn!” The crowd
cheered.
“You see where we're going with this,” Aaron said with
a grin, and the band started up “She Has a Girlfriend Now,” with their
friend Katrina Kinzler taking over the female vocals (previously done
by Monique Powell of Save Ferris). Never has love scorned by lesbianism
sounded so sweet.
The energy in the room was electric. Reel Big
Fish played encore after encore. It seemed like they were going to end
it with their thrilling cover of A-Ha's “Take On Me,” but we demanded
more. They came back out, played “Trendy,” then tried to leave, but
still, we demanded more.
“We've been playing a long time,” Aaron
reminded us. “You guys aren't bored yet?” He was answered with a roar,
and he laughed a little and said, “Well, since you're not bored, you
guys should jump around.”
With that, they broke into an insane
extended edition of “S.R. (Suburban Rhythm),” appended with a punk
version, a disco version, a country version, and a metal version of the
chorus.
This musical game of “chicken” (seeing who would drop
from exhaustion first) ended as the audience, sore from jumping,
thrashing and skanking, could only muster waves of head-bobbing to the
final encore: “Beer.” It was as if both parties signaled to each other:
OK, we're finished…for tonight.
Critic's Bias: In my early
adolescence, I was a ska kid stranded in the Inland Empire. I wore the
checkers, I worshiped the horns-those of brass sections, not those of
the Devil-and I only dreamed of one day seeing a ska show. Although
I'll admit that I came into this show with a little skepticism, soon I
was skanking with the rest of them. I could see my 14-year-old self in
the corner, like the ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi, giving me a thumbs-up.
The
Crowd: These are my people. Nerdy adults reminiscing about their youth,
nerdy teenagers transforming from wallflowers into skanking queens,
nerdy punk kids controlling the mass of bodies by crying “circle up!”
Like Reel Big Fish suggests, who needs to be trendy? Who needs needs
name brands when you can just use a Sharpie to put checkers on
everything?
Overheard in the Crowd: After the furious dancing
inspired by Starpool's cover of “Shout,” one sweaty teenager turned to
another and said, “It's tough being a rude boy, huh?” His friend
adjusted his suspenders and confirmed: “It is.”
Random notebook
dump: The appeal of ska can be summed up by the Reel Big Fish lyrics
scrawled on a t-shirt in front of me: “I know everything sucks…ya.”
Yeah, life sucks, especially in high school. But the eager, silly “so
what?” attitude of ska can offer solace to any outcast – and you can
take your horn from the marching band bleachers to the local band
garage.
Setlist:
Sell Out
Another F. U. Song
In the Pit
I Want Your Girlfriend to Be My Girlfriend
Monkey Man
Ban the Tube Top
Brown-Eyed Girl
Suckers
Good Thing
Your Guts (I Hate 'Em)
She Has a Girlfriend Now
You Don't Know
You Need This
Snoop Dogg, Baby
New Version of You
Take On Me
Trendy
Suburban Rhythm (Ext. Edition)
Beer
