Music Reviews
Concert Review: Reel Big Fish, English Beat at Nokia, July 31
By Drake Zimmerman and Kieran MacIntyre Aug 4, 2009, 14:49 GMT
Club Nokia was full of energy and excitement on Friday July 31, 2009 as three great Ska bands took the stage. The show included Reel Big Fish, The English Beat, and The Supervillans. Photo by Drake Zimmerman ©M&C
Club Nokia was full of energy and excitement on Friday July 31, 2009 as three great Ska bands took the stage. The show included Reel Big Fish, The English Beat, and The Supervillans.
The show was all ages and was a wide variety of age groups ranging from eight years old to sixty-five, all very excited to dance and see great bands from the heyday of reggae/ska to present day.
The crowd was comprosed of women and men in their fifties there to see The English Beat, and their rude girls and boys offspring who were all about newer band, Reel Big Fish.
People came for the big named artists, Ska, dancing, and fun. Everyone was invited and no one was left disappointed.
The show started off with The Supervillans, a Ska/punk/reggae band from Orlando, Florida. They had an enormous burst of energy, which started the show off on a good note.
The band had a pleasantly familiar sound, yet still held a sense of originality. The band was talented and got the crowd moving. The drummer Dominic Maresco was also the singer and wowed the fans with his duel musicianship. The rest of the band was energetic and performed well.
After they finished up their set the crowd was thirsty for more.
The English Beat, the legendary Ska/Reggae band performed next, and the theater started to fill up.
They had a great response from the crowed and they definitely rocked the house. Dave Wakeling (Vocalist/Guitarist) still had it, and the crowd was singing and dancing on his command.
Antonee First Class (AKA Toaster) made many powerful social messages and held the crowd’s attention throughout the set, bringing Jamaican Ska into the mix. They played most of their hits and the crowd was singing and dancing along. As well they played my personal favorite (Mirror In The Bathroom).
Headliners Reel Big Fish took the stage and blew the audience away. Aaron Barrett (Vocalist/Guitarist) owned the stage upon arrival. Followed by two more original members Dan Regan, and Scott Klopfenstein.
They opened up with “Take On Me,” a cover of the artist “A-ha”. The crowd knew the jam and the majority of the room was singing within minutes.
From the moment the band hit the stage to the minute they left the crowd was insane. People were crowd surfing, skanking, and screaming their brains out. The energy of the room was out of this world. They closed with their hit song “Beer” which followed with their encore.
If this was someone’s first Ska show, undoubtedly they would instantly be hooked after seeing and hearing this great lineup. All three bands rocked the house and the show went flawlessly.
Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and no one in the room looked disappointed. Great show, great night.
