Arts & Life

Reel Big Fish’s ‘Summer of Ska’ rocks Hollywood

Music fans often say ska is a long-gone genre from the past. Reel Big Fish, however, proved those people wrong by packing into the Sunset House of Blues for its ‘Summer of Ska’ tour. The tour was to promote the band’s newest release “Candy Coated Fury.”
The band invited three other bands to join them on tour. The Maxies, a garage punk band dressed like luchadors and hailing from Greenland, prepared the crowd for a night filled with shenanigans. Maximum Maxie (vocals) poked fun at the rest of the bands on tour, especially toward Reel Big Fish.
By the end of The Maxies’ set, their polar bear mascot had jumped onstage, danced and then dived into the crowd, where it skanked alongside those in the pit. Despite being the only garage punk band on the lineup, the audience responded positively to all their humor and stage antics.
It wasn’t until the second act that fans were able to start a skank pit. The Huntington Beach band Suburban Legends hit the stage with “Bright Spring Morning,” an upbeat fast-paced rock track. The band’s dance moves instantly earned crowd satisfaction. New fans were amused with the band’s funky choreography, while others who had seen the band before mimicked them. The band covered Queen’s “We Are The Champions” for their finale.
Following Suburban Legends was Big D and the Kids Table, a ska-punk band hailing from Boston, Mass. which revved up the crowd and created the roughest pit. Although the majority of the fans present were mainly there for Reel Big Fish, there was still a large group present for Big D.
When Reel Big Fish’s equipment was brought on stage, everyone hanging out near the barrier was suddenly shoved closer as a surge of fans congregated into the general area. As the crew set up their equipment, fans tried straining their necks to see the set list for the night. Moments before Reel Big Fish took the stage, fans cheered as their opening music was cued.
“Don’t Stop Skanking” off their newest album “Candy Coated Fury” was played. Before playing the track, Aaron Barrett encouraged everyone to start skanking and not stop until the track was finished. Everyone followed orders and even those that were tightly packed against the barricade managed to skank, kicking their legs and moving their arms to the beat.
Despite being around for 20 years, hits like “Trendy,” “Beer” and “Sell Out” still made fans go crazy. During these well-known tracks, the crowd’s shoving and pushing got intense as people danced and others crowd surfed non-stop.
By the end of Reel Big Fish’s set, fans cheered as they finished off the night with their cover of The A-ha’s “Take On Me.” As the closing song ended, fans were finally given a chance to rest and catch their breath after a long night of dancing.

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