Week of Reel Big Fish

     Sometimes after seeing a show you come to the realization that once is enough.Your glad you saw it but for some reason or another you don't think you need to go again. Then there are the bands where once is never enough. Reel Big Fish is one of those bands. They love Des Moines and come back about once a year, I will be there every time. This week I will be reviewing Reel Big Fish live in concert.

     When I say this is a band to see over and over again, I speak from experience. I have seen this band so many times that I have lost count. If you saw them live you would understand. Being a ska fan is like being a part of a secret cult. We have our own clothes, colors, dance and every time we see another ska fan out in the real world we complement their shirt or give them the you know what's up nod. All it takes to convert someone to ska is to take them to a show. They have hands down the most fun shows ever. I took a metal head friend of mine to an Reel Big Fish show the last time they were in Des Moines and he was converted. Where else can you say that you were in a conga line with a polar bear. To describe ska music in general I like to say that it's emo lyrics with punk guitar and bass, and happy sounding horns thrown in over top. The emo lyrics part is mostly just Reel Big Fish.

     Another great thing about a Reel Big Fish shows is the other bands they bring along. Ska was only popular for a short while in the 90's so most of the current ska bands touring are bands reliving their hayday. They left the ska world when the money stopped and now are back with new lineups or reunion tours. Reel Big Fish is one of the few that stayed together since then. That kinda makes them the kings of the ska world, and every other ska band wants to come along with them. So all of the best ska bands tour with Reel Big Fish. This time around they brought Beebs and her Money Makers, and Suburban Legends. Both are relatively new for ska bands but are very good and both have toured with RBF before. The Rabbit Reel Big Fish's drummer started the show with a quick set of his new album and then, Beebs and Her Money Makers came on right after. The lead singer is one of the few women singers of ska. She represents it well with her own style and a tail. They played for half and hour and 8 songs including a cover of What is Love. They were the best first opener I have ever seen at a ska show. The set featured a robot, a dancing, hotdog, and two members of Reel Big Fish, Aaron Barret, (RBF Singer), on vocal and The Rabbit, (RBF Drummer), as the hotdog.

     Next up was Suburban Legends. This band embodies the spirit of live ska to a t. They have so much energy on stage it's ridiculous. That and their love for Disney songs make for quite and interesting live experience. It's almost like they watched the Lion King, did a line of coke and then hit the stage. Their stage antics are something you just have to see to understand. They never stop moving, jumping and flinging themselves into the crowd constantly. The trombone and trumpet players have choreographed fights when they aren't playing. After three songs including a the Ducktales theme song the guitarist took over vocals for a few covers. Including Randy Newman's You've Got a Friend in me, Alan Menkin's Kiss the Girl, and Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline, all before giving the mic back to the singer. During the song Hey DJ they started Des Moines very first disco mosh pit, only at a ska show does that happen. They ended up playing three Disney songs in their 12 song set before launching into Hive Fives and Queen's We Are The Champions to end the show.

     Reel Big Fish took the stage a little after nine making a grand entrance before diving into Everything Sucks. As soon as they played the first few chords I jumped right into the mosh pit, I just can't help myself. Reel Big Fish always have fun banter and antics but it's never the same, even if the set list is. However since the release of Candy Coated Fury they have been majorly changing up their set list, and playing songs I havn't heard in years like 241, The Bad Guy, and Slow Down. As for the antics it was a lot of Aaron Barret being his loveable asshole self asking for margaritas and then yelling at the people who brought them. Even making fun of his own drummer's sensitive ginger songs. He is as witty and assholish as ever, even without Scotty to bounce banter off of. Reel Big Fish will never grow up or mature and thank god for that.

Here is a fan made music video for I Know You Too Well to Like you Anymore.

     They packed the early part of the set full of fan favorites like Trendy, The Setup, and You Guts,(I Hate 'Em), as well as some new songs off of Candy Coated Fury. Aaron spoke up to the fans saying, "fine I guess we will play something you know," before starting up Sell Out. After Sell Out he played Slow Down and then a fast improvised version of slow down as a joke. Then they played My Life from Aaron's side project Forces of Evil. Concluding the main set they played I Know You Too Well To Like You Anymore, She Has a Girl Friend Now, I Dare You to Break My Heart, Good Thing, and the many versions of Beer. They used to do this bit during SR but that bit left with Scotty. Now they sing about their favorite alcoholic beverage going through song versions of everything from red wine, tequila, Jimmy Buffet's Margarita Ville, and finally diving into Beer. Halfway through the song switching to The Offspring's Self Esteem. They claimed it was the exact same song, finished beer, and then left the stage.

Here is Beer live.

     To start the encore they played Where Have You Been? Which is one of the few songs by them that doesn't feature horns. Following that they played the new song Hiding in my Headphones, and In The Pit. During In The Pit they switching to Sublime's Garden Grove, of course claiming it was the exact same song. Aaron gave his final humorous speech,  the band blasting into Take On Me to end the show. You may not think ska is for you, but don't judge it before you try it. Reel Big Fish come through Des Moines once a year. So the next time they play Des Moines come to show and join the cult of ska. One of us, One of us!