Domingo 21 Dic 2008, 0:54

Saturday the 6th was the The Aquabats!: Hooray For the Holidays! event at In the Venue. It was also the night of my family Christmas party so I was a bit late to the show and missed the opening act by the local group Super Heroes, I’d seen them before and they’re a good local band but I was looking forward to the antics of The Aquabats anyway.

I made it in time to see the end of the DJ Lance Rock who I was totally unfamiliar with. If it had been any other show I’d have thought I was in the wrong place. The stage had a guy dressed in orange with matching marching band leader hat (seriously what are those hats called?), a talking yellow robot, and a green monster. The music was catchy in a childish sort of way but mixed well that it could be use in a dance club if you didn’t listen to the robot’s lyrics. It all became a bit clearer when I learned the backstory of DJ Lance and Yo Gabba Gabba!

During the break I chilled out in the bar and listened to the band next door, a really intense hardcore growling death metal group with a bassist that looked like Bullet Tooth Tony from Snatch. It was way too intense for me, I don’t mind a little hardcore music sometimes but I can only handle so much angry intensity, especially after listening to a song about “A party in my tummy!”

Next up was Suburban Legends which I wrote off as just a pop ska group to steal money from teenagers before I heard them. I caught part of their show at the Goldfinger show in July and completely changed my opinion of them. It’s not a fad of popularity that makes people want to see them, they’re really good!

They’re a lot like Reel Big Fish in that their music is upbeat and almost comedic at times and focus on enjoying yourself and having a good time. There’s also a strong infusion of 70s disco funk style to the music that makes it really easy to dance to; the lead singer, Vincent, and the two horns play into it even more by popping out some pretty good dance moves during the songs. And I don’t know why but I’ve found I like songs that have the “Oooo! Oooo!” in them (I know that doesn’t make sense, you have to hear the song).

I’ve noticed that having dedicated lead vocals in a group can really make for a great live show if they know how to get the crowd involved during and between songs. Vincent Walker is a perfect example, Mike McColgan from my favorite Street Dogs is another. However it doesn’t always help, take for instance the band next door where the lead was writing around like he was being consumed by flesh eating parasites while he growled out his lyrics. Sure it’s intense but not very engaging with the audience.

Anyway Suburban Legends are quickly on the way to one of my favorite all time bands, good music on it’s own but a GREAT show to see live every chance you get.

Booh-Yah!

The Aquabats came up and if Suburban Legends put on a great show, then there’s a good chance they may have learned a lot of it from The Aquabats. Even if you’re not enamored with their music you have too see them live at one of their shows; it’s a whole different dynamic actually seeing them perform. They know how to work the crowd and they know how to keep it interesting.

People who have only heard the music and maybe saw their CDs know that they wear costumes and take on the persona of a fictional superhero team. Mix in with that music synched to movie clips from 60s Monster flicks, attacks onstage by evil monsters, anime style pics of the band (a throwback to Christian Jacobs time in Japan?), and their own commercial for the Aquabats Pudding Dispenser Belt and you got a crazy fun Aquabats concert.

And it’s not just that they put on a good show but everybody was so into the music and the show that it was a huge party for everybody, you couldn’t even hear MC Bat Commander over the crowd singing during “Super Rad”. Their guitarist was pretty good when he let loose too. It’s not really a group you think of going to see for the guitar work but they knew what they were doing. And every time the Bat Commander would mention a lyric that happened to be part of a famous song the guitarist was there with a short from that song.

All in all a great show. The one thing that irked me was the people who were too pussy so skank up in the skank pits like everybody else and instead had to do it in back where some of us didn’t want people spilling our beers. But whatever, it’s not biggie. I just have an issue with people who skank because they bitch and moan if you bump into them or shove them around like in a real pit; but they have no problem knocking the beer out of your hand while they swing their arms around in looking like fools in the furthest corner from the stage (no skanking in the corner by yourself doesn’t make you cool!)
Sorry. *ding* Turn the Page.

But The Aquabats and Suburban Legends are definitely both on my “See them every time they come to town” list.

CDs Purchased:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/de/Aquabats-yo_check_out_this_ride.jpg
The Aquabats – Yo! Check Out This Ride! EP
*Now have full discography!*

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c0/SLDLNW.jpg/200px-SLDLNW.jpg
Suburban Legends – Dance Like Nobody's Watching