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After buying Reel Big Fish' new cd when it came out I was not all that impressed. I have to say it grew on me, but over all it didn't even come close to be compared to "Why do They Rock So Hard?" which is definitely their best release to date. Of course, that is my own opinion, and so is the rest of this review; but what I like to tell people that know me is that I am not telling you an opinion, because what I tell you is a fact! With that in mind lets get to the rocking, or shall I say ska-ing...

The thing I love most about The Palace is that it has an upstairs with at least 200 seats that overlook the stage and are comfortable enough to fall to sleep in, and that is what happened during the opening band The Kicks. Things didn't look to good for these guys when I visited their website before the show and noticed the only links they have on the main site are "tour" and "contact," nothing about their music or anything. So my virgin ears are unleashed to what I like to call a set that consisted of one long song. I swear every song started off with one note played for at least 20 seconds and then annoying 3 chords followed by semi-talented vocals. They were a mix of very soft rock and pop punk, and even managed to have a song called "Pop Star."

The Starting Line came on after a 15 minute wait, and rockd out to "Given the Chance." They played all the crowd favorites which included "Saddest Girl Story" (my favorite tune by them), "Up and Go," "Cheek to Cheek," "Best of Me," and all the other good songs they have. Like I said in my review For TSL's new cd HERE, if you enjoy one of their songs, the whole cd is a gem. They even managed to play "I'm Real" by J Lo, although I thought they should have played their other cover from the movie Manican 2 called "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now." They got to play a 45 minute set having to stop one song early cause they ran over their time, and left the stage with half of the crowd chanting "one more song, one more song," and the other half of the crowd clapping and cheering because they finally got off. And then there was me, stuck in the middle, cheering for RBF to come on next and yelling one more song as well for TSL.

Reel Big Fish, what more can a person ask for? Not much, I know. Now I was very skeptical before entering this show because until the night before I have never been so anticipated for a show, but then I went on their message board and people up in Oregon were saying that the band was not energetic and didn't seem like they were having fun. All I have to say to that is, I don't blame them, I'd be pissed to be in Oregon too, because in L.A. they didn't show any lack of energy to their home town crowd (I know they are from O.C. but there was no O.C. show). After a 25 minute wait the lights went out and the music to the almighty "Thriller" erupted through the speakers. After 30 seconds of remembering our "Artist of the Millenium" (haha) Aaron and company came out onto the stage and dove right into "The Set Up." The band had great stage presence through out the show, had nice break downs during the songs, especially during "Beer," and managed to get the entire place involved with their set; skanking, moshing, even crowd surfing (which RBF HATES-and so do I). Aaron wore a white Adidas jump suit with the pants having red stripes down the side, and half way through the set he took off his jacket and wore a silk red shirt with a white tie and funky glasses that only Aaron can pull off. Here is the set list (in not particular order):

"Turn the Radio Off:"
Sell Out
She has a Girlfriend Now
Beer
Everything Sucks
I Wanna Be

"Why Do They Rock So Hard?:"
Somebody Hates Me
She's Famous Now
The Set Up
In the Pit

"Cheer Up:"
Good Thing
Valerie
Ban the Tube Top
Cheer Up
Boss Dj
Where Have You Been?
Brand New Hero


And also the great cover song "Take On Me" which has stand out horns.

For anyone who was at the show, I was the kid (with my friend) in the front right near the stage that held up the sign that read "All I Want Is More" a few times, yep, that is me, WussEmoRock. Well, that concludes a night of great music, leaving me wanting to hear more, much more from RBF, and hoping they come back soon. I always have the negative feeling that soon the Fish will call it quits, because they are not getting any bigger, in fact they are getting smaller. The show tonight, being the only LA/OC/San Diego date, didn't even come close to selling out. For any of you that care, I personally think it is because of Mojo, because when they released "Why Do They Rock So hard?," that could have had a ton of radio friendly singles (besides The Set Up) and it didn't, becasuse it got ZERO promotion, and the new cd doesn't hold a candle to the last one. Anyway, that is just my two cents...take it or leave it.

Until next time, rock out!



People who liked this also liked:
The Starting Line - Say It Like You Mean ItVarious - Drive-Thru Records DVDReel Big Fish - Why Do They Rock So Hard?



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    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 4, 2002 at 5:35 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    what a waste of time that must have been

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 8, 2002 at 4:30 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    when i said about what they played...i meant more along the lines of focusing more details into some of the songs...like the ones where both scott and aaron play guitar and how the new songs sounded live and such...you only really gave attention to beer and that aaron wore the adidas jumpsuit and then had a shirt underneath it.

    i'm just saying that more attention could have been given to the fishies...that's all...i actually was gonna write a review of cheer up but i felt that my review didn't do the cd justice. oh well....if they come to new orleans ever again i may write something.

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-07 17:55:19
    My Score:

    to the guy 2 posts below, evil..."take on me" is a great cover song by RBF, go listen to it again

    to jon, what do you mean I should have focused more on what they played, I gave you every song they played, and I also told you some of the stuff they did on stage, what they wore, how they came out onto the stage, theirs not much else I can tell you, sorry.

    *****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

    p.s. I don't write on the RBF message board, only here. Although I do read it quite frequently.

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, October 7, 2002 at 2:54 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    hey wussemorock; what's your name on the rbf message board?

    i'm the skafather....

    decent review...but i think you could have given alot more attention to what the band played and all and different stuff.

    oh well, they're not coming to new orleans...ever....i don't think....

    rbf rock hard.

    laters,
    jon the skafather(in school)

    Posted by evildeadalive on 2002-10-07 12:05:37
    My Score:

    Their cover of Take On Me is absolutely terrible.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, October 6, 2002 at 6:02 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    ive seen rbf live 3 times now and ive got to say that they put on some of the most fun shows ive been to.

    ive seen better bands, but theres just soemthing about an RBF show that screams good time

    theyre fun guys who write simnple, fun songs that are designed to create fun shows. i hope they never quit

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, October 5, 2002 at 5:33 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I like Reel Big Fish but they suck live....i almost fell asleep when i once saw them at the Grove in Anaheim..they came on after Goldfinger and put the crowd to sleep.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, October 4, 2002 at 8:24 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    my little sister took a sign to an nsync concert once....

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, October 4, 2002 at 1:11 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I agree about Weezer. When they first got big in like 94 they were treated like just another MTV radio rock band. Now with this whole emo/indie rock nerd trend getting out of hand, people in the punk scene (this is PUNKnews.org) act like they're gods or like they are more important than the Clash or the Ramones or the Descendents. What the fuck? Don't get me wrong, they're an ok band, but they haven't done anything that hasn't already been done and already been done better at that.

    Posted by Borntolose on 2002-10-03 23:33:00
    My Score:

    Man why the F does everone like weezer????? I mean wtf???? I cant be the only one that thinks they have as much talent as Disturbed....None.......they suck...DO NOT put them in the same context as the Souls..........

    And I still dont like this new fish cd.........

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, October 3, 2002 at 10:12 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    why the fuck whould you listen to the starting line? have you ever heard of bane, kid dynamite, lifetime, bouncing souls, dillinger four, the descendents, ALL, hot water music, weezer
    like seriously, whats the point of listening to the starting line when you can listen to anyone of those bands?

    Posted by ludacris on 2002-10-03 20:33:09
    My Score:

    california sucks

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-03 17:38:56
    My Score:

    to the cool guy below me, may 20 is a good day, be proud.

    *****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, October 3, 2002 at 4:33 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Ska is not fun. Ska is stupid. Slapstick was the only good ska band. The Starting Line is stupid too. The retard singer was born on my birthday. I'm going to kick his ass.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 at 11:58 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    you're gay. all of you.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 at 10:54 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    hey bill!

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-02 22:52:18
    My Score:

    bringing a sign to an rbf show...is not a big deal. sorry I cut that second half of the line out below, my bad.

    ****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-02 22:43:06
    My Score:

    for the last time...

    Does anyone here even know who RBF is? if you haven't seen them in concert before, then you wouldn't understand. But, for those of you who have, bringing a sign to an RBF show (or in my case a big piece of trash), so stop saying "you're a girl/fag" because it is all in good humor. This band is out to have fun, and the fans are there for that same sole purpose, so me bringing a "sign" of a song I wanted them to play--I made it in the parking lot of the venue--is not a big deal, infact Scott seemed to enjoy it. So, thank you for listening. and give the new album another chance (guy below), it actually is pretty damn good.

    *****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

    Posted by Borntolose on 2002-10-02 21:38:11
    My Score:

    Here I am thinking this Cd sucked hella balls and everyone seems to like it............And man, If I ever brought a sign to a show I'd have it say "Please beat my ass and abuse my anus" because thats how lowsupped it is.

    Posted by abileneINlove on 2002-10-02 21:07:56
    My Score:

    Funnt story, when I was involved in a medio-core emo band, we opened up for the then ASHTRAY BABYHEAD and proceeded to blow them off the stage. Our songs weren't so hot but we had a rock and roll stage show comparable to PLANESMISTAKENFORSTARS. Those were the days.

    To sum up, THE KICKS have always been boring live, but they are truly catchy.

    Word.

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-02 19:12:32
    My Score:

    to adam, the guy below. I don't know if anyone else noticed this but way to be snkeay and tell us about how "the kicks are good" when in reality the only reason why you did that was to plug your own band. "we're so cool we played with them twice," very exciting and noteworthy news that I am very happy to hear about. Thanks for the post.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 at 1:50 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    hmm...i cannot see how anyone would not enjoy the kicks. my band (project bottlecap) has played with them twice (when they were known as "ashtray babyhead") and both times we were amazing. they play some of the best power pop ever written. their music puts weezer stuff to shame (at least their last two albums and it's at par with the first two albums). they play catchy green day meets the posies power pop which i guarantee you will be stuck in your head for days. i love the kicks...they rock.

    as for the rest of the review...the starting line is terrible. reel big fish is awesome. i despise ska, but i love this band. i do have to disagree with your statement that "why do we rock so hard?" is their best album though. "turn the radio off" is their best, followed by "everything sucks" then "why do we rock so hard?"

    overall...give the kicks a chance, i guarantee you that they are one of the catchiest bands you've never heard.

    - adam -
    (http://www.projectbottlecap.com)

    Posted by StabbingGoldfish on 2002-10-02 01:20:21
    My Score:

    hey dave.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 at 1:19 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    oh, hey bill.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 at 1:17 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    speaking of little girls, somehow starting line has showed up for about 2/3 of the shows i've been anticipating and been added to the lineup last minute. i mean, lawrence arms and starting line? WHAT THE FUCK. i've seen them 5 too many times to be happy with that fucking weird lookin guy.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 11:22 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    little girls bring signs to concerts... little girls

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 10:59 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    rock the vote yo!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 10:59 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    rock the vote yo!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 10:26 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    yes, wussemorock bothers me too. the name does say it all. but hey, punknews.org wouldn't be the same without him, the annoying little booger. you just do yo thang wussemo! (snaps fingers twice in a zig-zag motion)

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 10:06 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    "wuss emo rock" really bothers me. bringing sings to shows, liking RBF, dissing on Nirvana..yeah, i hate this kid.

    Posted by WussEmoRock on 2002-10-01 21:13:34
    My Score:

    1) You get the fucking point, "In the Pit" is what it is called on their second release...and therefore is what I named it above. Stop trying to sound all bad ass saying that is not the name of the song, because it is. "Thank You for Not Moshing" is just another name for it, even if it is the new or old name, I can't remember which one, sorry. I think old. Anyway, I don't see how that made you all so mad.

    2) I brought a sign..and No, it wasn't a sign, what it was, was a piece of trash that a tire shop put on the front seat of my car while they fixed it so they wouldn't get it dirty, and so I wrote on the back of it the song I knew they weren't playing and I wish theyw ould over the new stuff, because it is my favorite song by them. It wasn't a sign, it was small as shit, and fit in my pocket folded up nicely, it was a joke, jesus stop taking things so harsh, or maybe I am right now. anyway, just enjoy the review. damn.

    *****Wuss-Emo-Rock*****

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 7:59 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    "'In The Pit?' Are you retarded?

    'Thank You For Not Moshing'"

    It used to be called "in the pit." On WDTRSH, they changed it to Thank You for Not Moshing.

    Posted by Tahoejeff on 2002-10-01 19:50:59
    My Score:

    I Saw the show in Reno last weekend, I have to agree with the reviewer, there was no lack of energy, and RBF put on one hell of a show. I had a blast! of course I was drunk..but still an awesome show

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 5:59 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    what kind of loser brings a sign to a concert? well, obviously wussemorock, that's who. he's a super loser in my book. he likes rbf and he brings signs to shows.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 3:58 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    what kind of loser brigns a sign to a show?

    anyway, i, like the first dude down there, am going to see them at the tla on south street on the 19th. so since i haven't seen them yet, i can't really comment. all i can say is im a fan of tsl and rbf, i have no fucking clue who the kicks are, nor do i care, and im looking forward to this show like a mofo.

    i still can't imagine anyone bringing a sign to a concert...

    FFFFFAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRTTTTTTTTTTSSSSSSPPPPPPOOOOOOO OOPPPPPPPEEEEEE!!!!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 3:56 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    "In The Pit"? Are you retarded?

    "Thank You For Not Moshing"

    Posted by eyeball_kid on 2002-10-01 14:37:57
    My Score:

    I like RBF and all, but I actually managed to fall asleep standing up when I was watching them at the Leeds Festival. Rocket from the crypt woke me up tho.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, October 1, 2002 at 10:07 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I'm really starting to think this guy is being paid by RBF to do promotional work.

    -sickboi

    Posted by StabbingGoldfish on 2002-10-01 00:47:30
    My Score:

    I'm going to see these guys at the TLA in Philly. Although I don't really like TSL I've seen them like 5 times..they always seem to open for my favortite bands.. Anwayssss yeah I"m looking forward to this show.

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