Reel Big Fish - Live at the Masquerade

I didn't initially plan on writing much about music on this blog because frankly I've lost interest in almost all of the new music coming out. In my heyday (2003-2007) I listened to, judged, and sifted through almost everything of note that came out, and even made large strides in listening to older artists that were considered 'seminal'. This was true of classic rock of the 70s and 80s, indie rock, rap, and even most pop music. Somewhere along the line I gave up on trying to keep up with the new music coming out. This is likely the result one of the following 3 reasons:

1. New music isn't very good.
2. I didn't have time to sort the good from the bad because I wasn't spending hours in front of my computer in my dorm room listening to music and wasting time.
3. I'm just old and crotchety and nothing could be as good as it was 'back in my day'.

I think it's probably a combination of the three (although I'm still holding out that #1 is true and new music will be awesome again) but whatever the reason I lost interest in the music scene as a whole, stopped going to concerts, and just listened to my old favorite albums or albums that I always liked but never really listened to that much (like with my current Morrissey kick).

Reel Big Fish doesn't fall into any of the previously discussed categories. Being born in 1983, I was already pretty fluent in 90s rock, ska and punk and my love of this music is a little more deeply ingrained. I was a late bloomer when it comes to music, and didn't get into it until 9th grade. I went through the normal albums for a kid my age (Nirvana, Cake, Everclear, The Smashing Pumpkins) but the first album that really hooked me was Turn the Radio Off by Reel Big Fish.

The themes of rocking out, going against the grain, and just having a clean good time really took hold of me. Or it might have been a result of the fact that I grew up mostly listening to and participating in classical music, and this might have caused the horn section of Reel Big Fish to really get to me, but whatever the reason, I was hooked. My first memorable concerts were all Reel Big Fish shows, and although I branched out to other punk and ska bands they were always my favorite. The music was fun, the shows were great and they were actually good at their instruments. I may have moved on in terms of the genres of music I mostly listen to since going to college, but Reel Big Fish always had a special place in my music pantheon. As silly as it may seem to some people, they were the first band I absolutely loved and called my own.

My good friend Brandie was in town this weekend and besides showing her around lots of fun places in Atlanta, we had the chance to go backstage for a Reel Big Fish show. She has become friends with the band since moving to Los Angels, and so she had the hook-ups to get us backstage. I was a little hesitant because I've never really been interested in going backstage for concerts. I always figured the sound was worse, you couldn't see what was going on, you would be pushed around and in the way, and besides I never had any desire to rub elbows with rock stars. I was wrong on most of these counts.

Before the show we actually spent some time on their tour bus before heading in. They were all getting ready in the back so us non band members just hung out in the front having a casual drink and watching the Colbert Report. This was the first time that I got the impression of how workmanlike the whole band was. They have been around since 'making it' in 1996, and half of the original six still remain. It was interesting to see how they approached getting ready just like a businessman puts on his suit and straightens his tie. The members didn't have elaborate outfits or anything, it was just interesting to see how matter of fact everything was, and how little they talked.

Once we headed into the green room and everyone was assembling while the opener finished the energy ramped up a little bit. There was still a little bit of anticipation for the 20 minutes or so while they waited to go on. People were tuning trumpets and strumming guitars getting ready to go. Once they got on stage it was just like seeing all the Reel Big Fish shows from my youth except that I wasn't extremely hot, didn't have people running into me, and could see everything that was going on. They were still as entertaining on stage, and Aaron Barrett (the lead singer) is still good at playing a rockstar. The show moved by quickly (the free booze didn't hurt), the crowd was pretty into it, and it was pretty fun.

After the show most of the band members just put away their instruments, changed, and headed back to the bus. This is when I got the biggest feeling that to most of them this was just a job. Sure they had fun out on stage, but either they were never into acting wild, or the novelty of being a rockstar and partying hard had warn off over the years. Some of them might be good friends, but mostly they acted like a bunch of co-workers going about their own business. Hanging out in the green room after the show wasn't very exciting (again I don't really have an interest in hanging out with 'famous' people), but it was interesting to see how a talented, moderately successful rock band treats a typical workday.