Isaac and the Awkward Situations

Went to the Hawthorne Theatre last friday and caught REEL BIG FISH.

I’ve listened to them since 1996 when the wacky, energetic “Sell Out” was a hit on the radio. I could tell they were playing something similar to these “ska” bands… like the Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Sublime. Reel Big Fish were my favorite of that era, their happy fun zany sound delivering such nasty biting lyrics. I haven’t followed them in years, and of course, they never toured to Alaska, but I still enjoy the “Everything Sucks” album and “Why do they rock so hard?” quite a bit. They rerecorded all their old songs, if you haven’t heard them its an interesting listen. They are recorded only slightly differently, just subtle changes to most of the songs.

Here are my drawings of Aaron Barret and the gang. I enjoyed their playing short samples of other songs within their set, including Sublime and the Offspring.  and playing “SR” in about 9 different styles, including hardcore punk, disco and country.

The opening act was “Suburban Legends” who played Disney covers like” You’ve got a Friend in Me,” Ducktales Theme, “and “I just can’t WAIT to be king.”  Their horn players had mics attached to their horns, allowing them to dance around and do some wacky cheerleading. This group is really fun and full of infectious energy.