Reel Big Fish, Sum 41 & Big in Japan
the Brick Works, Chico, CA
2001-03-26
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Decrease Font SizeBig In Japan, a tie wearing, tattoo-sporting quartet from LA consisted of four guys who made for a good opening act. The drumbeat epitomized their whole sound in its simplicity and it’s simple half beat. The melody was OK, slightly representing the "Joe-college" genre, but it was exciting. It did not surprise me to learn that they had only been together as a band for five months. Their intros were colorful and fun, but then busted out into a clash of Mega Death and a light punk sound. The latter area of music did set the stage for Sum 41, straight out of Canada.
Sum 41, was a quality mixture of light punk and hard rock, that had the audience dancing and enjoying the new sound. They rocked out to punk rock tunes like "Motivation" a new song from their upcoming album Half Hour of Power. The quick, flashy guitar riffs reminded me of Metallica and the lyrics detailed the band’s adolescence and brought and innocent and youthful quality to their tunes.
Reel Big Fish tore up the stage in one of their best, two-hour performances I’ve ever seen. This six piece band — Scott Klopfenstein (trumpet), Aaron Barrett (vocals, guitar), Dan Regan (trombone), Matt Wong (bass), Carlos De La Garza (drums) and Tavis Werts (trumpet) — played classic songs like "Scott’s a Dork, "Somebody Hates Me," "I’m Cool," and just about every song from 1998’s Why Do They Rock So Hard and their current songs.
This ska-punk band has rocked over 1,000 audiences with their quirky songs and smart beats. The drummer did not beat out the simple half beats — he beat on his set faster and with stronger charges than the other two drummers before him did. The guitar solos proved that the band has had experience. Barrett just ripped on his guitar with a smirk on his face, knowing he was peeling off some good shit.
The range of quality and texture in their music managed to keep their faithful fans at the front of the stage. Sweaty and pumped up, they played their quick melodies and jubilant songs like nothing else. They almost played Nirvana’s "Smells like Teen Spirit," but laughed as the chords died off. RBF played two Sublime covers: "Bad Fish," and "Boss DJ." They also played "Skantanic" and "Beer,"—twice —from Everything Sucks. They waited till the end to play their two biggest hits, "She Has a Girlfriend Now," and "Sell Out," and many would have been disappointed it they hadn’t played those songs.
– Brooke Haley
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Sum 41
Bio[+]New school heroes Sum 41 may be neophytes in the world of music at large, but having honed their blend of pop punk melodies and hip-hop rhythms since the group’s 1996 inception in Toronto (purportedly 41 days into the summer between their junior and senior years in high school), they have quickly risen among the ranks of similar skate rock purveyors. Consisting of Derick Whibley (Bizzy D) and Dave Baksh (Brown Sound) on vocals and guitar, Steve Jocz (Stevo 32) behind the drums and Cone McCaslin (Cone) on bass guitar, this group sets themselves apart from the throngs of fellow new schoolers through their exceptional live energy and uncontainable stage presence. After signing to Island records in 1999 and releasing the Half Hour of Power EP the following year, the group toured in support of musical authorities Blink 182, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Offspring and Social Distortion. Their Jerry Finn-produced full-length, All Killer, No Filler, was released in 2001, and the metal-tinged follow-up, Does This Look Infected? is slated for release in late November, 2002.
– Maurice S. Teilmann (November, 2002)
Scene
- Face to Face, Sum 41 & Saves the Day at the Brick Works, Chico, CA
Reel Big Fish, Sum 41 & Big in Japan at the Brick Works, Chico, CA (current page)- Blink 182, Fenix TX, New Found Glory & Sum 41 at the Sacramento Valley Amphitheater, Marysville, CA
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Interview
Interview
Scene
- Reel Big Fish, The Killingtons & Square at the Brick Works, Chico, CA
- Reel Big Fish, The Starting Line & The Kicks at the Brick Works, Chico, CA
Sum 41Bio[+]New school heroes Sum 41 may be neophytes in the world of music at large, but having honed their blend of pop punk melodies and hip-hop rhythms since the group’s 1996 inception in Toronto (purportedly 41 days into the summer between their junior and senior years in high school), they have quickly risen among the ranks of similar skate rock purveyors. Consisting of Derick Whibley (Bizzy D) and Dave Baksh (Brown Sound) on vocals and guitar, Steve Jocz (Stevo 32) behind the drums and Cone McCaslin (Cone) on bass guitar, this group sets themselves apart from the throngs of fellow new schoolers through their exceptional live energy and uncontainable stage presence. After signing to Island records in 1999 and releasing the Half Hour of Power EP the following year, the group toured in support of musical authorities Blink 182, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Offspring and Social Distortion. Their Jerry Finn-produced full-length, All Killer, No Filler, was released in 2001, and the metal-tinged follow-up, Does This Look Infected? is slated for release in late November, 2002.
– Maurice S. Teilmann (November, 2002)
Scene
- Face to Face, Sum 41 & Saves the Day at the Brick Works, Chico, CA
Reel Big Fish, Sum 41 & Big in Japan at the Brick Works, Chico, CA (current page)- Blink 182, Fenix TX, New Found Glory & Sum 41 at the Sacramento Valley Amphitheater, Marysville, CA
Merch
Interview
– Maurice S. Teilmann (November, 2002)
Scene
- Face to Face, Sum 41 & Saves the Day at the Brick Works, Chico, CA
- Blink 182, Fenix TX, New Found Glory & Sum 41 at the Sacramento Valley Amphitheater, Marysville, CA