Gig Watch : Reel Big Fish

Review by Sophia Ham

The Espy was packed to the brim with Reel Big Fish loyalists : Tatts, bowler hats, sneakers, rockabilly haircuts, Hawaiian shirts, bikies and the occasional pink mohawk. 

A sold-out gig, everyone was jammed in like sweaty stinky sardines. 

There was no turning back, escape or surrender, as it was near impossible to even scratch an itch.

The excitement built to a bit of pre-show push and shove anticipation. Tempers, however were quelled once the lights dimmed and Californian-born Reel Big Fish bounded on to the stage like a couple of Jedi Knight rejects to Star Wars theme music.

Save the welcome banter, the boys ripped the place apart with one of their most well-know hits Sell Out. From the opening notes, the front section was turned into a mosh pit frenzy complete with pogo-jumping and crowd surfing.

Jokingly walking off stage after each of the first three songs, the band would disappear only to leap back into tongue-in-cheek versions of Metallica’s Enter Sandman and even Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison.

Classic originals from the band included I Want Your Girlfriend To Be Mine Too, Everything Sucks and Cheer Up.

Highlight numbers Monkey Man, Don’t Start a Band and She Has a Girlfriend Now had everyone singing along.

The endless energy the band exerted brought the crowd up to boiling point. For those who braved the mosh pit, many became quickly exhausted, and had to be helped out of the sweat bath by fellow crowd members. It was a jungle in there.

Feeding off the audience energy, the RBF sound was amped up, with Barret responding to an audience heckler:

"What? You have a Man-gyna? You want me in your Man-gyna? I’m busy right now cause I have to work, but how about I put my music inside of you?".

While the front section of the crowd was a raucous bunch of untamed music monkeys, the back section was a brutal karaoke-thon of die-hard fans. All I can say is God help you if you looked anyone the wrong way while they were screaming along to the songs.

Them some angry, angry fans.

Going strong since the 90s, Reel Big Fish are outstanding musicians who have just as much fun as their crazy audiences. Their following in Australia proves they’ve still got strong and stout punk legs to tour on.