Reel Big Fish / Streetlight Manifesto / Sonic Boom Six

Making a real impact on the room is Manchester's Sonic Boom Six, with their punk and hip hop tracks. Laila K can not keep still, bobbing about all over the stage in her pink hair whilst the rest of the band produce some cool sounding reggae and ska melodies.



Unfortunately, while they sound tight, the inclusion of a backing tape for the hip hop moments and the removal of real instruments just confuses the traditional punk fan, and whatever respect the band had just gained from good solid tracks is washed away with lacklustre rapping, not just from Miss K but two other band members.

Streetlight Manifesto have even more members in their group, but the sound does not correspond to the numbers. Many a young fan can sing along and do so, but the band are new to me. With ex-members of Catch 22, namely leader Tomas Kalnoky, this background should have lead to great things, but instead it's a case of it's been done before and done a whole lot better.



Their New Jersey third-wave ska is not surprisingly a hit with youngsters new to the music, but I urge the kids to go and listen to the old greats first (The Beat, even Madness!).

Now sorry for being a moaner on this one but the gig tonight did nothing for me. Reel Big Fish are a fantastically comical band, and are good musicians, but if they're not covering over works their own tunes, though catchy as the rhythms are, the lyrics are not very substantial. It may have taking me a while to notice (this is my fifth rBF show); maybe the older I get the less the punk magic happens.



The first thing that made me sit up and notice, after the splendid start of 'Sell Out', was the crazy cover of 'Another Day In Paradise'. Yes, Phil Collins' sad song about homelessness has had the RBF makeover, and though a good, upbeat version, the lyrics to begin with are very far from upbeat.

It makes you think if it had not been for their (utterly brilliant) cover of A Ha's 'Take On Me' (the encore of the set) would this band have got this far? Having just being dropped from their record label (though they are delighted, now they can go their own way) I fear that this could signal the beginning of the end for the most happy band in punk ska rock.



Though listen at me having a go; I did notice the crowd and the amount of people that are moshing to their hits is amongst the largest pit I have ever seen at the venue. Half the floor is bobbing about. Who am I to say that these fans will not be around after the hype for new album 'Monkeys For Nothing But The Chimps Are Free' has died off? I hope I am wrong, and the band can keep bringing a bit of fun to the world of punk. Just next time, choose a cover song to match your happy-go-lucky style?

Setlist:
Sell Out
Another F.U Song
In The Pit
Ban The Tube Top
Live Your Dream
You Don't Know
Don't Start A Band
Good Thing / You Guts
Another Day In Paradise
I'm Her Man / Everything Sucks
Slow Down
The Set Up
She Has A Girlfriend Now
Kiss Me Deadly
Party Down
Where Have You Been
Beer
Take On Me

FUTURE GIGS

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