Reel Big Fish seem like a band that hasn't changed in 10 years. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. The first and I believe only other time I've seen them live was March 24, 1999 at the now-long-gone venue near UH Manoa called Beach Hall. I was 13. I had won tickets from Fil Slash on the also now-long-gone radio station 97.5FM KPOI. Fil Slash was also the hand stamper dude at this year's show. Funny, hmm? All I really remember from that show was that it was incredibly packed in that small venue and it was incredibly hot (and sweaty!). And fun!

Anyway, back to last week. This show was also all-ages. I've read that RBF plays exclusively all-ages shows, which I respect, because if not, how else would I have ever seen them all those many years ago? RBF may say that the kids don't like it, but really, the kids love them. This show was also packed, though I don't think it quite sold out (ironic?). If you go to an RBF show, you should expect moshing. It's really not the same without it. I can't give you a full set list, but they played Sell Out, had some chick come up to help out with She Has A Girlfriend Now, the mosh pit got more intense during Thank You for Not Moshing, and they played the many versions of SR as part of the encore. They really are Masters at what they do. :)

I wanted to use this space originally to talk more about local bands, but so far I've only mentioned national acts. So here goes. Go Jimmy Go opened when RBF played at the Beach Hall. Go Jimmy Go are now pretty popular on the mainland and are still very popular here. Then, though, they had only been together 2 or 3 years. This time, the local openers were crowd favorites Pimpbot and Upstanding Youth. Both bands have been around for quite a while, with Pimpbot recently celebrating their 9th anniversary. Pimpbot will be playing SXSW this year as part of a Hawaii showcase. Check em out if you are headed there! Upstanding Youth are one of my favorite bands of all time. UY has also been a band for about 9 years. All these bands play ska-punk in their own unique way.

Here are some pretty bad photos!:

Opening band Upstanding Youth:

Some shots of Reel Big Fish!: