review of one of the best concerts

A night of Tribute with

Badfish-a tribute to SUBLIME

The Rialto Theatre, located in downtown Tucson, holds some of the most enjoyable live bands. In the past they have had artists from Mickey Avalon and Andre Nickatina to blues artists, jazz loungers, rockers, even Latin music and countless fiestas. On February 3, 2010 the Rialto hosted another treat, delivering more than expected.

The headline on the website read. “Badfish-A Tribute to Sublime.” –that stuck a chord.

The venue was small upon entrance but as you walk its like a concert hall inside.

A band named Scotty Don’t took the stage. Their sound was crisp and it was easy to find the rhythm in which to shift your weight from side to side and nod your head up and down, their sound reminiscent of the late and great Sublime. The band had big shoes to fill with being the opening band for a Sublime tribute concert and all. The lead singer, Pat Downes, had a pleasing rock sound to his voice and interacted with the audience as if they were not in a large venue but joked like he personally knew everyone. By the end of their set, the people in the audience turned into a sea of smiling faces and waving hands with undeniable energy.

After a few minutes, the backdrop changed from the Scotty Don’t picture of a beautiful pin up girl to a fish, cigar in mouth, bottle in fin, blood shot eyes that scream out, an iron knuckle on his other fin -a badfish. Out came the same people from Scotty Don’t. The lead singer had changed shirts, wearing a black jersey and with that a picture of Sublime jamming out at a house party along the Peninsula popped into mind.

The band started with a long, loud note that immediately set the audience off. They were about to play Garden Grove. Then they played Ball and Chain, Pawn Shop, Saw Red, I’ve Seen Better Days. A daze took over the audience and a mosh pit broke lose growing bigger and more physical. You could feel the effects of the time machine taking everyone back to the days of the mid 90’s.

Being from Long Beach, the place where Sublime first picked up their guitars and their 40oz, everyday driving past Bradley Nowell's apartment, listening to Summertime in the summertime, I was not afraid to show my enthusiasm. One way was crowd surfing.

“It was insane, I know I’ve never seen anything like that before.” Said a fellow audience member, in awe of the spirit exuded by that night.

As a fan of Sublime, the expectations were high. Like a baseball, Badfish shot those expectations out of sight, homerun. They sounded like a band that was playing Sublime songs, with Sublime sounds and stayed true to the true Sublime. Badfish honored the legendary Long Beach band by playing Santeria, Badfish, Don’t Push, Scarlet Begonias, and too many other familiar tunes to count, finishing the show with a classic-Caress Me Down.

Badfish-a tribute to Sublime was created by students at the University of Rhode Island in 2001. The band was dedicated to playing songs of Sublime for fans that have not and will never have the experience of seeing Sublime live. Their popularity grew, both because the band brought alive the songs of the past and because they were good at it. Five years later the band decided to come out with their own music, their own identities and sounds with clear inspiration from the legends. Thus Scotty Don’t was born in January 2006. The band members include vocalist Pat Downes, drummer Scott Begin, bass player Joel Hanks, and newest member, keyboardist and bass player Dorian Duffy who I had the pleasure of getting to know over a beer after the show. Duffy’s musical contribution to the band is as awesome and fun as his company.

Since the forming of Scotty Don’t, the band opens for Badfish-a tribute to Sublime before every show, the same band doing two sets every night.

The Rialto was a place to soak up the Long Beach, California brought to Tucson, Arizona from Providence, Rhode Island. It’s amazing how kids from the opposite side of the country than the band they are attributing cherish and love Sublime enough to help keep their legacy alive, even though it will never die.