Believe it or not, there are a lot of us who wish it were still the '70s, or at least the early '80s.
In addition to the not-to-be-taken-seriously '70s Preservation Society, a lot of underground music fans remain dedicated to the musical genres that came out of that period, such as the advent of punk rock, new wave and the 2-Tone movement.The latter movement was fronted by some terrific British bands (the Specials, the Selecter, Bad Manners, English Beat and Madness) who infused Jamaica's ska sounds with an almost-punk manic energy. Unfortunately, all but Bad Manners eventually disbanded. Fortunately for younger ska fans, some of the bands are reuniting (such as special gigs by Madness and the Selecter), in particular Special Beat, which features former members of the Specials and English Beat.
Already the band has visited Utah thrice to packed houses (including headlining at the Zephyr Club and blowing away headliner Sting in a ParkWest show). The third time, though, Special Beat played at a could-be home-away-from-home - Utah County, one of the hotbeds of ska interest in the United States.
More than 1,000 ska fanatics packed Orem's Studio Seven (the valley's newest nightspot) to see some of the classics of the 2-Tone style, and they weren't disappointed. Dividing their set equally between Specials and Beat songs, the nine-piece had the crowd eating out of their hands.
Starting with the blazing "Concrete Jungle," Special Beat stuck to their ska roots, delighting the full house with numbers that were tailor-made for skanking - the ska dance style that incorporates the Twist with almost-aerobic leg kicks.
Vocalist Finni (one of the band's four singers) had the most to lose, taking the place of beloved Specials singer Terry Hall (who also sang for Fun Boy Three and the Colour Field), but his vocals - while similar - had less of Hall's nasal whine and more of a musical range. Meanwhile, bandmate Neville Staples had free rein of the large stage, injecting energy with his playful antics.
Though "Tears of a Clown," "Too Nice to Talk To," "Too Much Too Young," the Specials' version of "Toots" and the Maytals' "Monkey Man" were spectacular, surely the biggest winners were "Nite Klub" (probably the classic of 2-Tone) and "Stupid Marriage," which featured Staples lecturing Finni in a mock courtroom setting.
If not for the superb live performances, the star of the night surely would have been the club itself, a cavernous general-admissions setting that allowed ample room for dancing, chatting or whatever with a still cozy air and ideal acoustics. A word to concert promoters: Bring more shows there!
As for the night's openers, it's nice to see that even though Utah County's major college football team hasn't been too impressive, the area's largest bands surely are.
Swim Herschel Swim, easily one of the best bands playing in the ska style, took the opportunity to play more of their newer material, which hopefully will wind up on a major-label album. Uncharacteristically, singer Rod Middleton played second fiddle to other band members, including Jeff Hubbard and his sterling guitar work.
As good as the new stuff was, though, old standbys like "Fuz" and "Clueless" still have what it takes to be crowd pleasers, as did the pungent "Baby Babaar" (sic), a political number well-suited to this year's elections.
Continuing in the political vein was Stretch Armstrong, who urged the patrons to "Vote Stretch Armstrong" with the number of the same name. Though the band has recently gone through lineup changes, Stretch seems to be melding again, although no one could take the place of the band's original bassist. However, numbers like "Charlie Brown" (which incorporated the "Peanuts" theme) and "Big Hair" continue to bode well for their future.