It’s Saturday night November 9 and I trekked to Everett, WA to a friendly but cozy club called the Black lab Gallery. The Skablins were headlining. It’s been about five years since I last saw them. They came on stage and immediately caught fire. Sax player Heather Beck admitted she was down over the results of the election but they would continue playing ska music no matter what. Front man/singer Gordy Whyte was all over the stage like popcorn as he belted out songs, crooned and all around hammed it up.
They played a few familiar covers (the Kinks’ Come Dancing, the Specials’ A Message to You, Rudy, which melded into Blondie’s The Tide Is High, in which Heather took over on lead vocals) and it was nothing short of amazing. They even did a cover of Led Zeppelin’s D’yer Mak’er. And the Talking Heads’ Psycho Killer. The Skablins also had a very lively horn section (the aforementioned Heather Beck, Josh Berglund, trombone, and TJ Dunn on trumpet). Rounding out the band was Anton Beck on bass, complete with tattoos and a util-kilt), Morgan Williams on drums and Kevin Eyre on guitar).
They ended their set with their usual, Hell (the afterlife). I so enjoyed seeing the Skablins again. They’ve been one of my favorites for some time.
There were three bands on the bill this night and playing just prior to Skablins was a ska band that totally wowed me. That would be Los Occupodos. This Western WA band was fronted by Mari who had the cute factor tied up in a pretty little bow and she had pipes to match her charisma. When she wasn’t singing, she danced and twisted about, her charisma never waning. She even sang some of the songs in Spanish and I got a sudden craving for tacos & a margarita. She was backed by some amazing musicians (James – lead guitar + vocals, Tad – alto sax + backing vocals, Brad – bass and Luke – drums). I’m so glad I discovered these guys. I will absolutely seek them out for future gigs.
Opening the night was Shaken Growlers. From Seattle these guys packed a punch for a trio. They were solid rock as opposed to ska with elements of different bands. I heard traces of the New York Dolls to Cheap Trick and everything in-between. They even did a cover of Elvis Costello’s Welcome to the Working Week.
It was great seeing the Skablins again after five years and I discovered two more bands that I would love to see again. This was a fun and productive evening.
