Aaron Barrett of Reel Big Fish performing at The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco, CA. February 15, 2017. Photo: Jared Stossel

Reel Big Fish & Anti-Flag
w/ Ballyhoo!, PKEW PKEW PKEW
The Regency Ballroom
San Francisco, CA
February 15, 2017

In times like these, not only is it important to stand up for what is right, but it's also important to remember to have fun. Laugh. Don't forget who you are and the things that are so great about life in the first place. A bill like this one, co-headlined by ska icons Reel Big Fish and political punks Anti-Flag, definitely made people turn their heads when it was first announced. They are two bands from the same vein, yet they're on opposite ends of the spectrum. But as proved at The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco last week, if you put both of them together, you're in for a party.

Both bands concluded the tour last week in San Diego, but we hope that they'll pick up another leg of it and continue on in the future. Both Reel Big Fish and Anti-Flag were celebrating the twentieth anniversaries of some of their most iconic albums: Turn The Radio Off! (Reel Big Fish) and Die For Your Government (Anti-Flag), playing both in their entirety while throwing in some of their most well-known tracks here and there. With opening sets from rockers PKEW PKEW PKEW (no, really. That's how you say their name.) and ska/reggae outfit Ballyhoo!, the night was in no short supply of great music.

From the moment Anti-Flag took the stage to the moment they departed, the crowd was rowdier and more amped up than ever. It's no secret that Anti-Flag play politically charged punk rock. Given the current state of the American presidency, playing an album like Die For Your Government was nothing more than a perfect fit. It's a bit scary that a number of Anti-Flag songs still hold up in meaning to this day, but it's refreshing to see that they really do care about what's going in the world, with a massive fanbase that cares too.

Given the intensity of Anti-Flag's set, what better way to come down, yet keep the energy up, than with a little ska? Reel Big Fish took the stage to conclude the night, performing a plethora of hits (my personal favorite being "Another FU Song") before launching into Turn The Radio Off! Hearing both bands play one after the other is a bit of a contrast, yet they're still not too far off in genre. This tour was definitely one for the books.