(Rock Ridge Music)

www.rockridgemusic.com

There really is no middle ground with Reel Big Fish: You either like the band or you don't.  I guess that pretty much goes for ska music, as well. Reel Big Fish rode the third wave ska movement to moderate success in the late ‘90s alongside bands like Goldfinger and The Hippos, bands that took the sound of their two tone founding fathers, added a bit of distorted guitar, ditched any hint of thought-provoking lyrics and instead relied on sophomoric humor to fill the void. Of those bands, Reel Big Fish took themselves the least serious and have managed to carry on a decent career, with a small but hyper loyal following. "Live! In Concert" brings out few surprises: goofy outfits, groan-worthy jokes and a slew of 80's covers, but there is no denying the band and their audience are enjoying every single minute of it. The songs are also undeniably infectious.

Clocking in right at two hours and packed with 20 songs, the concert is virtually a greatest hits comp., including fan favorites like "Sell Out," "Everything Sucks," "Beer" and "She Has a Girlfriend Now."  Filling out the set, the band covers Mellencamp's  "The Authority Song," Poison's "Nothing But a Good Time," Lita Ford's "Kiss Me Deadly," and close the show with Ah-Ha's "Take on Me" -  all songs which improve a bit (and in the case of Poison and Lita, a lot) with a horn section.

Recorded at The Grove in Anaheim, CA, in front of a slew of teens who clearly were not old enough to remember when the band was at its commercial peak, "Live! In Concert" is RBF's second DVD in six years. Juvenile? Hell yeah, but still far more entertaining than most of the concert DVDs getting peddled these days.