By Will Roper
Photos by Brittany Ward
April 27, 2018
On a drizzling Tuesday evening, reggae, smoke and flashing lights filled the main stage of the Bourbon Theatre as three bands put their own unique twist on the Jamaican genre.
The headliner of the show was Fortunate Youth, a ska band from Southern California. Opening for the group were beach rock band Ballyhoo! from Baltimore and reggae dub band Tatanka from Denver.
The trio of bands will continue touring with each other as they spend the rest of April moving through Colorado. After playing shows in Fort Collins, Colorado Springs and Denver, Ballyhoo! will push back to the Eastern U.S. while Tatanka and Fortunate Youth will play together in Salt Lake City before splitting in California.
Tatanka kicked the night off with a lively dose of grooving reggae to the already animated crowd. The keyboard player for the group brought the most energy, as the pulsing beat mixed with the occasional trombone solo was a relaxing made the crowd get on their feet. While not as rock-filled as the following groups, Tatanka proved to be a perfect complement to the styles of Ballyhoo! and Fortunate Youth.
As the self-described Maryland beach band, Ballyhoo! boasted one anthemic ska-punk song after another, making the Bourbon feel like a coastal party. The group certainly brought a more rock-inspired form of reggae over the classic one drop beat, and the guitar solos by lead singer Howi Sprangler really got the crowd jamming. Ballyhoo! mixed both their older and newer music, playing feel-good tunes alongside songs about love and sunny life. Their music definitely had the rest of the crowd, who were late or sitting down, moving up to the front.
Headlining band Fortunate Youth followed shortly after, and put on an incredible, one-of-a-kind reggae performance that was both classic and contemporary.
Fortunate Youth played many songs from their four studio albums they’ve released, including their most recent self-titled album. The group has also been touring with each other since 2009, and through their tours and albums they’ve become known as a special combination of a great band and, arguably, an even better singer.
This was all on display at their show at the Bourbon – and then some. While many of Fortunate Youth’s songs had that classic reggae beat, their many harmonies, bass lines and solos brought a steady increase in energy for every song. The instrumentation was perfect, with the drums, bass, keys and guitar providing the best possible atmosphere for both the new and die-hard fans of reggae. Also, the conga and djembe player had what looked like the most fun as he navigated his stand of four or five of the drums – putting the cherry on top of the reggae soundscape.
But still, the standout of Fortunate Youth has to be their singer. If the band itself is one-of-a-kind, than lead vocalist Dan Kerry is even more rare. His voice bellowed out deep, emotional and vintage lyrics over the crowd that knew almost all of them. Being born and raised in Nebraska, I don’t believe I’ve ever heard a voice like Kerry’s in person before. It was flawless and perfect for the band, adding even more depth and uniqueness to the music.
Overall, the reggae rock tour brought to Lincoln by these three bands proved to be just what the city needed to finally start with some warmer spring weather. The beach and reggae dub groups Ballyhoo! and Tatanka were incredibly complementary to each other, bringing different styles to reggae and ska that were both excellent. Fortunate Youth was also an amazing headlining band, mixing old and new styles of the reggae to produce a stunning modern version of the diverse island genre.
Will Roper and Brittany Ward are interns with KZUM.
