WJRR 101.1 & Real Radio 104.1 teamed up this past weekend to bring the RISING VIBES Reggae & Ska Festival to Orlando. This was the first of what we hope will become a yearly event at the Orlando Amphitheater and it was FANTASTIC.
The day started out with BEAUTIFUL weather in the high 60’s with bright sunny skies. To the left of the venue, the Central Florida Fair was setting up, giving us some pretty cool views of the carnival rides as they were being assembled. To the RIGHT was the Orlando Amphitheater and the main event!
Vendors lined the pathway to the open-air stage, and along the fenced perimeter of the lawn area and it was everything you would expect from a Reggae & Ska Festival and more. From artists displaying their work, to medical marijuana, to Poi Ball performers, to homemade guitar picks, to all the Rastafarian clothes you could imagine….oh, and we can’t forget the colorful Mexican Falsa blankets that became a second skin for so many of us as the temps dipped down into the 40’s!
Gates opened at 3 pm with the first band, Orlando’s Control This! taking the stage at 3:15 pm. It’s always rough to be the opening act at a Festival because people are just starting to trickle in but Control This! brought their unique mix of Ska, Rocksteady, Reggae, Jazz and Funk to the stage and put EVERYTHING into their performance Band standards such as “You and Me”, “Humble Man” and “Fight, Rude Boy Fight!” drew the crowd in as they came through the gates and got us all in the mood for this incredible festival.
Next up was Mike Love. This earth-loving Hawaiian native spent the next 45 minutes taking us to church with one beautiful, melodic, reggae-inspired tune after another. This one-man show, well one man plus his custom-created foot pedal, took over the stage and FILLED it with love and acceptance and light. His Hawaiian roots showed through with powerful lyrics, captivating stage presence, and sheer musical talent. Truly, I could have sat and listened to him for days, it was like going on a “Permanent Holiday” with every note.
From the warmth and ethereal comfort of Mike Love to the hard rock / Ska sounds of another Orlando native, The Supervillians the Rising Vibes Reggae & Ska Festival make a quick shift. These ganja loving party boys make no apologies for being the “Antithesis of Good” and man do they know how to have a good time. Hard Sax Riffs, cool, echoey keyboards and fun lyrics were on tap for this set, along with a LOT of general tomfoolery. Not only did they blow us away and keep us moving to songs like “Drinkin Tonight” and “St. Thomas” but they also did a kick-ass mosh up of George Michael’s Careless Whisper and “Billy Joel’s” “Movin Out”.
It would be hard to go on after The Supervillians for anyone but the infamous Fishbone. Formed in 1979, Fishbone has made a name for themselves with their unique blend of Funk, Rock, Ska Punk and all-around eclectic approach to the music they bring to the stage. Fishbone prides itself on its societal awareness and political stances while maintaining a sense of humor throughout the entire set. Fishbone graced us with such classics as “Hide Behind My Glasses”, which, 30 years after it’s release, shows us why fans flock to their shows. I think Rolling Stone said it best when one of their writers described Fishbone’s music as “orgasmic urban gumbo” and the crowd was eating it up.
On the heels of the funk sounds of Fishbone came Mad Caddies. With a more traditional ska-punk/Pop Rock Steady sound tied with some kick-ass horns echoing big band swing, along with killer beats, and catchy lyrics, Mad Caddies had the “Ska-pit” swirling (is there a name for a mosh pit at a Reggae & Ska event?). From “Road Rash” to “Reflections”, Mad Caddies brought us tunes spanning their 25 years, and the crowd was right there with them for every word.
And there we were, at 9:30 pm on a Saturday night in Central Florida. You would expect it to be a balmy 70 degrees or so….but not THIS Saturday night….Not for the first-ever Rising Vibes Reggae & Ska Festival….nope, we decided to do weather FLORIDA STYLE….and drop a cool 50 degrees on the crowd along with bone-chilling winds. And yet, the crowd didn’t thin, no one went home early, even those folks in flip flops and shorts. In fact, it swelled when the festival headliner THE EXPENDABLES hit the stage!
With their unique Reggae/Rock style, these guys brought the chill vibes of Reggae and combined it with the hard-hitting guitar riffs we expect from a traditional rock band. From the first note, it was easy to see why they were headlining this show and the crowd definitely agreed. All of a sudden no one noticed the cold, only these incredible musicians who had come to party with us sharing 20+ years of incredible music including “Sacrifice”, “Down Down Down” and “Stay Now”.
Seven hours into this incredible day and I can’t explain why I’ve never been to a Reggae & Ska Festival before. But after today, I will definitely be adding more to my “shows to see”. WJRR and iHeart Media did an incredible job with this new Festival even though the weather didn’t cooperate and it felt like the fans really appreciated the artists that were brought in and the show as a whole. This was a fantastic family event (Kids under 12 were FREE!) and just a great opportunity to catch some true musicians up on stage. I am hopeful that this was the first of MANY annual Rising Vibes festival at the Orlando Amphitheater.
