Tonight: Rudeboy Riot @ Jolly Roger | Members of March Fourth, Uprite Dub, Chronicle
February 25, 2010 — PDXPIPELINEPosted by Dylan Trosper
I won't blame it on our notoriously chronic smoke, but Portland's reggae scene has been bubbling. A perennial stop for touring acts, there always seems to be a festival or four once the sun comes out, and local heads have been flowing vibrations at venues like the Mt. Tabor (which sports a semi-weekly show, featuring the legendary Mr. Pato Banton next month). But it's not all jah and irie in the scene, and too many reggae shows in town seem to be imbued with a spirit I can only describe as "Eugene-y," stressing the line between "natty" and "hippie."
Rudeboy Riot aims to douse some fire on those bobos, with a first show at the Jolly Roger this Thursday. The Warsaw Poland Bros. will be hosting the spot, featuring Portland stalwarts Chronicle and the March Fourth Marching Band, and the return of local legends Uprite Dub Orchestra.
Any one of these bands can put on a serious show, all of them with at least a decade of experience in rocking (these men are trained killers on stage), but together they're planning some "invitational jamming" that should deliver the excitement and spontaneity missing from too many local reggae acts. Now, I pine for early reggae's earnest re-imaginings of 60's soul — not to mention the righteous dissonance of dub — as much as anyone, but the lineup for this Thursday promises something just as needful: the horn section. Not the damn keyboard, mind you, but the live horns that punch in through the chest and out through your asshole.
There'll be plenty of emcees, too, so forget the Saturday Market soft-shoe that's the stock-in-trade of the Jolly Roger's other "all-star" reggae act; these boys should be able to keep it live. Rudeboy Riot is being put together by the same people who broke open the careers of Liv Warfield and Uprite back in 2001 at the Mt. Tabor Theatre's old Tuesday Night Special, so be prepared for the future. And I'm just saying, but don't forget your OMMP cards.
Rudeboy Riot
February 25 | 9-1AM | Free
Jolly Roger | 1340 SE 12th, Portland, 97214
