I will confess, I don’t listen to a lot of reggae.  Maybe a few times a year I get in a Bob Marley mood.  Sometimes a little UB-40.  So I am by no means an expert on the genre.  I know a good time when I see it though, and the bar was overflowing with those.

The really great thing about Irie Sol is where they are taking reggae music.  They are doing some of their stuff as a hip-hop crossover and I find this very exciting.  I really like how they are bringing in some rap style vocal delivery.

Another thing I love about an Irie Sol show is audience involvement.  Part of that, admittedly is the small size of the venue.  I’ll get to that whole thing in a second.  But, what I am talking about now, the good half of this point, even using wired mikes, the singer was out on the dance floor.  And he was great!  And, it was cool!  (You know how lucky we are to have these small bars willing to hire live music for us?)  Another time the horn section was standing on the bar.  Isn’t that what a party is all about?

Musical highpoint?  I really liked most all of what they played.  It is good hearing live reggae.  I like the rap stuff, as I mentioned.  But, just for the shear party value, I really loved it when they played a Sweet Home Alabama spin-off.  Everyone knows it.  Everyone can sing along.  The floor is packed and  Irie Sol knows how to wind up an audience.  They entertain.  It was just flat out a good time.

I do wonder though.  How does the band feel about this?  Are they happy to be playing crowd pleasers?  Would they rather be taken more seriously with their jamacian music?  Or are they looking at it from the cup half full side, they are making so many people happy?  Ahhh, if only I did interviews rather than audience lurking.  I might know the answers to all of these deep questions!

Ok, now we have to get into something I didn’t like.  The one thing about the show was how much the band encroached on the normal audience space.  The Snout Saloon is not a big bar.  Irie Sol is comprised of about eight musicians, plus a person on the soundboard.  They also travel with their own DJ who mixes during band breaks.  There is the space used for CD and Merch sales.  Before you know it the pool table which is normally audience seating is used up.  The dance floor was half used by the horn section.  I am not saying I have a better idea.  They take up a lot of space and the Snout is small.  I am sure the sound gal was happy to be setup where she was.  I am sure she gave us better sound because of it.  I dunno, maybe I just want to bitch about something…  Anyway, there you have it.

Ahhh, and then there is the random walk up bongo player, who plays in with the band for a couple of songs.  But, in this case the random player is none other than Snout bartender extraordinaire, Chad!  I don’t think I ever seen him drumming sober before   He did a fantastic job!

Irie Sol’s music is available on iTunes.  I just bought it.  Have not yet listened to it.  Their web site is at http://www.iriesol.com and they have a MySpace page, http://www.myspace.com/iriesolreggae I suggest you see these guys.  You will have fun.

http://www.freaksandgeeks.org/bands-reviewed/183-irie-sol-at-the-snout-saloon

“Irie Sol’s music is a blend of reggae, dancehall, ska, jazz, soul, funk, rock, and hip hop. Such an eclectic blend reflects the diverse origins and influences of bandmembers who hail from Canada, Jamaica, Korea, the East Coast, Minneapolis, and northern Wisconsin. Melodic vocals and Jamaican-style rap are backed by a full horn section and band. Classic tunes from Stevie Wonder to Wayne Wonder are revisited over a reggae backdrop. Don’t miss this fusion of your favorite musical genres.”

Listen to the music here.

http://volumeone.org/audio.html/band_id/110

Hundreds lounged around the clock tower to study, eat and listen to the musical styling of Irie Sol, a band that plays an eclectic blend of reggae, ska, jazz, funk, rock and hip hop.

With this as a musical backdrop, members of The High and Mighty Jugglers club performed on side stages, a food tent created a long line of hungry spectators and passersby stopped in their tracks to see what the excitement was all about.

This scene comprised the second day of Springfest 2007, an annual weeklong campus celebration of music and spring sponsored by the University Activities Commission.

Senior Sarah Snyder, the public relations director for UAC and Irie Sol’s band manager, said a different band will play from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m on the mall each day until Friday.

A selection committee chooses the bands, and some of the student-segregated fees from Student Senate are used to pay for them, Snyder said.

Irie Sol, composed mostly of students, performed at last year’s Springfest as well.

As senior and bass, piano and vocal performer Angelo Williamson tuned his bass before the band’s performance, he said he enjoys this type of event because of the diversity that the band gets. He added the band always likes to give something to the campus community.

Graduate student and guitar player David Fairbairn agreed.

This is his first time playing at Springfest, and he said he loved the sunny weather and was looking forward to performing.

“I think it’s a nice opportunity, especially for people who might not get to a club,” Fairbairn said. “I always thought it was fun to see a band playing in between classes.”

Sophomore Catie Casperson was one of the hundreds of people lounging in front of the clock tower waiting for the band to begin.
“I’m really looking forward to this one,” she said, adding she has enjoyed Springfest so far.

“It reminds me of when I went to Bonnaroo (a music festival) in Tennessee,” she said. “It’s better than sitting inside, and you get to listen to music.”

Senior and hand drum player Aryn Widule sat on the bench by the clock tower waiting for his time to perform.

He said he loves performing outside and that he performed at Springfest and a UAC-sponsored summer concert in the past.

“There is always automatically a bunch of people here,” Widule said. “It’s a good atmosphere.”

While the band played, junior Sarah Chmielewski juggled different objects as she rhythmically moved with the music.

She said she performs at a lot of music festivals. When she showed up Tuesday, she said, The High and Mighty Jugglers club asked her to join.

“It’s just amazing exercise and a really great release of all the stress,” she said.

Bands will perform on the clock tower through this week.

The band Chester Bay, a rock quartet of twin brother vocalists, a blues-driven guitarist and a drummer, will perform today, and Survive the Drive will perform Friday.

To wrap up another year of Springfest, The Gufs, an acoustic duo, and a special guest, Julie Moffitt, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Council Fire Room in Davies Center. The winners of the 2007 UAC Singer-Songwriter Slam will also perform.

Tickets are $6 and $4 with a student ID and are available at both the Service Center and at the door.

http://media.www.spectatornews.com/media/storage/paper218/news/2007/05/10/Scene/Springfest.2007.In.Full.Bloom-2898671.shtml

Irie Sol’s music is a blend of reggae, dance hall, jazz, soul, rock, and hip hop. The eclectic blend reflects the diverse origins and influences of band members who hail from Canada, Jamaica, Korea, the East Coast, Minneapolis and northern Wisconsin. Band members have performed with UW-Eau Claire’s award-winning jazz bands, the St. Paul Cathedral Choir and Minneapolis hip hop outfits Hyder Ali and Mel Gibson & the Pants. Melodic vocals and Jamaican-style rap are backed by a full horn section and band. Classic tunes from Stevie Wonder to Wayne Wonder are revisited over a reggae backdrop.

Irie Sol is Joel Pace (trumpet, vocals), Jon Lanctin (trumpet), Matt Rongstad (saxophone), Aryn Widule (hand drums, vocals), Chris Williams (bass, vocals), Angelo Williamson (keys, trombone), Yusef (guitar), KZ (guitar), Drew Ruenger (drums), Brother Daniel (drums), and Ben Lester (drums).

http://www.uwec.edu/newsreleases/06/june/0627SS5Sol.htm

As you undoubtedly know by now, our killer concert series is sponsored in part by RCU, DMI Sound, Downtown Eau Claire Inc., the North Barstow/Medical District Business Improvement District, and Haymarket Grill.

Sounds Like Summer Concert Series: Irie Sol. Thursday, June 8th at the Phoenix Park amphitheater in Downtown Eau Claire. 6:30pm to 8:30pm, all ages, FREE. Ph: 715-552-0457.

http://volumeone.typepad.com/volume_one/2006/06/tonight_irie_so.html