Lion Souljahs @ Herman’s Hideaway

The dance floor at Herman's Hideaway is still vibrating from Saturday, April 24, when Lion Souljahs, Mono Verde, Fatty Jenkins, and The Say-So Crazies filled the venue with the rich sounds and bold beats of reggae, blues, and ska.

The Say-So Crazies led the charge, and it would have been easy to dismiss this group of dorky-looking white guys.

But despite their dweeby appearance, the young group brought back the bold sounds of 60's revival rock/blues. The small-fry Beck-look-a-like lead singer had a voice like Robert Plant or Eric Burdon, and the entire place was happily filled with sound from start to finish.
Fatty Jenkins followed, and represented a more reggae or ska sound—like English Beat or The Specials.

The band used two trumpets, a set of congas and bongos, a keyboard, and a sax to create heavily instrumental tracks with a calypso beat that fit the island-groove theme of the night.
Carrying on the reggae, but adding a bit of Latin influence, Mono Verde played lively tunes next. Songs were written in English and in Spanish, and the band enticed a call-and-response from the crowd while people packed onto the dance floor to salsa.

Just like The Say-So Crazies and Fatty Jenkins, Mono Verde is a large band with a mixture of different families of instruments, so the sound was rich and vibrant, and not one person stayed still during the night.

By the time Lion Souljahs took the stage, the crowd was completely warmed-up and ready to hear some more reggae.

By this time, Herman's Hideaway was completely packed from wall to wall. The crowd had shifted from only young people to an all-ages group. Lion Souljahs, whose resume includes opening for Jimmy Cliff and Ziggy Marley in the past, said that the band hadn't seen everyone in a while, but it was great to be united.

One of the most important aspects of reggae music is the strength of the vocals, and in that the band succeeded. Everyone in Lion Souljahs was singing, and the vocals were well-rounded and tonal. One of the best moments of the night was when the female vocalist stepped out of the background and took charge of her own song.

Mono Verde also had a female singer, but she only sang back-up excluding one 20-second interlude. Reggae music has both feminine and masculine voices, so hearing a strong woman take charge of the band was inspiring, and something Mono Verde should consider in the future.

Herman's Hideaway was a great venue to see the bands. The stage is accessible from every seat in the house; there are two full bars at either end of the room; the staff is courteous and timely; and with an $8 cover ($4 with discount tickets) $1-2 a band felt well worth it.