SMASHMOUTH WITH LUSCIOUS JACKSON AND 22 JACKS
AT THE HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM / BY LINA REYES
Feel-good power-pop hits Hollywood as big Corporate sponsors try to shove a large dose of joy down your throat. Luckily it was all fun, despite the commercial atmosphere. Yahoo and Doritos brought their "Out Loud" tour to the usual jaded LA crowd. 22 Jacks, Luscious Jackson ,and Smashmouth supplied the soundtrack.

The 22 Jacks went on first.They were a decent band with nice, if unremarkable, tunes. I did find myself moving a bit to the sound. This was the first time I'd seen this band, so I wasn't familiar with any of their songs. I'd give them a second listen.

Next on stage was Luscious Jackson, and all I have to say about them is this band is absolutely aptly named. Oh yeah, they are luscious. That word really describes their sound and their wonderfully rich collection of tunes. A bit funkier than the first band and not quite as pop as the headliners, they played tunes I didn't even remember they did; "Naked Eyes," and "Lady Fingers." They played a tune off their last CD called "Sexy Hypnotist" which was really cool. It had a sensuous snake charmer quality to it, and yeah, it was sooo sexy!
The trippy part of Luscious Jackson's set was the fact that they kept mixing up who was playing the instruments. The bass player also played a second set of drums in some songs, The keyboard player even played dirty blues guitar on a few numbers. I really enjoyed seeing them. Too bad the band decided to amicably split just recently, I guess they'd just had enough.

Just before the headliners I noticed a ton of little rugrats seemed to appear out of nowhere. The back of the Palladium was filled with parents with their small children. As I watched mom's and dad's spin their kids around in the back of the room and saw the smiles on their faces, I realized why simple happy music exists. It plays to the innocent in us. So, I could feel no guilt in totally digging this band. Out of the mouths of babes... sometimes they are wiser than we. They are definitely nowhere near as cynical or pretentious.

I was pulled out of my daydream as Smashmouth came out to green and yellow flashing strobe lights. These guys are the kings of the ultra hooky happy tune! To bring that point home to the crowd, they went straight into the second single off of Astro Lounge, "Then the Morning Comes."

They played about 15 songs, each more upbeat than the last. During the set I noticed all the little kids exhibiting their best Mexican jumping bean techniques to the Smashmouth sound.

The guys played "Can't Get Enough of You Baby," and also their first hit, "Walking on the Sun." In this day and age, you have to respect a band for playing good solid music and having fun!

Just when you think you have them categorized, Smashmouth mixes it up a bit. Their sound ranges from Ska, to slightly Techno, throw in a Caribbean feel, and for effect you may catch some eerie, spacey si-fi sounds. They really have a great outlook on life, too. Some of their songs are quite tongue in cheek, like "Padrino", which as far as I can tell is about a mob family. My favorite of the evening was "Roadman." I just love the lazy laid-back feel of the song and the playful Island sound-it had me ready to order a Mai Tai.

Saving the biggest and best for last they took us out with "All Star," and all the bodies in the room started to move and sing in unison. Everyone in the room got their money's worth. Smashmouth gave us everything we could ever expect from this band, a super high energy show packed with danceable happy tunes!
   
Photos by Caren Spitler / © 2000 The Scene LA