By: David Schultz

Shortly into my freshman year of college, I told my father of a night out that involved his son and his friends drinking rum out of scotch glasses like we were cultured. After chuckling and pondering what benefits his child was actually receiving from his higher education, he told me that only freshmen drank rum cause they're too idiotic to know there are better liquors. The current equivalent of my Dad's advice would involve Jagermeister, the prevalent choice of "liquor" amongst college students.

Now, how does this little anecdote relate to a Slightly Stoopid/Pepper concert at New York City's Roseland Ballroom? Well, Jagermeister is sponsoring their current North American tour, bringing two bands under their banner that target the same youthful demographic as the licorice-flavored beverage. For the same reasons that a Jagermeister dispenser would seem out of place at an upscale, high-class bar, the suit-and-tie set aren't making their presence felt at Slightly Stoopid or Pepper's performances. Playing to an extremely youthful audience, the fans in attendance at Roseland might leave one seriously questioning whether "the kids are alright."

In the midst of Pepper's set, a wide circle developed in the center of the Ballroom's spacious audience space, allowing a mosh pit to develop. While four or five guys happily barged into each other at ramming speed, a girl who couldn’t have weighed more than a hundred pounds cluelessly drifted into the open space, thinking she had found a roomy area to dance. Within two hip shakes, one of the moshers plastered her like Brian Urlacher destroying a quarterback, seemingly knocking her senseless. At the song’s end, the circle closed up but before you could ponder how such activity doesn’t lead to a brawl, a sweaty bald college kid obnoxiously tried to revive the mosh pit. Within seconds, he was being beaten mercilessly.

A knee jerk reaction would be to blame the violence on the music; a connection that would be egregiously inappropriate. Despite misguided attempts to link the two: Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest's music didn’t cause people to attempt suicide; Marilyn Manson's music played no role in the Columbine shooting and Pepper's music didn't cause anyone at the Roseland Ballroom to indulge in a bit of the old ultraviolence. In fact, Pepper deserves better than to have that going on while they play. Unfortunately, it can't be ignored that they (and Slightly Stoopid) attracted a large number of people predisposed to such reckless behavior. On a more comical note, once the show ended, varyingly uncoordinated efforts to retrieve the concert posters hanging from the balcony had people hoisting their friends above their heads to scrabble at the signs. Some succeeded despite dangerous ineptitude, others comically collapsed in a drunken heap.

Before getting to the music, of which there was plenty, maybe I should confess to one of my biases: I have always been embarrassed by any non-Jamaican, non-Caribbean attempts at reggae. To put that a bit more bluntly, I don't think white people should try and play reggae: too often, the attempt results in something discomforting – like the worldwide success of Snow's "Informer." That all being said, Slightly Stoopid and their current tour mates Pepper, with their mix of ska rhythms and punk rock guitars, go a long way towards shedding the admitted fallacies of my predisposition. Both bands are the musical offspring of the Red Hot Chili Peppers via Sublime, mixing the upbeat elements of ska and punk rock with funky bass lines and Californian, surfer attitude.

Unabashedly a foe of emo, Slightly Stoopid bounced back and forth between straightforward West coast hyperactive rock and ska-tinged tunes, greatly accented by the horn section of De La (sax) and C-Money (trumpet). Vocally, they have a penchant for toasting. Even when executed perfectly, toasting can become annoying when overdone. Although they resort to the style a little too often, they don't try the audience’s patience with it; using the opportunities to step from the mikes and get close to the crowd. Many efforts to turn standard folk songs into a reggae tunes have, at best, yielded mixed results. Slightly Stoopid successfully overcomes those hurdles, transforming Peter, Paul & Mary's turgid, dreary "Leaving On A Jet Plane" into a very enjoyable, reggae-style sing-along.

The horn section, which stood front and center for the majority of the show, put a little extra oomph into the songs, fleshing out the groove of the ska-centric tunes. Plus, they kicked off the encore with a humorous run through the overblown opening to Europe's "The Final Countdown." Throughout the night, Miles Doughty and Kyle McDonald traded guitar and bass riffs with abandon. Showing that they can do more than rifle through bouncy tunes, Doughty showcased his strumming skills, belting out a couple songs on an acoustic guitar. While the horns and guitars create the bouncy beat, drummer Ryan Moran and percussionist Oguer Ocon deserve mention for fueling the sunny mood of the music

Not varying the tempo as much as the headliner, Pepper's opening set had a more frenetic pace than Slightly Stoopid's. Fronted by the ripped duo of guitarist Kaleo Wassman and bassist Bret Bollinger, the shirtless pair ran from one reggae influenced rave-up to the next. Playing over Yesod Williams drums, Pepper kept the crowd moving with their Chili Peppers derived sound, even throwing in a couple lines from "Higher Ground" The Hawaiian trio have been Slightly Stoopid's touring partners for quite some time and it appears the two bands have become quite familiar with one another. To finish the evening, Pepper returned to the stage and the two bands combined to send the crowd into the relatively warm November evening with one last blast.

Slightly Stoopid's youthful following seems to be growing exponentially. On one of their last trips to New York, headlining the side stage of the Dave Matthews Band Island Getaway on Randall's Island, they drew a mighty crowd and this past weekend, easily sold out the 3,500 capacity Roseland Ballroom. Older music lovers will find a lot to like with Slightly Stoopid as their music has a broad appeal, but the kids seem to understand it best. Seeing their full set at Roseland recalled Marty McFly playing "Johnny B. Goode" at the Enchantment Under The Sea dance, finishing with a flurry and telling the befuddled crowd, "your kids are gonna love it."

Labels: Pepper, Slightly Stoopid