Last night at the Theatre of the Living Arts on South Street, Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, The Green, and Rebelution kicked off their coast-to-coast tour with a crazy night of rockin’ reggae music.
The Green was up first and wasted no time impressing fans who were already crowding into the venue for the 8:30pm start time. We’d never heard them perform live before but when ITUNES named their debut album “the best reggae album of 2010” we knew we could probably expect some tasty tunes. They did not disappoint.
Up next was the band we had come there to see, Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. Touring in relentless fashion over the past three years, GPGDS has played over 500 shows! That’s dedication right there. Once a six piece outfit, the new GPGDS is down to four members but their countless hours on the road and reduced bandmates hasn’t affected their energy on stage and their upbeat reggae sound one bit.
It was getting so hot in the venue by this point that the sweat was pouring liberally from the faces of fans and musicians alike. But what would a reggae show be without dreadlocks, the smell of sweat, and large plumes of smoke hanging in the air?
The guys in GPGDS were great. It was easy to sense their enthusiasm for their upcoming tour (which includes a second show tonight at the TLA) as we spoke to them after their set backstage. You can buy their albums and/or download some of their tracks for free by heading to LIVE PANDA.
After a break, the stage was literally set for Rebelution to put the pot-flavored icing on the cake. Their portion of the show included smoke machines (although much of the smoke still seemed to be wafting towards the stage from the crowd), lazers, and even faux potted marijuana plants. The crowd chanted “Rebelution! Rebelution!” as they took the stage.
Little time was wasted getting the crowd involved as the band sang their songs with the entire audience performing back-up vocals. Despite the heat, it was pretty cool.
After well over 90 minutes of performing, Rebelution was still rocking the stage. We headed out just before their encore but imagine it was magical. An after-party was also held after the show, but we’ll have to leave it to the imagination as to what took place there.
After tonight’s show, the tour moves to NYC for two shows at Irving Plaza before heading to Boston to rock the House of Blues.
You can view the entire photo slide-show of last night’s concert below:
Independent Philly 
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