Reel Big Fish don't stop skankin at Durty Nellies

Reel Big Fish, one of the banner bands of the third wave ska revival in the 1990s and still one of the most fun ska bands around, brought their Don't Stop Skankin tour to Durty Nellies in Palatine on Sunday. They played songs spanning their 20-plus year career, from their classic sophomore album "Turn the Radio Off" through their most recent release, 2012's "Candy Coated Fury." The crowd at the sold out show responded just as well to the newer tunes, especially "Everyone Else is an Asshole," the opener of "Candy Coated Fury." The band opened with two songs from "Turn the Radio Off," still the album they are best known for and one of the staples of mid to late 1990s pop culture. They started with "Everything Sucks" followed by my personal favorite song of theirs, "Trendy."

For their biggest hit, "Sell Out," the band brought a little girl on stage to help sing and she knew every last word. Donning lead singer Aaron Barrett's ever-present sunglasses, she was a crowd pleaser. Someone posted a video of this happening on the youtube that better captures the vibe of the show than any of the pictures I took, so here you go:

The lead singer of opening band Beebs and Her Money Makers came out to sing a couple songs including "She Has a Girlfriend Now." Reel Big Fish also played "Slow Down" off my second favorite album of theirs, "Monkeys For Nothin' and the Chimps For Free," "Suburban Rhythm" and "Beer" off "Turn the Radio Off," "Somebody Hates Me" and "Thank You for Not Moshing" off "Why Do They Rock So Hard?" as well as covers of "Garden Grove" by Sublime, "Self Esteem" by The Offspring and "Take On Me" by a-ha.

This was a big show for Durty Nellies to book and it will be followed shortly by another big show: Against Me!, Laura Stevenson and Cheap Girls on April 4.