A Fun-Filled Ska-Punk Night

Concert Review: The Planet Smashers at The Opera House with Faintest Idea, Big D and the Kids Table, and Mustard Plug

If there are two genres of music that I enjoy probably way more than I should, they have got to be ska and punk. Mash the two together for ska-punk and I am in my happy place. On Friday May 9 I went to my happy place by seeing Canadian ska-punk legends the Planet Smashers at The Opera House in Toronto. Joined by American ska-punk bands Big D and the Kids Table and Mustard Plug, as well as the UK’s Faintest Idea, the whole night was an absolute blast.

Openers, Faintest Idea, hail from Kings Lynn, a town in Norfolk, UK. They are relatively unknown in North America, though they have been around the UK scene since the mid-2000s and their stage presence proved that they are seasoned professionals. Faintest Idea warmed the crowd up with their high-energy and infectious songs that had people dancing and “skanking” right from the get go.

Now, if you’re not overly familiar with ska or ska-punk, the bands tend to be larger than your average rock or punk band. In addition to the standard guitar, bass, drums, vocals, and sometimes keyboard, a big feature of ska and ska-punk is the brass section – usually some combination of trumpet, trombone, and some sort of saxophone. Faintest Idea’s brass section features four different instruments: trumpet, trombone, alto sax, and baritone sax. Add in their “traditional” punk line up of guitar, bass, and drums – the bassist also doubles as the lead vocalist with other band members joining in on back-up – for a total of seven band members.

That’s a lot of people on stage, but having four brass players gives Faintest Idea a very brass-forward sound that I absolutely love. Each brass member also had their own solos, which is already pretty awesome – they all played masterfully and who doesn’t love a good solo of any instrument? – but I must say, I have a special place in my heart for trombone solos. Trombones are already slightly silly and obnoxious instruments (in the best way possible), so throwing them onstage and making them the center of attention is nothing short of magical. I will definitely be checking out more of Faintest Idea’s music and would love to see them again in the future.

Boston’s Big D and the Kids Table continued the high energy set by Faintest Idea. Veterans in the genre, having formed in 1995, they know how to put on a show even without a lot of chatting with the audience. Overall, Big D and the Kids Table verbally interacted with the audience the least out of the four bands, but the audience didn’t care at all.

The crowd was focused on dancing to the music and having a good time. With six people on stage, Big D and the Kids Table included their vocalist, guitar, bass, drums, and two tenor saxophones. Each instrument had their own solo and each solo was fantastic. Overall, Big D and the Kids Table were so much fun and I’d love to see them again.

Mustard Plug, another veteran ska-punk band, followed Big D and the Kids Table and raised the energy even higher. Like Big D, Mustard Plug also had six people on stage for the majority of their set: vocalist, guitar, bass, drums, tenor sax, and trumpet. However, they did bring out an occasional seventh – their mascot, Mustard Man. Vocalist Dave Kirchgessner and guitarist Colin Clive interacted a ton with the audience, from joking banter, to sitting on the edge of the stage while singing, to tossing a Canadian flag into the crowd during a cover of a song by the Planet Smashers.

The song that they covered by the Planet Smashers was “Wish I Were American”, but as a protest against everything going on in the US right now, they changed the words to “Wish I Were Canadian” and waved a Canadian flag and a Mustard Plug flag. The crowd had a blast and I don’t think the people in front of me stopped dancing during the entire set. I will definitely be looking up Mustard Plug’s tour schedule to see when they’re next in town.

Finally, headliners the Planet Smashers finished off the night with a bang. The six-piece from Montreal included vocals/guitar, bass, drums, keys, tenor sax, and – what I was absolutely excited to see again – trombone. The Planet Smashers interacted with the audience the most out of the four bands with plenty of jokes and stories. Vocalist and guitarist Matt Collyer even made fun of himself when his amp stopped working and new cables had to be run for him.

With the NHL playoffs in full swing and the Maple Leafs in the second round playing the Panthers, someone threw a Leafs jersey onto the stage, to which Collyer admitted that even though he’s from Montreal, he is a Leafs fan and wore the jersey for a couple songs. At one point, the band got the whole audience to crouch down on the floor then jump up – I think this was the only time I saw people stop dancing during a set, but of course once everyone jumped up, they were back to dancing and skanking.

Like the previous three bands, the Planet Smashers had plenty of solos for each of their instruments, and each solo was amazing. Near the end of the set most of the members from the other bands joined the Planet Smashers on stage, I lost count of just how many people were on stage and how big the brass section got, but I was excited that there were two trombones on stage. The Planet Smashers ended up playing three encore songs, much to the delight of the crowd. I definitely can’t wait for the Planet Smashers to return to Toronto.

Overall, I cannot stress how much fun seeing these four bands was. You can tell when bands actually enjoy what they do and the music they make, and every single musician on stage looked like they were having the time of their lives. I could see and feel the joy radiating off of them. As someone trained in music myself, that’s what turns a good concert into a great concert. Add in that they’re playing a smaller venue – The Opera House only has a capacity of 950 – and it’s such an amazing experience. I cannot stress just how awesome this show was. The tour is over now, but next time any of these bands are in your area, you should definitely check them out – I know I will be.