by Erica Bruce
re-posted from the Washington City Paper
Last Thursday, Fishbone stormed the State Theater, playing their celebrated mix of funk, punk, pop, and ska for nearly two hours. The band showed love forChuck Brown with a shout-out from the stage (and gave one to Donna Summer, as well), and even brought out H.R. of the Bad Brains for singing duties on one song. Fishbone singer/saxophonist Angelo Moore was recovering from knee surgery, so he refrained from his usual stage diving antics, but that didn’t stop other bandmates from taking the leap. Even the band’s merchandise sellers, whose birthday was noted by Moore and merited a cake and “Happy Birthday” singalong, surfed atop the crowd at one point. Fishbone has been together longer than some in the crowd have been alive, but their live show is one that never ceases to amaze. As Living Colour lead guitarist Vernon Reid says in the recent documentary about the band,Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone, “As good as the records are, nothing comes close to seeing Fishbone live.”