The Movement

There is a very special, slightly inexplicable relationship between reggae rock and Southern California culture; to be honest, it’s derived directly from Sublime’s success. That’s not to say that the genre was specific only to California, as The Movement is originally from South Carolina, but it does explain why I have an affinity to the band and the music that they make.

Their shows are a lot of fun to watch. With the band already on stage and starting the first song, “Mexico”, they have a laid-back demeanor but also are filled with a lot of energy resulting in a lot of jumping in place. For the entire set, you can see how much fun they are having just by the way they let the music take over, making them move all around the stage as they play their instruments. Everyone in the crowd has just as much fun, mainly because you can’t stop yourself from head bobbing or jumping up and down to the music. They are really engaging with the crowd as well, getting them to wave their arms, or to move along with them. It is really like watching getting to watch a giant jam session with a ton of people instead of a staged show.

On the one hand, my gut reaction the concept of mixing rock and pop sounds with reggae and ska influences is a negative one; partly because they just sound as if they flat out shouldn’t go together, and partly because I’ve long considered Madness to be the worst band in recorded history. On the other hand, though, I loved No Doubt, who were proof that those types of styles were very much compatible with one another, and it seems as if Bedouin Soundclash have sought to follow in their footsteps. The Toronto outfit have carved out their own style of reggae-tinged rock over the course of a thirteen-year career to date, and have seen their second album Sounding a Mosaic go platinum in their home country; in the UK, meanwhile, their track ‘When the Night Feels My Song’ went to number twenty-four on the singles charts. They’re frequent live performers, too, having played at Reading and Leeds back in 2011; they delivered career-spanning sets on the Lock-Up stage, with the highlight being a ska-tinged cover version of Ben E. King’s classic ‘Stand by Me’ that they would ultimately mash up with ‘When the Night Feels My Song’. Another UK visit is now well overdue; their fans will be crossing their fingers for a return as soon as new material is ready to go.