Surrounded with controversy since reforming as Sublime With Rome, the trio of Eric Wilson, Bud Gaugh, and Rome Ramirez played to a sold out crowd at Artpark in Lewiston, NY, this past Tuesday evening.
Ramirez has had to fill the shoes of Bradley Nowell, the late singer/guitarist who was the band’s identity, and he did so exceeding all expectations. He is an incredible guitarist and vocally, he fits the music style the band has been known for.
When they opened their set with “Smoke Two Joints,” the crowd went crazy. Every generation and fan type was well represented. There were those who moshed, those who crowd surfed, those who danced, and those who just closed their eyes and swayed with the rhythm that Sublime With Rome provided. Although it got frantic at times, everyone seemed to exist in harmony and I’m sure that many new friendships were born.
Ramirez seemed to be quite humble, and although he didn’t talk much during the performance, he did stop a number of times to thank everyone for coming out and supporting the band. Flashing a wide grin, he’d simply stand there, and soak it all in. The fans noticed this quiet appreciation for them, and the energy that was reciprocated was ten fold.
Musically speaking, the band was remarkably tight and fed off all that energy the fans provided. When they played their most recognizable hits like, “Wrong Way,” and “What I Got,” you would swear the ground was shaking.
After wrapping up their lengthly set with “VooDoo,” they left the stage, and the chant of “ONE MORE SONG” filled the air. Not only were the fans chanting in harmony, there were also thousands of lighters held high. Typically it’s cell phones these days, but it was refreshing to see that some fans still know how to properly light a venue. Although it is possible that there just happened to be more smokers at this show than others, hence, more lighters.
Having always been a fan of Sublime, I was with the “They can never replace Nowell” crowd. After watching them perform with Ramirez, I came away with the realization that they never have to. Rome is great being Rome. He makes no attempt to be Nowell, and has the utmost respect for his predecessor. In fact, during the encore Ramirez shouted “Rest in peace Bradley,” thus echoing the sentiment of every Sublime fan.
Set List:
Smoke Two Joints
Don’t Push
Garden Grove
Right Back
STP
April 26, 1992
My World
Wrong Way
Drain You (Nirvana Cover)
Safe And Sound
Slow Ride
New Realization
Scarlet Begonias
Lover’s Rock
Take It or Leave It
Doing Time
Badfish
40 oz to Freedom
Encore:
Panic
What I Got
Santeria
We would like to thank Maria Costello for her assisting BackstageAxxess in covering the show.
