By Jarad Sassone-McHugh –
The skies were ripe with water vapor all day Wednesday, Oct. 19. In a relentless downpour, the sky soaked Rhode Island that night, but any amount of rain could not have been nearly enough to keep Badfish, the well known Sublime cover band, from brewing their own storm of jams. The University of Rhode Island successfully moved Badfish, and their opener Scotty Don’t, from the outdoors into the dry cover of an auditorium. By 7:30 p.m., the energy exuded by both the band and the audience ricocheted from wall to wall, in stupendous bursts of Sublime’s reggae inspired music until the authorities had to momentarily pull the plug on the music and calm the crowd down for “fire safety reasons.” The frantic riffs of songs like “April 29, 1992,” and “Wrong Way,” got the crowd moving in eclectic rhythmic motions with each song.
With music and dancing wild enough to shake the auditorium, the night hit its peak when Badfish came out for their encore and performed “Smoke Two Joints” and one of Sublime’s best hits, “What I Got,” during which the band called all the ladies in the crowd onto the stage and urged everyone to sing along. After the show, no one could sit still with all the energy they had agitated. The crowd burst from the auditorium doors and onto a nearby field where a few URI students had set up a giant slip and slide on which to “go” crazy in the thickening downpour.
Niklaus Collette, a Salve student who attended the show, had hoped for better weather, but Badfish lit up the night with excitement in spite of the heavy weather. “Badfish was real fun,” said Collette, “the venue was not ideal, but it was for sure a lot of fun.” Collette went on to explain what he thought of Salve’s recent student activities compared to URI’s: “Salve’s student activities seem subpar. We went to URI for one night and experienced both a concert and a slip and slide!” Another Salve student who also attended the URI event, Kenji Watanabe, did not find fault in Salve’s student activities, but rather in the Salve students themselves. “Fierce!” Watanabe exclaimed with a ferocious gleam in his eyes, “URI students are more fierce than Salve students.” Watanabe, who happens to be a Japanese foreign exchange student, explained that from his experience, students in Japan seem to have much more vivacity when attending student activities than he has seen here at Salve.
With Salve offering so many activities for students’ enjoyment, there is just as much potential for ferocity in the Salve community as there is for the students of URI. Take advantage of the great events offered, whether they’re on campus or a half an hour drive away. Keep an eye out for any upcoming events.
