Vocals On Top

At this point Rancid is a stone cold given as an elite band. I don’t mean just in the punk scene, I mean in rock in general, they are clearly a top tier act. There is no mistaking their contribution to music after being together for 21 years and as Tim Armstrong would say “We have no plans of stopping anytime soon.” The bare bones four man group wears two decades well; the high mo-hawks may be gone but angst and attitude are still there, right along with their energy. The group’s front man, Armstrong, would even pull double duty by opening with his side project Tim Timebomb and Friends on the summer 2013 tour.

Tim Timebomb and friends took the stage in Lawrence, Kansas before many people could even make it through the door and those who didn’t show up early really missed out. Lars Frederiksen pushes Armstrong to remain pretty hardcore in Rancid but without him in Tim Timebomb, Armstrong is free to wallow in his ska and reggae indulgence. The 40 minute set would primarily be covers with completely fresh interpretations of the original songs. The group would be complete with two guitars, drums, bass, trombone and a trumpet making for the ska sound.

The set would start appropriately with the shout of the first song’s title “Into Action.” The song would be from Armstrong’s first and only solo record and fit perfectly with Tim Timebomb. The highlight of the entire set would be the Tim Timebomb original “She’s Drunk All The Time” that had enough swing in it to get the early crowd stirring. A couple Hank Williams Sr. covers would be thrown alongside songs by Bad Manners, The Faces and The Specials. The crowd would really bounce for the cover of the NOFX anthem “Bob” and when Timebomb concluded their set with legendary punk band Operation Ivy’s “Sound System” the crowd started to bubble like like a boiling pot and the first aggressive mosh pit of the night would form.

Tim Timebomb and Friends opens for Rancid at The Granada in Lawrence, KS on 9/21/13.

Tim Timebomb setlist from The Granada in Lawrence, KS on 9/21/13

• Into Action
• Change That Song Mr. DJ
• Concrete Jungle (The Specials cover)
• She’s Drunk All the Time
• Thirty Pieces of Silver (Hank Williams cover)
• My Bucket’s Got a Hole in It (Hank Williams cover)
• Lip Up Fatty (Bad Manners cover)
• Bob (NOFX cover)
• California Sun (The Rivieras cover)
• Ooh La La (The Faces cover)
• Too Much Pressure (The Selecter cover)
• Working (Cock Sparrar cover)
• Sound System (Operation Ivy cover)

Rancid would aggressively take the stage next; tearing straight into “Roots Radicals” “Journey To The End of the East Bay” “Maxwell’s Murder” and “The 11th Hour” all from their masterpiece album …And Out Come The Wolves. This would just be the tip of the iceberg of the 29 song set. They would play one of only a couple newer songs next with “Last One To Die” then quickly found their way back to older material.

Tim Armstrong would keep his hat and sunglasses on the entire night and would use them to enhance his great stage presence. With his extra long guitar strap allowing his hollow body axe to hang extra low he would turn it sideways and jostle it around while frequenting all corners of the stage. Lars Frederiksen would be a little less animated but still be very impressive in his own way, belting out his more punk approach to lyrics than Armstrong and showing that he carries the brunt of the guitar load for Rancid’s songs. It would be surprising on the about 3 songs that bassist Matt Freeman would sing just how raspy and low his vocals were and new-ish drummer Branden Steineckert would be very animated for a percussion man standing on his drum stool and even on his bass drum several times from his elevated platform behind the rest of the band.

The set would roll on with hardcore punk songs like “Dead Bodies” “Bloodclot” and “Tenderloin” with bouncy, more reggae fueled numbers like “I Wanna Riot” and “Time Bomb” to offset them. A couple of the highlights would be Freeman belting out the chorus of on of the groups oldest songs in “Rejected” and Lars absolutely killing the guitar work on “Old Friend.” Lars would be alone on the stage for a sing-along version of “The War’s End” that was far from quiet and intimate. The group would play their newest song “Fuck You” proving their edge is far from lost and the massive hit “Time Bomb” would send them off stage for an encore break.

Rancid brings their 21 years of stage experience to The Granada in Lawrence, KS on 9/21/13.

The intense “Radio” would lead off the encore set and it would of course end with a phenomenal sendoff, “Ruby Soho.” The pit would never really pause for the whole show, it would always be moving one direction or another, constantly changing like a spring with a strong undercurrent. The crowd surfers would be in full force making the short trip to the top of the pit and then the front of the stage and the “punk rock” look was widespread with tons of tattoos, leather jackets, spiked hair and shaved heads. The older, “former punks” were there too; they just stayed on the upper tier and endured a little less physical punishment. Up front or in back Rancid was impressive as hell and nearly every mouth was singing along during the show, just like the same mouths will be the next time Rancid rolls through town.

Rancid setlist from The Granada in Lawrence, KS on 9/21/13

• Roots Radicals
• Journey to the End of the East Bay
• Maxwell Murder
• The 11th Hour
• Last One to Die
• Dead Bodies
• Old Friend
• Hooligans
• I Wanna Riot
• Nihilism
• Black & Blue
• Fuck You
• Gunshot
• Listed M.I.A.
• The Wars End
• East Bay Night
• Salvation
• Bloodclot
• Rejected
• It’s Quite Alright
• Fall Back Down
• St. Mary
• Olympia WA.
• Something in the World Today
• Tenderloin
• Time Bomb
• encore break
• Radio
• Black Derby Jacket
• Ruby Soho