Back in the day. A young Fishbone look the part.

WEDNESDAY 17 AUGUST
Paradiso, 19.30, €16.50 + membership 

We’re suckers for the hard-luck story here at Unfold. We can’t help but usher in the underdogs, announce the almost-rans and herald the have-nots when it comes to our musical heroes because, hell, our record collections are mostly populated by these champions. And after 30 plus years in the music game, Fishbone seem to have found themselves at the skinny-end of the industry money stick. But if it’s any consolation, they find themselves in some very fine company.

Their early recordings – 1985′s Fishbone EP and 1986′s In Your Face LP – are fantastic slabs of ska-punk-reggae and their live shows of the time were legendary. With Angelo Moore holding court as one of the best frontmen in rock and the bass-drum backbone of the brothers John Norwood and Phillip ‘Fish’ Fisher, the band began their journey into the US alt-rock scene, inspiring many young musicians along the way to form their own bands. No Doubt, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Primus all tell of the direct influence these young, black weirdos from South-Central LA had upon their young minds.

Fishbone continued on morphing their own musical influences into their records as 1988′s Truth and Soul brought more funk and metal into the mix, and and they gathered more famous fans by the fistful. Perry Farrell invited them to play the inaugural Lollapalooza and the future looked bright as ‘indie’ started selling and Fishbone started charting. But, for whatever reasons (and there are theories aplenty), the band never reached the financial heights of its fellow LA alt-rock peers. Too political for some? Too humourous? Too black? Too innovative? Take your pick.

Throughout the ’90s and into the noughties, Fishbone continued gigging and recording through various line-up changes, arguments and even arrests. Their reputation, even now, as a formidable live band is well deserved and born out of decades of hard work and passion, and the sense of humour in their songs and the reckless abandon of a Fishbone show still keep their hardcore fan base happy. With a growing list of millionaire rock stars citing them as an influence, and adding their own theories into the ‘why did I make it and not them?’ debate, it is not ours to reason why, but instead to head out and support a fantastic musical outfit and be blown away by someone doing it for the love. Purely the love.

We’re giving away pairs of tickets to the live carnival that is Fishbone. Email win@unfoldamsterdam.nl with Ma & Pa in the subject, and you and a friend could be going.