By William Flockton and Nicholas Merl
Joe Samba performs at Cervantes’ Other Side with Cydeways on Oct. 18. (Nicholas Merl/Radio 1190)
Reggae rock artist Joe Samba and Cydways spent three weeks on the road to bring their east coast brand of partying to Denver, Colorado in a performance at Cervantes’ Other Side on Oct. 18.
The show started with a comprehensive, hour-long opening set performed by reggae rock and hip hop band Ghost.Wav and “Jahawaiian,” island reggae rock band Lola Rising. While Samba, Cydeways, Ghost.Wav and Lola Rising share a musical base in reggae rock music, each band presented their own unique twist of the genre, giving each artist their own distinct sound.
Ghost.Wav’s vocalist Nick Wimer delivered the inflection and rhyme of hip hop through the band’s lyrics over the rock reggae beat, and the group played with several interesting instrumentals to create captivating and haunting sounds.
The band’s rock focused style was contrasted by Lola Rising, whose vocal harmonies and ukulele driven sound evoked the low, somber tone found in the music of Ben Folds and Weezer–though their lyrics and combination of saxophone let it slide into a happier composition.
Cydeways then proceeded to play its own set of music before being joined by Samba on the stage. The band’s songs interweaved various styles of rock into their reggae base, evoking sounds reminiscent of Green Day, Bon Jovi and Fall Out Boy throughout the set. At times, it seemed as though the band’s style leaned more into alt-rock elements, but then as the music began to lull, or the band transitioned into lighter sections of music, the presence of reggae became more evident.
Two hours into the show, Samba joined Cydaways on the stage and jumped into the hypnotic sway of his song “Feeling of Love.” The lyrics which emphasized the theme of love and trust in rough times revitalized members of the audience left exhausted by the previous two hours of reggae rock.
Samba and Cydways’s front man, Dustin Parks, demonstrated strong chemistry as they grooved on the stage. Parks’s energetic and exaggerated movements that hopped back and forth made a perfect contrast with Samba’s enclosed sway, and the two latter traded the microphone to sing as the other drank from one of the two BuzzBall Biggies on the stage.
The calm, hypnotic melody of the bulk of Samba’s songs made them feel incredibly recognizable as his own, and offered a gentle invitation for the audience to fall into the groove of his music. These qualities made those songs where he broke out of his typical style all the more surprising in the set, such as his more energetic, harder song “Surfside.”
Samba’s performance with Cydways at Cervantes’ Other Side was the musician’s last performance for the October season. Samba stated that he missed his children, but felt happy that he could have a career in music thanks to the strong communication present in his relationship–an idea he explores in his song “Communicate.” Samba also celebrated the one year anniversary of his album Life Line.