05 May SunFest Saturday: Fans Demanded More Of Slightly Stoopid’s Sweet Dub Sounds

Early Saturday afternoon at the festival’s Ford Stage, things got a little roots reggae with a series of chilled-out bands from Southern California. The clear standout, though, were dedicated road dogs Slightly Stoopid, whose constant touring means they’ve already got a solid fan base in South Florida. They easily won over thousands more, though, with a smooth set that matched well with the day’s sunshine.

This eight-piece act usually traverses anything from dub reggae to a little bit of punk rock in its sets, but yesterday, they kept things almost strictly roots. From the beginning, they settled into a bass-driven groove, the group’s horn players bouncing in sync and punctuating the off-beat with brass licks. One of the best moments, though, came when the group veered off into straight-up traditional ska, with a song titled, well, what else, “Ska Diddy.” Complete with sweet Hammond organ, it was a nice, quick trip even further back into the history of Jamaican music.

And while Slightly Stoopid’s performance went down easily, the crowd didn’t let them go so easily. The group played for nearly an hour and a half, fans yelling and clapping for an encore that ended only because of pesky time limits. Otherwise, it seemed the crowd would have had them play all afternoon.