ARTIKAL SOUND SYSTEM LIVE!! | POUR HOUSE MUSIC HALL

On January 26, reggae band Artikal Sound System brought their Cowboys and Aliens Tour to The Pour House in Raleigh and managed to set a record by making this their very first out of state SOLD OUT show! Along with opening musician Joey Harkum and band Tunnel Vision, the venue was full of energy…and people in cowboy and alien costumes.

Once the lights went down, the band took the stage and singer Logan Rex bounded out from the side going right into my favorite song “When I Wanna”. Not only was I there to cover the show, I am also a HUGE fan! Trying to take pictures while singing along was like my two worlds of music lover and show photographer colliding. You can’t help but be swept up into the energy of Logan as she moves around the stage and the cool presence of the band just adds to the entire vibe. With Chris Montague on guitar, Fabian Acuna on bass, Christopher Cope on keys, and drummer Adam Kampf, Artikal Sound System (affectionately known by their fan base as A.S.S.) is like a well oiled reggae machine with their cohesive sound and smooth vocals.

They spent the night playing all of their songs including “Pull Me Close”, “Stayed”, “Crave You”, “You’re An Asshole” (which is my favorite anthem of love gone wrong)  all while throwing in a few covers of “Misery Business” by Paramore, “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac and Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like A Woman”. Every single song was on point and had the entire crowd dancing and singing along. Hailing from South Florida, their album WELCOME TO FLORIDA is a favorite of mine and I find myself gravitating to play it every single day. The music is fun, a bit edgy and the lyrics are completely relatable. Clearly I am not the only one feeling this way because they draw huge crowds everywhere they go. You can find them this year playing locations around the country as well as festivals such as Reggae Rise Up in St. Petersburg, Florida (March 17, 2024) and California Roots Festival in Seaside, California (May 26, 2024). I absolutely loved this show! It was easily one the best I have been to and it was the perfect way to get the 2024 concert season started! 

- Angella Gallagher