Fort Collins is the home to some great local music.

I am definitely guilty of not taking advantage of this, so I was excited to see self described “blues, funk, reggae” band, Rawtune at Krazy Karl’s on Saturday.

As a transfer student, I have been getting to know the area for the past year and when I heard the venue was my favorite pizza place, I was both excited and perplexed, as I had no idea that they put on shows there. As a venue, it’s lively and intimate, with the tables and bar allowing people to mingle and hang out with friends while they enjoy the music.

The house was packed by 8:30 and everyone was rocking out to the Denver-based band, Mindstate. The “Reggae/Rock/Hip-hop” group had a really great set. Hurley Sammon on bass and vocals, Zach Borunda on guitar and vocals and Favi DeBotia played the drums. Their music was laid-back, but fast-paced enough to keep the crowd going. You could tell that they were passionate about the music they were playing and excited to share it with others. It was an awesome way to start off the night.

Rawtune took the stage right on schedule and immediately the crowd went wild. Sebastian Lawrence on vocals, Zachary Goplen played guitar and did back-up vocals, Matt Pintauro played drums and Karl Robison played bass. All of the band members were sensational at firing up the crowd and each one had a sensational stage presence.

Their performance of Sublime’s “What I Got” was particularly rousing; everyone that knew the words (myself included) was singing along at the top of their lungs.

If I hadn’t known any better, and if the venue had been any bigger, I would have thought I was at the concert of a relatively well-known band. The atmosphere was energized and fun, and everyone was excited about their music and some could even follow along with the words. I was very impressed by their performance and would not be surprised if they end up being a successful band.

I would highly recommend seeing a performance by either band, and at the very least, checking out their music online. They certainly gained fans in me and my friends Saturday night, and I don’t think you will be disappointed either.

Rawtune will be visiting the KCSU studio Friday, Feb. 6 from 1 p.m. – 2 p.m.

Collegian A&E Writer Aubrey Shanahan can be reached at entertainment@collegian.com or on Twitter @aubs926.