It’s 9:00pm and Dave Hahn sits on a leather couch in Nectar’s lobby, watching the game. “Well,” he says, pointing to the flashing red and blue lights in the street, “there’s a cop car parked in front of the alley, where we’re supposed to unload.”

There’s not much to do but wait for the car to move, but eventually Madhu Siddappa runs in. “I’m parked in some loading space down the street,” he says, sweating, to which Dave shrug, like, "Well, what can we do?" They formulate a new plan to load their gear in through the front, as quickly as possible, and to move their van from the illegal spot.

This is how Dub is a Weapon starts their album release party in Burlington; but it doesn’t seem to faze them. Tonight they’re playing alongside Sister Sparrow and The Dirty Birds, also from Brooklyn. As this latter group rallies and readies to play, the Friday night crowd thickens.

Sister Sparrow is Arleigh Kincheloe, a tiny, lithe fey, tonight in a low cut shirt, very provocative, a bird of fashion. She has a sassy, sensual air about her before she even speaks, but no one is ready for her pipes. Backed by the eight members that make up The Dirty Birds, she begins with a bass romp, provided by Aiden Carroll, humbly behind Arleigh, who begins to sing with a voice so soulful that anyone in the bar not looking suddenly drops their conversation and takes notice. The horns swarm in alongside Jackson Kincheloe’s harmonica, which, placed beside a four-piece horn section, creates a soul/blues blend that’s both unique and interesting.

The whole band is dressed in black and every member fits their part: Sasha Brown (guitar) has perfectly spiked hair and wears a pin-striped vest. Harmonica Jackson has long, blonde hair and wears aviators. The horns and bass all wear fedoras. Trumpeter Cole Kamen wears a short-sleeved collared shirt with a tie, in a slightly punk fashion. They’re clearly Brooklynites. Johnny Butler (baritone sax) and Bran Kincheloe (drums) even have just the right amount of facial hair.

They play through songs off their self-titled album, including “Boom Boom”, where the band leans on a reggae rhythm, a taste of what the headliner will sound like. SP&TDBs’ sound is mainly soul, pulling on blues, rock, funk, and reggae throughout their set, including some wonderful covers. Their take on “Boogie on Reggae Woman” is the sultriest yet. Arleigh is an amazing vocalist, but also a stellar performer. When trombonist Ryan Snow solos she squats, leaning back and beckoning his sound with gypsy hands.

The highlight is “Freight Train”, full of interjecting horns. Even Dub is a Weapon members opt to hang on the dance floor instead of the green room.

Dub is a Weapon sets up quickly (much appreciated by the waiting audience), with Dave’s dub board center stage. It’s here that he tweaks and tinkers with sound to produce the live dub effects, the signature sound of the band.

Madhu takes his spot behind the drum kit. Larry McDonald, a great-natured people person, sets up his djembes, tying his dreads into a bun, away from his face. Then there’s Dan Jeselsohn, casually strapping on his bass, and Maria Eisen, Dub’s secret weapon. She’s as small as Sister Sparrow is, but armed with a tenor sax she’s like a pirate behind a lit cannon.

While SP&TDBs had a super upbeat vibe, Dub is a Weapon focuses the energy into “Bruce Lee”, a classic tune of theirs. It’s a nice intro song, very low key, slow, and featuring all the instruments. Then they begin playing songs off of Vaporized, their newest record. “Turbulence” opens the album, but its role here is to up the tempo and get people dancing. The dub really rolls now. The hand percussion is nicely loud in the mix.

“If you like what you hear,” Dave grins as the song ends, “you can bring some of it home with you… if you know what I mean.” He raises an eyebrow and points to the stack of the new albums at the merch table.

A special performance by Rob Symeonn really turns the show around. He’s the vocalist on “Forwarding Home” off of Vaporized. He steps on stage, blessing the mic. He’s going to sing five songs with them throughout the night, including “Pork Eater”- just an excellent song with pithy lyrics. “Who here eats pork?” Rob says, raising his ringed fingers, pointing to the audience. “Well, no offense to you, but this song goes out to you.” He then proceeds to sing the chorus, “Piggy Wiggy,” and talk about how we shouldn’t eat pork.

They play a few more tracks off their new album, play a few oldies, and when they finish, the energy in the room is still electric. With wonderful stage presence, lots of energy, a wide range of dub sounds to play with, and with Rob’s guest vocals, Dub is a Weapon’s album release show proves that even with cops in the way, eventually the music conquers.