It’s true. Rap pioneers Public Enemy are coming back to Cleveland on Sunday June 27th to the House Of Blues.
That right there deserves The Awesome.
Having seen them for the first time ever at the 2009 Bonnaroo I can tell you this – they put on an amazing live show, even at 3 in the morning. Age aside these guys are kings of what they do. I am more than thrilled to see them come back to Cleveland and will be making sure I am in attendence that night.
According to my pal Matt over at that Addicted To Vinyl site (who I should add was there with me at that amazing Bonnaroo performance):
Public Enemy featuring Chuck D, Flava Flav, Professor Grif, DJ Lord and the S1W
Sunday, June 27
House of Blues
From their multiplatinum 1987 debut, Yo! Bum Rush the Show!, to seven records later, Public Enemy’s influence on hip-hop and rap shows little sign of slowing down. Arguably the most frequently sampled rap artists of all time, they proclaim, “We got a right to be angry.” They’ve been channeling that anger into articulate, revolutionary lyrics, as much to educate as to entertain. They use deep Funk basslines with layered rhymes from Chuck D interspersed with funny quips from Flava Flav (notorious for wall clocks hung around his neck). The beats, rife with police sirens, screeches, and heavy sampling, speed each tune to a cathartic release. Anyone who thinks that racial equality has been reached in the U.S. can think again, and let Public Enemy do the talking.
Tickets go on sale on 03/31/2010 and I am positive this will sell out.
Prices:
$32.50 – GA- Standing Room Only – Advance
$35.00 – GA- Standing Room Only – Day of Show
$45.00 – Reserved Seats
Looks like April 27th is going to be an interesting day in Cleveland thanks to Kevin Smith. The filmmaker / actor is bringing his SModcast to Peabody’s for two shows in one evening.
So what is a SModcast you ask? It’s a podcast featuring Kevin Smith and his long time friend Scott Mosier. Normally the pair records the show on Sunday nights or Monday mornings where fans can later download them via iTunes or a RSS feed. This time though they decided to take it on the road and make it a little more personable with their fans.
Tickets are $24 a pop for seats and standing room. Not sure how this will go down but I can tell you that it is going to be hilarious.
The Police @ The House Of Blues (no, not that Police)
Now I was not at the House of Blues last night to see Bone-Thugs-N-Harmony(BTNH) play to a sold out crowd but rest assured if I was, I would not be thinking too highly on what happened that essentally put a halt to the show.
According to Fox8.com, Cleveland Police came into the venue and arrested Flesh-N-Bone who had 2 outstanding warrents.
Flesh-N-Bone had not been to Cleveland in over 10 years. Some homecoming he had… This was to be a reunion show for the band and the fans.
Why am I posting this? Well because I am a fan of BTNH. I got to see them years ago at the Odeon and had a blast. I’m also not a fan of concerts being shut down or ending early. I guess I feel bad for all the folk who payed good money last night to see the 90’s Cleveland rap sensations only to have to be shunt a performance thanks to the manor the arrest was handled.
According to Cleveland.Com, 50 Cleveland police officers and Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s deputies entered the venue to make the arrest around midnight.
50 officers & deputies to take in one man? Seriously? I get that the venue was sold out at the 1000+ capacity venue but why do it in the middle of the show? I really think there could have been a better way to have handled this.
Flesh-N-Bone obviously has been having his own problems but why exactly did the arrest have to go down at midnight? Oh wait, it gets even better…
Police say that Howse [Flesh-N-Bone] recognized that deputies were watching him while he was on stage, and then called the crowd up on to the stage. He then attempted to make an exit off the side under cover. Unfortunately, that tactic did not work. Howse was restrained by a deputy while other deputies and Cleveland police assisted.
Somehow I am not buying that… Oh well. I hope things work out for him and I hope the fans at least got to enjoy the hour and a half that BTNH did get to play before the cops shut it down. There were no injuries reported and no riots started so that proves that the Cleveland fans can keep their cool during a really ridiculous situation.
The band will be releasing their 3rd full length release June 15th on Side One Dummy Records. Expect a tour to follow in support of this highly anticipated release.
Track Listing:
1. American Slang
2. Stay Lucky
3. Bring It On
4. The Diamond Church Street Choir
5. The Queen of Lower Chelsea
6. Orphans
7. Boxer
8. Old Haunts
9. The Spirit Of Jazz
10. We Did It When We Were Young
Many fans of indie rock know who The Weakerthans are and what exactly they do. For years now the Canadian four (and sometimes up to six) some have been creating amazing albums that are heavy on the indie but also incorporate folk and twang into their material. They are a band that I label as an “accident band”. What I mean by that is I became a fan of them by accident.
Back in the days of slinging coffees at the café at the Borders Books & Music I worked at I came across a Weakerthans’ album at a listening station one day while on break. This was at a time and age when the internet was still ruled by AOL and MySpace was just an idea waiting to be hatched out. I remember clearly putting the headphones on at the listening station and checking out a couple tracks from Left and Leaving. Liking what I heard, I recall reading a bio about the band while listening to more tracks and taking a double look at the card when it mentioned one time Propagandhi member John Samson. Seriously, my mouth dropped open.
I was maybe 23 at the time and was slowly opening my musical tastes more. Being a punk rocker at heart I was in awe that the bassist of one of my favorite punk rock bands was fronting such a melodic and low-key band. I heard enough, grabbed the CD, and took it to the register for purchase. Needless to say my musical appreciation was given a boost thanks to the Weakerthans and to this day I am still an avid fan though I have yet to see them live.
Having missed them the couple times they did roll though Cleveland one could say I was excited to see that they had released a live DVD/CD titled Live At The Burton Cummings Theatre on Epitaph Records/ANTI- Records. Performed in their hometown of Winnipeg, Canada in April of 2009, the band recorded the performance at the Burton Cumming’s Theatre (yes, the sweet mustached Burton Cummings of The Guess Who). Just to clarify I believe the theatre was named after the classic rock musician and that he has nothing to do with it.
The DVD/CD captures the perfect evening of a show with the talented indie rockers as well as their dedicated fans who filled the venue up the night it was recorded. With no fancy light shows or theatrics the band hit the stage and played a very fun and great sounding show. Their sound, I should add, almost sounds studio and one could be fooled until the fans started hooting and hollering after every song.
Playing songs old and new the band just sounded amazing and looked ever so comfortable on the stage. Hearing them open with “Everything Must Go” really reminded me why I have been a fan for so long but seeing how happy they were performing the song brought a whole new appreciation from me for them. With the crowd cheering and the band just having fun it was apparent that this show was going to be a good one. Speeding things up they broke into “Tournament Of Hearts” immediately after. With five members on stage it appeared as if Samson’s wife Christine Fellows was hiding in the shadows offering vocals as well.
The band’s (and the crowd’s) friend Julie played on some songs as well including “Night Windows” where she offered some violin. Keeping the show rolling the band broke into “Reconstruction Site” a twangy delight of a song to listen to as well. The band completely rocked out during “Aside” all while Samson smiled big while singing. “Bigfoot” was another track I really got a kick out of with all the instrument playing.
Hearing perhaps my favorite Weakerthans song of all time, “Plea From A Cat Named Virtue”, put the biggest smile on my face even if I was watching a recording of the show. The song revolving around a wise feline carried on perfectly, even the trumpet playing at the close of the song. Samson also offered a simple impromptu guitar solo that was cut short on the CD but the DVD shows the humorous moment.
During “Wellington’s Wednesdays” Samson pulled up a fan on stage named Ernesto who had the pleasure of filling in a guitar solo in the key of E. I must say after a nervous start Ernesto started jamming hard with the rest of the band as Samson took the honorary member’s place in the crowd for a short moment. The band then followed up “The Reasons” as well as “Sun In An Empty Room”. I swear if it were not for the fans cheering at times my mind tried to argue with me that I was not listening to a live album.
Overall the show was a fun time full of a great set by an outstanding band. The DVD featured shots of the band throughout the 75 plus minute performance with good angles as well as occasionally would focus in on a true fan singing along. Capturing The Weakerthans in their hometown was one hell of an idea and even if I have not seen them live in the flesh, I am glad I had the opportunity to have this performance in my possession.
The DVD/CD ranks high with my all time favorite live albums and I have listened to it multiple times now and I am not just saying that. Great music by a bunch guys made even more entertaining by the simple fact that they were having a blast while doing their job. If you are a fan of indie rock or just want to spend the evening with some great music do yourself a favor and grab a copy of Live At The Burton Cummings Theatre.
Track Listing (DVD/CD):
01. Everything Must Go
02. Tournament of Hearts
03. Our Retired Explorer (Dines with Michel Foucault in Paris in 1969)
04. Night Windows
05. Reconstruction Site
06. Aside
07. Civil Twilight
08. Bigfoot
09. Plea From A Cat Named Virtute
10. The Reasons
11. Sun In An Empty Room
12. Left and Leaving
13. Wellington’s Wednesdays
14. Benediction
15. Manifest
16. One Great City!
17. This Is A Fire Door Never Leave Open
18. Virtute the Cat Explains Her Departure
This music blog could have a driver's license by now…
