Ahhh. Common. Nuff said. Actually I will say more. 8/23/08, you could catch me and the hubby soaking up the vibe at the Southern Comfort Music Experience festival here in San Diego. The top headliner was Common but we were also attracted by the promise of Saul Williams as well as the band, The Black Keys. Okay I'm jumping to the meat of the concert. Common's performance was incredible. He covered all of his big hits including some of his old school hits from back in the day when he was Common Sense. He also did a free style rap where he incorporated San Diego into the mix that really impressed the crowd. One of the segments of the performance that I enjoyed was the hip-hop medley that he did where he sampled a variety of old school hip-hop songs in a tribute fashion. As always he touched on his hit CD, Like Water for Chocolate-----
NEWSFLASH folks who pretend like they love hip-hop but really just like to nod their head in order to amass supposed "cool" points----Common has put out much more than Like Water for Chocolate! You only call attention to your poseur status when that is all that you can come up with when the name Common is mentioned. That's for all of the folks who said he just didn't live up to his Like Water for Chocolate days in their reviews of the performance...get over it. I don't know...perhaps there will always be certain social divides when it comes to the comprehension of hip-hop music...which is sad because music is music. I definitely feel that this divide lies at the root of the negative changes in the music genre, perhaps why 50 cent and others of his ilk have taken over....most of the "new" listeners just want a party record...but I digress.
Saul Williams...oh boy I am making my son some metallic silver leggings with a red stripe up the sides. He can wear them with a white tee and his Converse sneaks. In fact I'm going to put some up for the graham cracker crew in my shop.
I had never really listened to him prior to the concert but his performance was smashing. This despite a mottled sound quality due to static feedback. Evidently his music is termed "Industrial hip-hop"...who knew. If Jimi Hendrix took over a turntable is what I would label it. He did a great many political manifestos regarding race and social constructs. The one portion of his performance that left me on the fence: he did a cover of the U2 classic, "Bloody Sunday" . Now, this is one of my favorite songs in the whole wide world. I had always imagined that my first live rendition of the song would come straight from the lips of Bono himself. Perhaps Williams' version will be the closest that I will come to that dream seeing as how Bono is off saving the world. Either way... Williams' version was lacking a bit. I was definitely on the fence...
The Black Keys....good, very classic rock. This band is from the Midwest, Ohio to be exact and I could feel their homeplace in their music. I have a special place in my heart for the Midwest. I really want to check out more of their music.
I have found that rock music unless you're dealing with a single electrical guitar does not translate well in a live music venue so its better to know a good deal of a band's songs before hearing them live. That's just my take on it though...this means that I will have to delve more into both Saul Williams and the Black Keys before making a definite review of their acts. Recording cleans up the music which enables the ear to pick up the various parts of the song thereby allowing the listener to gain a better picture of the artist's specific artistic vision. Actually going to see any music live is more for the experience than to actually listen to a specific song. Again my take on it all.
All in all, this concert gets two snaps...I left sweaty from dancing, hoarse from yelling, and thoroughly exhausted.
Me and the Hubster....I made the top myself that day, a lovely kimono style in a cool Cotton voile with metallic threads.
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