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  • » Name: William E. Ketchum III
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Speech Is My Hammer...

Rock The Bells 2007: Detroit (Late Pass)


September 20, 2007 | Tags: none

I had originally written this piece for URB, but after some miscommunication about its deadline, I thought I'd post it here. Yeah, it's late as hell, but don't act like you haven't left pizza in the fridge too long and ate that shit anyway (or maybe that's just me?). Either way, this was the best show I've been to in my life, so I felt obligated to post this review and pictures somewhere - and who better than my DX fam? Enjoy, and get ready: next week is official Speech Is My Hammer...Detroit Hip-Hop Week.
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With the emergence of artists like Black Milk and Guilty Simpson and the lingering nostalgia of deceased heroes J Dilla and Proof, Detroit has recently been identified as the new hotbed for real hip-hop. But living here (or in the area—I’m back and forth between various cities within a 90-mile radius), you wouldn’t know it: artists constantly cancel shows or avoid the state altogether, and major tours often offer condensed versions of their previously-overstuffed lineups. To y’all, we’re the next hot thing; to them, we’re still not on the level of the left and right coasts.



With that in mind, there’s plenty of reason to look forward to the Rock The Bells stop in the Motor City with a skeptical eye. New York highlights like Rakim and Public Enemy opted to stay home, while Cypress Hill limited their appearance to Cali. Add on David Banner’s cancellation for the tour, Jedi Mind Tricks’ mysterious disappearance, and MF DOOM’s continuous concert shiftiness (he allegedly sent an imposter to a show in San Francisco earlier on the tour, and went MIA at a concert in Ann Arbor the day before Detroit’s show), and it seemed like there were more artists that we were missing than we were getting. And with most concertgoers opting for the more cost-efficient lawn seats, the stadium section seemed even more underwhelming than it already was. But other fans were grateful regardless: with Supernatural, Immortal Technique, hometown staples Slum Village and Phat Kat, Pharaohe Monch, Talib Kweli, Nas and the Wu-Tang Clan all showing up in the DTE Music Theatre, who’s complaining?



After Supernatural set things off with several freestyle sessions—one while simultaneously punching at an MPC, and one using tangibles from the crowd to rhyme about—for nearly 20 minutes, Immortal Technique stomped on set. Just as angry and passionate in person as he is on record, the stout Peruvian MC jumped his set off with a scathing freestyle and scowled through verses from his Revolutionary mixtapes, surprisingly engaging the crowd with his militant street hop for his entire set. His supporting cast contributed as well, with DJ GI Joe tearing up the tables and IT’s hypeman also spewed a punchline-heavy, equally-aware 16. After jumping in the crowd to spew venom while standing on the seats, IT ended his segment true to form: “My name is Immortal Technique, and I don’t give a fuck if you burn my music. Matter of fact, I think you’re a pussy if you don’t go home and steal my music.” Revolutionary but gangsta.




(Immortal Technique)



 



Following a mediocre no-name that’s not worth mentioning, Slum Village performed. After performing three tracks, their momentum died down considerably as the group succumbed to a 10-to-15 minute J Dilla tribute by DJ Dez. Phat Kat came on afterwards, and when the stadium audience didn’t give him the response he thought he deserved (partly due to the aforementioned sparse stadium audience, and partly due to his seemingly infinite underground MC status) after a few of his songs, he proceeded to berate the silent concertgoers, complaining that other areas show Detroit more love than their own do. Fortunately, Slum Vill rejoined Kat onstage and regained crowd support with “Cold Steel,” the Elzhi-featuring lead single from Kat’s Carte Blanche LP. They continued to perform hits like “Tainted” and “Selfish,” and ended their set on a good note with the hard-knocking “1,2.”




(Elzhi of Slum Village)



 



By this time, security was letting a limited amount of lawn-sitters inside of the stadium due to rain, and the newly-covered viewers were fully into Pharaohe Monch’s set. Equipped with a live band and two backup singers, the Queens lyricist launched his set with the Black Milk-laced “Let’s Go” and commenced to perform a string of hits and fan favorites like “Agent Orange” and “Simon Says.” What followed was a pinnacle of the show, as Pharaohe performed “My Life” and left the background singers—one male, one female—to vocally duke it out by belting the song’s soulful hook back and forth. The singers added an authentic feel to the set, and Pharaohe’s band—despite a guitarist who was trying way too hard with continuous rock star poses—improved the sonic quality of every song performed.




(Pharaohe Monch)



 



Come Talib’s set, the scattered showers had evolved into an all-out thunderstorm and the rest of the lawn seat-holders were allowed entry into the stadium. All things considered, Talib’s set offered the most surprises: the BK MC started off his set with an engaging freestyle, and performed tracks that spanned his entire career—from “The Blast” to “DEFinition,” from his verse from DangerDoom’s “Old School” to offerings from his latest Ear Drum—reminding listeners how hardbody his catalog really is. Despite Pharaohe’s comparatively elaborate stage set-up, Talib kept the crowd going with only a DJ and his own energetic self. In a surprising move, Talib also brought Pharaohe back out to perform their verses from Quality’s “Guerilla Monsoon Rap,” engaging the crowd with their back-and-forth wordplay. Another highlight: Talib alertly catching a cup thrown at him by a crowd member Mike Piazza style, looking homie in the eye, saying “I fucking dare you,” and continuing with his set.




(Talib in his b-boy stance (i.e., my best photo ever))



While me and photographer Marcel Friday missed most of Nas’ set waiting in line for a Wu-Tang meet and greet (which we had gained access to after name-dropping our way into VIP tickets), feedback for Nas’ set was mixed. While his choice of tracks was impeccable—“NY State of Mind,” “Black Republican” and virtually everything in between—many fans complained that he stumbled through his verses, playing off forgotten bars as looks for crowd participation.



Luckily, the Wu didn’t disappoint as the grand finale. All living members showed up, and with ODB’s son sharing the stage with them, it was like the entire crew was there. The Clan ran through hits like “Bring The Pain” and “Triumph,” and every member’s personality was shown throughout: Ghostface’s stylistic swag seeped through his pores, the energy and toothy grin of ODB’s son eerily resembled those his father’s when he lip-synced “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” GZA’s precise mathematics flowed freely as he sipped a bottle of Grey Goose while strutting onstage, and RZA’s calm-yet-hype persona seemed to guide the clan’s performance. The highlight, however, was clearly Method Man; precluding his first verse by spewing bottled water into the crowd, he was crystal-clear for all his verses, puffed blunts passed to him by concertgoers, and crowd-surfed at least a half-dozen times (including one time where he hilariously poked Photographer Friday in the eye). When crowd members dropped him, an under-the-influence Meth got up from the ground and yelled, “Fuck that: can I get a mufuckin’ A for effort?!”




(Meth goes wild.)

And that statement perfectly describes Detroit’s installment of Rock The Bells. Sure, many of the tour’s highlights ended up being no-shows or line-up subtractions, and an underpopulated crowd made things worse. But with the ill line-up that did show up holding it down, fans still appreciated: hip-hop was in the building, and that’s all that mattered.


The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the writer and not necessarily those of HipHopDX.com or Cheri Media Group.

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