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Public Enemy perform It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back with Roots, Antibalas
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Public Enemy perform It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back with Roots, Antibalas
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| Photo | Brian Howard |
| Flavor Flav at the Roots Family Picnic (slideshow below) |
Lots more coverage to come from the second annual Roots Family Picnic as yours truly and Patrick Rapa were on the scene snapping pics like mad in the photo pit.
But let's start, shall we, with a report from the evening's big event: the much hyped Public Enemy performance of their classic 1988 album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back backed by both the legendary Roots crew and the Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra. It was both an amazing and bizarre spectacle.
For starters, there's Flavor Flav, for whom each of the last 21 years since the album seems to have taken it's toll. Then there was Chuck D. who looks maybe a few years older. And finally Professor Griff who looks almost exactly the same. (I honestly didn't get a good look at Terminator X while in the photo pit. ed.: Apparently because he wasn't there.)
The set was tight. Very tight. No long speeches by D. and no loopy tirades by Flav (during the run of the album at least). Track after track of classic late-'80s rap flowed forth, given new life thanks to a backing band that managed to capture the harshness of the album's sound while also managing to give the songs a new dimension. Even "Bring the Noise" ' the definitive version of which may indeed be P.E.'s instrumental team-up with Anthrax in 1991 ' felt enhanced by its new, organic foundation.
There aren't a whole lot more words beyond it being a sort of transformative experience, especially for someone who never caught P.E. live during their heyday. The album is classic. The performers classic. I'd forgotten just how many really big, important tracks were packed into that disc. "Fight the Power," (ed. "Fight the Power" came out on the Do the Right Thing soundtrack, not on Nation of Millions) "Bring the Noise," "Don't Believe the Hype," "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," "Rebel Without a Pause," "She Watch Channel Zero." All huge, huge, vital songs. I was moved even more than I'd expected to be.
The performers' reverence for the material was evident, and the set ran smoothly thanks to ?uesto up on the drum riser. Once "Fight the Power" concluded, Flavor Flav, as predicted, went off on a bit of a buzz-killing rant, referring to this too often as his "most legendary moment" and making a weird analogy about peace, unity and power then following it with a rant about how you're the only person you can trust. And then he brought Beanie Sigel out on stage despite Beans seeming to want no part of it.
None of which really ruined the moment; but letting the set linger on the closing of "Fight the Power" may have been a more powerful way to close.
Stay tuned for Pat's P.E. pics, as well as snaps of TV on the Radio and the Roots concluding set.
Not to be the PE police, but just to clear up the record: Terminator X is no longer with the group and wasn't performing at the picnic, it was somebody else (DJ Lord maybe?). And Fight the Power isn't on the album, but they played it anyway, just to put some icing on the already unbelievable cake. (Okay, I guess I am being the PE police. Sorry, I can't help myself.) But that doesn't take away from the message of this post, which is that seeing that show was a transformative experience. Unreal.
Hey Johnson, thanks for the clarification. It'd slipped my mind that "Fight The Power" wasn't actually on Millions. And re: Terminator X, I was thinking that I couldn't really tell if he was performing with them or not. A few other posts and tweets had mentioned him being there, so I went with that. My bad; shoulda gone with my instinct on that. But yes, all in all, amazing performance.
geez dude felt like I was reading your rough draft!!! was shocklee's bomb squad there???
@wes: yes, you're right. I filed this at 4 a.m. the morning after and was maybe a little bleary-eyed at the time. Rough's an accurate description. As to your Shocklee/Bomb Squad question, I don't actually have an answer. I didn't have back-stage access, so I only know what I saw on stage. Anyone have an answer on that?
I totally slept on getting tickets in advance for this legendary set.
In my mind, P.E. adapted â Countdown to Armageddonâ (the Nation intro) to Philly:
Yo Festival Pier, are ya ready for the Roots Picnic? Lemme hear yous make some noize! In concert from WB17 tonight and a fresh start to the week, let me hear yous make some noize for Public Enemy!
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