WHEN THE SAINTS COME MARCHING IN: Madlib, Starlight Ballroom, Last Night
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NWA member Arabian Prince was nice enough to start the Bounce Tour early for the Starlight, queuing up a soundtrack of some old and new beats. Even better, Prince tested the crowd’s knowledge of some of the oldest jams, only to scoff at the general level of MC ignorance in the audience. It would appear that he’s still “with attitude.”
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Percee P has been in the game 19 years longer than you, and therefore is a far doper MC than you could ever hope to be. As if his brutal, straight-for-the-throat set wasn’t enough, he further proved his hip-hop chops by spitting a capella rhymes for about five minutes. For a change, the deep “thunk” noise in the air was not bass, but rather the collective jaw of the audience hitting the floor.
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CX KiDTRONiK may or may not be insane. From wedging his microphone between a young lady’s buttocks to getting the crowd to chant “MASH” in response to his “MONSTER” to straight-up swinging from the rafters, his brief set was comparable to a minor nuclear holocaust. I think when the dust settled we were encouraged to buy his album Krak Attack, or something. I don’t know.
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Madlib’s staggering résumé translates in his on-stage act exactly as it should. He managed to bring qualities of everyone on his tour together in one knockout set- polished, precise, and professional. The crowd was lucky enough to catch the elusive creature in his natural habitat, and what a glorious sight it was!
- As great as old school trivia, hip-hop veterans, and album-promoting ass cracks may be, waiting until 11:30 for the headliner to come out flat-out sucks. Madlib, we all have families to get home to.
TEXT & PHOTOS BY MICHAEL DONOVAN