Brother Ali @ The Granada Theater
Submitted by bacon on Wed, 11/11/2009 - 21:21.
A show at the Granada is always an experience, and when Brother Ali stopped in it was no different. I showed up a little late, and the party had already started. I opened the double doors that lead to the concert hall and was immediately hit with a familiar stench. Someone had impossibly run over a dozen skunks or the stickiest of icky was being burned. Luckily, I’m a fan of road kill. The opener, Evidence (of Dilated Peoples fame), was on the stage doing his best Sluggo impression. I can’t say it was a good impersonation. Read on for more of my review and check out some of Hash Brown’s shots after the jump.
Evidence, pictured above, was a mix between a first time MC and dirty sailor. I feared I was being too harsh on “Rap Master E-V” but my mind was put at ease when the lovely dame I attended the show with laughed out of embarrassment when E-V professed his love for the city of Lubbock, TX. At one point in the night E-V told the crowd, almost apologetically, he was the newest member of Ryhmesayers. I think it’s safe to say E-V won’t ever be viewed as the Justin Timberlake of the group. Thankfully, the main event of the night was no let down.
Brother Ali started off the night with a real gem from his latest album Us, “Crown Jewel.” Ladies and gents, he’s Brother Ali for a reason. Throughout the night, he touched on everything that would make my mother cringe. Drugs, sex, divorce, and homophobia were just a few of topics that flowed from this master MC. The visuals accompanying the show made me flash back to the Friday nights of my sophomore year of college. Clips from Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris movies played on the big screens with small snippets of big ole titaaaays.
Ali went on to play several other cuts from his newest record: “Breakin’ Dawn,” “Bad Mother Fucker Pt. II,” “Baby girl,” and the title track, “Us”. Ali didn’t forget what made him a hit either. Sick remixes of “Rain Water” and “Champion” gave a second life to the whole crowd: even the passed out teen that I witnessed catching breathe off the Devil’s lettuce earlier in the night. Ending the show, “The Preacher” brought the house down. Since the early days of Murs and Slug, the Rhymesayers (excluding the baby of the bunch) have been ahead of the underground game. Brother Ali just adds more fuel to their fire. To all my albino Muslim brothers, a big as-salamu alaikum. See ya at the next show.
Note from the baconator: I'd like to warmly welcome Ross "Flapjack" Freauf to the staff here at Breakfast On Tour. Ross has previously written for the blog over at www.dallasmusicwire.com, and plays drums in the recently-formed Dallas band The Rubbers. We here at BOT look forward to much more from him in the future.... –Bacon
A show at the Granada is always an experience, and when Brother Ali stopped in it was no different. I showed up a little late, and the party had already started. I opened the double doors that lead to the concert hall and was immediately hit with a familiar stench. Someone had impossibly run over a dozen skunks or the stickiest of icky was being burned. Luckily, I’m a fan of road kill. The opener, Evidence (of Dilated Peoples fame), was on the stage doing his best Sluggo impression. I can’t say it was a good impersonation. Read on for more of my review and check out some of Hash Brown’s shots after the jump.
Words by Ross "Flapjack" Freauf
Photos by Anna "Hash Browns" Vernon
Evidence, pictured above, was a mix between a first time MC and dirty sailor. I feared I was being too harsh on “Rap Master E-V” but my mind was put at ease when the lovely dame I attended the show with laughed out of embarrassment when E-V professed his love for the city of Lubbock, TX. At one point in the night E-V told the crowd, almost apologetically, he was the newest member of Ryhmesayers. I think it’s safe to say E-V won’t ever be viewed as the Justin Timberlake of the group. Thankfully, the main event of the night was no let down.
Brother Ali started off the night with a real gem from his latest album Us, “Crown Jewel.” Ladies and gents, he’s Brother Ali for a reason. Throughout the night, he touched on everything that would make my mother cringe. Drugs, sex, divorce, and homophobia were just a few of topics that flowed from this master MC. The visuals accompanying the show made me flash back to the Friday nights of my sophomore year of college. Clips from Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris movies played on the big screens with small snippets of big ole titaaaays.
Ali went on to play several other cuts from his newest record: “Breakin’ Dawn,” “Bad Mother Fucker Pt. II,” “Baby girl,” and the title track, “Us”. Ali didn’t forget what made him a hit either. Sick remixes of “Rain Water” and “Champion” gave a second life to the whole crowd: even the passed out teen that I witnessed catching breathe off the Devil’s lettuce earlier in the night. Ending the show, “The Preacher” brought the house down. Since the early days of Murs and Slug, the Rhymesayers (excluding the baby of the bunch) have been ahead of the underground game. Brother Ali just adds more fuel to their fire. To all my albino Muslim brothers, a big as-salamu alaikum. See ya at the next show.
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