Saul Williams at the Brixton Academy, London
Photo © Jaime Nichols, 2005

Even so, it's a brave move for Williams to accept the opening slot in front of Nine Inch Nails' obsessively devoted faithful.

It would seem that very little could be more disparate from Trent Reznor's thunderously introspective passion play than a politically charged hip hop act, but aesthetically speaking, I'd say there's more common ground between the two than not. Both Reznor and Williams are true artists who take their work very seriously, believe in its power, and are wholeheartedly dedicated performers, so even as thematic content and style diverge, there is a similarity in tone and intensity. More than that, though, there is a not at all disparate kind of intention: both Nine Inch Nails and Saul Williams look to challenge their audiences, taking their more thoughtful listeners down roads they might not have traveled alone.

Hand-picked for the slot, Williams did have Reznor's full and enthusiastic endorsement, which counts for plenty with his crowd. Posted all over the venue were fliers quoting Reznor's proclamation that "Saul Williams is a breath of fresh air in a genre that is dying from just replicating itself, being a copy of a copy of a copy," and he's right - both about hip hop and the fact that Williams is truly unique voice. He doesn't sound like anyone else, and when Williams says "this ain't no hip hop no more, son, it's bigger than that" it's truly thrilling that his political statements are backed by such an authentically individual aesthetic one.

Listening to Williams, with his super-charged words, and almost industrial back-up, one truly feels how sadly homogenized and empty so much hip hop has become. Whether he's taking on the state of black America with "African Student Movement", the way power feeds on poverty and powerlessness with "Act III Scene 2 (Shakespeare)", or the way hip hop has sold it's promise and soul down the river for a boatload of bitches and bling in "Telegram", Williams' style defamiliarizes the entire notion of what we've come to expect from hip hop, while his words cut through the crap, exhorting his listeners to attend to what's real and true, and do something about it.