Kicking off their national tour March 7, at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky (Cincinnati, Ohio) Public Enemy served notice to the greater hip-hop community that, even as they enter their twentieth year of existence, P.E. is still a force to reckon with.
Now, before I get on with the review, I have to ask all you lovely residents of Cincinnati and Covington – is it normal to have that many police officers patrolling the area on a given night? I’ve been to many shows in my lifetime and not once can I recall a police presence as noticeable as it was that night. Maybe that’s just how ya’ll roll, but I suspect something was afoot, anyhow back to our regularly scheduled programming. I’m not getting paid to speculate here.
Walking into the venue, I was, at first, slightly dismayed with what seemed like a dismal turn-out for such a seminal act with a bill featuring, X-Clan yet another genre defining act. I don’t go to hip-hop shows very often. Truth be told, there just aren’t enough acts out there that I care enough about to go and see. I was very unaware that this was a fashionably late crowd - either that or they got the memo about the opening act that I failed to receive.
The Impossebulls come from Chuck D’s own label, SlamJamz. I must confesses, Chuck D must see something in them that I missed as I found their hyper-kinetic style out of place with the likes of X-Clan and Public Enemy sharing the bill. Mechanically solid with some pretty phat beats, the collective still didn’t win me over. Can’t quite put my finger on it, but something just wasn’t there. Let’s chalk this one up to being a bad first impression, and I don’t believe that bad first impressions are unrecoverable. The crowd certainly seemed to know them and was definitely in step with the crew, so I’ll give these guys another shot before solidifying my opinion.
Article comments
1 - Patrick Cossel
The photos are incredible! Sounds like this show was just as incredible. Awsome man glad you liked it!!!
2 - coolbacca
I thought the Impossebulls were dope. That "hyper-kinetic" intensity is what makes their show as ill as it is.
What do you suggest that PE do when they come out? Should they use walkers and canes or should they come out like the crowd expects them to? I guess you haven't seen enough live hip hop to know what's really real. Oh, and that scary intellegent black man crap...wtf?
3 - Benjamin Cossel
Hey rock on man, you dug the Impossebulls, good for you. Like I said, I gave 'em the benefit of the doubt and will check them out again.
WTF? You telling me that to too many narrow minded, back assward folks running around this country an intelligent, well-spoken Black man isn't something that just makes them shake in their boots? Damn KKK been running around for as long as I can remember talking about how dumb the black man is, must give them fits to have someone up the their like Chuck whose about as sharp a man as they come. So wtf you wtf-ing?