We all know I'm a live music addict, and one of the first things I did when I got home was get online to see who was coming through town. I was excited to see The Shins were coming through on February 16th. But, wait... Uh-oh. The Roots are coming on the same night. Decisions, decisions. After mulling it over and remembering I'd already seen The Shins before, I opted to see The Roots. So, last night, I headed up to Harry O's in Park City. I made the right call.
Doors were supposed to open at 8, but I arrived at 8:20 to see a line of people standing outside, shivering in the cold. We waited in line until 9, when we finally got inside. Luckily, we didn't have to wait long before Lupe Fiasco took the stage. Lupe is a Chicago-bred protege of Kanye West (you may have heard him on West's "Touch The Sky"). His rhymes are really creative and he avoids the pitfalls of most rappers, focusing on love, politics, and hope in life's struggles instead of murder, drugs, and misogyny. He was full of energy and a great choice for an opener.
After only a ten-minute set change (possibly the shortest in concert history), The Roots took the stage. The Roots are a very unique force in underground hip-hop. They're an actual band with very organic feel, and, like Lupe Fiasco, breathe fresh air into a genre that's become cliche. Harry O's is a relatively small venue, and they had a very commanding presence. It didn't hurt that I was really close to the stage, as you can see. There were at least nine musicians performing on the stage at any given time, to include a four-piece horn section (with a sousaphone!). Lead MC Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer/DJ Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson have been together a long time, and the chemistry and energy on stage was contagious.
They played songs from all nine of their studio albums for three (!) hours, without slowing down once. I was mesmerized. They even played a few covers, including "Roxanne" by the Police and Bob Dylan's "Masters of War," which is as truthful today as it was forty years ago.
They thrived on their performance, blending live intstrumentation and old-school freestyling into an energetic show with plenty of crowd participation. They came alive like few bands before them. If you've ever seen Dave Chappelle's Block Party for which The Roots were the house band, you know they're the real thing. This was, without a doubt, one of the best shows I've ever seen (and I've seen a LOT). I've been a fan of The Roots for a long time, but now I'm a fanatic.
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