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Mmm….mmm… Scratch started things off right on Saturday at the 9:30 Club. The beat box master had everyone lay down the foundation by singing “the beat box”, while he added on scratches, beats, shout outs and synths, all with just a microphone and a loop machine. We were treated to covers of 50 Cent’s “In Da Club”, Kanye West’s “Jesus Walks” and I can’t remember the last time that I shouted “Doo-doo Brown” at the top of my lungs. Based on the cautiously raised hands in the air, it seemed the crowd was trying to remember the last time they had too. Even a small cable problem illustrated the odd combination of genres that night. Scratch complained a few times when his loop machine stopped short. Finally the stagehand, a stick of a guy whose ‘look’ rests somewhere between Trent Reznor and The Crow came forward to fix the problem. When Scratch confirms, “Yo, yo, yo, I got it, I got it”, sound guy just looks up somberly as if in awe of the bling. Despite the small hiccups, Scratch’s stage presence was tight, he never skipped a beat while rockin’ his imaginary turntables with behind the back elbow scratches. He finished up a too short set by taking his Adidas in hand and breaking the needle clean off. Check out his latest album, The Embodiment of Instrumentation on Rope A Dope Records. The 2nd act on Saturday was New Orleans natives, Galactic. Their instrumentation consists of a basic rhythm section: piano, guitar, bass, and drums, plus Ben Ellman on Tenor or Baritone sax and occasionally harmonica. Galactic’s long time vocalist, Theryl “Houseman” DeClouet is no longer with the band and there’s a slight hole up front. None of the members fill in the center stage position. Galactic’s classic funk riffs and tight heads kept the crowd dancing all night long. Indeed, tight choruses where the whole band comes together on unison lines are what the band does best. Most songs alternate between the head and an open improv section. Personally I thought that the improv sections were slightly weak. The harmonic progressions were at times painfully simple and modulation was almost non-existent. My dancing partner, Miss Sarah Twardy, agreed that the band lacked a bit of punch on this night, something we felt was present in other shows. Perhaps they could use to cut a good 32 bars from each improv section or even find another front man (vocal or instrumental). The best song of the night was when Scratch came on stage and traded 4’s with the drummer, Stanton Moore. It will be interesting to see where Galactic heads in the next year and the direction they take as an instrumental outfit. |
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