A long-time fan, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I bought tickets to see Public Enemy in concert at the Sound Academy last night. I've been listening to Public Enemy for almost 25 years, and with Chuck D 52 years old and Flavour Flav 55, how good could they be live?
Holy shit they're good! I had the best damn time. Their energy was amazing, the performance was better than I dared dream and there were so many highlights. My voice is still coming back after trying to keep up with the guys on songs I've loved for so very long.
Where do I begin with the highlights?
- Despite promoting this concert as Public Enemy playing It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back in its entirety, they played a great deal more - including cuts from Fear Of A Black Planet, "Can't Truss It", "Shut 'Em Down", "He Got Game" and a couple of new tracks.
- When Maestro and Michie Mee hit the stage, I almost lost it. And Maestro's spontaneous performance? A true joy for this Let Your Backbone Slide fan.
- I didn't think I'd survive Welcome to the Terrordome. EPIC! I'm glad they removed the crucifixion lines.
- Another highlight amongst many highlights was "Night Of The Living Baseheads". That might be the most underrated song in hip-hop.
- They opened with "Louder Than A Bomb" and closed with "Fight The Power". When I left the venue, it was 12:39.
I picked up my ticket for $15 on Groupon. $15 for over 2-hours of Public Enemy delivering real hip-hop. I still can't believe it...
