Ghostface, who found considerable success not only in the seminal collective he was a leading member of, but also in his subsequent solo career. He’s known for his dynamic flow and surrealistic storytelling style. Tonight, him and his crew almost tore the roof off of the Englert.

Before that, though, local hip-hop heroes AWTHNTKTS opened the show. Made up of three rappers and a DJ, they brought a surprising amount of energy and were a great start to the night. At this point, though, the house wasn’t completely filled yet, and I had no idea what was in store for later.

Each rapper in the group had a distinct flow, and they all had good stage presence and a synergy that translated into a very fun performance.

Up next, and unknown to me, was Free Murda, a Wu-Tang affiliated rapper. He didn’t stay for long but performed a few of his songs to hype up the energy for Ghostface. I don’t know if the rest of the crowd knew him either, but they ate it up either way.

The Englert isn’t the first place that pops into your head when you think of a rap concert, but the energy from the crowd bounced around the room and electrified every performer. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the genre fit the venue, and how it completely turned my expectations upside down.

Once Ghostface finally arrived on stage, the place went wild. I mean this was an actual member of Wu-Tang right in front of us. These guys practically defined hip-hop for a very large period of time, and their influence still rings true today. At this point, the theater was absolutely packed. I don’t know if it was sold out; there were almost no people in the balcony area that I could see, but the main floor was fuller than I’d ever seen it. Whatever the numbers were, it felt like it was bursting at the seams.

The experience of seeing Ghostface Killah is hard to put into words. It’s wild. The crowd was rapping along to a lot of the songs, as he performed many of the Wu-Tang hits that made him the legend he is today. Songs like “C.R.E.A.M.” and “Protect Ya Neck” had the crowd rapping along and jumping in the air, waving their arms around and just out right yelling.

For the latter song, he invited some crowd participants to come on stage and rap the verses by other Wu-Tang members, but only if they knew the verses well and could rap them to his crew before coming on stage. The process took a long time, finally producing one person who actually pulled it off and drove the crowd wild, and another drunk, bumbling man who was really there for comic relief. Overall it was cool to see them interacting with so many people.

At another time, they invited a whole bunch of girls from the crowd to come dance on stage. Things got…well, you can probably imagine. I won’t go into details about it. But it was fun to watch.

Ghostface kept driving in the point that whatever energy the crowd gave to them, they would give back. It made us all get louder and jump higher, resulting in an incredible performance from the crew. I would say he wasn’t let down, and maybe even go as far to say that he was surprised at how much Iowa could turn up. He mentioned it being his first time in Iowa City, but he also mentioned he could have been wrong about that.

After the show, he stood on stage awhile signing shirts and taking photos, then took a whole bunch of girls backstage to drink. After Andrew Bird last night and Tennis on Friday, this Mission Creek is shaping up to one of the best yet.

The post Mission Creek: Ghostface Killah @ Englert Theater 4/5/2017 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

From the very beginning of the night, the crowd was ready for Sage Francis. With only 4 days to promote his arrival, there was a high chance that not many of people would be able to go see him. However, the venue was packed with fans who were buzzing at the chance to see Sage. Before Sage took the stage it was AWTHNTKTS (AW-THN-T-KTS ) who began the night with a crazy amount of energy.

I had decided days before the concert that I wasn’t going to listen to the music of either AWTHNTKTS or Sage Francis. The reason being that I wanted to be able to formulate an opinion as the concert happened and not have pre-determined ideas. I’m so glad that I decided to wait until the concert to hear their music because both hip-hop/rap performances were absolutely amazing. From the very beginning to the very end there was a massive amount of energy and excitement that filled the venue.  AWTHNTKTS are a hip-hop collective from Iowa City consisting of

three emcees and a DJ named ION, johndope, Romulan, and DJ johnnysixx. As the group got ready to take the stage I listened to the conversations taking place around me. Most of them, if not all, were about Sage Francis and how excited they were to watch him. AWTHNTKTS began their set and then one of the members said, “It’s about to be a really good show” and he was right.

From the get-go the entire night was full energy and was a really good show. People were nodding along to the beat and as I surveyed the crowd it was clear that people had shown up for a good time. I enjoyed listening to this group not only because I already like the genres of hip-hop and rap but because they actually sounded good and looked like they were having a great time which transferred to how the crowd felt.

After the end of their set and after waiting for a bit, it was finally time for Sage Francis. As I looked over at the crowd the people in the front seemed much more excited than those in the back.  If I had been standing in the back then I don’t think I would have gotten the same experience out of either performances.

After there had been a cancellation, Sage was asked if he wanted to perform  and he had said, as he told the crowd, “let’s do this shit”. A few minutes before Sage actually got on stage I heard someone say, “Bizarre Ride cancelled. Which is fine because Sage is better anyway.” This gave me hope that the night would continue to be energetic and worth my time. It totally was. The minute Sage got onstage there was instant cheering. In fact, every action he did and every word he said got a cheer from the audience.

Not only did Sage lower the music multiple times throughout his set so that lyrics, similar to the ones above, could be heard better but he also belted out some pretty great raps.

During the night, Sage would pause and tell a story. One of his stories was to set up to a song. He discussed how a girl had told him to “get over yourself” and that this caused him to write songs about heartbreak. He even mentioned that he was “the Taylor Swift of underground hip-hop” but that he grew up and evolved and was actually embarrassed of the heartbreak songs. At the end of his story and before jumping into his next song Sage said, “We’re all pieces of shit, you live long enough you become a piece of shit.” What did the crowd do? They cheered.

Part of my amazing experience at Sage Francis’ concert was the crowd themselves. Frankly, a lot of them were tipsy or full-blown drunk but it definitely helped the atmosphere. In fact, his fans are so loyal to him that even a pregnant women, who at the end of the show I discovered was named Allison (not sure if correct spelling), was in attendance. She was there with her partner, Drew, and both of them were big Sage fans. So much in fact that they will be naming their daughter Sage. Seeing this dedication not only from them but from other fans who were in attendance aided in my listening and enjoyment of Sage Francis. Both AWTHNTKTS and Sage Francis displayed great talent and amazing energy that made you want to get up and have fun. Which I did.

I highly recommend that you listen to both as they will be get you energy up and will be worth your time and if they aren’t well in the words of AWTHNTKTS, “If ya ain’t down for hip-hop please leave.”

The post Mission Creek: Sage Francis @ Blue Moose Taphouse 4/7/16 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Maxilla Blue were the first group to perform. Consisting of Emcee Asphate Woodhavet on the mic, and DJ TouchNice behind the turntables. Maxilla Blue has been a staple of Des Moines music since their first release in 2008. Maxilla Blue started the show with their high energy rap, (or, as Asphate called it, “that rhyme shit”). Asphate rapped over beats that tended to be on the smoother side, sampling horns and jazz melodies. The duo also performed from a new release out later this year.

Up next were AWTHNTKS from right here in Iowa City. The four-piece group is made up of emcees ION, johndope, and Romulan and are backed by DJ Johnny Sixx. The three emcees took turns taking the lead on songs, which consisted of a mix of solo songs, and newer tracks that have yet to be released.

With the show being the only rap concert at Mission Creek, it was nice to see 2/3 of the acts as Iowa natives. It’s pretty obvious that Iowa doesn’t a have a booming hip-hop scene, but Maxilla Blue and AWTHNTKTS were good representations of the flourishing scene that can only grow.

Shortly after AWTHNTKS’ set, main act Freddie Gibbs took to the stage armed with a full bottle of vodka and his crew. “Y’all could of gotten anyone for this festival”, Gibbs addressed the audience after a few songs into his set. “But ya’ll went with motherfuckin’ Gasnta Gibbs!” And there was a good reason for that. From beginning to end, Gibbs was relentless. It seemed pretty obvious that Gibbs wasn’t really working with a set list, rapping a capella and leaving the DJ to jump in on his own. But with the amount of times he had us yell “fuck police” during the set, it was clear that structure isn’t really Gibbs’ style.

Not long into the show, Gibbs asked for the lights to be turned off. From then on, Gibbs performed in almost total darkness, with nothing but lighters and phone lights to light the stage. After the show, Gibbs returned not for a typical encore, but for a dance party where fans were invited to join him on stage. Leftover beer cans were sprayed by Gibbs’ crew over the audience, as fans tried to get as close as they could to Gibbs and the stage. It was a pretty fitting ending for a night of “that rhyme shit.”

There’s still plenty more acts to see from Mission Creek, get the full schedule here on their website.

The post Mission Creek: Freddie Gibbs @ Blue Moose 4/2/15 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Seattle native’s most recent project Together/Apart, a self-discovering story-line three years in the making anchored most of the set. Grieves wasn’t afraid to pull out songs from his past projects. While his stage presence was phenomenal, a faulty sound system throughout the set created for a bit of disappointment.

The technical difficulties allowed  for the energetic opening act, Sweatshop Union, to shine a bit more. The “Back On My Grizzly Tour” has been supported by the Vancouver, Canada based hip-hop collective. They performed the majority of their most recent album Infinite. However the biggest crowd-pleaser was their song Bill Murray, an ode to the legendary actor. Their energetic and carefree attitudes dazzled the crowd and made for an incredible opening set.

Before Sweatshop Union, local hip-hop group AWTHNTKTS hit the stage. They have recently been gaining exposure by opening for acts such as Danny Brown, Mobb Deep and Grieves throughout the last six months. Although they were without vocalist Romulan, the group still put on a great show.

Grieves came on soon after Sweatshop Union. The room fell dark as the erie baseline animated the crowd. Grieves burst onto the stage without his microphone working. The faulty beginning took some life from of the crowd. However his anecdotes between songs recaptured the crowds attention. Telling stories of his past trips to Iowa City, where he woke up naked in a sorority house, as well as relating to the heartbroken listeners with a breakup story. In between dodging money, taking shots from the crowd and at one point being hit with a bottle full of cherries, Grieves was able to play an enticing and dynamic set.

If you are interested in Grieves’ music check out his website or buy his album Together/Apart on iTunes.

The post Show Review: Grieves @ the Blue Moose 11/10/13 appeared first on KRUI Radio.