Concert Review (+ Footage): Murs, Tabi Bonney, Ab-Soul, Whole Wheat Bread

Admittedly, I arrived at the venue after the show started but I caught the second half of Whole Wheat Bread, and all of Ab-Soul, Tabi Bonney & Murs.  In all of the shows up in Seattle that I’ve been to, the crowd hasn’t been too kind to the openers but this one was better.  The majority of people were clearly there for Murs but they were respectful and I would bet that those artists made some new fans that night.  Up top is a video of Murs with more footage throughout the article. El Corazon is an awesome venue in Seattle with an incredible sound system and a big area for a people to cram into or a smaller crowd to dance in.  My complaint about the venue is that the bar area is completely removed from the concert venue so having a beer and listening simultaneously would be impossible but aside from that it was a nice place for a hip hop show.

I had never heard Whole Wheat Bread before, but they were pretty interesting, consisting of a guitarist/vocalist, bassist/vocalist and drummer.  They played mostly punk music however the guitarist could actually spit too and he displayed his skills a couple times.  Murs even came out and did a song with them as a preview for those of us who showed up early.

Next up, Ab-Soul came on and got the crowd started.  He was pretty sick and made sure to include his new song “Moscato” which features fellow Black Hippy and XXL ’11 Freshmen, Kendrick Lamar.  The hip-hop world is starting to pick up on Black Hippy and these guys are going to blow up soon enough.  Ab-Soul kicked laid back rhymes about his everyday struggles while a small group of people near the stage swayed back and forth and everyone else chilled against a wall.  A chill vibe that would have been better suited had smoking been “allowed” in doors.

Tabi Bonney came on stage and immediately picked up the energy, wasting no time before asking for crowd participation and up-beat tempos. By the time he came on more people had filled in waiting for Murs and he was getting the party warmed up, if not getting the party started. He even brought the most energetic crowd member, Chicago rapper Hollywood Holt (who happen to be in town) on stage to perform with him.  After his performance, Tabi kicked it by the merch table signing autographs, I got a chance to talk to him for a minute and he was a very personable guy. I had heard various verses of Tabi’s on other DC mixtapes and whatnot but I hadn’t taken the time to give his solo stuff a listen.  I can say that he definitely got me curious after seeing him perform.  He had a cool sound and a nice flow.  I look forward to listening to his music more in depth and seeing what he is really all about.  He has earned a supporter in Da-what.com and a potential fan in myself.

Murs was hype! Feeding off a great energy from the crowd and the intimate nature of the venue, Murs traded off between classics with 9^th Wonder to previewing new material produced by Aesop Rock.  This was not the first time I saw Murs, I saw him at Rock the Bells in 2008 (I think) when he performed real early in the morning for about 15 of us.  It was good but the most memorable part of that performance was Murs ended his performance by proclaiming that he was “Gonna go have cereal with De La Soul… So can’t none of [us] tell [him] they are gonna have a better day than [him]”.  I later saw him perform with 9^th Wonder at Rock the Bells a year or two later.  He has always been a funny, personable guy and it was cool to see him in a situation where he was the spectacle and not a side note.  The crowd loved every track he picked and even got to choose a few of their own.  Murs then ended the show by having Whole Wheat Bread come back out as they covered “It Takes Two” by Rob Base & DJ Easy Rock, “Bust a Move” by Young MC and finally all of the artists came on stage for “Walk Like an Egyptian” by The Bangles (seen directly below with more footage after).