Twenty-six years after their formation and 13 records later, the legendary Roots crew managed to not only validate their prowess, but reinvent the concept of “performance.” Performing as a flawless collective, Black Thought and his crew took their audience on a delicious journey through the evolution of hip hop, jazz and rock, blurring the line between the three and reminding their fans of their various styles and virtuosity. The only original members, veterans Black Thought and Questlove unleashed a virility that young pups could only dream of, proving that age don’t mean shit in this game.
They may as well have thrown water in our faces, hurled us into the ring or pushed us out of a soaring airplane. We were simultaneously invigorated and exhausted, never wanting this paradoxical performance to end. Black Thought spat and snarled, while his instrumentalists fucked us good and proper with their weapons of choice. Questlove and Knuckles went head to head on percussion, competing and harmonising with one another like doubles. While Quest coolly initiated a light rhythm, Knuckles would copy it furiously. It was like the scene in School of Rock when young prodigy Zack imitates Schneebly‘s chords.
After a while though, they stopped playing follow the leader and intensified their rhythm, playing over the top of one another in an aggressive and primitive melodic style. The solos continued with bassist Mark Kelley, sousaphone playing Tuba Gooding Jr and “string assassin” Captain Kirk, who also contributed the vocals on many of the solo and collaborative tracks.
But it was the mad scientist on keys, Kamal Grey, who delivered something different from everyone else. Even with Gooding’s intimidating horn all up in his grill battling out another square off, he was cool and collected, throwing Gooding’s bass lines back in his face.
Halfway through, the jazz rap-turned Flylo-turned gangsta rap set did a complete 180 and exploded into a rock and pop medley. There was a little bit of Guns ‘N Roses, Led Zepp, Donna Summer, Outkast and Gotye in there, the crew playing only snippets and intros. Consistent with the entire show, the crew transitioned seamlessly from one track to the next, never allowing for those awkward pauses between tracks that seem to populate most rock concerts.
Playing all their commercial and non-commercial favourites, The Roots showcased a catalogue of 20 years of recorded material. Proceed, Step Into The Realm, Break You Off, The Seed and The Next Movement were all highlights, but it was the cover of Kool & The Gang’s Jungle Boogie that really got the crowd going. Man, that shit was funky. You Got Me, a personal favourite, was another highlight. Kirk substituted for Badu, contributing sincere vocals that made it almost as good as the original. Concluding with what felt like an hour-long encore, the legendary Roots left their audience wanting more. A true “performance” that transcended the crew’s original jazz-rap flavour in every way, this was definitely a live favourite of 2013.
BY DINA AMIN
Loved: Just when you thought it was about to end, it didn’t.
Hated: When it really did end.
Drank: Pipsqueak cider.
