It was sold out show at the Boulder Theater, in Boulder, Colorado, for Carnage, I Self Divine, and Atmosphere. With a line up like that it could only be one thing, and that's amazing, which it truly was!
Carnage opened up the show a little after 9pm. It was a little odd at first seeing him on the stage by himself with no d.j. or band. I haven't had the best experiences with m.c.'s running their own show from a laptop. But soon I was pleasantly surprised. He began to beat box, making his own beats and sounds, recording them with his pedals, and then looping them over. As he progressed he had several beats going at once and then would begin to rap over top of his own sounds. It was truly remarkable to see this happen live. It takes pure talent to be a one man band like he was. A highlight of his set was his tribute section he performed. He first started making the beat and rapping to "Paul Revere" by the Beastie Boys. He followed it up with "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" by O.D.B. Then it was "Star Destroyer", a tribute to his late friend Michael "Eyedea" Larsen.
I had the pleasure of talking with Carnage a few times throughout the night. I'm impressed when an artist stands at his table all night selling merch and conversing with fans. To me, that's what it's all about. It shows he is a real person, with true character. He introduced himself to me not as Carnage, but as his real name Terrell, which impressed me even more. He was a pleasure to talk to. He is a genuinely nice, humble guy, that is just doing what he loves to do. I asked him if he always does his shows like that. He said he has used d.j.'s and live bands in the past but he was getting such good feedback from his beatboxing portions of the show that he decided to trying it completely solo. In my opinion he made the right choice. In all of the shows I have been to I have never seen a set quite like his. And it was awesome!
I got stuck in the back of the crowd when I Self Divine came on stage. More and more people continued to flow into the sold out venue. I Self Divine put on an energizing, crisp, and enthusiastic performance. He had some good messages throughout the set, a little political undertone, that make me want to get his latest work to get a better listen.
Finally its the moment everyone has been waiting for! The lights dim, the crowd erupts. After a few moments here comes Ant, Nate (guitar), and Erick (keyboard). "My Key" begins to play. After a few more moments, here comes Slug in his black hoodie with his hood pulled over his hat. After a great first song, they break out "Trying to find a balance". The crowd was loud and on cue, belting out every word to the opening of the song. His mic was fine, but the crowd was so into it you could barely hear the words from Slug over the audience.
Overall, it was the best song list I've ever heard from Atmosphere. They covered songs from Overcast all the way to The Family Sign. Of course there are always a few of your favorites who wish they would have played, but was surprised with so many of the classics and personal favorites. I love Lucy Ford, and God Loves Ugly, so it was great to hear some classics like "Gun and Cigarettes" and "God Loves Ugly". Also enjoyed some of my favorites like "Waitress", "Tomorrow", "Became" and "Sunshine". He eventually took off the hoodie and was wearing a new black Brother Ali shirt, which I'm sure most of us will be picking up in a few weeks!
For the encore, Carnage came back out. He laid down the beats for "1597" from Overcast. I Self Divine then joined in and the three of them wowed the crowd with a freestyle session. The freestyle is always a highlight at any hip hop show you attend, allowing the true skills to flow out.
A highlight of the show for me was during a rendition of "Say Shh". Slug did a little improvising. "Doomtree lives here, we have 10,000 lakes", as Slug points to my black No Kings Doomtree hat I'm sporting. Has Slug ever pointed at you and changed the lyrics to his song? I thought it was cool, and is something I'll take with me for a while.
It was my fifth time seeing Atmosphere live and was by far the best performance I have seen from them. Overall, it ranks in my top five, maybe even top three shows I have ever seen!! If you have never seen Atmosphere, it is a must see show. Slug is a legend and always leaves it all out on the stage. I'm fortunate to have made the sold out show that night in Boulder, Colorado!! Peace!!
Carnage opened up the show a little after 9pm. It was a little odd at first seeing him on the stage by himself with no d.j. or band. I haven't had the best experiences with m.c.'s running their own show from a laptop. But soon I was pleasantly surprised. He began to beat box, making his own beats and sounds, recording them with his pedals, and then looping them over. As he progressed he had several beats going at once and then would begin to rap over top of his own sounds. It was truly remarkable to see this happen live. It takes pure talent to be a one man band like he was. A highlight of his set was his tribute section he performed. He first started making the beat and rapping to "Paul Revere" by the Beastie Boys. He followed it up with "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" by O.D.B. Then it was "Star Destroyer", a tribute to his late friend Michael "Eyedea" Larsen.
I had the pleasure of talking with Carnage a few times throughout the night. I'm impressed when an artist stands at his table all night selling merch and conversing with fans. To me, that's what it's all about. It shows he is a real person, with true character. He introduced himself to me not as Carnage, but as his real name Terrell, which impressed me even more. He was a pleasure to talk to. He is a genuinely nice, humble guy, that is just doing what he loves to do. I asked him if he always does his shows like that. He said he has used d.j.'s and live bands in the past but he was getting such good feedback from his beatboxing portions of the show that he decided to trying it completely solo. In my opinion he made the right choice. In all of the shows I have been to I have never seen a set quite like his. And it was awesome!
I got stuck in the back of the crowd when I Self Divine came on stage. More and more people continued to flow into the sold out venue. I Self Divine put on an energizing, crisp, and enthusiastic performance. He had some good messages throughout the set, a little political undertone, that make me want to get his latest work to get a better listen.
Finally its the moment everyone has been waiting for! The lights dim, the crowd erupts. After a few moments here comes Ant, Nate (guitar), and Erick (keyboard). "My Key" begins to play. After a few more moments, here comes Slug in his black hoodie with his hood pulled over his hat. After a great first song, they break out "Trying to find a balance". The crowd was loud and on cue, belting out every word to the opening of the song. His mic was fine, but the crowd was so into it you could barely hear the words from Slug over the audience.
Overall, it was the best song list I've ever heard from Atmosphere. They covered songs from Overcast all the way to The Family Sign. Of course there are always a few of your favorites who wish they would have played, but was surprised with so many of the classics and personal favorites. I love Lucy Ford, and God Loves Ugly, so it was great to hear some classics like "Gun and Cigarettes" and "God Loves Ugly". Also enjoyed some of my favorites like "Waitress", "Tomorrow", "Became" and "Sunshine". He eventually took off the hoodie and was wearing a new black Brother Ali shirt, which I'm sure most of us will be picking up in a few weeks!
For the encore, Carnage came back out. He laid down the beats for "1597" from Overcast. I Self Divine then joined in and the three of them wowed the crowd with a freestyle session. The freestyle is always a highlight at any hip hop show you attend, allowing the true skills to flow out.
A highlight of the show for me was during a rendition of "Say Shh". Slug did a little improvising. "Doomtree lives here, we have 10,000 lakes", as Slug points to my black No Kings Doomtree hat I'm sporting. Has Slug ever pointed at you and changed the lyrics to his song? I thought it was cool, and is something I'll take with me for a while.
It was my fifth time seeing Atmosphere live and was by far the best performance I have seen from them. Overall, it ranks in my top five, maybe even top three shows I have ever seen!! If you have never seen Atmosphere, it is a must see show. Slug is a legend and always leaves it all out on the stage. I'm fortunate to have made the sold out show that night in Boulder, Colorado!! Peace!!
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