Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Mourning in America Tour

With "Mourning in America, Dreaming in Color" being released almost 2 months ago, I would hope all of you have it by now. It is an amazing album by one of my all time favorites, Brother Ali. It is a album everyone wishes they could make, but don't have the heart, strength, courage, and wisdom to do so. Ali pours his heart and soul out into this album, touching on topics that few dare to go near. He talks about the state that this country is currently in, the wars, poverty, family, love, and memories. I know I'm not alone when I say this is exactly the album that Ali needed to create. If you haven't already done so, you need to buy or download MIADIC immediately!  I recommend buying the actual copy because of the great fold out inside. It has all the lyrics as well as great pictures.
With the Mourning in America tour just ending its North American shows, I hope that many of you had the chance to catch the live show. From what I heard from everyone around the country, it was an amazing show. He performed with a live band, Blank Tape Revolver, and had two of his favorite artists, Homeboy Sandman and The ReMinders on tour with him. All three artists dropped a new album on the same day! Brother Ali of course had MIADIC. Homeboy Sandman released First of Living Breed, and The ReMinders came out with Born Champions.

I had the pleasure of attending one of three stops the tour made here in Colorado. I saw them perform at the Aggie Theatre in my home town of Fort Collins. As expected the show did sell out by the end of the night. The ReMinders opened up the show. It was a homecoming show for them, being from Colorado. I have been a huge fan of theirs since I first saw them open for Brother Ali four or five years ago at the Fox Theatre in Boulder. This was the fourth time I have seen them and it was once again an amazing performance. Rarely do you ever hear such clarity as you do when Aja sings. Her voice is so strong and beautiful and always sounds great no matter what venue they play. The husband and wife duo have such an amazing stage presence. You can really tell they love what they are doing, and have the talent to make it shine. Some highlights for me was hearing "Outside my Window", which is one of my personal favorites from their first album Recollect. A song that really stood out to me was "I Remember". It is from their newest album, and is one of my favorite songs out there at this moment. For their last song they brought out their backup dancers, which turned out to be their three young kids. It was great to see them share the stage with their parents The crowd loved it!

Homeboy Sandman was the second to take the stage. It was my second time seeing his live show. As always, he put on a very live and energetic performance. He has a unique style and sound that is always good to hear. The only disappointing moment of his set was from the crowd. Before he was finished with his set, the crowd starting chanting for Brother Ali. It may not have been boos, but to me it was the same as being booed off the stage. I was embarrassed and ashamed of the behavior of the crowd. It was very disrespectful. For us true hip hop fans, it was awful. To Homeboy Sandman, I apologize for the behavior of the crowd. He did handle it very well and professionally. He rolled with it, telling the crowd he wasn't quite ready, and Brother Ali would be out in a moment.

It was the first time I have ever seen Brother Ali with a live band, although he has played with a live band on many occasions. Blank Tape Revolver was Ali's band for the tour. They consisted of a three piece horn section, guitar, and keyboard. Ali opened the set with with Stop the Press, a moving song that recaps the ups and downs of Ali's last couple years. He continued with some new songs off of MIADIC, like The Only Life I'll Ever Know, and Mourning in America. The live band sounded great and brought a lot of energy to the stage. The only down side was at times it they over powered Ali's voice. As the set went on, the sound got better. At times only the guitar or keyboards would play, allowing his stories to be heard a little clearer. He then broke out some classics like Dorian, Forest Whitaker, Tight Rope, and Uncle Sam Goddamn. A highlight of the show was when Brother Ali took over the drum kit, and kept the beat for the rest of the band as they took turns playing solos. For the encore, Ali came out and played what he said at the time was his favorite song, and played track one from MIADIC, Letter to my Countrymen. Then he invited Homeboy Sandman and The Reminders to come back on stage for an amazing rendition of The Truth is Here. All of them on stage at once brought so much energy and it was a great way to end the show.

Besides some stupid fans in the crowd jumping on stage and being disrespectful, it was an excellent show. All acts brought their A game and put on a show to remember! If you haven't already heard of The Reminders or Homeboy Sandman, you need to check them out. If you have never seen Brother Ali live, it is a must. While his lyrics and albums are amazing, he has a live stage presence that very few have and makes for one of the best shows you will ever see.  Til next show, peace!
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