Noise Damage

Saul, along with some musical friends – local and national – dropped by the Varsity Theater to put on a hell of a show Sunday night. Locals Dearling Physique and No Bird Sing joined pop-punkers American Fangs from Houston and hip hop impresarios CX Kidtronic & Tchaka Diallo in opening for the legendary warrior poet, providing a vast array of flavors for the crowd’s perusal and enjoyment. Based on the responses from the crowd, some horizons were definitely broadened – stated by show staff as a prime goal of the Afro-Punk movement.

Photos and details after the jump.

Minneapolis locals Dearling Physique opened up the night with their theatrical blend of downtempo electronics, trip-hop and soaring guitars. Their set reminded me of everything I love about Massive Attack’s “Mezzanine”, Tricky’s brooding darkness and Aphex Twin’s “Seleted Ambient Works 85-92″.

Photos of Dearling Physique:

Click here for a slideshow of Dearling Physique’s set.

Another local favorite, No Bird Sing, brought their soulful instrumental hip-hop to what appeared to be an unsuspecting crowd. To say that “Devil Trombones” brought down the house would be an understatement. The Twin Cities are lucky to have such talent brewing within our city limits – the out of town crew (and reportedly Saul himself) seemed to be very impressed by the two local openers. As well they should be, they brought some great tunes.

Photos of No Bird Sing:

Click here for a slideshow of No Bird Sing’s set.

Houstonites American Fangs came with the modern power punk, showing the kids how punk rock has evolved in the last 20 years. Slick and well-produced, their incredibly active front man and crew had the crowd moving and, frankly, made it tough for a no-flash photographer to get photos. This is a good thing. Their boundless energy on stage made for an incredibly entertaining set.

Photos of American Fangs:

Click here for a slideshow of American Fangs’ set.

After a brief interlude featuring some four-on-the-floor, booty-shaking beats from CX Kidtronic & Tchaka Diallo the one and only Niggy Tardust took the stage. The character, created by Saul Williams, as an outlet for a more aggressively overt side of his personality. Niggy Tardust is being laid to rest after this tour allowing the now Paris-dwelling Williams to progress into a new era. Judging by the incredible energy and great vibe presented during his set I’m inclined to believe that Niggy is going out with a bang, at a high point in his life cycle. Highlights from the set included an incredible cover of Bjork’s “Declare Independence” that had Saul’s own lyricism woven through it and the Trent Reznor-produced cover of “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. Other tracks, like “Tr(n)igger” and “NiggyTardust”, took on an entirely new life in their live context, breaking free of their album versions and busrting into a vibrant crowd-centric experience that I couldn’t have anticipated.

Photos of Saul Williams:

Click here for a slideshow of Saul Williams’ set.

The tour, presented by social network Afropunk.com, has more stops to come. Check out details of the tour here and be on the lookout for this awesome tour coming through your town.

Varsity Theater, 10/25/2009