Soul Brains (Bad Brains)

Overall an enjoyable show, and I'm happy to finally see that which is Bad Brains live. Things really got going at the end and especially during the encore, and then they abruptly stopped. It was like they were on the verge of tapping into classic Bad Brains intensity, and then they just pulled the plug and walked away.

Until the end, I thought some of the hardcore seemed strangely tame. Part sound, part HR holding back, I guess. And also I wasn't in the thick of things in front of the stage. I enjoyed a lot of the reggae especially a nice version of I and I survive.

Maximum respect! Love I!

show was good…love the hardcore..hate the reggae…..sad, but true…Dr. Know is amazing

Originally posted by Metal Meltdown:
Its shame about HR really..he has cost that band every good opportunity they ever had and nobody wants them without him in the fold. Earl, Daryl, and Dr. Know are great musicians, its a shame they are stuck with him. A band this influential deserved a lot better. They tried to make a go without him with Chuck Moseley from Faith No More in the 90's on Columbia Records with "Rise"(who was given some rasta name when he joined the band) but it flopped. I had high hopes in 95/96 when they were signed to Madonna's Maverick Records and given rotation on 120 minutes with the "God of Love" video. Maverick signed them to a major label deal under the understanding that HR had to be back in the band. Once again, HR went off the deep end and crack somebodies skull open with a mic stand..end of tour..end of promotion from Maverick.

Agreed. I saw a show on that God of Love tour and it was even worse than last night. HR refused to come on stage and when he finally did he left after a song or two or three and never came back. End of show.

In the 80's though, Bad Brains and HR in particular were riveting….just an insane live show.

The reggae/dub songs they played on the '87 live album 'The Youth are getting restless' are damn good, then again they were covers of the Beatles, the stones and dennis brown but they were rockin mixed in with the hardcore songs, but yeah 'Rise' blew.

i couldn't make this show. what "classic" bad brains songs did they play? and how long did they play? sounds like mixed reactions to me. and no surprise murphys law sucked.

It's funny, I'm a bit of a guitar snob (love Dr. Know, Page Hamilton, Vernon Reid, Tom Morello, guys who are good at the stacatto thing and very expressive in their playing) so I don't usually get up for the two chord ole skool punk thing anymore…but I honestly didn't think Murphy's Law were that bad. They weren't organized, on time, or all that original, but they had a sense of humor and engaged the crowd.

I thought Red Tape had a lot of potential, if they'd slow the fuck down, practice a bit, and stick to the riffy type stuff and stay away from 195bpm strumming.

Bad Brains were great, despite HR's understated lazy vocals and poor sound engineering. The 45 mins late was bullshit, but par for the course with BB from what I understand. Dr. K and Darryl Jennifer were outstanding in tandem…they really are unique talents, and I'm glad to say that I finally got to see them.

HR is one strange fellow, he really is what I expected him to be. During the second song, the mic stand fell to the ground…and you could feel the collective gasp in the crowd, as in "oh shit what's he going to do now? hope he doesn't start swinging"…but the tech adeptly swept it away. I loved his towel wrapped around his waist, the puma sweat suit with the pants tucked into the socks, and the slippers or moccasins. He had enough clothes on to stay warm in the Arctic.

While HR is probably well off his game compared to the Quickness era of the late 80s, the BB are still an amazing live show. There's a real energy and passion there, and had HR ever had his shit together…perhaps they really could have been something. Well…they really are something, and to deny their influence is foolish…but you wonder what could have been when you see them.

I'm really surprised at all the praise for this show. HR sang the old stuff like he had genuine contempt for the material. I don't mean he even sang it half assed. That would be an overstatement in my opinion. Sure the band sounded good, but to me HR and his stellar vocals were an equal attraction in the Bad Brains and without them it's only half the package, to me at least.

I'm sure most folks who saw them in the 80's who were at this show would agree.

If some folks enjoyed it I'm really glad they did and glad they got a chance to see maybe the greatest hardcore act of all time. I just think the Bad Brains were up there punching a clock and next time I'll just stay home.

Originally posted by chaz:
HR sang the old stuff like he had genuine contempt for the material.

We must have been at different shows, because I sure didn't see that.

Originally posted by chaz:
I just think the Bad Brains were up there punching a clock and next time I'll just stay home.

Hmmmm. Didn't get that impression either.

Originally posted by Sailor Ripley:

Originally posted by chaz:
HR sang the old stuff like he had genuine contempt for the material.

We must have been at different shows, because I sure didn't see that.

Originally posted by chaz:
I just think the Bad Brains were up there punching a clock and next time I'll just stay home.

Hmmmm. Didn't get that impression either.

Like i said, most seemed to enjoy the show much more than i did.

well the band is still tight, but its hard to put a good show when your singer is so whacked out of his mind he comes into songs at the wrong time, sings the wrong lyrics, takes 45 minutes to get on stage, then runs off during the encore before all the songs are finished

like I said..its a shame, this band probably had a lot of good music left in it that never got recorded..

i against i was the last song on the setlist. he didn't leave early.

Originally posted by thatguy:
i against i was the last song on the setlist. he didn't leave early.

Thanks Josh, just seemed like an abrupt ending:)

Originally posted by Metal Meltdown:

Originally posted by thatguy:
i against i was the last song on the setlist. he didn't leave early.

Thanks Josh, just seemed like an abrupt ending:)

It seemed like an abrupt ending cuz HR couldn't wait to get outta there and ran (not walked) off stage!

Originally posted by thatguy:
i against i was the last song on the setlist. he didn't leave early.

Anybody have the complete setlist?

I went expecting the worst but actually wasnt let down too badly (and towards the end was completely fucking blown away). Coming out WAY late did start them out on bad footing (at least with me because my adrenaline had already peaked and dropped by then). They actually started out pretty damn strong (yes HR fucked up the beginning of "Sailin' On" but who doesnt fuck up song lyrics every once in a while? I was just glad the motherfucker stayed onstage! haha) and even the reggae that they played (which was usually only one song sandwiched in between their hardcore songs, I think they might have done two in a row once in the entire set) was relatively tight and well played (though at times onstage it looked like the Bad Brains backing up Lee "Scratch" Perry as wacky as HR was acting). The only real gripe I had was the poor choice of hardcore songs in the middle of the set which I honestly didnt recognize (as any releases after I Against I were re-sold by me pretty much after one rotation because I found it to be unlistenable crap compared to the early material) which is a damn shame that playing those took precedence over classic but omitted songs in the set like FVK, Banned in DC, At the Movies, Destroy Babylon, House of Suffering, The Big Takeover, I etc. But the fact that the last 3 songs in the set were I and I Survive, Re-Ignition, Pay to Cum (which was worth the fucking price of admission right there, all 2 glorious minutes worth) plus I Against I for the encore made up for the lull in the middle of the set. Of course I wish I had seen them in '89 (those plans foiled due to the 9:30 club selling out 2 nights before I could get tickets) or earlier but Im definitely glad I got to finally witness the original lineup perform.
Hunter