Yelawolf, Das Racist, Rob Roy and The 87 Stick Up Kids at the Echoplex Feb 2, 2010

Photo by Lee Shaner at Knocksteady.com

First off, if you have never been to the Echoplex (below The Echo) you should hit up a show there for sure. It’s a way better stage set up and layout than The Echo in my opinion. The Echoplex is a really rad smaller venue to catch some up and coming artist before they blow up and start playing at Staples Center.

So the 87 Stick up kids kicked it off with a super dynamic set. I had seen them once before at Crazy Girls in Hollywood and that was when I fell in love with the boys. They are explosive on stage and have an incredibly infectious energy. The bass is always loud & thick and makes me wanna shake my booty. Not to mention the clever lyrics and stylish flow delivered by Squish, Deacon, Nashville and DJ Rockwell. The three strippers on stage were like the cherry on top.

Rob Roy slowed things down a bit with a more soul filled R&B flavor in his slick ass suit. The live drummer gave a special pop and flare to his presence. His voice is like warm honey layered over some sexy beats.

Having heard a lot about Das Racist, this was the first time I was hearing them. They were good, but they seemed a bit tired or drunk or something. Their producer, Diplo, was up on stage reppin and dancin. Their quick-witted lyrics were crackin me up. You could tell Himanshu Kumar Suri, Victor Vazquez and Ashok Kondabolu were having fun.

And finally Yelawolf came on stage with mad photographers crowding the side of the stage to snap a shot of this crazy talented Alabama native. His flow is fast like a Chevy and smooth like whisky, two of Yela’s favorite things. You can feel the “Heart of Dixie” reach out, shake you up and pull you right into Catfish Billy’s world. Everyone was throwin their hands up, singing along and shakin their moneymakers. His distinctive southern drawl is hypnotic and makes your skin tingle. Yelawolf’s raw style and unapologetic lyrics are what set him apart from other rappers and put him somewhere close to Eminem. It's no wonder that he just signed with Shady Aftermath.

If you didn’t catch him in LA you can still cop tickets to the show in Costa Mesa at the Detroit bar Feb. 3 on ticketweb.com (see post below.)

Intuition, serves everyone well!

I went to a little show at a hole in the wall in Echo Park last night and discovered this guy Intuition. Hailing from Alaska, he’s a white guy covered in tattoos with a shaved head and somewhat resembles a young Henry Rollins. His voice is soulful and emotive while he spits tales about booty calls, future ex’s, his love of California, and a kismet connection to Otis Redding on his album Girls Like Me that dropped earlier this year. The beats remind me of something straight out of the early 90’s hip hop scene. Bumpy, jazzy, sweet, and chill. Lyrically witty and intelligent with humor laced throughout. Some of the songs are a bit explicit so if you are squeamish with stuff like curse words, this may not be your cup of tea. His honesty and talent far outweigh the naughty bits in this album. I, for one, love the naughty bits!

The player above is from the album I Ruined These Songs For You that came out in March 2010 available as a free download on his website.

About the album from Intuition:

Remember when you used to make actual tapes for your friends, or a girl you liked? You'd spend hours trying to come up with the right songs in the right order, trying to appease your friend's preferences but show your tastes as well. This side project uses that exact idea, but takes it one step farther. I took a collection of 11 songs that I love (no rap music), songs that I think fans of any type of music would love, and I added a verse to each. I didn't chop the songs up and flip the samples for brownie points. I didn't try to make something new out of these songs. I just tried to leave the original songs alone as much as I could, and added one verse over each song to make it seem as if I was invited into the studio with the band to collaborate. All of these collaborations are, of course, unauthorized, but I tried to make each verse as relevant to the songs' original lyrics as I possibly could. The genres range from classic soul to modern indie rock, with a little bit of everything sprinkled in between. Some of the songs might be very familiar to you, and others may not, but I feel that I've added a nice little compliment to each of them (you might think I ruined them though). Enjoy.

www.intuition.bandcamp.com