Video: Corinne Bailey Rae, “I’d Do It All Again” Live On Jimmy Kimmel
I think it’s safe to say that Corinne is aware of the fact that she keeps her eyes closed during her performances and therefore needs to have fantastic eye makeup steez. Also her jumpsuit is so fly I immediately felt bad about my outfit today. As for the music, what more do you want us to say? We know that she doesn’t have to see in order to perform this dope cut from new album, The Sea. She kills it! She may not jump around and have things blow up around her but I’m pretty sure she dropped all panties and boxers in that room. Everybody probably left immediately to go make love, which means XXXmas babies! Ok we can’t verify that but people should have left immediately after and got it on. Corinne Bailey Rae is hella smooth!–Judnick Mayard
Interview: Keys N Krates
Last night Suite903 got a chance to sit down with the guys from Keys N Krates after their show at the Mercury Lounge. Keys N Krates is a Canadian trio comprised of DJ Jr. Flo, drummer Adam Tune, and keyboardist Matisse. They are part of the pioneering group of artists that remix as a performance art, combining many influences including soul, hip-hop, electronic and pop, they could just as easily be remixing MGMT or Feist as Tribe or Mos Def. After the jump, read some excerpts from our conversation:
Review: Raphael Saadiq Live in NYC
From the first second to the last downbeat, the band played nonstop. There were no pauses, there was no break. Raphael Saadiq was flying a fully packed time machine to the ’60s—and luckily for us, the captain assured us it was going to be a smooth ride.
But before talking about Saadiq, I have to set the mood for where he transported the crowd to the gilded era of Motown and Stax at NYC’s cavernous but packed Terminal 5 last Friday. His band, seven musicians dressed in crisp black suits complete with slick black ties, backed his equally dapper self as he took us through New Orleans, Oakland and New York, mastering the classic soul sound, yet always with a distinctively original flavor. Despite Raphael Saadiq being the star of the show, he also spotlighted his bandmates, fully cognizant of their talent. Perhaps the most surprising part of the night was about two hours into the show when Charles, the formerly silent keyboard player, was prodded by Saadiq to sing a few notes. Starting off modestly, with Saadiq comically donning a huge “Charles” sign behind him for support, Charles unleashed into an ascending scat that brought our plane up to maximum altitude. The initially timid Charles couldn’t be stopped once he got a taste of the audience, continuing throughout the rest of the show. Raphael said he only plays with people who are better than him and this, combined with surprise appearances by Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Mohammed from A Tribe Called Quest, was proof he wasn’t kidding. Even Raphael grabbed a turn on bass, musicianship from a leader with a smart ability to foster a talented group of musicians.
Fortunately, it seems the concert represented a microcosm of how Saadiq runs his life. Right after he stops touring in January, Saadiq plans on going back to the studio to finish his next album. If you aren’t already counting down the days on this one, you crazy. —Eric N. Sandler
More pictures after the jump.
Review: The Roots + Nneka, Live in NYC
“We have come to Africanize America!” a defiant Nneka proclaimed as she brought down the house on the VIPs (or “Vagabonds in Power,” in her parlance) last Thursday night at NYC’s Highline Ballroom. Switching flawlessly and fluidly between classic female R&B singer and Afro-beat spatting rebel, Nneka made sure there was no question that Africa was in the house and she had an attitude. With tunes like “Heartbeat,” Nneka created musical tensions that could only be released through dance and communal song, helping us vocally challenged audience members with a dense vocal echo.
With new and inventive rhythms from places like Senegal, Nigeria, Cuba, and Latin America becoming increasingly accessible through the internet, their popularity is expanding little by little. Though not well known in the States, if Nneka’s performance was any indication of the future, it seems she’ll be heading the influx of new African artists taking America by storm in the near future—her excellent upcoming album Concrete Jungle will see to that.
But Nneka was only the beginning of a concert filled with hip-hop greats. On the last night of The Roots’ jam series, the band shared the limelight with artists ranging from Sierra Leone natives Bajah + the Dry Eye Crew to English R&B star Marsha Ambrosius (of Floetry), and the Rev. Vince Anderson. It was sad to see The Roots jam band series end, but it was proof not only of their mightiness as a collective but their openness to new acts like Nneka. -Eric N. Sandler
Georgia Anne Muldrow, “Roses” (Live at Agape)
Georgian Anne Muldrow been told us how she gets herself out of a slump. We, on the other hand, prefer to use her tales recovery to feel better about our own melancholy. Drawing (pretty) pictures is not something everyone can do well, but it helps us to know that even the most multi-talented of our heroes get sad. Watch Muldrow sing about being down live and see if it doesn’t get you up to cop some tix when her show rolls through your town.
via Fresh Selects
Theophilus London f. Jesse Boykins, “Cold Pillow” Live
The boys performed this track last week at the Diesel UMusic show at Webster Hall in NYC, and Melo-X filmed it. Not only did the song turn out great, the light behind them lent such a pretty, hazy atmosphere, they ended up looking like performing blue and green silhouettes. (via Theophilus’ blog)
Grace Jones: Looks Good in Almost Any Hat
We think this is an architectural feat atop the magnificent Ms. Jones’ blessed crown, maybe a prototype for a building designed by Frank O. Gehry? How does it even stay on? Next level. The Roskilde Festival was held in Denmark over the weekend with Jones as a featured performer alongside Kanye West, Amadou + Mariam, Lil Wayne, Mars Volta and many others. Check this video of her totally murdering “William’s Blood.”
