As one of many artists labeled "neo-soul" when she debuted in 2000, Jill Scott has managed to defy that category by keeping her music intensely personal. Whereas contemporary Erykah Badu has delved in hip-hop, jazz, rap, spoken word, soul and rock to the point of the avant garde, Scott has focused on making the words ( and not the delivery ) the point.
If Scott's approach has garnered her platinum sales and adoration on a large scale, her recent show at The Venue at The Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Indiana, was designed to prove that she deserves it. Five minutes into her set in front of a rapturous sold-out crowd it was clear that only an act of God could have silenced her—but we will get to that.
Scott hit the stage barefoot in a clinging patchwork ensemble and ripped through a bracing "Give It to Me" that clearly cold-cocked everyone in the house. Surprisingly, she followed that with "He Loves Me," which came off a wee bit eccentric; however, Scott's attitude was to dare her audience to love her and surprise them at every turn.
With Scott center stage there was a trio of choreographed back-up singers, a horn section and a synchronized light set-up and the trappings, and volume approached arena-rock levels. This is hardly what you could expect for a soul artist, but the delight of the evening was that Scott elevated her music by way of these surroundings into something epic and overwhelming. To put it another way, the woman literally took her audience to another level and had a blast doing it.
The set list was loaded with goodies including "A Long Walk," "Fool's Gold," "Cross My Mind" and "The Way," but then came that act from the Almighty and I must say his timing was horrendous. As Scott got into a deep funk version of "Hate On Me" ( which started out as a highpoint of everything that came before it ), the power abruptly went out. Blame it on a faulty generator, for not only was The Venue juiceless but the entire casino as well. That may have been quite the downer but for just that one hour, Scott proved she could walk on water.
If Scott seemed to embrace stadium-rock grandeur in a soul setting, local rockers The Gold Web seem to do it as a formality, albeit on a small scale. As a largely unknown band with a reputation for uber-glam rock and dance floor pyrotechnics, as evidenced by a recent show at Wicker Park yuppie hotspot The Emporium Arcade and the brand-new full-length Natural Born Mystic, these guys are up to something. Lead vocalist Max Perrenchio and his merry crew ( Rich Lombardo, Jake Serek and Brian David Selke ) still offer the elaborate costumes ( feathers, Mylar, bird get-ups, gobs and gobs of face paint ) and stage props ( lots of confetti, balloons, glowsticks, fog ), but this time out they seem to be aiming for a disco apocalypse ... with drag queens.
The new CD is far richer and complex than 2015's Freaks and it reveals a newfound love of pure pop music. Sure the oddball glitches are all over the place ( errant computer burps, unexpected beeps, a warped psychedelic vibe, the slap happy beat, and Perrenchio singing with the yearning of Oz's Tin Man ), but this time they drape over the songs rather then submerge them. Natural Born Mystic is an epic fizzy joyride and is clearly the great brilliant mess of summer 2016.
For starters, "Teenage Shock" sounds like '60s acoustic psychedelic pop by way of The Turtles. "Bird's Eye View" is a goofy, trippy confection with a wall of la-las breathlessly cooed in the background ( think of The Archies on peyote ) but the killer here is "Moonlight." With a concrete quaking beat, a sodden guitar interlay worthy of Pink Floyd, and a snarling hook on a par with Jeff Lynne in heat, the recording is alternately frothy, addictive, sloppy, elegant, and enchanting.
Let loose on Milwaukee Avenue on a Saturday night, The Gold Web hit The Emporium's tiny stage with world domination in mind. Between the barrage of glam, thunder and lights, the show came loaded with drive, punch and mind-bending surprises. The luscious Penny Dreadful and Electra Cute of Thee Strange Doll Haas dropped in for a blast of theatrical cheer of another type ( the frat boys were dumbstruck but their female companions LOVED them ) and, near the close of the set, the band whipped through a particularly muscular and nasty version of David Bowie's "Rebel, Rebel." Now who said Saturday nights is dead?
Heads up: Out musician Mike Maimone and his band Mutts have dropped a new single on bandcamp. The single, "Let's Go," features Archie Powell and is a taste of the band's upcoming full-length.
