Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Dave Chappelle Surprise in Downtown Portland


Rumors surfaced late Tuesday afternoon through tweets from Local35 that Dave Chappelle would do a live show, downtown at midnight. Chappelle told the staff he planned to go buy an amp to do a free live show at pioneer square at midnight. As the staff passed on the message things started to circle and the word spread like fire. As early as 10:00pm people had begun to gather at the square. The blogs and tweets continued to work furiously to convince all 18-30 yrs olds that Dave Chappelle would pull this crazy stunt possibly in an attempt to refuel a mysteriously evaporated career. Accounts of him entering local businesses, and encountering people on the street began to suggest he was telling everyone he saw.

I contributed wholeheartedly to spread the word and arranged to meet people at the square. We watched the KGW Live Cam from the apartment, refreshing once every minute. The crowd began to build so we decided it was time to head down. We arrived at about 11:45pm and ran into DJ Sacrilicous confirming earlier message board rumors that he would be in attendance. He told us about his new mix "The Scratchatory Tape" which had just dropped. Unfortunately, midnight came and went with little more than feeble attempts to rally the crowd into chant.

Many of my group decided to leave around 12:30; early morning commitments for most of them. I stuck around with DJ Sacrilicious, and just after 1am the entire crowd was shocked to see Dave Chappelle emerge out of the once drowsy audience and get up on the stage in front of nearly 4,000 exhilarated Portlanders.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Dave fought for control of the crowd for the next hour. He had brought a very small battery powered amp, and called for the assistance of Pure Hype Entertainment's Pierre Stephane who would hold the amp up for the crowd for the next 65 minutes.

As Dave fought for control, by pleading for silence in attempt to tell us all "something very important" the lack of sound lost his message to a 75% majority of the crowd. Eventually he gets the crowd to settle for long enough for him to say "I learned today... that you can't tell a secret in Portland." The small portion of the crowd that could hear his "Duracell" powered amp burst into laughter, as the rest of the crowd felt left out and made their concerns heard with roars of demands to shift the speaker.

The woman that accompanied him on stage got an opportunity to play one song whit her acoustic guitar, but again the amp had trouble hitting more than 250 people. I heard him say, "I really didn't expect this many people." to which the Portland crowd patted themselves on the back with a fury of applause.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Throughout his performance a few people came on stage with a much larger speaker system, and frantically searched for electricity for almost the entirety of his time on stage.Cords were hand off one by one through to the back of the crowd, where a few individuals on the stage were certain there were outlets. Eventually with the assistance of the police they were informed that the city turns off power to Pioneer Square at midnight.

Just after 2am he said goodbye and thank you, telling us the cops need us to vacate the square in an orderly fashion at. Chappelle attempted to leave the now -at capacity- stage and there was a bit of a struggle as people rushed him for autographs and to hand him notes and fliers. I got a few pictures and some decent video. Will upload video soon.



http://soundcloud.com/djsacrilicious

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

As you may very well have noticed, I did not post at all during March. Fear not, this is not because I have not been going to shows and getting footage. I have been backed up with school, and also encountered some technical difficulties with my editing software. I have a bunch of footage to go through from shows throughout March, and already this month as well. So stay tuned, as I will likely be loading a bunch of it all at once.

**All of my videos are available for free download on my Vimeo page. Email me with any questions. (nichollsaaron@gmail.com)

Friday, March 20, 2009

Senses Fail and Hollywood Undead

I'd like to start this post with a quick shout out to my boy Tom Flynn, who went to this show with me and lost a shoe. haha. We attended this show for one reason only... Senses Fail. Hollywood Undead is a joke as far as I'm concerned, but I that didn't keep me from taking some pretty great video of them. Senses played pretty well, although I have seen them twice before and this was the least entertaining of the three. Hollywood Undead sold this place out, and had the entire crowd going nuts the whole time, so I guess a few people think they are alright. The Senses Fail video is just one straight video of three songs, and I almost drop my camera at one point. The Undead video is actually an edit of some of the footage I got. The show was a blast, go check the videos.


Senses Fail from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.


Hollywood Undead from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Monday, March 9, 2009

K'NAAN

I was catching up with an old friend of mine over the internet recently, and as it often does, music came up. I asked him who he had been listening to lately, and he asked me if I had heard of K'NAAN. I had no idea who he was talking about, but he insisted I check it out. The very next day I saw an advert for this show which happened to be the following night, and so I went. Before heading to the show I downloaded K'NAAN's album, and I wasn't really impressed. His live show however, changed my mind and I think everyone should give him a listen. I took quite a bit of video at the show; so I took a few of the best clips and attempted to edit them together, I'm still getting the hang of seamlessly taking you through the show using multiple cuts. Anyway, check it out.


K'NAAN from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Friday, February 27, 2009

The Game

I was looking forward to this show because I always enjoy a megastar rapper live in concert. I'm not a huge fan of The Game, but from my experience, these guys bring the fire when they hit the stage. Well The Game broke the cycle. I have been simply awestruck by rappers in the past including Red and Meth, Ice Cube, W C, and even Wyclef came to rock the party, but The Game was a sheer disappointment. He performed 30% of the lyrics, the crowd had to fill in the rest. I'm not saying I disagree with allowing the crowd to prove to you how much we like you by shouting your lyrics at the top of our lungs... however I did come to hear YOU! The video I decided to post is of one of his mainstream hits "This Is How We Do". You can see his lack of energy and complete disregard for his own lyrics. Check it out.


The Game from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Beejan at The Mansion

Last Friday (Feb. 20th) was my opportunity to see some local hip-hop live, at The Mansion on SE 11th and Morrison. I heard about the show through a friend, and I have to say I was NOT completely dissappointed. While the crowd wasn’t incredible, it was certainly characteristic of a local rap show, especially at a place called The Mansion. I have to say I was particularly impressed by a kid named Beejan coming from Tigard. I enjoyed the kid’s old school flow; you gotta love being able to understand each word. Especially when the words are things like “you might catch an uppercut like Tekken, what, check him, he might have brought the Tech in. haters, fake thugs they all carry weapons.” After his set I bought one of his Mix Tapes, which is apparently in stores.(EveryDay Music, 360 Vinyl) The album, I Guess That’s the Name Vol. 2, has some very solid tracks on it including Fire, Embrace the Day, and Timeline, all of which I believe can be found on his myspace page (myspace.com/beejanmusic). Many of his songs involve normal life themes, as opposed to the drug dealing lifestyle we are so used to hearing about. Some of his lines were illustrative of his local standing and aspirations. “They’re living in the studio, I’m living in reality. Trying to turn my art into a seven digit salary.” I took a few videos at the show but the one I decided to post is one where he decides to ignore that the song is over, and continues to spit a capella when the beat drops.The kid next to me was thoroughly excited about it, and I imagine fairly intoxicated, check it out. I enjoyed myself, and look forward to seeing more from this local artist. His upcoming show is free, at Urban Hookah on TV Highway next Saturday(March 7th). (www.urbanhookah.net)


Beejan at The Mansion from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Cradle of Filth

I really just want to put this show behind me, so let’s make this quick. I showed up in between sets, just before Cradle of Filth was ready to start. I often plan to arrive right around this time for shows like this because the headliner is going to be bad enough; might as well save myself the pain and skip the openers. The Roseland was the setting for this blackened mob, all decked out in their Children of Bodom T-shirts and studded belts. My buddy Matt and I had been getting mentally prepared on our walk from my downtown apartment and going in, I was pretty pumped to get hit in the face by a Goth kid. Unfortunately upon rising up into the Roseland floor, I found myself standing in a nearly empty auditorium. The worst thing about a small turn out at a metal show is the direct effect it has on the pit. Naturally. Needless to say the pit sucked and the music was worse. That’s the short and sweet. Check the vid.


Cradle of Filth from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Rebelution

“Hailing from Santa Barbara California, wearing the baggy jeans in the pot leaf trim, the defending California Reggae champions of the world… Rebelution!” While that all may be a little over the top, you seriously need to check these guys out. Their album “Courage to Grow” was something I didn’t stop talking about for some weeks leading up to the show. I had never heard of Rebelution before seeing their show announced on MikeThrasherPresents.com (pitch!) and once I saw their poster, I immediately headed to my torrent search engine of choice _______ (send check to see name there) and downloaded their debut release. I’ve never had a particular interest in this genre, but this disc certainly changed my mind. The album features hit after hit of solid relaxing ska infused reggae that you can’t help but dance to. Their live performance was no different. The show was at The Hawthorne Theatre, and they sold the place out. The first thing I couldn’t help but notice as they took the stage was Marley Williams (bass) rocking a Blazers jersey. What a badass. They opened up with a few tracks from the album, and then as many bands like to do they threw us some new material to digest. The new stuff was pretty good, but what I found most enjoyable was their performance of almost the entirety of Courage to Grow. I was impressed as the entire crowd knew each and every word. Their encore was Feeling Alright, which just so happens to be your video for this show. Go check it out, and throw me a comment.


Rebelution from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

The Walkmen

Showing up just before the headliner comes out, is a skill that I have been trying to develop through the years, as my availability gets tighter, and social engagements take precedent to your brothers garage band. But on the other side of that arrangement you’ll find that more often than not you are missing solid talent that is yet to be discovered. This show was a great example as I arrived during the final set change. I went up to the bar with my buddy Mark, and asked around about how the show had been thus far, and I couldn’t stop hearing rave reviews about Beach House, the band that had just left the stage. I spoke to around 15 people that each said they performed outside of their expectations. I even ran into one guy who was on his way out, having seen what he’d come to see… Beach House. I on the other hand was there for one thing, Red Moon. A single off of The Walkmen’s fifth studio release “You & Me”. It was my favorite track of the solid indie album and I think they played the rest of it pretty well. The showmanship was mildly lacking, but I wasn’t exactly in the right mind to make that distinction so maybe take that with a grain of salt. I enjoyed myself, and that is what it’s all about. Check out the vid which is the song Red Moon. Download their studio stuff, much better representation of their music than this live show footage.


The Walkmen from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Pepper

I had very little history with Pepper before entering the venue, but I am a big fan of Rebelution which is a group on the same label (run by Pepper), so I assumed I would be in for a treat. Oh and how right I was! These guys killed the Crystal Ballroom with extraordinary energy and crowd involvement. Pepper are some incredible entertainers and outrageously talented musicians. This video is of Pepper and a member of one of the supporting acts tearing the trumpet up. Check it Out, and go download some Pepper.


Pepper from Aaron Nicholls on Vimeo.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Unfortunately my page has been relatively inactive as of late, being that tours tend to die down during the holiday season. Never fear, the coming months should be spectacular. Mike Thrasher is bringing some great live entertainment to the Portland area and I'll be there. You however will likely be here... watching and reading about it. I point this out because I want to see YOU at these shows. You could appear in my blog just as easily as Mogwai, August Burns Red, Flogging Molly, or the Bone Thugs. So check out this list of upcoming shows and meet me there, you wont regret it.

And also, type your email address in the field below to get email updates about all my new posts.

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner



Rebelution
January 23, 2009 Portland, OR- The Hawthorne Theatre
Rebelution, State Radio

Cradle of Filth
February 4, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
Cradle of Filth, Satyricon, Septic Flesh

Funeral For a Friend
February 6, 2008 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
Funeral For a Friend, The Sleeping, Emarosa, This Is Hell

Nappy Roots
February 12, 2009 Portland, OR- Berbati’s Pan

The Game
February 26, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater

M. Ward
March 7, 2009 Portland, OR- The Aladdin Theater

Bleeding Through
March 26, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
Bleeding Through, The Acacia, As Blood Runs Black, Impending Doom

Hollywood Undead
April 1, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
Hollywood Undead, Senses Fail, Haste The Day, Brokencyde

Turbonegro
April 12, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
Turbonegro, Kandi Coded

The Devil Wears Prada
April 18, 2009 Portland, OR- The Roseland Theater
The Devil Wears Prada, A Day to Remember, Sky Eats Airplane, Emarosa