Matisyahu - 8-Nov-2008

Opening Band - Future Rock was a trio of electronica/rock instrumentalists from Chicago.  I actually enjoyed their set.  It was happy electronica.  It reminded me of the Main Street electrical parade or the music on Space Mountain (old music) at Disneyland.  You're probably thinking that they must have been cheesy, but they weren't.  I even bought some of their albums.  The albums don't capture the happy spirit of the live set, but they're enjoyable.

Matisyahu...OK.  I love the guy and I love his music.  I am not Jewish, but I can appreciate the purity of his message and I understand how his concerts can become more than just concerts.  He is after all a religious music artist who has crossed into mainstream and succeeds in both worlds.

This was my second time seeing Matisyahu.  The first was when Youth had just come out in 2006.  He was somehow booked at the Fox Theater which seems like an extravagant venue for a beatboxing reggae rapper.  I really liked his energy and his positivity.  It matched that of the Live at Stubbs album.  Because of that show, I was excited when I saw he'd be coming back to Atlanta, and playing a smaller venue.

However, it was sold out show, so the Variety Playhouse quickly became suffocatingly tight.  Also, when an artist crosses multiple sects, they tend to bring an eclectic audience.  I am an admitted concert snob.  I go to shows for the sheer joy of embracing live music and completely immersing myself into it.  This crowd was not there for the same purpose.  The majority of the audience seemed like social gatherers who came to hang out, underage drink, and make out in dark places while their parents sat in the small balcony.  Needless to say, I was annoyed before Matisyahu even took the stage.

Finally when Matisyahu did come to the stage, he seemed a little tired.  He was more mellow than I'd seen him before.  He tended to get lost in his own experience as he swayed back and forth singing rhythmic "la la la's".  This made every song 8-10 minutes long.  He was great, he sounded great, but after awhile, it got boring.  I wanted to be wowed by his music and I wasn't.  Maybe it was the teenage couple kissing and groping each other to my right, or the teenage boys spitting beer at each other (and on my jacket and shoe) in front of me, or maybe I wanted to hear more songs and not lullabies.  I'm not sure what it was, but I know I probably won't go to another Matisyahu concert. 

It wasn't all blah...here's the highlights from the show:

1> Mini-Matisyahu - Some kid met Matisyahu at temple somewhere and said he was also a rapper and asked Matisyahu to check out his work.  Matisyahu liked him and took him on tour with him.  I think his name is Nelson.  He was more rap that reggae, but he was a burst of energy that was lacking during the show. He was part of the 2nd encore.  I believe you can see him in Matisyahu's VBlog's on youtube...not singing, but in the videos.  I wish I had recorded Nelson, but I was running out of space on my two memory cards (remember that each song was an avg of 9-Min long).

2> Jerusalem - This song should have closed the show.  It was the most powerful and rocking of the night.  I love King Without a Crown.  It's my favorite Matisyahu song, but when that ended the show, it was so lacking.  It was like he was just going through the motions.  Jerusalem was before King Without a Crown.  The concert would have ended on a higher note with this song.

3> Beatboxing - Whatever I didn't like about Matisyahu's incessant "La La La La-ing", I cannot say one bad thing about his beatboxing skills.  The guy can make some serious beats and keep them going.  It was 8-Min of perfection.  I loved it.

Overall, I wish I had better things to say, but I don't.  Here are many of the songs from the show.  You can judge for yourself.