Rock the Bells was a bit of a pilgrimage, forging through the Inland Empire’s summer temperatures and spiked gas prices, to the Glen Helen Pavilion. But it’s hard to pass up old school legends like A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and The Pharcyde, especially when paired with indie power players like Cool Kids and Spank Rock to comprise yet another successful festival from Guerilla Union.
All of the crucial ingredients were present, including Wu-Tang’s finest members: Raekwon and Ghostface being the yin to the yang of Redman and Method Man.With the unique blend of playfulness and awareness, Raekwon and Ghostface reminded the swelling crowd that “hip hop is an art form, it’s not about the glitz and glamor.” But shortly thereafter came Redman and Method Man with seasoned swagger and entertaining banter, baiting the crowd with questions like, “Who here is high?” and leading the crowd to exclaim “F*ck you Redman!” to channel any anger that people were harboring in their personal lives. At several points in the show, Method Man and Redman were standing on the fully extended arms of fans and dismounting into crowd surfing with the ease of a varsity cheerleader.
An additional bonus to the featured acts was special guest Black Eyed Peas, thankfully without Fergie. The trio delivered a spectacle of hip hop meets acrobatic show. However, this served as a rambunctious precursor for the wily Pharcyde crew, an act shrewdly chosen to transition the festival from day into evening. Appropriately enough, Pharcyde were the only rappers to employ their music videos during the performance, resurrecting the humor and nostalgic charm captured in their visual interpretations of the 90s. Before relinquishing the end of their set to Imani, Pharcyde took a moment to surprisingly – praise the people for downloading their music.
Mos Def eased the pace, inducting his winning beatnik style and soulful samples to smooth out the evening. Per usual, Def delivered flavorful social commentary guised in stylized harmonies. This proved to be a delightful calm before the storm of Nas. Initially coming on stage looking like Don Magic Juan, Nas could only be described as a powerhouse, keeping the crowd fully charged and engaged. A set filled with both new and old material, Nas’ rhymes wavered between growling about government officials, cursing mainstream radio, and showing sincere appreciation for the people that made his album number one.
As for the indie stage, I unfortunately missed the likes of the Cool Kids, who had people buzzing about their set for the rest of the day. But also taking on the second platform was Afrika Bambaataa, who welcomed on a large entourage of people for a new years style dance party, spitting funktafied rhymes over a collection of jukebox hits. But, out of the whole festival, Spank Rock was the sauciest person to perform, commanding the indie crowd with her neon green acrylic nails. From the vulgar dance moves to lyrical content, the set oozed with sexuality and sass.
The unfortunate casualty of the day was MF Doom – or rather the lack thereof. After waiting over a half hour, another individual – who was very clearly not MF Doom – took the stage with Doom’s mask on pretending to be the artist. The charade was short lived as the impostor was booed off nearly immediately. Despite assuaging the audience that Doom was being sought out to perform his set, many people left or were lividly waiting for more than an hour and a half after the listed set time.
Many acts boasted hip hop credibility that has lasted over a decade, as it was a day for original members of old school acts to triumphantly reconnect with their fervent fans. For example, reaffirming their elite status as hip hop pioneers and icons for over 20 years, De La Soul incited the crowd with the same enthusiasm, entertaining stage presence, and craft as if in the pinnacle of their career. Furthermore, the reunion of A Tribe Called Quest’s original members was a large point of draw for the tour. While Q-tip started with a solo set, paying tribute to J Dilla and mixing Tribe songs with his own, Phife Dawg, Jarobi, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad then joined forces to transport the audience back to the 90’s when their jams dominated turntables everywhere. With nearly every audience member singing along, the end of the “rollercoaster ride came too soon.
It goes without saying that the affectionate interaction between the artists and their audience was a tangible, a driving force behind the days success.
