Finally!

It was September 22nd, 2005 and I'd been waiting for this day for over two months. Prefuse 73 was
having a show at the Drunken Unicorn and I had already gotten my ticket in advance just in case the show sold
out (I know I sound like a complete groupie aka Danny Peavey, but I don't care. At least there's still some of us
around.) It was a bit after nine o'clock and I was making my way towards Ponce de Leon alone (due to most of
my friends not having enough funds to pay for a fifteen dollar ticket, canceling on me at the very last second, and
my girl having to work for the night), which felt a bit discomforting and at the same time strangely amusing for
me, since I always travel at least with one companion to a show. Thirty minutes later, I got to the venue ready for
a night of raw talent with: a piece of paper, pen, voice recorder, ticket, camera, gum, and my tan hat slightly
tilted at a twenty-three degree angle like always of course.

After an unraveling and surprisingly long interview with Prefuse 73, the sounds of opening act, DJ LebLaze
(Atlanta), flared out of the speakers at around eleven o'clock. Using more than just your average turntables, Laze
build his beats with the help from an Akai MPC1000 and a MS2000 keyboard. The first beat really got the
crowd into the mood for the night as it slowly enlarged in size until the sound encompassed the whole room with
concrete-shattering drums, layered and synthesized keys, and underlying scratches. Following the blast of such
enormous noise, Laze brought the audience back on its feet with a slow and soothing guitar solo. Whether it was
hard-knock Hip Hop beats or experimental slow jams, Laze seemed to be a well-rounded DJ/Producer with a little
bit of that tasty hot sauce to pour all over your buffet of musical enjoyment. Half an hour into his performance, a
friend of his named MC Zano jumped on stage and snatched one of the many microphones available. Zano, as I
later found out, was known for being able to freestyle for a long amount of time without stepping over his own
words and had been banned from Atlanta's famous Mic Club a few weeks before because of supposedly "spittin'
writtens in a freestyle battle." Either way, Zano "oohhhed" and "aahhed" the crowd with punchlines ranging from
hurricane Katrina to his credibility as an MC. Laze got his much deserved applause after nearly an hour of playing
non-stop.

At midnight, DJ Nobody was suppose to get on stage, but due to technical difficulties (whatever those were), his
set was replaced by random chit-chatter and nervous excitement amongst the crowd as to what time the main
act would make his way unto the platform. Slowly, but surely, the band finally made their way on stage twenty
minutes later with DJs Leblaze and Nobody in the background in charge of the turntables, MPC1000, and MS2000
keyboards and a local bass player, Marcus, and Prefuse 73 in the front row ready to bash their guts out on the
two tightly spaced drum sets. The show was on with "The End of Biters" being orchestrated even more in-your-
face than the original, thanks to the percussion mayhem caused by both drummers (of which Marcus always had
a defiantly determined face.) The band nearly recaptured all of Prefuse's "Greatest Hits" beginning from Vocal
Studies & Uprock Narratives to Surrounded by Silence. Drums were hammered on, records scratched to their
core, and keys pushed to their ultimate limit to make sure the crowd was fully repaid for every moment they had
spent waiting. In the chaotic jungle of electrical chords, live instruments, and heavy musical machinery, one
might have overlooked the engine of this whole operation, Prefuse's iBook. The poor thing even accidentally fell
over once during the show, but still kept working like the rest of the band (No worries. No iBooks or any other
Apple products were hurt nor damaged during this performance.) Since I was standing on the side of the stage, I
was able to see that the iBook was playing all of the songs as one big session and therefore acted as an intricate
part of the band.

Most of the first few songs came from One Word Extinguisher and had three times the percussion, counting the
song's actual drum loop and the two lead drummers hitting high hats and snares every other second. No one
song lasted more than three minutes, which is exactly what you would expect entering the world of Prefuse 73's
musical nirvana. Unlike most DJs/Producers on tour, Prefuse is able to showcase his songs in many different
ways. Whether it's scratching vinyl until there's none left, pacing back and fourth between the keyboards and the
MPCs, or breaking at least one drumstick per set, he excels at each task and topples above the expectations of an
average DJs live show.

Constantly jumping from song to song for almost a full hour, the set came to an end with the last song off of
Surrounded by Silence, "And I'm Gone", which seemed sort of ironic since the band was cheered on after to
perform an encore. Lasting almost ten minutes, the show was finally wrapped up with a roaring applause and a
thankful bow by Prefuse. Exhausted, but still able to stand, he was immediately surrounded by fans and friends
for autographs, handshakes, and pads on the back. I very briefly thanked him for having a chance to meet him
and see him perform and made my way back home at around two in the morning. With a dry throat, ringing ears,
and dozing eyes, I fell asleep on my futon/bed.

For more information on these artists visit:

http://www.prefuse73.com/

http://www.hossrecords.com/