[DID NOT ATTEND: October 2, 2021] MC Lars & Mega Ran & MC Frontalot & Schaffer The Darklord
There were two reasons I wanted to go to this show. First, I have never been to Kung Fu Necktie–I seem to keep missing out on shows there. Second, this night of nerd rap sounded hilarious.
I had been listening to MC Lars a bit leading up to this show. I’ve listened to the other guys as well and gotten more or less the same kick out of them,
But when it came down to it, I had been out several Saturday nights in a row and I had been to see Primus the night before, and I was going to a show on Sunday as well, so I decided to skip this one.
I sure hope the four of them tour again (I mean, who else would have any one of them?).
MC Lars, according to Wikipedia,
plays with a laptop and occasionally a punk rock band to back him up, which he refers to as “post-punk laptop rap”. Samples from bands such as Supergrass, Piebald, Brand New, Fugazi, and Iggy Pop play a key role in MC Lars’s music. Hearts That Hate, whose song “Cry Tonight” is sampled in Lars’ “Signing Emo”, is a fictional group created by the rapper. MC Lars has also shown an interest in using lyrics and song titles based on English and American literature. “Rapbeth” references William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, while “Mr. Raven” is inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven”. “Ahab” is about the novel Moby Dick and “Hey There Ophelia” on This Gigantic Robot Kills retells the story of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Mega Ran according to Wikipedia,
Raheem Jarbo (stage names Mega Ran and Random) is an American underground nerdcore rapper, chiptune DJ, and record producer. In February 2015, he changed his stage name to Mega Ran, removing Random from any releases.
Here’s a Random review
I’m always glad to watch Mega Ran perform whenever he comes to Michigan. If he comes to a town near you, he is worth the drive. It was certainly worth the two hour plus drive for me.
MC Frontalot according to Wikipedia,
Damian Hess (born December 3, 1973), better known by his stage name MC Frontalot, is an American rapper and web designer. Hess began releasing music as MC Frontalot in 1999.
Here’s a Random review
Finally MC Frontalot took the stage. He opened with one of my favorites, “Tongue Clucking Grammarian” and immediately got the audience “tutting” his bad grammar. During the set, he mixed up old and new tracks, including several crowd favorites (“It Is Pitch Dark,” “Yellow Lasers,” (the regular, non-Latin version), and “Goth Girls.”). New tracks from Solved included “Critical Hit,” which uses the double meaning of the phrase to great effect (something Frontalot does often and quite well), and “Stoop Sale,” which, while not particularly geeky, tells a good story. All in all, it was quite an entertaining evening.
Schaffer The Darklord
Is nerdy, but is also very raunchy–unlike the other rappers. He seems a little out of place here, but not really.
Here’s a blurb from Little Village
Schäffer the Darklord, a.k.a. STD, is a 47-year-old (in 2022) rapper who’d probably have a few words to say to his 20-something self if he had access to a time machine. “I feel like I made an impulsive decision to adopt the stage name in 2003,” Mark Schaffer said, “and all these years later, I do have a bit of buyer’s remorse. But I’ve built too much of a catalog at this point to consider changing it.” Over the past two decades, the Iowa born-and-raised MC has released several albums, EPs, singles and collaborations, including several with fellow Iowa City expatriate Coolzey. His songs are filled with a mix of goofy juvenilia, absurd sexual content, nerdy grammatical breakdowns and introspective lyrical detours, such as a song about sexual consent titled “Yes” from his 2015 EP Sex Rhymes.
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Back in 2017 I saw Strand of Oaks play Union Transfer. Toward the end of the set Tim Showalter called John Baizley on stage. I didn’t know who he was but I was taken by his look (bald with a big beard) and his terrific voice (and guitar playing). Turns out he’s the main force behind Baroness (he draws/paints all of the cover art, too). I got into Baroness and wanted to see them live.
This show was moved from Kung Fu Necktie (a venue I’ve never been to and would like to check out) to World Cafe Live–I’m very curious how these two venues are connected.
I Just Read About That... 