Review by Mdiddy

Photos Courtesy of Victor and Mdiddy

The following reviews were made possible by energy drinks across the boards. This was a week and a half of music, art, and parties. In a tribute to Hunter S. Thompson...and time constraints-Mofoz Gonzo journalism at it's finest. ENJOY.

o3.13.o5 Austin Hip Hop Revolution pre SxSW party- Antone's

The Mofoz crew were in high spirits, being this was the first show of the week we were to cover. The turnout was nice, and the show was more fun than a pocket full of change at Chuck-E Cheese.

DJ Kunal started the evening off with some turntable magic, which then led to Zeale 32 and Haps (ATX Records) crowd moving antics and lyricism. Next up, Rapid Ric, fresh from a NY Mixtape conference, heated up the 1's and 2's with a nice mix of southern bangers like Paul Wall and Swishahouse to hip hop classics like Biggie and Luniz' "5 On It". Bavu Blakes took the stage soon after and showed people why he is a crowd favorite; he sprinkled gems from his album "Create and Hustle" and then glazed 'em with some new material. Tee Double, then followed Bavu and shook the place with his double-time, rapid fire delivery.

The night was great, in between B-boy circles and the art on display, there was something for everyone at this show. Shouts go out to Stacie, Shawn, Jav, Bavu, Tosin, Haps, Tee Double and everyone else that showed Mofoz love.

o3.14.o5 Polytechnic Productions - Eternal Nightlife

Mofoz Visualz meets "House". The night of breakbeats, house, and otherwise infectious beats was a good way to start the week. Dj Kurly Q, Michaelangelo, Scott Grey, and others kept the party going all night.

We met up with Reggie Warlock (Knew Reliks, Cali) who showcased some amazing artwork, as well as pretty versatile freestyle skills. Polytechnic took care of business with a great show, and a crunk afterparty (ATX's friendly neighborhood police visited twice, because they heard the party wasn't one to be missed.)

o3.15.o5 Blitz Productions, Caribbean Lights

We met up with Blitz of Blitz productions for a night of turntablism and breaks. The crowd was small, but intimate.Drink prices couldn't be beat, and the club's personnel was great. The four DJ set was a nice touch, and DJ Tats cuts were exceptional. The b-boys were out to play, and there talents did not go unnoticed. It was good to see Laura from the B-Boy City crew holding it down and promoting for their April 1st show. DJ MadAdam (Chicago) and I discussed plans to rule the hip hop world...yup.

o3.15.o5 KJV Band, Chuggin' Monkey

Second show of the day for us. We traversed with DJ MadAdam (Chicago) to meet up with Aaron, a promoter who we had met at the Polytechnic after party the night before, to see a hip hop fusion band he was raving about. The KJV Band (King James Version) was in mid set when we got there , and in the middle of a Marvin Gaye cover. After a small break, and meeting King James , himself, the Band continued to have the full bar jumping up and down and nodding in pied piper hypno-amazement. The songs were great-as they covered hooks of hip hops finest, but stayed lyrical with original delivery and amazingly timed drum beats. The show came to a peak on the encore as King James chose three random folk from attendance and freestyled about them, their clothes,and their favorite sexual positions, all while the band kept a funky beat. The KJV Band plays to the crowd and creates a great atmosphere. We expect big, big, things from this band.

o3.16.o5 Mofoz Visualz day off...sorta

Well, today we did not have a booth set up anywhere, which meant that we was free to roam a multitude of shows. This is where I fly solo, as the crew seemed to need sleep and/or other things. Five venues, four bands, one night...no rest for the weary. Austin SxSW week for realla.

Zoo Seventeen, Hot Shots

I crept into this show early in the night, and found that these guys were an Austin Band. Their sound was a mix between Lenny Kravitz and Stone Temple Pilots. The show was enjoyable, the singer was really into it, and the guitarist let his heart play through his fingers; this cat could wail. The crowd was still building as their set came to an end, and I departed onto the heavily trafficked 6th street where I ran into (almost literally) Aqua Hunger Force...Austin.

4th Avenue Jones, Spiro's

4th Avenue Jones is an LA group whose self proclaimed sound is "Hip Hop Rock Soul", and well, I agree with them. Heavy on the Soul, this group is comprised of a full band including a violinist. The stage was outside and the nightwas cold, the Austin wind sent chills through the crowd, but the music that this group played kept everyones attention at bay. Look out for an EMI album release from this group real soon.

Powderburn, iforgetwhere

I went out tonight to really see some good hard rock somewhere, and low and behold SA's The Edge magazine came through with a great showcase of metal talent. Powderburn was voted Best of Metal in Austin, and showed the crowd why. The lyrics were heavy, the bass was thick, the guitars screeched, the singer growled, and the people moshed. yup.

DJ TATS, Plush

The last show of my long night was at Plush. I had met Tats the day before, and he told me he was gonna wreck shop at Plush. He did. His old school hip hop mixes had some old folk shakin asses like they were in high school, and I coulda swore I heard some En Vogue in his mix...now thats smooth. Headed home early (2am) and gotta rep at the War of the Words tour tomorrow at noon. "I got a fever and the only prescription is more hip hop."

 

o3.17.o5 War of the Words Tour , Ruta Maya

Off of a few hours sleep, gas station burritos, and energy drinks, the Mofoz crew set up shop at the War of the Words tour. This showcase of Texas, California, and NY talent took over South Austin.The show consisted of DJ Cropdiggie (ATX), MSG Crew (ATX), Knew Reliks (LA), Wasted Talent (ATX), Scavone (NYC), Western Union (LA), Dulok Sherman (LA), Rheteric (LA), Avatar and DJ Obi (LA). The show's graffiti exhibition was a nice addition and gave us a break to take in the nice, warm, sunshiny day. The show ended in freestyle madness that was sprinkled by some gems by Scavone and Dulok Shaman. Special shoutout goes to Monstro for bringing all this craziness together in one spot.

o3.17.o5 Metal Pig Art Show, Gomi Gallery

After a 30 minute nap, and yet more energy drinks we sluggishly went to meet our boy Fahad (Motive 807) at the Gomi gallery party. Their was more beautiful artwork than you could shake a stick at (if you were into shaking sticks at artwork, that is...and if so, what the hell is wrong with you?-have some respect for artwork!!!) The theme for the show was "Metal Pig" and each artists took their own interpretation of the words for their respected piece.The party was a blast, we met up with our friends from Aerosol Warfare , DJ Scuba, DJ Chicken George, Reggie Warlock,War of the Words tour folk, and our long lost friend, John. Shoutouts to the whole Gomi crew for showin mad love.

o3.17.o5 URB Magazine Party, Barcelona

After leaving the Gomi gallery complete with another energy drink in hand, we made way to 6th Street to hit up the URB Magazine Party at Barcelona. Z-Trip was headlining the show and definitely showed the club why he is heralded as a top DJ. Z-Trip's amazing arsenal of classic hip hop, pop, and soul was nothing short of inspiring. Thank you to Stephanie at URB for putting us on to this show.

o3.17.o5 Mofoz Last Call, Buffalo Billiards

Minutes away from 2pm, we recieved a call from Mofoz' guest writer, Javier, with an urgent message to meet him for a St. Pattie's day drink. Who are we to argue with Jav?; it was St. Patties day, and we had not yet been introduced to "the Irish Car Bomb" shot/drink. Thanks for the drink Jav.

o3.18.o5 DJ Chicken George, Factory People

I started off the day solo-and made way to the busy Congress strip for Chicken George's celebration. made it to the party, and was pleasantly surprised by the wonderfulness of this lil' get together.The show was to promote Chicken George's new season of clothing which had a great amount of Asian inspired design-hence the party name "Year of the Chicken". I met up with Studemont Project (houston) to discuss their upcoming show that night, talked with White Rabbit about the lack of whataburgers and lone star beer in California, said whatup to Bavu Blakes, Zin,, Kool Emdee, Romeo and the B Boy City Crew. The Red Stripe started the day right and the atmosphere on top of the store was perfect for such a nice day.I decided I'd take a break from partying and chill at Motive 807 for a few hours before the night's next show. Futura's Art Show.

o3.18.o5 Futura Art Show, dontrememberwhere

After a healthy amount of hanging out at Motive 807 with Fahad and Phalen; Fahad and I had a quick dinner fix, and headed to the Futura show which was sponsored by Red Bull...and if you have read this far, you will know I am now a huge supporter of Red Bull. Futura, the NY Graffiti Legend, was a gracious host and an amazing artist. We were met at the show by MadAdam (chi-town), Aerosol Warfare, Sloke, Scuba; conversed with DJ Witnes (houston) about the future of his radio program on the reknowned KPFT sstation.had a good conversation with Rev Butter about his ice sculpting ways and in between sips of Dos Equis, and the occasional red bull, the buzz surrounding tomorrow night's shoe art exhibit at Motive 807. The party ended roughly at about 10 , So we headed to 6th street for the PF Flyers party.next...

o3.18.o5 PF Flyers party, K Bar

The K Bar was cool, the restrooms were worth the trip to this place alone. Dont believe me, go there one day. Restrooms aside, the club's electronic music was helping me to realize how tired I was..up until I came across the dance floor and noticed something that could have been pulled out from a dream. Two performance artists (strippers, if you wanna be technical) showed homage to a keyboard by slapping it around, and then well uh...slapping eachother with whips and hot wax. like whoah. The performance didnt last forever though, so I met Mofoz' Victor and a few friends from the rock group, Sun of Sultans, to catch a late night show.

o3.18.o5 The Blue Van, Drink

The band we saw here was from Denmark, and they were AWESOME. The bassist had the energy of a 4 yr old kid on a sugar high, and the singer had a very Black Crowes sounding delivery. The rocking they did was solid and on point. all in all, a great close for a great day.

o3.19.o5 Weapons Inspections, Motive 807

Today, we planned to hit up the Scion BBQ party that feautured Rahzel...but sleep won that battle of the will, besides, we had to conserve every last bit of energy for the highly anticipated Weapons Inspections show at Motive 807. The show combined Converse sneaker pimpin and the nation's top graf artists lacing them with a lil more flavor. The Reverend Butter was on hand to supply a nice ice carving exhibition. DJ Donnie D, Scuba, Mad Adam, Caps One and Trainwreck made sure that the party's beats didnt stop. It seemed as if the whole TX hip hop scene showed up for this bash; we ran across DJ Ish, Witnes, Monstro; and had a great conversation with Quentin, an Australian reporter, who interviewed Mofoz Visualz for his radio program. Special thanks to Converse, Aerosol Warfare, Fahad and Miranda at Motive 807, and really everyone who stayed krunk all night.The night went off and after a few empty kegs it was time to call it a night...a week...a blur...a SxSW done right mofoz. This may have marked the end of SxSW, but as for Mofoz Visualz," I thought I told you that we wont stop"