Sage Francis
Date: April 25, 2005 Split-Second Presentation For me, Sage Francis was the highlight of an amazing weekend at the Coachella Festival in 2004. Although I didn't make the trip to the desert this year, luck was with me as Sage made a rare visit to Canada, using Ottawa as a warm-up for his return to Coachella. With assistance from his openers, Sol.iLLaquists of Sound, and a setlist that concentrated on his fantastic current release, A Healthy Distrust, Sage again came through with a stellar concert. As is par for the course at a Babylon hip hop show, it was a long time before the action got underway; but once things did commence, the night held to a relentless pace, with almost no downtime. While a couple of local acts made a good impression, as did the combo of Pip Skid, John Smith, and Skratch Bastid, it was Sol.iLLaquists of Sound who made the biggest impact, on their own and as Sage's backing squad. Their blend of male and female vocals worked quite well, but the greatest surprise was DiViNCi, who looked every bit as wild as the music that he provided through deft yet manic manipulation of a pair of samplers. When I first saw Sage perform, he had only a CD player for accompaniment; but he still kept a packed tent captivated by his stage presence. On this night, the Sol.iLLaquists of Sound remained on stage for the headlining set, which definitely added to the musical experience. Nonetheless, it was clearly Sage who steered the concert, able to shift instantly from deathly intensity to pure silliness with little more than raised eyebrows and a smile. I have seen very few performers able to control a crowd so expertly; and the enthusiastic Babylon audience returned the energy. "The Buzz Kill" set the tone for a night that leaned heavily on A Healthy Distrust, only one among many gems from that album to come across very well live. Other examples included "Sea Lion," "Gunz Yo," "Escape Artist," "Crumble," and "Slow Down Gandhi." If "Dance Monkey" didn't get quite the pop that I had expected from the crowd, it was probably the only aspect of the night that missed my expectations. Sage again rapped his song "Broken Wings" over the music to the cheesy Mr. Mister song of the same name, earning more than a few laughs, as he also did with his knowingly horrible G-Unit pun. Perhaps the best reaction came to his explanation of why Ottawa made the cut as one of his two Canadian dates, ending with a mock cry of "Fuck Toronto!" (always a hit in this city). The lengthy set was capped by a stellar encore, that saw DiViNCi's frenzied rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" lead into a staggering "Makeshift Patriot." In a concert that could be characterized as nothing less than intense, this was the ferocious peak, epitomizing the best elements of Sage Francis: excellent song crafting, intricate wordplay, and a flawless ability to raise a song to its highest levels through a riveting performance. While I couldn't make it to Coachella again in 2005, having Sage Francis bring his show to Ottawa was a hell of a consolation. <--Prev (Arcade Fire) | Next (Death From Above 1979)-->Return to Concert ListReturn to Main Page |