Audio By Carbonatix
The Cool Kids
Outdoor Stage
8:30 p.m.
As the stage was getting broken down from The Secret Machines’ set and set up for The Cool Kids, it looked like the Texas heat had gotten to the Deep Ellum crowd.
There was hardly anyone in the parking lot that was hosting the outdoor stage.
But, the draw of Chicago’s Cool Kids was too much to pass up even for 100-degree days.
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Soon enough, the duo, backed by a DJ, drew as big a crowd as any other Outdoor Stage performer over the course of the evening.
And they deserved it: The Cool Kids served up a wicked blend of their throw back hip-hop sound and covered brand new song and crowd favorites like “Gold And A Page,” “Black Mags,” “Mikey Rocks” and “Oscar The Grouch.” Each were packed with enough references to early ’90s hip-hop music and culture to make you think the two MC’s may have actually been part of that scene.
Over the course of the set, Chuck Inglish gave praise to all things Texas from the stage: the authentic Tex-Mex he had for dinner; Shiner Bock; and, of course, the party-ready crowd that was hanging on their every word.
Ishi
Trees
11 p.m.
I have to get this out of the way: It was great to finally have a reason to be back in Trees last night.
And the way that Ishi rocked the crowd with their dance-friendly jams, you would’ve thought that a national touring act was actually on stage.
This was my first time witnessing an Ishi event and it was beyond compare to the other bands I had watched throughout the night. Not only does Ishi have their stage presence and performance down pat, but they clearly know how to work a crowd.
Turns out, though, the quartet didn’t really have to do too much; this crowd was at a fever pitch regardless. Like I said, the way the crowd was reacting to them you would have thought it was a touring act.
People were dancing, hands were bouncing and waving through the whole set, and, as co-vocalist Taylor Rea performed the most bad-fucking-ass version of “Walk Like And Egyptian” I’ve ever seen, the crowd took over her responsibilities and sang her hook for her.
Ishi showed last night that the Dallas music scene is coming back. And, finally, people are actually paying attention.
