We the People fest trades on nostalgia but misses the political mark

Billed as some sort of mix of music and political consciousness, Saturday's We the People fest at the Los Angeles State Historic Park seemed to still be searching for its identity among this year's swarm of outdoor fests. With its portable toilets and expensive snack food, was it Coachella with more politically minded shout-outs? Most of the artists yelled something to the effect, "yeah, this is about the people...," and the turn-out was decent and varied with hippies and homeboys, but the disorganized festival, with shoddy audio for certain sets and long gaps between artists, clearly has some catching up to do.

Whatever the identity crises, you don't always get to see reggae, dancehall, punk-ska and hip-hop in one place in L.A. Dancehall elder statesman Barrington Levy, dressed in a button-down white shirt and a baseball cap cocked to the side, gave a wonderfully herb-influenced set, skitting and scatting through some of his classic work. A cloud of smoke hovered near the front of the stage for the entirety of his early evening set. With one the greatest dancehall artists chanting "light up the sensi" every few minutes, it was hard to tell if people were lilting and swaying to the beat or just unable to stand.

The fest leaned heavily on groups who've passed their heyday, but still have the ears of either the kids who just discovered their parents' CDs, or people who don't realize or don't care that the stuff they liked in high school is passe. Suicidal Tendencies was one such group. South L.A. native sons Fishbone, who had all the energy of their 80's punk-ska selves, was another. Their cover of Sublime's "Date Rape," pretty much demolished any generation gap, when young and old joined a merry-go-round mosh pit near the stage.

RZA, one of the headliners, also brought nostalgia and energized the crowd. Want to bring the "ruckus" to any audience? Include a member of Wu-Tang Clan. With such a broad fanbase, it's impossible to lose. His nearly half-hour set commanded the attention of one of the largest crowds at the three-stage festival. With a chilly night air blowing through the industrial backdrop of the park, and your occasional Gold Line train zipping by, the Clan producer entered the stage in a Wu-Tang headband (you almost never catch him without it on), wrap-around black shades and a dashiki-looking kung-fu top. An Ennio Morricone spaghetti Western theme played as he swaggered onto the stage. Wu affiliates, the Compton-based Black Knights, provided gangster bravado and back-up. Fans were more than happy to hear the de rigeur medley of Wu-Tang hits, like "Triumph," "Bring da Ruckus" and other pieces of Wu-Tang's rap canon that any self-respecting hip-hop head knows by heart. RZA also performed a cut from his so-so Bobby Digital album, “Can't Stop Us Now.” The track was elevated by side-band member and RZA guitar teacher Shiavo Odidjian (from System of a Down) working the boards, creating his own melange of sounds.

It was decidedly the most fixed point for the entire event, despite efforts to rouse the crowd in other ways. One of the more obvious attempts at politicizing the event was a hand-scrawled “Behold a Palin Horse” (a take on the conspiratorial tome favored by many in the rap community, “Behold a Pale Horse”) on the T-shirt of L.A. rapper 2Mex, who, backed by a vocalist and a live band, provided one of the more underground delights to the “in-crowd” of L.A.'s local hip-hop scene.

If Coachella is a showcase for the established bands to mix it up with up-and-coming indie rockers, and Rock the Bells is a showcase for classic hip-hop, then We the People was meant to pay heed to political consciousness and the powers of nostalgia. It came off as more of a branding strategy aimed at a generation more wrapped up in how many variations of an Obama T-shirt they can sport, as opposed to any real discussion of constitutional freedoms, immigration issues, foreign policy or fiscal responsibility. Here's hoping We the People's organizers gets it right next time. For the people.

-- Camilo Smith

Click here for more photos from We the People.

Photo of RZA by Barbara Davidson/Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Tom]

They jacked up the prices at the gate. Poor form guys.

[rs]

i went for murs set. pleasantly surprised, although i do wish he did more of his older catalogue. surprised the writer failed to mention this.

[bobby]

2Mex and the Look Daggers were my favorite of the night. A lot of the acts disappointed me but Look Daggers were awesome, they should be put on more festival type shows.