Sunday December 11th
HoustonSoReal Presents
Devin the Dude LIVE
with
The Odd Squad/Coughee Brothaz
The Chicharones featuring Sleep and Josh Martinez
Jokaman
Lower Life Form
PKT
DJ Witnes
and DJ CeePlus will spin an exclusive dance party set after Devin the Dude.
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Where: Havana Latin Bar & Grill, 818 Travis St., Downtown Houston, TX
When: Sunday December 11th 9 p.m.
How Much: $10 before 11 p.m. More after.
$2 Heinekens all night!
Cheap Patron specials.
More information at http://houstonsoreal.blogspot.com or call 713-222-2254
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Now on to the story.
Click here to see on Chron Site.
Dec. 9, 2005, 3:20AM
Houston's Devin the Dude marches to the beat of his own hip-hop
By LANCE SCOTT WALKER
For The Chronicle
"I think it needs bass," said Houston rapper Devin the Dude from his spot crouched on a stoop behind the studio engineer's chair. He then looked up and across the room. "You got a bass?"
He was talking to 1970s funk/soul legend Blowfly, who had played at Rudyard's Pub the night before and was recording in the studio before his band had to take off for Austin. Devin and Blowfly were collaborating on a track, but they didn't exactly know what track, or even what it would be about.
"Collaborating is just all about ideas," said Devin, as the bassist ran out to the van to fetch his instrument. "You just get in here and see what happens. No planning. You never know what's going to happen."
Devin the Dude, who performs at Havana Grill and Bar Sunday, is an anomaly as far as Houston rap is concerned. Our city has always been known for its hard, ugly side — most notably with scowling characters such as Scarface and the Geto Boys and DJ Screw, and even with the newer crop of MCs, such as Mike Jones and Slim Thug — but Devin has always been a singular, independent entity.
He is one of the few local MCs who can't be pigeonholed as making a particular "type" of hip-hop, and he's not closely associated with any other local rappers. And instead of making the rounds in the inner Loop for his live appearances, he has spent time hopping across the pond to play shows in Europe — and plans to go back next year.
His lyrics are stories rather than the self-referential braggadocio ventures used by a lot of rappers. He crafts themes in his songs, voicing other characters in a flawless, almost conversational tone. You could call his music "witty" or "clever," but each of those terms infers that a nudge of the elbow toward the listener is needed to make sure they "get" it.
With Devin, there's nothing to "get." He's just Devin. His personality inks itself into every corner of every track, coming together most perfectly in Go Fight Some Other Crime, from last year's To Tha X-Treme (Asylum/Rap-a-Lot). In it, Devin and a car full of rappers are stopped by the police, whose conversation (also voiced by Devin) with Devin and rapper Cory Mo actually becomes part of the rap.
The officers stop Devin's Cadillac after a police dog picks up a "questionable" illegal scent. But it becomes evident through the track that the officers are drug traffickers themselves and don't want anyone infringing on their trade.
Devin's delivery is his trademark because it's so believable — relaxed, sharp and perfectly executed.
With that in mind, his collaboration with Blowfly was particularly interesting to watch. Blowfly's lyrics would leave even comedian Richard Pryor's mouth agape — filthy, raw and unforgiving. To pair it with Devin's smooth delivery would be a challenge — one that both welcomed.
In the studio with DJ Domination (Geto Boys), it all came to life. Blowfly's bass plugged into the mixing board, and he crafted an early Jane's Addiction-esque bassline. Producer DJ Domination recorded it, cut it up and began to mold it into the song, bit by bit until he'd stitched it all together with the final beat, which came through the speakers and inspired a congregation of nodding heads in the room.
"That's it," Devin remarked, looking over at Domination. "That's what I wanted to hear."
Here's a few exclusive shots from that session:
Pee Wee Herman watches as Blowfly reads in the Lobby of the Coughee Brothaz studio
Domo and Blowflys bass player Rob Sherber
Devin in the studio
Blowfly's drummer Tom Bowker and Lance Scott Walker
Blowfly dropping knowledge on Devin and Lance
And here's DJ Cozmos who shares studio space with them boys.
And through all of this, lets not forget Christmas.
See you Sunday????
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