Concert Review: Ms. Lauryn Hill @ Electric Factory
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
At 1 a.m., the Bob Marley covers began. And they were great — maybe the show's best moments. Though Lauryn seemed like she had something to prove while playing her own classics, she gave relaxed, unpretentious renditions of "Jamming," "Don't Rock My Boat," "Is This Love" and "Could You Be Loved."
[ 11/15 ] Ms. Lauryn Hill: what a tease.
She appears an hour and a half after her opener, Talib Kweli. She plays Fugees and Miseducation favorites — but as breakneck jam band arrangements.
Though it’s admirable to radically rework familiar material, Hill’s results are mixed. Many of her performances Saturday were nearly unrecognizable except for the lyrics, which were sometimes unrecognizable since Hill spit them double-time. Too often her voice was eclipsed, rather than enhanced, by her band: a keyboardist, DJ, guitarist, bassist, drummer and three backup singers. Unfortunately, the slow, quiet menace of “Final Hour” was scrapped for a “Flight of the Bumblebee”-like explosion. On the other hand, “Doo Wop (That Thing)” benefitted from mashups and improvisations. Hill built the song one voice at a time, which meant her musicians didn’t have to compete as they had for much of the night.
At 1 a.m., the Bob Marley covers began. And they were great — maybe the show’s best moments. Though Lauryn seemed like she had something to prove while playing her own classics, she gave relaxed, unpretentious renditions of “Jamming,” “Don’t Rock My Boat,” “Is This Love” and “Could You Be Loved.”
In case you were wondering: No, Kweli did not perform his loving tribute “Ms. Hill.”
