Live Review: Public Assembly
May 15, 2009
By: Joseph VanBuren
Rating: 7/11

The back room at Brooklyn’s Public Assembly is like a marginally spacious dungeon cell with a bar - an isolated, dark place one might expect to see an obscure goth-industrial band playing for their girlfriends and that one random guy who comes to every show. Imagine this writer’s surprise when, on May 15, the venue within a venue was filled with shiny, happy people ready to dance their asses off until three in the morning.

Jasmine Solano opened the show, a feisty female emcee and Brooklyn native. She only performed two songs, but it was enough to get the crowd pumped. Following her brief but energetic set, Planet Rump took the stage. Dressed in full retro character, this trio’s electro-funk sound was simple but catchy and interesting enough to keep the audience’s attention. The music was created entirely by an old school Casio keyboard equipped with a vocoder (quite a crowd pleaser), handled by DJ Tantric. Vocalists Strawberry and Nasty Ness provided a fitting early 80s style rap/sing-along and robot dance, having enough fun on the stage to infect the audience.

The night ended with Keys N Krates from Toronto, who call themselves a “live remix” band. Experiencing their set was like a cross between seeing a cover band and listening to DJ remixes. With DJ Jr-Flo spinning samples and tweaking them live, the three-piece band played along, creating alternate versions of popular songs from the last five or so decades. Starting with more modern hip hop tracks, the set gradually regressed into a collection of oldies. The unique concept of a live remix wouldn’t have been half as impressive if the entire band weren’t so talented. Keys N Krates rocked in a very danceable way, giving the audience a new perspective on something familiar, leaving them tired but in good spirits. Catch their next show at Brooklyn Bodega on June 20th.