Review - Open Mic/Wiseproof and the Harmogenous Dooji @ Simone's Jazz & Soul Cabaret

(7/14/06) Last night 377 2nd St. Oakland was off the hook! Taking place was the first night of an on-going open mic hereforth to be known as The Ambiguous Sipher brought to you from the hosts of San Francisco’s notorious Café International open mic (1st and 3rd Fridays @ 508 Haight St.) Dateurah and Wiseproof. In the club, couches lined the walls with veils hanging in between and incense hung in the air. The overall ambience was of an off the hook night club taken over for a night by a bunch of wacked out artists. The revolution is on. It all began with great vibrations, the audience was loud! Dre hosted the spoken word and MC section of the night and kept it original choosing artists randomly off the list.

The featured MC was Oakland’s own One throwing out a dose of his philosophy acknowledging the plethora of realities within one room and promoting only positive mental activity. Next up were the two spoken word features R.A.W. and Ise Lyfe. Ise Lyfe is a story teller who has been referred to as “Oakland’s unofficial poet laureate” and been featured on HBO. His story last night told of a group of animals debating how to get humans to stop eating them. He reminded me of the great Lord Buckley’s style, completely conversational with side jokes and thought provoking witticisms with an age old music flowing through it all. He summed up the moral of the story in the end with a fight between beans and corn bread that resulted in both dying. The moral: don’t promote violence or else you will have it turned on you.

The headliner was Wiseproof and the Harmogenous Dooji featuring guitar, drums, some studio beats and a guest appearance by Dakini. It was a massive amalgamation of musicians’ consciousnesses resulting in mirror-sounds, the band had never played together but all seemed to have styles that were given over Wiseproof’s hardcore lyrics and reggae stylin’. The percussionists fused together and fed off each other and Wise strung through the beats like intergalactic membrane. It was a fucking blast. Wiseproof and the Harmogenous Dooji will be featured at El Rio @ 3158 Mission St. and Cesar Chavez on Friday, July 28th.

Thanks to all who showed up as well as performed for making it a bad ass evening---

TRANSLATION - Rainer Maria Rilke - page a month

Everyone shares stories of their mother. A German officer; loud and long he says his words. Like a young girl forming a bouquet by pondering each flower’s worth, flower by flower, making a whole--: in this manner he fits his words together. For desire? To passionately suffer? All listen. The spitting stops. These men are sincere and know what they hear. Even those who know no German understand at once; can feel the words: “Abends”… “Klein war…”