There are some shows where it's just worth it.
The money, the effort, the attitude - it all becomes secondary once the artist hits the stage.

This was one of those shows...
The extremely well organized and well attended Spitkicker Tour featuring Pharoahe Monch, Eternal Reflection (Hi-Tek and Talib Kweli), Biz Markie, Common, and De La Soul left more than one audience member calling it the "best show they've ever seen."

The key to earning that well deserved title? Organization.

First off, the show started ON TIME. That's unheard of in hip hop... Doors opened at 8 and by the time the place had filled up, Eternal Reflection was already out there warming up the crowd, and believe me, this crowd didn't need much help... Their outstanding set was a mix of new stuff from their forthcoming release along with random singles and material from the BlackStar album. Talib Kweli spirited performance and the crowd's exuberant response is really a tribute to how much love he has for this music -- thus making them the perfect opening act.

But the smart planning didn't end with just an early start.
Within five minutes of Eternal Reflection's exit stage left, Biz Markie and his big ass lips (even bigger in person, ya'll) entered stage right. In order to kill time between sets, the infamous D.J. was called upon to take over the job of keeping the crowd jumpin'. He succeeded by playing the typical old/new school anthems which DC has come to know and love. But this wouldn't be the Spitkickers tour if it dwelled in the typical. Biz closed the set with a medley of TV show theme songs from the past ranging from "Hill Street Blues" to "Facts of Life" to "Sanford and Son." All the while, drunken audience members were just discovering that they were able to do sign language on the projection screen above his head.

Compare and contrast that with a typical show were the audience just stands around and bitches between sets and you can start to see why this show was so enjoyable.

Up next would've been Pharoahe Monche but he was unable to attend either DC show due to an undisclosed illness. (read: hung over.) So instead, the artist formerly known as Common Sense took to the stage.

Representing like he always does, Common's show centered around originality and the unexpected. The early part of his set was performed under the theme of "Time Travelin," the opening track on his new album. Blessing the crowd with snippets of hits like, "Nuttin' to Do" and "Stolen Moments," Com Sense did costume changes after each song, including the aforementioned 'Funkdafied' get up for the song, "Funky for you." He eventually settled down to perform his more established hits before giving way to De La to close out the show.

De La Soul's set was interesting.
Out of all of the artists on the bill, the feature group of the Spitkicker tour has the least material for a crowd to "wild out" to, which is somewhat necessary at a stand up concert. As a result, the underground group had to rely on their more mainstream tracks in order to evoke a crowd response. No matter, even De La's mainstream tracks are the stuff of legend. Groovin' to "Pot Holes in My Lawn, Stakes is High, and Breakadawn," among others, the crowd definitely got their money's worth.

Overall, another dope show that you should definitely check out given the chance.