Saturday, July 9, 2016

ICP bring Happy Daze tour home to Meadow Brook

5-26-10 Originally published on Examiner.com by Tracy Heck


Saturday night, the Insane Clown Posse took over the Meadow Brook Music Festival to bring their Happy Daze tour to their hometown Detroit crowd.







Necro at Meadow Brook
ICP performing at Meadowbrook
c:Tracy Heck
The tour is the largest and most elaborate tour that the underground rap duo have embarked on.
The Happy Daze tour is being featured at a number of outdoor venues this Summer, which is something new for ICP. who during their 20 year career typically play smaller, more intimate indoor venues.
The band is currently enjoying one of their highest periods of success with their latest album, Bang! Pow! Boom!, debuting at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 last September and was released in an expanded "Nuclear Edition" in April.
The group is getting ready for the August 17 DVD release of their second feature film, comedic western "Big Money Rustla$,"  and gearing up for the 11th annual Gathering of the Juggalos, taking place August 12-15 in Cave In Rock, Illinois.
Saturday's show at Meadow Brook marked the band's first show in Detroit since their annual Hallowicked show on Halloween and their appearance headlining Real Detroit magazine's birthday concert.
There wasn't much of a crowd for the tour's openers but by the time ICP took the stage, the pavilion was packed from front to back and the lawn had started to fill in with the band's die hard Juggalo fans.
Rapper Necro opened the show with a few of his songs.  Unfortunately, after hearing a lot about him over the years, I was kind of disappointed with his set.  It was pretty forgettable.
Kittie, on the other hand, blew me away.  I had heard that they were good live and I was not disappointed.
The all-female heavy metal band sounded great and rocked the small crowd that had assembled to see them.  "Never Again" really stood out.
Old school rapper Coolio was the next opener and his age is definitely showing.
Although it was nice to hear hits "Fantastic Voyage", "C U When U Get There" and "Gangsta's Paradise", Coolio's hypemen, comprised of various family members including his son, sounded better than he did.
The Kottonmouth Kings were the only openers who have toured with ICP before.
The rap/rock group, who are known for their outspoken beliefs on legalizing marijuana, are a popular Juggalo act and they were the first act to draw the crowd to it's feet and down into the pit.
The band went through a number of their most popular songs including performing a bit of their song with ICP "Think 4 Yourself".
Stomping track "Bump" and anthem "Proud To Be A Stoner", which had everyone pulling out their lighters, were also standouts.
ICP producer Mike E. Clark, spent time spinning a number of Psychopathic Records' tracks in between the different acts.
ICP's set once again opened with a Ringmaster, who introduced Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope, as well as DJ Clay.
For their set, the band brought out their usual lit up I.C.P. backdrop but changed it up with 2 huge lighted hatchetmen on either side.  The band's massive rolling Faygo coolers also featured lit hatchetman that changed colors throughout the set.
As always, their stage show featured dancing monsters, clowns, streamers and various other props.
The set list didn't change too much from the band's last few shows here but they did update some of their classic songs including a inspired version of "Down With The Clowns" interspersed with J. Geil's "Centerfold".
Their version of the "Homies" remix included an appearance by Clark and Legs Diamond, who came out for a long guitar solo as ICP's Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope spent time spraying the crowd with huge water guns.
Set closers, "If I Was A Serial Killa" and "Bang! Pow! Boom!" also stood out as all of the acts came out to help throw Faygo.
The set ended with Violent J, who had his son perched on his shoulders, thanking the crowd for coming out and leading them in the "We Will Never Die Alone" chant and promising to see them at Halloween.


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