Big Audio Dynamite Lollapalooza – Music Unlimited Stage Chicago, IL August 6, 2011

With a sound that is right at home in the mid-80s, B.A.D. ’s fusion of reggae and British punk may have been a little too slow for those patiently awaiting Eminem. Taken by itself the set was good and well worth fighting the crowds to go see.

You have to hand it to Jones, it wasn’t entirely clear if he could sense the restless of the audience but he played the show he wanted to play the way he wanted to play it. The irony is with the current 80s revival B.A.D. should be exactly the kind of music that demographic wants to hear. Jones formed the band in 1984 after The Clash broke up. Though there have been numerous rotations in the band’s lineup it has always been led by Jones and retains his spirit.

After a breakup back in 1997, B.A.D. is now back ready to attack society once again. While it may not be on the same out for blood level as Eminem, their goal is basically the same, to make a statement. “This new song is about our current meltdown in our economy,” he said before launching into a song that, while the instrumentals were good, they weren’t nearly as fast or hard hitting as they should have been to make an impact.

Near the end Jones decided to fall back on some older fan favorites like “Rush” which caused a momentary period of enlightenment among the younger members of the audience as they realized they actually did know something about the band playing in front of them. That led to an uproar of applause allowing the band to go out on a well-earned high note. Though their performance at Lollapalooza may have been underwhelming, the chance to see “the” Mick Jones is one of those musicians everyone should see at some point in their life live. He is getting up there in years now and as one of the pioneers of punk he is a legend in his own right.

This was their first time playing Lollapalooza, it’s possible they weren’t prepared to be greeted by such a core demographic. Whatever the reason, Big Audio Dynamite still has the potential to burst on to the scene once again.

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