Public Enemy: They’re Still Fiery and Fresh

Chuck D looked like a man ready to box. The rapper stood at the center microphone at the House of Blues on Monday, hidden beneath the hood of his yellow jacket as the rest of Public Enemy erupted into the fist-pumping “Put It Up.”

The night was just beginning, and already Chuck D was setting a new agenda, challenging all the “patriotic MCs on bent knees.”

That’s the kind of message one expects from Public Enemy, still fiery and fearless nearly two decades on. Soon a man in a George W. Bush mask wandered the stage to the rock riffs and heavy beats of “Son of a Bush,” which ended with Chuck D leading the crowd in a chant of “I ain’t going to no war!”

Instead of the apocalyptic sonic boom of the original Bomb Squad, Public Enemy now fuels its raps and turntables with live guitar, bass and drums. The result on Monday was a new kind of energy, with a charged, fresh reinterpretation of Public Enemy’s best-known work.

Flavor Flav was missing Monday, in jail for a probation violation stemming from neglected traffic problems. But PE forged ahead, only occasionally missing the presence of his hyperactive, gadfly vocals.

“You in the front might not be able to last that long,” Chuck D warned fans. “It’s going down.”

It was during “Fight the Power” that Public Enemy showed where these live players just might lead the group. As fans bounced and shouted along, the band stretched out into a throbbing funk groove, and Chuck D slipped into a surprising James Brown vibe (minus the crazy dance steps), this time preaching another message, embracing the beauty of “soul power!”