Road Trip Stop-- Philadelphia, PA

Friday, September 19

2:03 pm EST - There is such a thing as being too close to a concert. The bass kicks in and you can feel the subwoofers shaking you to the marrow in a way that would have put the fear of God into people of an earlier time. These too close spots tend to be where the photographers are and while it makes for some great photos, when I am rocking back and forth in a catatonic state of shell shock in some old person's home many years from now, I'll trace the beginning of my decline to the artillery-like thudding of the stagefront at this past concert. Setting aside explosive sound-compression for a moment though, being close up gives a guy a chance to get some very solid photographs.

This concert, though technically not our kickoff, was our first major affair. Talib Kweli headlined the thing and Solange, Trevor Menear , and the James Gang. We also had Bobby Kennedy's son, Max Kennedy, and Joey Pants (the Sopranos), an actor who played a member of one of the organizations Bobby Kennedy spent his entire career trying to eradicate.

We funneled the crowd through a corridor of voter registration volunteers. Anyone who managed to stay unregistered throughout the concert must have had to make a real effort. Numbers wise, we have now registered hundreds of people on the bus and almost 87,000 online since this tour started.

In search of celebration afterwards, some select few of us hit Philadelphia's own South Street where the piercings per capita run at well over 5 and the late crowd draws in freaks, clowns, and a single Flavor Flav impersonator complete with Viking hat and timepiece. In all, not a bad way to end a day devoted to music and politics.

-- Nick Brown