Public Enemy: Revolverlution Tour 2003

During the 1980s and ‘90s, Public Enemy reigned as one of the nation's top hip-hop acts. As producer Pascale Mayer points out in the DVD liner notes, “the New York Times even ranked [1988's] It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back on its list of 25 albums of the last century that shaped music.” By the 2000s, however, the group no longer seemed to be a musical force, what with Chuck D (born Carlton Ridenhour) hosting a show on the Air America network and Flavor Flav (William Drayton) starring in several seasons of VH1's entertainingly tacky dating series Flavor of Love. The two-disc Revolverlution Tour catches the re-formed outfit live at Melbourne's Metro in 2003 in a lineup featuring rappers Chuck and Professor Griff (Richard Griffin), DJ Lord, a crackerjack funk-metal band, and their own private security force, the S1Ws (two stern-faced dancer/bodyguards dressed in paramilitary gear). Sporting a Viking helmet and trademark oversized clock necklace, hype man Flav hits the stage in time for the second selection, the iconic “Welcome to the Terrordome.” Much of the rest of the raucous, fast-paced 23-song set concentrates on PE's first four albums, generally confirming that their latest configuration can still “bring the noise,” although some tracks come off better than others (“Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos” seems particularly sluggish). In addition, there's a DJ freestyle, a Flavor medley, and a too-long set from rap duo 7th Octave that would've worked better as an extra feature. Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo, the first disc features the concert and behind-the-scenes footage, while the second includes an Australian tour diary and slideshow. Recommended, overall. Aud: P. (K. Fennessy)