It seemed like a quiet night at Mississippi Nights on Wednesday, Sept. 22. 50 or so people waited outside for a show, a small number in comparison to most concerts, with a seemingly tame crowd. Tricky was the performer, out on tour in support of his new album, Juxtapose.

Tricky's new album is phenomenal, groundbreaking, and everything else that has the tendency to scare off the St. Louis listening audience. The crowd was mostly young and of the open-minded persuasion, willing to check out slightly more challenging music than the usual top 40 junk plaguing the airwaves of our radio stations.

Luckily, the crowd eventually filled in at Mississippi Nights, but not until opener Stroke assaulted the small crowd with terribly loud, terrible music. Imagine a bad rip-off of Matchbox 20 or Oasis, so bad in as to make either of those two bands actually look good in comparison. DJ Genaside 2 spun between sets, basically just mixing songs that fit the mood. DJ Genaside 2 is on Tricky's new label, Durban Poison.

By the time Tricky was ready to take the stage, Mississippi Nights was as full as it was going to get, which was not full capacity, but still a decent sized crowd considering the lack of publicity Tricky received. The trip-hop master doesn't seem to have much influence here in St. Louis.

Lighting was dark, muted red and blue, casting the stage in a dismal light and leaving the diminutive Tricky barely visible in the shadows. The set didn't include a song from his new album until 20 minutes into the show, but the audience didn't seem to mind as Tricky played both hits and lesser known songs from his other three albums. The cover of Public Enemy's "Black Steel" from Tricky's debut, Maxinquaye, was surprisingly high energy, and filled with all the fear and loathing the musician is known for.

Kioka Williams, a leggy singer with a voice even more beautiful than her body also sang, sometimes backup, sometimes the lead, replacing Tricky's longtime partner Martine Topley-Bird. Surprisingly enough, Williams voice was just as competent singing the songs originally intended for Martine, sometimes even more impressive.

Rapper Mad Dog showed up to perform a couple of songs from "Juxtapose," namely "I Like The Girls," and "Hot Like a Sauna." Mad Dog's hyper speed rap was well delivered and was received, and just as quickly he was off the stage and through with his presentation.

Halfway into "Abbaon Fat Track" the band stopped, Tricky muttered something about a sound problem, wished the crowd a good night, and walked off the stage. No encore ensued, and the audience was asked to vacate the venue. This was not, surprisingly enough, an act of a spoiled rock star wanting to end a set early and pout. Just a couple minutes after the show, Tricky was outside with fans, chatting and signing autographs, joking around and in an overall jovial mood.

Aside from the terrible opening band and the abrupt ending, the show was impressive, but enjoyed by a smaller group than should have been there. Also, a thanks to Mississippi Nights is in order for booking some of the best shows to come through St. Louis in a long time -- all in one month.

by Cory Blackwood