Midnite took to the stage at SOB’s here in NYC a little after 1 am. After
rousing the sold out crowd with “Foolish and the Wise,” Vaughn pointed across
town towards Wall street and brought down some of the most fiery, potent and
incisive judgment on those perpetrating the greatest of economic injustices. As
the band hummed and throbbed behind him, Vaughn purposefully greeted the many
children of Rastafari present, setting the vibe for a truly unforgettable
evening/early morning.

So many times I have been fortunate enough to witness Midnite performing live,
and still each time I think that they must be at the top of their game, true
masters of the craft. Somehow, they continue to push the boundaries, reaching
higher heights without falling into the same old traps and antics of other
performers. In a seemingly improvised moment during the first tune, Vaughn sang
“we are not competing for your eyes, just chanting for the explosion of your
technological lie.” Indeed, Vaughn’s stage presence and style cater to no one,
conform to no one’s standards or ideals, and in doing so embody the essence of
originality, of spontaneity and improvisation. This is why Midnite stands so far
out from the crowd in terms of other reggae performers. They have taken that
momentous spark of living inspiration from the forebearers and nurtured it and
fed it, only to bless the world by sharing it once again.

I could try to list all the tunes and medleys from the night, but there are no
words or titles fitting to convey the experience. The tune “Force and Flames,”
with its call and response conversational bass line, turned into an epic 20
minute freestyle medley with Vaughn quieting the band half way through and
saying “I want to show the people dem a word: o-r-i-g-i-n. n-i-g-i-r-o.” At one
point in the song, Ron and Sly exchanged glances before seamlessly morphing the
riddim into a Niyabinghi one-two, the other players dropped out and we were left
with drums, bass, and vocals. The roots in their most undiluted form. The set
veered wildly from sections of beautiful singing with harmonies from the two
brothers, and long stretches of chanting.

By the time Vaughn blessed the people and turned off his mic, making his
signature quick and decisive exit, it was 5:10 am! From when he took the stage
at 1:20am, Vaughn hadn’t taken so much as a sip of water or more than 30 seconds
in between tunes. Even though the sun was about to come up, the place was still
ram. Each and every person in attendance had their cup filled to the brim.

Give thanks to IncMedia for the video!