June 30-July 6, 2005

musicpicks

Digable Planets/ J-Live

by John Vettese

Hip-hop

Funny how cynicism skips a generation. In 1982, an outraged Grandmaster Flash penned one of hip-hop's best known opening lines to set the stage for "The Message" — "Broken glass everywhere/ people pissing on the stairs/ you know they just don't care." Describing the same urban landscape in 1993's "Pacifics," Digable Planets (pictured) took a wide-eyed, optimistic view somewhat befitting of the time: "New York is a museum with its posters and graffiti." And as our collective spirit has been battered back down with the outset of the aughts, J-Live describes his day job as an English teacher on this year's "Brooklyn Public" — "One class, 31 students, 32 chairs/ 25 desks, I guess they gotta share." Three disparate outlooks on a single city, but these artists share a bond in dishing societal realism rather than commercialized posturing. So in that sense, J-Live is a perfect match for Dig Plans' reunion tour stop at World Café next week. (Sadly, Flash isn't on the bill, but we'll never turn away a ?uestlove DJ set.) While J's new The Hear After (Penalty/Ryko) pales alongside 2002's All of the Above, it still shows the MC honing his considerable skill, delivering thought-provoking rhymes to smooth, funky backings. Even when he skips into braggart territory, the bigger picture is always in sight — kinda like Planets used to do before splitting in 1995. The trio was a bit more jazz-psych in tone and positively referenced "vibes" more than J-Live ever would, but they also came from a hopeful era. It's something we could use more of today.

Tue., July 5, 7:30 p.m., $26, with DJ ?uestlove, World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400.