Regina Alongi
Connector Editor
Party-goers, college kids and teenage girls take notice – if you see the name Bryce Vine again, do not be surprised.
Bryce and his partner-in-crime, DJ Skizz Markie, graced the stage at UMass Lowell’s brand new Moloney Hall, located on the second floor of University Crossing this past Saturday, Sept. 27.
Opening the show was Lowell-born-and-raised Professor Lyrical. True to his moniker, Lyrical is actually a math professor at Northeastern University, having earned his master’s degree in mathematics here at UML.
From his incredible freestyles to his intricate lyrics, Lyrical had the crowd both bouncing to the beat and watching in awe. Onstage he noted that a group of his students from NEU were in attendance, which shows the affect he has on his students. He has strong passions for teaching, rapping and music in general, which shows in every conversation had with him; he strives to use these three together to educate the masses.
Up next was the headliner, nationally touring “hip-pop” artist Bryce Vine. Though the name isn’t familiar to you now, his tunes will be gracing your top 40 radio stations soon. However, if his name is familiar, maybe you heard it while watching the 2014 X-Games – his song “Where The Wild Things Are” was the official theme song.
LA raised and Berklee educated, Vine has a musical style similar to that of Shwayze and Gym Class Heroes. He does a great job of bridging the gap between pop music and hip-hop, making his music friendly to fans of both genres.
His set kicked off with the intro track “Welcome to Lazy Fair,” the namesake of his most recent EP, “Lazy Fair.”
Through the show, he performed the entirety of the EP, which included the fun “Sour Patch Kids,” a tune that makes reference to being a kid, listening to a Walkman and “chillin watchin’ Rocko’s modern livin’ wishin I could find a way to bring back Music Television.” The tune also features Swizz on trumpet, which was an exciting change in live instrumentation from just turntable and vocals.
Though the EP is loaded with catchy hooks, “Take Me Home” may be the most likely to get stuck in your head upon first listen. The lyrics of the chorus, “Hey, we don’t really got another place to go, and I know you don’t want to sleep alone, so take me home tonight,” are both cliché but relatable. This song demonstrates another example of the instrumentation straying away from the typical rap kind, featuring Vine singing with a piano track in the background.
The duo also performed the unreleased “I Just Wanna Be a Thug,” a song performed over the notable power-chord progression of Green Day’s “Brain Stew,” which went over with the crowd exceptionally.
Despite the small crowd, Vine succeeded to put on an entertaining and energetic show, grinning and dancing around the stage with his signature gestures and mannerisms. His music and performance is one that will be remembered and won’t go overlooked next time the duo is in the area.
