Tech N9ne, Machine Gun Kelly, Stevie Stone, Mayday! Hostile Takeover Tour- Club Cinema - June 26

View photos of Tech N9ne and Machine Gun Kelly at Club Cinema

Strange Music's artist Stevie Stone, who was officially signed to the label in '11, greeted the swelling crowd by hollering, "Ya'll ready to morhterfucking party or what?" The congregation of heavily tattooed white boys and youngins dressed in (what looked like their mother's) lingerie answered accordingly.

It wasn't long before the masses of girls-on-their-boyfriends-shoulders were singing along to "Ain't Playin Around," Stones' popular single from the his 2009 album New Kid Coming. Between the woop-wooping led by Stone and his posse, paired with his eccentric choreography, Stone left a cauldron of insanity a-brewin' as the crowd sipped affordably priced liquor drinks (Hypnotic, anyone?) and "Fogged the bitch out."

Miami natives Mayday! followed suit, bringing a unique -- and bare with us here -- tango worthy mix of Latin soul meets hardcore, meets hip-hop, meets Neo in The Matrix sound to the hometown audience.

"We're ringing in the Zombie Apocalypse," the MCs announced as the six-man ensemble started. The group, made up of a keyboardist, bongo drummer, oddly cloaked and neon-accessorized interpretive dancer, guitarist, drummer, and two MCs -- all of whom, we learned, can successfully play one-another's instruments without interrupting the set. The outfit has taken the scene by storm, offering an uncanny compilation of dance worthy beats, heavy bass, and a raver atmosphere, unparalleled by most other commercial musicians and their labels.

The set also featured an out-of-control mosh pit and squirt guns, which only added to the level of excitement inside the club as fans prepared for the madness that is Machine Gun Kelly.

Having been in trouble with the law recently in a handful of U.S. cities, the half-naked and almost famous rapper known as MGK was uncharacteristically reserved. Though he did attempt to scale a story-high set of speakers stageside. "I don't give a fuck about basketball," MGK sneered in response to "Let's Go Heat" crowd chants overheard backstage, "Now lace-the-fuck-up." A sea of "L's" were thrown up, the taste of angst insufferably palpable.

In between songs Kells and crew called a trio of girls on stage, and as he undressed, so did they. Long before the end of the set was in sight, Machine Gun Kelly stood front a center with nothing but a pair of hot pink boxer-briefs guarding his goodies and a (child-like) babe in a neon yellow thong. It was a sight to see, for sure, and fans could not get enough.

By the time headliner Tech N9ne graced the stage with his Midwestern flow, everyone in the building was stupid stoned, and not necessarily by choice. The weed smoke was so dense that it'd be hard for Tech, who told us in an exclusive interview that he has been drug-free since the late '90s, to pass a piss test.

Mr. N9ne's military inspired ensemble was only overshadowed by his impressive white facepaint as he led his troops into a raging war. The pit opened up when the rapper opened with "Welcome To the Midwest," and it never closed. Swarms of overheated bodies fled stage right to stage left like oil running in water, but there was no way to escape the performance as Tech N9ne hypnotized the multi-level venue, slowing down only to sing "Red Nose," a song dedicated to everyone who has ever felt left out, underappreciated, or out-of-place.

The best part about of the entire night was the unity inside the four walls. It was impenetrable to hate, haters, and the hated upon. The Strange Music family might live up to its name -- strange music, that is -- but the label and its artists have remained part of the popular, independent music label where defeat is not an option.

Critics Notebook

Random Thoughts, theories and advice:
A. Mosh pits in 2012 = sweaty white boys who have nothing better to do than beat the living shit out of each other on a Tuesday night.

B. The smell of dank kryppie was only slightly muffled by the odor of Axe Body Spray.

C. Girls in fishnets and corsets should avoid aforementioned mosh pits if they really want to avoid nip-slips and skinned knees.

D. Yes, people still mosh and it hurt my aging vertebrae to even watch.

Overheard in the crowd: 
"I just had someone's dreadlock stuck to my shoe."