Molotov kick started their USA Tour 2009 at Chicago’s Metro on one of city’s coldest nights this winter. Naturally it takes a lot more than -18 degree weather to scare off hardcore Molotov fans. Once inside, fans got the satisfaction of letting loose mosh pitting, head banging, body surfing,in an all-around chaotic scene created by the bilingual, Mexican rock/rap foursome.
Music mayhem on and off stage isn’t anything new for Molotov, especially when they gave the audience a varied set list from covers to oldies off their first album ¿Donde Jugaran las Niñas? As soon as Randy “El Gringo Loco” Ebright prefaced their patriotic Mexican anthem, “Frijolero”, with a commentary on the U.S./Mexico border the crowd roared in excitement. Ebright took the chance to commend Chicago for the election of President Barack Obama and referred to George Bush and his entire family as “super cacas” on their way out.
“Here we Kum,” from Dance and Dense Denso, followed and was a bit of a breather for the crowd after the rivet that “Frijolero” caused. After a brief break mid-show, Molotov came back with twice the power, performing songs off of their album, Con Todo Respecto, released in 2004 completely devoted to covers. From the many, Molotov gave their hungry fans, “Quen Pon Ponk,” a remake of original song “Quien Pompo” by Chico Che, that obsesses about a pretty faced girl who goes around breaking hearts, but has no one to watch her, in Molotov’s version they fancy the lifestyle of a punk rocker. In addition, 1980’s hit song “Rock Me Amadeus,” by Falco didn’t manage to escape Molotov’s creativity, thus was born “Amateur.” During “Amateur,” fans began to create small mosh pits all around their circle of friends and amongst strangers.
It wasn’t until their cover of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” that caused Metro’s hell to break loose. The powerful guitar leads thrived as some fans were lifted up and thrown into the waves of people, proving that bodysurfing is fundamental at a Molotov concert. And for the fans that didn’t choose bodysurfing, head banging and jumping up and down to “Puto” and “Chinga Tu Madre,” was a better fit.
To close off the night, Molotov paid homage to a tradition that has followed them throughout their years of performing. Security guards guided ladies from the audience onto the stage. It took about five minutes to get ladies from all ages and all drinking levels on stage and it took approximately one second to get them dancing to Molotov’s “Rastaman-Dita,” from Apocalypshit. About 30 lovely ladies on stage closed the night dancing to the reggae beats while simultaneously sneaking in a hug and them some to their Molotov band member of choice.