By two.one.five Staff  |  Send to Friend

April 28, 2009. “Will everyone STOP asking me if I’m nervous?" Zoë Kravitz asks mock-crossly, rolling her heavy-lidded eyes. We're walking to the first-ever live gig of her new band, Elevator Fight, and she's had just about enough of people questioning her fortitude.

The show, being held at Philadelphia's Silk City, is a bit of a coming-out party for the group. A large crowd is expected, many of whom to see if the daughter of multiple Grammy winner Lenny Kravitz and former "Cosby Show" actress Lisa Bonet can actually rock out. For their part, the rest of the band, including Khari Mateen, Dominic Angelella, Joe Baldacci, Nick Bockrath, Rick Friedrich seem happy and relaxed -- when a journalist asks them about their sound, they claim they sound like  "liquefied panda," among other things. Zoë, just 20 and already media-savvy enough to be conscious of the attention she generates, has chosen to go by Zoë Isabella in an attempt to defray some of the attention off of her and towards the rest of her capable bandmates.

Despite her protests, though, on this moment just before Elevator Fight’s first gig, she’s quieter then usual. Zoë has every reason to feel apprehensive. The mood at Silk City, an intimate performance space with an attached diner on the opposite side, is somber. Akilles, the opening band, is furiously setting up. Elevator Fight keeps themselves busy by pacing back and forth from the dance floor to the adjoining diner, enjoying an impromptu coffee break.

Like most of the members of the band, Khari Meeten was born with music pumping through his bloodstream. His father, Radji, is a noted saxophonist, and his uncle, Tarus, a bassist, has played with Betty Carter's band as well as Outkast and Fishbone. Mateen seems to serve as the musical backbone of the band -- the musical history, connections and business dealings start and inevitably end with him. A practice doesn’t end without everyone’s opinions and his final approval (often a mild grunt after a typical 10-hour session). As this particular afternoon wore on into evening, Mateen had continued to act as the band’s pied piper, jovial in every sense, setting the appropriate mood.

At close to 10, the crowd is beginning to form, a few of them Silk loyalists ready to shell out cash for nearly any band, unknown or otherwise, the majority there to watch Zoë lead the band she had conjured up just six months ago. By 10:30, the crowd has swollen and the buzz is palpable. By, 11:30, Elevator Fight has taken the stage for the first time.

More Gig Photos HERE

 

Words: Gifty Anane
Images: Rochelle Morton
Video: Dan King