9/30/2003 10:32:00 AM|W|P|Danny Eagle|W|P| Future Classic, a self-described music, art, and fashion show, dropped its second installment in two years at the Boston Center for the Arts. It had all the makings of historic event. You had legendary DJ Kool Herc�described (at least on the flyer) as the "founder of hip hop"�on the decks and graffiti icon SEEN actually on site, showing his latest canvasses. An all-girl breaking crew was gonna get down and yes, there was booze. I was psyched, I was already bombed and was ready for more. Sadly, I didn't really get more. The venue, a massive circular brick gallery built in the late 1800's, was so large, the crowd inside it seemed sparse. The beats employed by Herc were preceded by a long and boring address to the world, and in the end, weren't very loud, weren't very good, and often left breakers stranded on the floor with no beat to dance to. The man gets credit for his contributions to the culture without question, but when the name behind the turntables is bigger than the sound they make, I want my money back. The art being shown was fairly half-assed. You had some great writers in there, a handful of solid work, and if I had $1500 to burn, I'd own a giant SEEN canvas that was the highlight of the show. Graf art has shown its face in many places through many mediums: light boxes, sculpture, and of course in its natural illegal city habitat, its most impressive home. But what I saw was a mish mash of writers selling stuff that wasn't that new, and seemed to be put up last minute just to fill the massive wall space available. The breaking was good fun to watch. You had Shebang Crew, an all-girl crew that was pretty solid, with the exception of one clunky girl that they might have the been the group's treasurer or the only one who had a car. But it seeemed everyone was jumping in on it, a little kid that blew the place apart, a couple of old-school fellas, and one spaz that managed to kick a girl in the face. Sadly, also a highlight of the show. I nearly peed myself just standing near SEEN. I didn't have the balls to go talk with him or tell him that he was my idol and that I could quote nearly every word of his from Style Wars. I stood in awe of the great master. I just wish there could have been a better reception for him. All in all, this would have been better in a little club, or a bar with a dancefloor. The people more closely packed, the music louder, more on point and a general good flow of booze, interesting personalities, art and fashion, just like it said on the flyer. Perhaps they'll get it right next year.|W|P|106494314685150313|W|P|Future Classic | SEEN, DJ Kool Herc, Shebang Crew|W|P|scottlmoe@gmail.com