Milwaukee-based rappers the Rusty Pelicans certainly aren’t shy.

“The greatest hip-hop band ever put together and the greatest show ever to be seen by the human eye are coming to Ames. Do not miss it,” Aron Smith, frontman for The Rusty Pelicans, says.

Smith is one of three frontmen who push the rap-funk band. Along with fellow MCs Adam Haupt, Isa Ortiz and beatmaster Chuck Watson, Smith says the Rusty Pelicans bring a good time to live venues, and although a good time is always on the agenda, Rusty Pelican-style social commentary brings a message.

“There’s no like, ‘Throw your guns up in the air kinda shit,’ but we don’t hold hands and sing hymns either,” Smith says.

Hip-hop is still a primarily studio-bound genre, but the Pelicans are doing their best to bring hip-hop to the forefront of live music entertainment. Adding a live band and turning every club and bar they play into an all out party scene, the Pelicans are making great strides in their effort.

Recycled Future, fellow Milwaukee locals, complete the M-Shop’s twin bill. The band usually opens for the Pelicans and then joins the entertainment again midway through the Pelicans set for a live rap-funk fiasco.

“The cool vibe and dance feel of the [live] music really make for a good show,” Smith says.

Improv portions of Pelican shows are a mainstay, and frontmen Smith Haupt, and Ortiz enjoy live musicians’ ability to move with the flow of the rhymes. A live bassist and drummer have the ability to react to their surroundings while a drum machine is just that — a machine.

The three vocalists bring different styles that mesh with a rhythmic precision that cannot be found in any rock band. Haupt is quick and exciting, Ortiz has an aggressive edge and Smith brings a poetic power. Together, they know how to kick it.

James Richardson, acting manager of the Rusty Pelicans in 1998, introduced the group to another one of his clients, hip-hop oldtimers, the Pharcyde. Two opening efforts was all it took for the Pharcyde to take a liking to the Pelicans, and a tour with the two acts in the winter of 1999 followed.

The Rusty Pelicans and the Los Angeles-based Pharcyde have continued compilation efforts including the Pelicans’ last recording effort, a 12-inch single recorded with members of both groups.

The band’s current goal is to earn enough money touring to keep things together and record a full-length album with a hopeful release date in late July or early August. For now, catch the cool funk of the Rusty Pelicans because if you miss it, you may be missing “the greatest show ever to be seen by the human eye.”

Recent success in landing more shows and a growing following are positive signs for the Pelicans, and the band’s current focus is on the college scene. Ames, being a college town, was an obvious stop for the foursome.

“We like the college scene because college kids know how to have a good time, and that’s what we’re all about,” Smith says.