31/10/09
I must admit it; I’m not too familiar with Wu Tang Clan. Don’t get me wrong, like everybody else I love Enter the Wu Tang (36 Chambers) and I know the odd solo effort from Red & Meth, Ol’ Dirty and RZA, but I’m not the biggest fan of their new stuff. And as for Lil John, I’m convinced he’s an elaborate joke conceived by Dave Chappelle, Andy Kaufman style. But I love heading out to live hiphop gigs because of the energy and vitality hiphop has, and with an opportunity to see nearly all of the original Wu Tang Line up on stage together, I couldn’t miss out.
Rocking up at around 8 o’clock, I was greeted by a rather small crowd being entertained by a DJ playing newer hiphop and R&B. There was some 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes which was cool, and some of those annoying auto-tuned rappers. I simply can’t understand why people like this overused and tacky effect on hiphop, and it appears I’m not the only one as I heard one angry girl exclaim rather loudly “what is this shit!?”
Then this weird looking white guy jumped on stage and started screaming into a microphone. He kind of looked like a hairier version of Sammy Hagar, and he thought he was way more hardcore than he actually was, and introduced Lil John. Now, as I mentioned, I’m not the biggest fan and actually think he’s a bit of a joke, as I can’t understand how anyone can make a career out of using the same lyrics in every song. Sure, I like getting fucked up as the next person, but I don’t make an effort to mention it in every conversation!
But I’ve got to hand it to Lil John, he can certainly move a crowd. He played many of his hits like Let’s Get Crunk, Crazy and Put Yo Hood Up, more than I care to admit I know, and I was surprised that by the end of the set it was almost like listening to dance music, with fast beats and an intense energy coming from Lil John and his DJ. Colour me impressed! Unfortunately crazy white guy also jumped around on stage like an idiot for most of his set, swilling booze out of a bottle and spitting it on everyone, seeming to piss everyone off including Lil John.
After his set the previous DJ stepped up and started playing some old school classics like Check Yo Self, Momma’s Gonna Knock You Out, and Let Me Clear My Throat. The venue had filled up quite substantially by now, and it was getting later and later and Wu Tang still weren’t on, but most people were enjoying themselves singing along to the old school. The DJ dropped some Michael Jackson and even Regulate by Warren G. and Nate Dogg, which had cheers from my mate but had angry girl whinging again.
When Wu Tang did finally take the stage, they were greeted with thousands of people cheering with the W up in the air. Dropping straight into Protect Ya Neck, the place got live as fuck. RZA, GZA, Raekwon, UGod, DJ Mathematics, Inspectah Deck and Masta Killa were all jumping around on stage, and I’ve got to say the energy of seven big MCs is electrifying. I’ve always been impressed by the likes of the Beastie Boys and Jurassic 5 when they all rhyme together, but that’s all about harmony. Wu Tang was all about spitting powerfully into the mic, and they eclipsed the music in some places with the sheer intensity of their rhymes. There was a little bit of feedback at first, but this was quickly corrected.
They dropped hit after hit, like Wu Tang Ain’t Nothing To Fuck With, and Clan In Da Back, as well as the various MCs “solo” stuff, like RZA’s You Can’t Stop Me Now, which had me screaming like a girl because I love it so much. They also did a tribute to Ol Dirty, getting everyone to put their lighters / phones in the air, and dropping I Like It Raw and Baby I Got Your Money. There were quite a few tracks I didn’t know, but I didn’t care either, because they had me jumping around like a loon anyway.
The end of their set was a little weird. They played stuff off their latest album, which I don’t think many people knew, and I felt there was a real drop in energy from the Clan. Unlike other concerts which end with a bang, this one simply petered out. There wasn’t an encore either, although it felt like the Wu wanted more as they just kind of meandered on stage taking in the applause. There was a great sense of disappointment from the crowd when the lights came on, that’s for sure.
I had no expectations going into this concert, and I had a hell of a good time listening to music I don’t go out of my way to normally experience. I was surprised at Lil John, and blown away by Wu Tang. Admittedly I was a little disappointed by the ending – I wanted them to come out and do some more amazing music, but I’d thoroughly recommend even if you have a passing interest in Wu Tang to go see them next time, because they’ aint nothin to fuck wit!