Dingwalls must have been close to capacity for the EL-P show. There was a diverse crowd from what appeared to be wide range of backgrounds.

On arrival the venue seemed a little stale, everyone was really just waiting for the live act to start, although at this point it was still pretty early. The support DJ was playing some interesting beats from ‘Root Manuva’ to ‘The Isolationists’, this worked well and was different from the usual tunes which have become synonymous to hip hop nights across the country.

First, was ‘Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip’, the latter immediately went into a well spoken accapella, in an accent quintessentially British but hard to pin down. Dan le Sac providing the beats from his lap top, that introduced an electronic dimension. This duo are not conventional and maybe an odd warm up for the hardened rhymes of EL-P. Yet the beats were crunchy and looped so you could casually nod your head to them and above all Scroobius was entertaining. At one point he used the periodic table as he rapped us through some of its elements. It was light hearted and didn’t take itself too seriously, but still provided witty social commentary.

Scroobius very much reminded me of some of the rap which hails from Sheffield such as ‘Kid Acne’ or ‘Clev Cleverly’. Dan le Sac and Scroobius Pip, finished their set with ‘Thou shalt always kill’, their self confessed “power pop anthem”, which is out on ‘Lex records’. A release which will without a doubt cause debate!

The crowd had listened with intent and had not really started moving but the anticipation of EL-P was bringing people to the front of the stage. Dingwalls can be some what of a cauldron, and the atmosphere was intensified as EL-P’s band took the stage all in military fatigues and balaclavas. The band consisted of a DJ who was in fact the legendary Mr Dibbs (who was faultless throughout), a bassist and a keyboard player.

With the beats already abusing the club’s sound system, EL-P hit the stage running. He was dressed in a Guantanamo Bay jump suit and had fake blood smeared all around his ears and neck. He flew straight into ‘Tasmanian Pain Coaster’, the crowd literally went crazy, I remember thinking that I did not go to many Hip Hop nights where there was a mosh pit. It at times felt like the crowd had their own slice of nightclub anarchy.

It was amazing that so many people were showing so much appreciation for his new material. There was also displayed mayhem for older tunes from ‘Fantastic Damage’. Tunes such as ‘Stepfather Factory’ and ‘Deep Space 9mm’, predictably had the crowd singing the chorus and returning the infamous line about ‘Rawkus’. However this was really a night for EL-P’S new album ‘Sleep When Your Dead’, sounding like hip hop somewhere between heavy rock, horror film and lasers, the theme remains as ever, as cynical and raw as the first album. Tunes such as ‘Up All Night’ and ‘Run the Numbers’ had the audience at the front of the stage violently jumping around and spilling beer.

EL-P, finished his set with ‘Tuned Massed Damper’, it demonstrated the ability of EL-P, as a talented rapper but also being able to provide a strong performance away from the studio.

Words: adZ