Big Top, Luna Park, Sydney
Saturday June 8, 2013 :
As someone who grew up listening to hip-hop music, Come Together 2013 was in a lot of ways a rude awakening for me. I thought I had hip-hop down – for as long as I can remember I’ve listened to rappers from all walks of life, from all over the world, from the most popular and well known right through to those who are still finding their feet in the competitive storytelling environment that is hip-hop music. I found out at Come Together 2013 that I do not have hip-hop down. Aussie hip-hop is an entirely different space on its own.
Some of the artists that graced the stage brought an entirely new flow, a new feel and a new reason for rap than what I knew. If I’m being completely honest, there were a lot of moments of light and dark at Come Together – I found myself impressed continually by the artists and their music, at the same time, I did find there were moments of disappointment as well.
I arrived at Luna Park; this was a first for me. It is an exciting place and reminded me a lot of the fairs and showgrounds that I might have attended in the school holidays when I was a kid – only with much more grandeur and class – it was exciting. Upon arriving I was met by bouncers who were in the process of removing a young partygoer who might have been a little over enthusiastic about the party that was to come.
Walking into the big-top, a large dark room with a single stage and a divide set up to allow over 18s an area where they could drink, I was taken aback by the completely unpredictable crowd. I swear I saw families with kids as young as 4 or 5, through to the ‘cool kid’ teens, the drunken bogans, glamourpuss girls, right up to older men and women (easily in their 50s or 60s). Listening to the crowd, and speaking with some of them it became clear they had come for different artists and reasons, but one thing everyone had in common was a love for Aussie hip-hop music.
The artists ranged in style and skill – this became obvious as the show went on. I arrived during an up and coming artist, Allday’s set. The 21 year old from Melbourne, best known for his tune ‘So Good’ had a good flow, based on heavy beats. He was the only artist I saw on the day who took the stage alone, with only his DJ on the decks behind him.
The show stepped up a notch when Aussie hip-hop champions, The Herd, took the stage. With a solid following and some killer hits, including their cover of Redgum’s ‘I was only 19’, the group led by Urthboy and Ozi Batla blew the crowd away with genius flow, politically charged lyrics and dynamic musical performance. Traksewt’s accordion and Jane Tyrell’s gorgeous voice really helped to set The Herd apart as a force, leading the charge in Aussie hip-hop. When The Herd finished up, I couldn’t imagine how anyone could follow them up – they were fantastic.
Fortunately, the artist to step up after them was Illy. I had heard of Illy, and had listened to one or two of his songs but honestly I was unaware of just how good he is. He stepped up at Come Together and I would say his cool pop-rap sound might just have made him my favourite act to take the stage. A minor technical error and delay were completely forgotten when he delivered his hit ‘Cigarettes,’ with the crowd caught on every word. “Everybody put your mobile phones up” he called out at before kicking the song off. The crowd were well caught up by this point, with smoke flowing up into the air, drunken hopefuls calling out loud while the sweat soaked crowd danced and moved to the sounds. Following Illy’s call a few mobile phones were risen to create the lighter feel (but let’s be realistic, this was an Aussie hip-hop show) and lighters were raised with no regard for the indoor venue. The crowd knew the song, the lyrics and its meaning and they sang the chorus out. Illy followed up with a couple of new songs including the brand new single ‘On and On’ – when he dropped this song, I realised I am an Illy fan.
And then there came the headliner, multi-award winning Drapht. The 30 year old was full of energy and a great showman. Being completely honest, I find some of his work a little monotonous and was hanging out for his hit ‘Jimmy Recard’. While I was waiting on the song, Drapht stepped up drawing me in to all of his songs – he was joined on stage by N’fa and a couple of other rappers during his set who really helped mix things up. I loved the drinking song, ‘Drink, Drank, Drunk’ in which he had the crowd (including myself) chanting “Paul, Paul, Paul” – this was a fun song. When he did throwdown with ‘Jimmy Recard’ the crowd fell at his feet – everyone chanted along, encapsulated. Watching Drapht play, I realised why he is so popular, why his music wins so many awards and he is regarded as a leader in the Aussie hip-hop scene and it is his show. Drapht is a showman and his live performance is hard to look away from.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from Come Together. It was terrifying and beautiful all at once. Full Tote Odds, Dialecrix, and crowd favourites Spit Syndicate deserve mention as well as they all stepped up to the plate, delivering fantastic sets. From Dialectrix lyrical pace and delivery, to the fun pop-rap sound of Spit Syndicate – these guys all played different shows and has me excited for what the future of Aussie hip-hop has to offer. If you are an Aussie hip-hop fan and weren’t at the show – I’ll make it simple for you – you should have been.
Reviewer: Mark Henderson
Photographer: David Jackson
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