Fans of 90’s / Golden Era hip hop were blessed with a very special show on Monday night at The Garage in North London. The Lords Of The Underground were in town! Originally billed at the Jazz Café over 2 nights but moved to the new venue for one night only.
Not surprisingly, the event drew a full house! (mostly fellas of a certain generation!) As it was a Monday night, a lot of people had come directly from work but needed no help with enthusiasm. Much of the ItchFM family were in the building as well as many of my HipHop contemporaries.
Classic Material’s DJ Chris Read started things off. A master of the turntables and a connoisseur of hiphop, the crowd were warmed up with a quality set of original breaks and classic hiphop. Das-EFX had been billed as the support act but after visa issues had to be replaced. It was bitter sweet in that it would have been quite the show two see Das-EFX and LOTU back to back, but, the replacement act was by no means a disappointment.
Another highly respected HipHop artist from the same era, Jeru The Damaja was first to take to the stage and pick up the mic. With DJ 279 on the decks, Jeru rocked a solid set of classic tracks as well as some more underground joints. There were a couple of awkward moments were Jeru tried to force more reaction from the crowd than he was getting but he got through it. A huge unexpected highlight of the night was Psycho Les of The Beatnuts joining Jeru for a couple of numbers.
Then finally, the reason we were all there. The Lords of the Underground took to the stage. They wasted no time and got straight to business rocking up tempo party bangers that had the crowd JUMPING! It was clear to see that these gentlemen had been doing this for a long time and had become true masters of their craft!
The set was well rehearsed with impeccable timing. Add to that the syncopation between MC’s and DJ, to me it felt like what a proper HipHop show should be! Excellent outfit choices with Mr Funke wearing a London Underground shirt and DoItAll rocking a Union Jack! Joined by DJ Lord Jazz on the decks, the show given by this trio gave credence to the term ‘Golden Era’.
Now in their 40s and still working as hard as ever, these diplomats of quality hiphop deserve the respect and the following they have gained. This is the latest in a list of live shows I have seen recently where in terms of performance, the old boys are giving the youngsters a run for their money!
With so many of the younger generation getting into it for the wrong reasons, take note.Sometimes, it isn’t about the money, the fame, or the politics. Sometimes it just is about rocking a party with 2 turntables and a microphone!
DJ Shorty
Latest posts by DJ Shorty (see all)
- Review: The Lords Of The Underground (@djlordjazzlotug) Live @TheJazzCafe — October 21, 2015