Prior to this latest performance, I last saw Slum Village two years ago, also at the Jazz Cafe. The venue was packed, and everybody was sweaty and screaming at the top of their lungs. It was definitely one of the best shows I had ever been to in my life. So you can understand that I was EXTREMELY HYPE to attend this show. Surely at the very least, Slum Village would deliver a show at least as good as their last one...? Right... ?
Well... I'm afraid to say that on this occasion they didn't. The show kicked off with their DJ playing some Dilla instrumentals, and this was the perfect way to tease the crowd and whet the appetite. The expectancy began to rise. A few minutes later, T3 & Elzhi rolled out on stage and got busy with some new material from their 'Villa Manifesto' EP and it got a decent reaction. As with most live performances, the crowd really gets open when the music that they are more familiar with starts to knock. This again proved to be true because once they got into their 'Fantastic Vol. 2' material things started to get rowdy.
Even though they performed standout cuts like 'Players', 'Get Dis Money', 'Fall In Love', 'Selfish' and 'Tainted', the performers seemed to lack the energy and sheer bounce in their step that they are renowned for in their live shows. Yes, Elzhi's immune system took a whipping from the British weather, and I don't think they were playing with their usual DJ. But still, the chemistry they display so effortlessly on wax was not in effect on this night. There were spots where it seemed as though they were rapping to "each other" and ignoring the crowd. Even on a couple of songs, some verses were either fumbled or forgotten and had to be filled in by the audience.
Don't get it twisted, the gems that make up the Slum catalogue can guarantee a decent night out – they have no "bad" songs, a few "okay" ones, lots of "dope" joints and "quite a few "classics." But they have proven to be excellent performers and accomplished rappers, so I expected more. I left feeling felt slightly disappointed, and listened to my SV playlist on the way home to remind myself of their greatness despite the less than emphatic performance I had just witnessed.
Regardless, even though they weren't "clicking on all cylinders" this time, I will still be in attendance the next time they are in town.
