1200 TECHNIQUES – HI-FI BAR - 25th JULY
Reviewed by G Force
Similar to the boys of 1200 Techniques fame this night started off rather quietly. The venue was far from full, and I began to wonder if the DMC
finals from the previous night had bit into the 1200 ticket sales. I was wrong, very wrong. What started as a quiet night soon turned into a packed
house with all hands in the air, but hey we can’t start there, lets take it back to scratch.
As I peered through the glass wall from the top level as we entered I noticed Maya Jupiter on stage tearing around like a bat out of hell, although
a lot better looking. As I ventured further down the stairs her energy and charismatic presence were felt, this girl loves to perform. Some sort of
movement matched every line she spoke, in an attempt to entice the crowd to join her, however they were non-existent. A few groups scattered here and
there with the occasional scream or hand up was all the girl got through her songs with the usual applaud and a few whistles at the end. This was
disappointing, I felt that the energy she had offered the crowd, along with her tracks which were slamming and experimental in some, that Timberland
type beat had me bouncing, should have been returned. It was in part, I guess the people who were there to see more than 1200 enjoyed.
This was followed by a brief intermission of old 1200 beats being played through a stereo in an effort to amp the small but increasing crowd up a
little. Someone must have known the exact times to arrive, cause they left no time to spare before 1200 hit. However before they touched the stage,
we were blessed with the styling of Kutmaster Kurt on the decks and Motion Man gripping the mic. Appearing in a Mexican wrestling mask Kutmaster
kicked it off as Motion man went through a list of tracks ranging from his new cd to his works from Kool Keith releases. The dance floor was
reasonably empty except for two drunken fools up front raising hands and bopping heads with every beat, yes; those fools were my mate and me. The
crowd on the floor became increasingly bigger with time through the set with many people singing along by the end and getting funked out as Kutmaster
Kurt and Motion Man wrapped up their set. Once again a little disappointed in crowd response, but I can only imagine the amount of 1200 fans who have
no idea who Motion Man or Kutmasta Kurt even are, so on that note it was actually pretty good!
The stage dimmed as the silhouettes of the three people that most were there to see could be seen running around setting up various things here and
there. Then the lights came up as did the crowds vocals. Turning around for the first time since Motion Man had started I was shocked at the amount
of people who had appeared out on no where. The place was chockers, everyone screaming, and everyone jumping. 1200 kicked it off with some older
tracks from Choose one and even back to the Infinite Styles EP, some ‘Hard as Hell’ dropped in for good measure, and the crowd loved it. It became
evident the crowd was there only to see 1200, every word was sung along by every member, as the boys ripped through ‘Since I got it’, ‘Put Em Up’ the
crowd were jumping more than a cicada on a trampoline. ‘Karma’ was an obvious crowd favourite and the new single ‘Eye Of The storm’ gained automatic
live approval, it was doper live than I could have imagined. 1200 also dropped some new stuff on the crowd, did not catch one name of any of the new
tracks but goddamn, they were killer. Definitely more hip-hop based then their previous work and there was a guest appearance by Maya Jupiter as Nfa
and Maya traded verses across the stage. The track was ill and will appear on the upcoming album ‘Consistency Theory’. This also sees more guest
appearances by Hau (Koolism) and Ken Hell. Looking forward to the new album more after seeing the new tracks performed live. Every track was
received well by the crowd, old and new and 1200 have not slowed down a bit. Every step, every word and every track delivered by the trio had more
impact then ever. Kemstar tearing it up on the bass with his signature funky grooves and massive smile while Dj Peril was shredding the bongo skins,
scratching the hell out of some vinyl, dropping the beats and even popped out for a brief verse. Nfa seemed more aggressive then ever, prowling the
stage as he ripped through every verse flawlessly.
There is no doubt that 1200 will have an even bigger impact with this new release, however it may be in the hip-hop scene more than any other. Back
to their roots? Definitely a more hip-hop focused release to come and the live shows fir it well. An awesome performance that will not be forgotten
and will have relit the fires under a lot of fans ensuring they cop the album when it comes out. 1200 are a definite force to be reckoned with live
and be sure that you can’t stop the fever of 1200 playing.
OzHipHop.Com CEO
Email: webmaster at ozhiphop dot com
Skype: massmc
IRC: irc.freenode.net #ozhiphop
|
![[*]](./images/ozhiphop/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
posted on 28-7-2003 at 04:14 PM
