Just Blaze v.s The Alchemist

Just Blaze v.s The Alchemist

07 May, 2010
by: Trol23

Thanks to a last minute bit of generosity by Agent of Change, Tomas Olesen gets down to East Village for one of the most eagerly anticipated shows of the year - The Just Blaze v.s The Alchemist Soundclash.

Between them Just Blaze and The Alchemist are a major part of the sound of modern hip hop: Just Blaze as the in-house producer for Jay-z's Rock-a-Fella Records and Alchemist as a part of the Soul Assassins and the man behind Dilated Peoples first album. It wouldn't be much of an exaggeration to say that they're the biggest producers in the hip hop world right now. Just Blaze in particular cemented himself as the man of the moment by producing last year's 'Exhibit A' and 'Exhibit C' for Jay Electronica. No surprise then that this show sold out in two weeks without a flyer or poster in sight.

On arrival the room is packed and classic track after classic track is dropped to an enthusiastic, rap-along crowd. The basement of East Village has an ear-drum-shredding soundsystem and the bass at times feels full-on enough to rupture internal organs. Mr. Thing is, of course, the man bringing this ruckus from behind the decks. He really is the best. If he keeps going the way he is, it can't be long before he starts being referred to as a national treasure. Highlights included the whole audience trying to rap the Big Pun “dead in the middle of little Italy” tongue twister from 'Twinz'.

Just Blaze and The Alchemist step up to a thundering welcome. It turns out to be less a 'versus' and more a 'back to back'. Alchemist says at the end, “this is not a battle, this all love” and he's right. Few shows leave the audience with as nice a buzz as this one. There is a real sense of hip hop community in the room and it's to Spin Doctor's credit that he's prepared to put on gigs like this one which can't be making much, if any, profit but which allow us all the chance to see the cream of U.S hip hop in intimate surroundings without breaking the bank.

The combined back catalogue of these two kings of hip hop production is enviable to say the least and the fact that they can play a two-hour set almost entirely consisting of banging tunes is testament to this. Although it's not a competition, perhaps the biggest cheers of the night come for Just Blaze records. The Cam'ron hit 'Oh Boy' goes down particularly well as do Jay-Z's 'Public Service Announcement' and Jay Electronica's 'Exhibit C'. It's not just a case of playing their hits verbatim either, here and there the original soul tunes which have been sampled are allowed to play out beatless, and all in all it feels like more of a house party than a club night.

Spin Doctor steps up to cap off one of the best hip hop shows London has seen for a while in typically inimitable style. It feels like there is something of a hip hop renaissance happening at the moment: it's exciting again, with plenty of young talent emerging, Spin Doctor and the Doctor's Orders promotions are at the forefront of this resurgence. There's been another date added due to the overwhelming demand for this one, and last we heard there were a few tickets left. If you couldn't make it down last night it comes highly, highly recommended.

Check out London hip hop
Check out London Live Music
Check out Things To Do in London

Trol23