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REVIEW gig Public Enemy Live at the O2 Academy, Liverpool

Believe the Hype

Published by Lawrence Taylor

The last time I saw Public Enemy was in 1992 at the G-Mex in Manchester, as part of the Stop Sellafield 2 gig. To be honest I didn’t pay much attention, as I was there to see two of the other acts on the bill. I deeply regret that now after seeing tonight’s powerful performance. And what a performance it was.

But before we get to that, I think it’s only fair to mention Age of Luna who started tonight’s proceedings. The band consists of a DJ, two rappers and a female vocalist, who gave us an hours’ worth of great laid back hip hop tunes delivered with confidence. A great set by a young band that deserves to go far. Oh and she also plays great sax.

However, it was the sheer power that Chuck D unleashed on the audience on the opening track ‘Miuzi weighs a Ton’ that made me think it was going to be one of those nights. This was swiftly followed by ‘Rebel without a Pause’. That sealed the deal. They owned that room and the audience loved it.

Halfway through ‘911 is a joke’ Flavor Flav made his appearance on a two wheeled balance skateboard, complete with a black Public Enemy hoody and sunglasses. The ultimate showman entrance.

From then on we were given an amazing hip-hop show by the masters.’ Don’t believe the Hype’ , ‘Bring the Noise’, ‘Black Steel’ and ‘Fight the Power’ are all crowd pleasers and show that Public Enemy ate still are musical force to be dealt with.
One thing I didn’t know is that Flavor is also quite a musician, treating us to some nice bass work and even playing the drums.

To be honest I have never been a fan of this genre of music, but tonight’s performance was filled with passion and love for the audience. Something that is rarely seen these days. Most groups walk on and script their way through a set that that is pre-determined to the second. Public Enemy threw all that in the air and gave the audience a cracking night’s entertainment on a personal level. This has to be one the best shows of 2015.

Oh and a big thanks to Lee at Tinycow for the last minute passes. An old school promoter, who is such a gent. Keep an eye on this fellow. Massive things are lined up for 2016.

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