A return by LTJ Bukem to Perth, with an accompanying performance by two other scene heavy weights, Friction and Tayo, is always to be anticipated. Heavy Weight Soundz at Club Capitol last Friday night was indeed anticipated by the dnb crew, and as the night lead on, the evening proved to be exactly what was promised.
Arriving early as it seemed, the sounds of Shock One bounced off the walls of the club. These guys have begun to get a seriously good rap for their performances, and all in all this seems to be warranted. The slightly heavier side of wobble and tech that they unleashed may have been a little askew considering they were to be followed by the salubrious sounds of LTJ Bukem, but the lads managed to pull it off rather nicely. Of particular note was the MCing of Stylee – this is certainly one mc to keep a serious eye on, and looks to be one of the more promising up and coming talents to be seen in some time.
As Bukem and Conrad came to the stage, the room suddenly appeared full to bursting and packed out completely. Conrad was in his usual fine form, and Bukem couldn’t help but please. The slightly dubbed out and more laid back orientated style fit perfectly, with a remarkably diverse range of tracks being dropped. The sound was the best that has been heard at Capitol so far, a venue notorious for its difficulty in achieving the right sound balance for dnb. Bukems nearly concealed ear buds must have been buzzing to the vibe of such a great reception to their set, and with hardly any recognisable tracks played in the entire two hours the dub plate ensemble was out in full force. A perfect example of why Bukem and Conrad continue to set the standard in innovative and soulful performances.
Friction stepped up and played up a storm of three deck action, with MC SP diligently throwing rhymes around the room. Picking up the intensity of the tunes, and with tune after tune around with upbeat swings and darker growls, Friction kept the entire room moving. SP did a fine job at the hype, and coaxed the crowd into keeping pace.
Upstairs, Prizzy unleashed a great lead up break bonanza, cutting the floor with his burgeoning talents, and Signal Drivers presented an excellent set featuring live instrumentation and another surprising factor in the live vocals of CJ – a beautiful jazz orientated voice and a remarkable physical presence set against a breakbeat is always to be appreciated. As Tayo then took over the breaks room to the early hours of the morning, one couldn’t help but be impressed by the versatility of his set. From clean stomping breaks to ragga tinged splits, Tayo once again displayed why he is an innovative master of the broken class.
The only down points of the evening can be attributed to the ridiculous no-hat policy
At Capitol and the less than adequate air-flow in the top breaks room, but beyond that come closing time, many a punter left with complete satisfaction at once again having been given a taste of the best the world has to offer in the heavyweight breaks arena.
