O2 Love Music Column – May 2013
The month of May kicks off at the O2 with a night of old-school hip hop. Former Juice Crew affiliates Big Daddy Kane and Masta Ace will be bringing their much-lauded MC skills to the ABC2 on 6 May. With Kane still considered one of the most influential rappers of all time, as well as being a sterling opponent in the beat-down arena of mic-to-mic battles, a quality night is already assured. Like the song says, Ain't No Half-Steppin. Coupled with able support from Masta Ace, a veteran of equal skill and vocal dexterity, and this is simply an unmissable night for hip-hop fans.
A new album from The Fall (ABC, 7 May) may be about as frequent as your own birthday, but that’s surely all the more reason to celebrate. However, us simple homo sapiens will no doubt be marking this as something a bit more special than usual with their upcoming effort Re-Mit being the veteran act’s thirtieth album in just over as many years. An incredible feat no doubt, and certainly not a back catalogue for the fainthearted. Ditto for their legendarily unpredictable live shows of which this will undoubtedly be one.
London-based duo Public Service Broadcasting (ABC2, 8 May) are not ironically named. Firstly, they actually use snippets of archival public service broadcasts. Secondly, they are deadly serious about it, at least on paper, attempting to “teach the lessons of the past through the music of the future” according to their remit. If that sounds like heavy stuff then fear not as they skilfully balance muscular, post-rock takes on the perils of dangerous driving (Signal 30) with hopeful and rousing electro paeans to progress and technology (ROYGBIV). Buckle up and be safe.
Jamaican vocal trio The Abyssinians (ABC2, 16 May) will be bringing an altogether more liberal vibe to Glesca. Best known for their 1976 debut album Satta Massagana, a part-Egyptian sung celebration of Rastafarianism, the fluid line-up has survived many incarnations, even doing a ‘Bucks Fizz’ in the 80s with official and unofficial touring groups. This long overdue tour will see the classic formation back together on stage; still timely enough to apply for Eurovision then.
Stick a pin in any list of influential hip hop artists and chances are that R.A. The Rugged Man (ABC, 17 May) has been affiliated with them in some way. As if to highlight this fact, R.A.’s upcoming second album, Legends Never Die, has a contribution from the aforementioned Masta Ace. However, tonight the man known to his Mum as Richard Andrew Thorburn will be forging his own path as part of the Badmouth Battles series of nights. Expect proceedings to be suitably fierce.