ILuvLive, Cargo, London, March 9th
MPHO played at ILuvLive at Cargo on March 9th
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Thursday, 12, Mar 2009 10:43
ILuvLive returned to Cargo in Shoreditch for a one-off special on March 9th, with a diverse mix of urban music, hosted by regular, Ras Kwame (showcasing his Urban Goodies compilation), with Twin B co-hosting and DJ Wonder on the decks.
Having such high profile and larger than life performers in a tiny venue like Cargo meant the atmosphere was electric. In amongst the acts, the quality of talent in the open mic section of the night also deserves a special mention- the second girl in particular was amazing.
Charlie Brown opened the night with a mixture of chilled-out soul and hip hop tracks to a background of bass guitars. Though at times cool and eclectic, at others he had a tendency to slip into more generic stylings, particularly with his vocals, which were generally understated but did quite work when he went into serious 'soul' mode.
Ava Leigh's performance was soothing, if not overly-exciting, with her signature brand of poppy, traditional-sounding reggae ballads.
Ring-tone friendly, 'funky' pioneers and ILuvLive regulars, Crazy Cousinz - credited with the dubious honour of bringing an underground movement overground - were everything you could dream of and more. Bongo Madness lasted literally 15 minutes and sounded like a collaboration between Sean Paul and Fergie which hadn't quite gelled. The whole set was highly entertaining (for comedy value alone) but did leave you the impression of something that wasn't quite anything; the beats sounded like normal dance music slowed down and the tropicana vibe was reminiscent of an 80s novelty band.
Ghetts (the artist formerly known as Ghetto) was instantly forgettable- except for occasionally sounding like a less talented Dizzee Rascal.
MPHO started off her set with a surprisingly commercial sound- including a perfect cover version of Salt n Pepper's Push It. Towards the end- from the moment she uttered those much anticipated words "Big up to Brixton" - she moved into a much more characteristic sound, closing with a frenetic performance of Skewer-Faced Girl in a way which seemed like she was only just getting going.
In such a diverse and (largely) talented line up, self-professed 'best rapper in the U'' and protégé of Akon (this may have come up once or twice. ) Sway eclipsed things - as expected - with abundant levels of energy, arrogance and charisma in what was at times an emotionally charged performance.
Close to the beginning of the set he performed new song 'Pray for Kaya'- a heartfelt and deeply affecting tribute to his friend Kaya Bousquet who died in a 2008, made all the more powerful by the intimacy of the venue. Although the delivery was strong and unfaltering, the genuine emotion behind the lyrics was clear.
Moving things on, he launched into a series of good old fashioned cheesy hip-hop tracks such as F Ur Ex and regular tirades against the 'industry' people in the audience failing to stick their arms in the air. Sway put on an incredible and memorable performance, with a mixture of comedy affectation and ironic self-awareness. He finally left the stage - still keeping it real - with the parting greeting "Thanks - you've been great. Well... you haven't- you've been quite boring really."
Julia Ross