Vic the Bitter Side Effects Album Launch
Friday night was Vic the Bitter’s Side Affects album launch, an exciting time for the rapper who was releasing his first album in five years. Sadly, earlier in the day, it was learned, that a good friend of the local hip hop community had passed, John Mac. I personally never met him but I had seen him at many, many gigs. A true judge of character is what people say about you when you’re not in the room. This is a man who was loved and will be missed. Friday night at The Boston was dedicated to John Mac, Gosep HK.
Due to the horrible turn of events, one of John’s good friends, Soma was no longer able to perform. His spot was filled by a relatively unknown up and comer, Xavier Vincent, who was performing live for the very first time and at such short notice. Xavier jumped on stage with a gusto that was promising and rapped some interesting verses. But whether it was nerves or lack of practice, part way through the set, he kept forgetting his lyrics. Unfortunately something like that tends to have a domino effect, hopefully it won’t be the last time we see Xavier Vincent.
Between the sets, DJ Defyre held down the ones and twos and did so throughout the entire night. Everyone’s favourite gig host, Adam Crook, who despite the sombre vibe of the night, managed to keep positive and everyone entertained between sets.
Producer Loksr was supposed to be the next set however technical issues forced the show to move onto the following act. Luckily, just as this was announced Skrew Loose Recordings' Azmatik & Drastik walked through the door of the venue and straight onto stage to perform their set. There’s a reason why there’s so much hype around Azmatik. He’s a strong performer who coupled with good friend/collaborator Drastik brings a lot of energy to the stage. The crowd were engaged and were actually moving closer to the stage. Always a good sign.
Finally the issues were resolved and Loksr was able to perform his set. Doing something a little bit different, Loksr’s “set” was somewhat of an extended music video. It was a nice break from the straight bars on stage. Being a beatmaker, as opposed to a rapper/performer, it’s certainly a great way to keep the audience engaged in your music/”performance”. The footage was of local graffiti, Perth city and just Loksr and his mates hanging out. Familiar footage of the Mitchell Freeway, Bayswater Train Station and AMF Bowling played over fifteen minutes of tracks from his Project D.A.V.E EP. Beats were a mixture of hip hop, trap and grime but all banged hard and had a darker sound. Unfortunately I was so entranced by the vision, the music became secondary to my senses.
One of the nice surprises from the evening was a nearly hour long set from Perth hip hop royalty, Tomahawk. The man is somewhat of a mirage, only appearing at the most revered of times. Having released sophomore solo project Black Swan in 2016, songs earlier on in his set were from that album, and he seemed to be speeding through them eager to get off stage. However that soon changed with the elusive rapper performing an extended set. A young fan from the crowd yelled out A Bitch Named Hip Hop and surprisingly Tomahawk obliged. For the next fifteen minutes or so, the rapper performed tracks that are now 10 years old. Impressively, he seemed to remember all of the lyrics, though he did seem sheepish regarding some of the lyrical content. It was painfully obvious that there were some people who’d just come to see Tomahawk perform. A highlight of the evening, a young girl telling her friend: “I’m here to see Tomahawk c**t””. Scarily, she would have been about 10 when his debut album was released.
Then it was time for the main man of the evening, Vic the Bitter. The Side Effects album was five years in the making and Vic admitted that the night was “for the features I’ll probably never perform off the album”. Despite the day’s sad events, Vic exploded on stage with great energy and got the crowd excited, dedicating his set and this night to John Mac. He rapped most of the album including Death Scholars with Tomahawk back on stage, Jimi Hendrix and Disco Biscuits. The latter song a collaboration with deceased American rapper, formerly of Boot Camp Clik, Sean Price. A noteworthy feat as pointed out by Adam Crook. Vic’s lively performance commanded attention from the crowd and everyone was dancing/celebrating. He closed his set with gratitude towards his family and friends who have had to endure his creative stress over the past five years and Restless 2.0, the sequel to his scathing track from his 2013 Deranged Thoughts album.
Unfortunately, it is the saddest of times when people band together. Friday night showed the hip hop scene banding together to show love for a person who was a pillar of the community. And there was no better way or night, then an event covering things that he and everyone love: hip hop and graffiti. Respect to everyone, Vic the Bitter, Tomahawk, Soma, DJ Defyre, Adam Crook, who, despite their pain and sadness, allowed the show to go on. I’m sure it’s what he would have wanted.
Due to the horrible turn of events, one of John’s good friends, Soma was no longer able to perform. His spot was filled by a relatively unknown up and comer, Xavier Vincent, who was performing live for the very first time and at such short notice. Xavier jumped on stage with a gusto that was promising and rapped some interesting verses. But whether it was nerves or lack of practice, part way through the set, he kept forgetting his lyrics. Unfortunately something like that tends to have a domino effect, hopefully it won’t be the last time we see Xavier Vincent.
Between the sets, DJ Defyre held down the ones and twos and did so throughout the entire night. Everyone’s favourite gig host, Adam Crook, who despite the sombre vibe of the night, managed to keep positive and everyone entertained between sets.
Producer Loksr was supposed to be the next set however technical issues forced the show to move onto the following act. Luckily, just as this was announced Skrew Loose Recordings' Azmatik & Drastik walked through the door of the venue and straight onto stage to perform their set. There’s a reason why there’s so much hype around Azmatik. He’s a strong performer who coupled with good friend/collaborator Drastik brings a lot of energy to the stage. The crowd were engaged and were actually moving closer to the stage. Always a good sign.
Finally the issues were resolved and Loksr was able to perform his set. Doing something a little bit different, Loksr’s “set” was somewhat of an extended music video. It was a nice break from the straight bars on stage. Being a beatmaker, as opposed to a rapper/performer, it’s certainly a great way to keep the audience engaged in your music/”performance”. The footage was of local graffiti, Perth city and just Loksr and his mates hanging out. Familiar footage of the Mitchell Freeway, Bayswater Train Station and AMF Bowling played over fifteen minutes of tracks from his Project D.A.V.E EP. Beats were a mixture of hip hop, trap and grime but all banged hard and had a darker sound. Unfortunately I was so entranced by the vision, the music became secondary to my senses.
One of the nice surprises from the evening was a nearly hour long set from Perth hip hop royalty, Tomahawk. The man is somewhat of a mirage, only appearing at the most revered of times. Having released sophomore solo project Black Swan in 2016, songs earlier on in his set were from that album, and he seemed to be speeding through them eager to get off stage. However that soon changed with the elusive rapper performing an extended set. A young fan from the crowd yelled out A Bitch Named Hip Hop and surprisingly Tomahawk obliged. For the next fifteen minutes or so, the rapper performed tracks that are now 10 years old. Impressively, he seemed to remember all of the lyrics, though he did seem sheepish regarding some of the lyrical content. It was painfully obvious that there were some people who’d just come to see Tomahawk perform. A highlight of the evening, a young girl telling her friend: “I’m here to see Tomahawk c**t””. Scarily, she would have been about 10 when his debut album was released.
Then it was time for the main man of the evening, Vic the Bitter. The Side Effects album was five years in the making and Vic admitted that the night was “for the features I’ll probably never perform off the album”. Despite the day’s sad events, Vic exploded on stage with great energy and got the crowd excited, dedicating his set and this night to John Mac. He rapped most of the album including Death Scholars with Tomahawk back on stage, Jimi Hendrix and Disco Biscuits. The latter song a collaboration with deceased American rapper, formerly of Boot Camp Clik, Sean Price. A noteworthy feat as pointed out by Adam Crook. Vic’s lively performance commanded attention from the crowd and everyone was dancing/celebrating. He closed his set with gratitude towards his family and friends who have had to endure his creative stress over the past five years and Restless 2.0, the sequel to his scathing track from his 2013 Deranged Thoughts album.
Unfortunately, it is the saddest of times when people band together. Friday night showed the hip hop scene banding together to show love for a person who was a pillar of the community. And there was no better way or night, then an event covering things that he and everyone love: hip hop and graffiti. Respect to everyone, Vic the Bitter, Tomahawk, Soma, DJ Defyre, Adam Crook, who, despite their pain and sadness, allowed the show to go on. I’m sure it’s what he would have wanted.