Nowadays, hip-hop supergroups are hard to find out. Back in the 90’s you had groups like Boot Camp Clik and The Firm, but lately supergroups have been splintered about the industry – perfect timing for Joe Budden, Royce Da 5’9, Joell Ortiz, and Crooked I for form Slaughterhouse. Forming on Budden’s 2008 album Halfway House and eventually singing to Shady Records, Slaughterhouse have proven and re-proven themselves countless times as emcees not be taken lightly.
Nicknaming us ‘Slaughstralia,’ three-quarters of Slaughterhouse tore up the Metro Theatre and put on a head-spinning display of lyricism, to no one’s surprise. The boys cemented their live skills both as hype-men and as rappers with a perfect sense of timing and an uncanny ability to control the crowd’s every move.
With an excellent support DJ in DJ Samurai playing a healthy balance of hip-hop and commercial rap, the crowd was amped up from the very beginning of the show, and was our ears were well looked while we waited for Royce, Ortiz, and Crooked I to take the stage.
‘Sound Off’ was our introduction to Slaughterhouse, and played out as the perfect opener, with each rapper using their verse to introduce them to stage – all while receiving huge ovations. All three members brought a different style to the table, with impeccable delivery, bouncing off each other like a well-oiled machine and never missing a beat.
A nice selection from both their albums was given to us, including a few special treats like the ‘BET Shady 2.0 Cypher’ and Crooked I’s mind-blowing freestyle from last year’s SXSW.
The formidable emcees constantly joked around with the crowd, improvising freestyles about Australia and our attractions with lines that made the crowd scream and holler as if collectively shouting “I can’t believe he just thought of that.”
What’s just as impressive as their rap skills is just how great they are at hyping up the crowd until the level of energy makes you feel as if it’s a stadium show. It’s a cliché for a hip-hop show to dabble in call-and-response interactions and the like, but the boys took it a step further, even giving some fans a chance at rapping Royce Da 5’9’s technical verse from ‘Fast Lane.’
A short intermission had the boys hyping up popular tracks from each city that they represent, while even playing Joe Budden’s biggest hit ‘Pump It Up,’ as a sort of dedication for their absent comrade.
While Royce got the most shine out of the three, it would have been nice to hear some solo work from Crooked and Ortiz, but as the night closed with nickel nine’s hit ‘Boom’ we were more than satisfied with how everything turned out.
Set List:
Sound Off
Frat House
BET Shady 2.0 Cypher
Crooked I SXSW Freestyle
Microphone
Asylum
Coffin
Hammer Dance
Fast Lane (Bad Meets Evil)
Above the Law (Bad Meets Evil)
Throw It Away
The One
Lighters (Bad Meets Evil)
My Life
Encore
Goodbye
Boom (Royce Solo)