Live

The Roots: O2 Academy Brixton, London 10/07/15

The Roots aren’t your typical hip hop act: Boasting legendary MC Black Thought and producer/drummer extraordinaire Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson, you can’t argue with their credentials.

But seeing band member Damon Bryson bounding around the stage carrying a huge sousaphone exemplifies that this is an act that likes to do things differently. Sometimes restrained, sometimes blasting the Brixton Academy audience with sound, the band’s versatility was amply on show as they played their first UK show for two years.

They have two concept albums, two live albums and numerous award winners, including classics “Illadelph Halflife”, “Things Fall Apart” and “How I Got Over” under their belts. So one of the big decisions faced was which material to leave out, as much as what to include. It was interesting that the band didn’t perform anything from latest release “…And Then You Shoot Your Cousin”, choosing instead to stick to tried and trusted material.

Such is their status that Jeru The Damaja and Rodney P were also on the line-up, both delivering solid sets. Watching Jeru perform classic “Come Clean” before the main act was a massive bonus for the audience.

The Roots have plenty of quality material to draw upon, with “The Next Movement”, “Step Into The Realm” and “Dynamite” featuring early on. Black Thought has long been, in my eyes, criminally under-rated as a rapper.

Each time I’ve seen him live – this was the third – he’s been flawless. The main obstacle he faced was the sound quality in the venue. At times it sounded echoey, and there were several moments when the band struggled with levels, making the vocals sound distorted. But you couldn’t fault the energy on the stage.

“The Fire”, from 2010’s “How I Got Over” went down well with the crowd, then a lengthy drum interlude showed Questlove at his best. The obligatory rendition of “You Got Me” drew huge applause from the audience. And guitarist ‘Captain’ Kirk Douglas stepped up as the show went on, leading the group through a rendition of “Sweet Child O’Mine” before a sprawling, energetic performance of “The Seed 2.0”.

The Roots are an act not to be missed. They may have been around – albeit with a changing line-up – since the late 80s, and may pay their bills these days as the house band on a US talk show, but make no mistake that they put everything into their shows on those rare occasions they do take to the stage in the UK.

PHOTOS: DAVE BURKE
Words Dave Burke