Odd Future
The Hi-Fi, Brisbane
Sunday 5th June 2011
This is a strange show. Everyone knows how they should act based on what they've seen on YouTube. Moreso than any other current act, Odd Future are beholden to mediated expectations. We know that their act involves several sure-bets: Tyler, The Creator comes out in his green mask. Rowdy chants of "Wolf! Gang!" and "Swag!" are de rigueur. The MCs regularly launch themselves onto the crowd's outstretched hands. The hundreds down on the floor bend and sway, never stationary for a moment. Extended middle fingers are projected from the stage and reflected by the audience. iPhones are held aloft, capturing every single moment with questionable clarity. The focal point is a hip-hop group that most of us hadn't even heard of six—hell,
four—months ago. Like I said: strange show.
More than anything, they're a product of an ever-shortening media cycle which sees acts emerge from obscurity to fame with frightening speed. There is talent on display here, sure. Strip away the most incendiary elements of their schtick—mostly, people taking their adolescent lyrics too seriously—and you're still confronted with impressive, robust production and precise, verbose flow. Their Australian entourage numbers six: DJ Syd Tha Kyd (who does little more than queue the beats on her laptop, it seems), and five MCs. It's the last show of this tour. Tyler tells us, via a wireless mic before he takes the stage, that he and his crew met a "racist asshole" earlier in the day while at a local KFC. The crowd boos, then he tells us that we sound cool, and that he's not judging Brisbane on that guy's behaviour. OK.
Their set takes in their best-known tracks and a generous spread of less recognisable stuff. The MellowHype duo, Hodgy Beats and Left Brain, tend to alternate their material with Tyler's. The crowd delights in yelling the naughtiest lines;
"Rape a pregnant bitch and tell my friends I had a threesome" in 'Tron Cat' is a favourite, as is the 'Yonkers' line
"...and stab Bruno Mars in his goddamn esophagus / And won't stop until the cops come in". It's fair to say that everyone here tonight is pretty pleased that they're witnessing this. That the show sold out a few weeks back adds to the exclusivity. For better or worse, we're right next to the beating heart of the indie zeitgeist.
Though no-one knows whether Odd Future can sustain the deafening buzz that surrounds them circa early 2011, they're handling themselves well so far. Between tracks, they keep it charmingly loose: anyone with a microphone has the chance to speak their mind, though they tend to defer to Tyler's significantly higher profile. The 20 year-old seems comfortable as group leader, but such is the level of unbridled fandom in the room that he could say anything and he'd be met with cheers, applause, and "Swag!". He gives new single
'She' a shot, despite the absence of lead crooner Frank Ocean, and it works pretty well—until the rest of the group start taking the piss out of Ocean's soulful vocals and it all falls into a (hilarious) heap.
Their 90 minute set comes to a close with 'Radicals'. It's a little weird that its chorus chant includes the line "Fuck school!", as everyone here is above the age of 18. But then, if you think about it, yelling "Swag!" at the top of your lungs is pretty nonsensical, too.
Andrew McMillen
(Pics: Justin Edwards)