OPEN MIKE EAGLE | LIVE REVIEW
The Moon Club, Cardiff, Tue 24 May
Chicago’s Open Mike Eagle, in the early stages of a European tour with compatriot Milo, lands tonight on the stage of Cardiff’s Moon Club with a dull, apathetic thud. Beckoned on by a similarly underwhelming Milo, to join him to close his own damp squib of a set with a run-through of True Nen, from last year’s So The Flies Don’t Come, Eagle chooses to stick around and get straight into it.
Despite an enthusiastic audience, neither Eagle nor Milo can seem to summon the energy to put on a show; both stumble through their sets as though hungover or jetlagged and neither makes much connection with the Cardiff crowd. At one point, Eagle goes into some well-rehearsed schtick in which he encourages the crowd to demonstrate their best dance move: “Come on! Nobody’s best move is standing around”, he exclaims, despite having delivered his entire set from a single square foot of stage, with the same levels of kinetic energy one might expect to discover in moss. The tunes from both artists are tossed out with no little talent and both demonstrate really appealing factors – Milo’s skewed outlook, Eagle’s insightful rhymes and hook-laden writing – which actually serves to make this an even more disappointing evening, as the promise of what could have been is so clear.
As such, it’s with some reflective relief that the show can be written up as having redeeming factors – specifically, locals Mike Dennis and Turna Phrase. The latter in particular stood out with his lightning fast flow and infectious enthusiasm; clearly delighted to be onstage, his cameo during Dennis’ set provides him a brief opportunity to assert himself as one of the finest young talents in Welsh hip-hop. Dennis himself is no slouch – deliberate and unhurried, he spits over loops of violin phrases played live, cracking goofy grins at the crowd and hammering out beats with his fingers on the body of his instrument. This pair of talented and engaging youngsters provided the highlights of an otherwise bland and forgettable show.
words and photos HUGH RUSSELL
