KOJ / TRiBE / Kurupt FM gig review @ Jacaranda Baltic – Liverpool’s firebrand rapper commands the stage

If there’s one thing the Red Box Live gig at Jacaranda Baltic proved beyond doubt, it’s that KOJ is among the most outstanding and exciting talents currently pulsing through Liverpool’s musical veins.

From the moment he bounded onstage with his backing band The Gravediggers, he commanded supreme attention.

Firstly he is a highly engaging rapper, but also a hybrid firebrand. At this gig, he showcased new tracks merging hip-hop with a rock-infused rage – retaliating against the stress of modern life – in a way that hasn’t been heard before.

He opened with established tracks from freshly minted EP Villain With A Conscience – instantly setting a tone of collaborative intensity with the gathered throng.

As the guitars growled and the drums smashed, KOJ’s voice cut through strong, deliberate, unapologetic. With his fans rapping along to A Roadman’s Tale Of Home.

Later KOJ announced a treat for his mid-week audience, we were getting a special preview of as yet untitled tracks, starting with the sonically pounding and catchy hook: ‘You Can’t Touch Me’.

And blistering closer ‘Start That, Stop Dat,’ with shades toward Rage Against the Machine in spirit, but rooted firmly in Scouse soil. These are not throwaway songs; they feel like declarations, born of frustration, pride and ambition.

They were reminiscent of Bang Your Head by RZA’s early 90s supergroup Gravediggaz, you will want to catch him live soon, to witness this new direction. What strikes home most when you see KOJ live, is how perfectly suited his Scouse accent is to MCing.

Those of a certain vintage, like this humble reviewer, will remember the days when UK hip-hop was laughed at and dismissed by the world. I always thought we need a bold revolutionary spirit who can command a mic with the deft and fast paced cadence of the Liverpool brogue and now we have him in ultimate form.

KOJ’s new look only heightens the mythos: blonde cropped hair, part Wesley Snipes in Demolition Man, part cheeky villain with a social conscience a la Goldie.

He prowled the stage like he owned every inch of it, occasionally pausing to lock eyes with people in the crowd, fast-tossing barbs and heartfelt lines in equal measure.

The line-up interplay was electric. TRiBE delighted the crowd with tight verses, raising the tension, SSJ’s set held its own and Hugo Chegwin of Kurupt FM bound the night together.