The Nextmen last night played a live DJ set at Leeds’ A Nation Of Shopkeepers. Having not seen a live hip hop set for ages it was easy to forget how much fun it is to wave your hands in the air like you just don’t care. The Nextmen played a really fun set rooted in hip hop but with a mixture of pop, reggae, soul, rock and dance thrown in to the mix.
Phil Jupitus (right) kept his DJ skills a closely guarded secret.
The cumbersomely named A Nation Of Shopkeepers has been open for a year now. In its former life it was a rat infested urinal known as The Courtyard. Thanks to a comprehensive refurb and a good clean it is now altogether better with a wide drinks selection (including a great range of beers and real ales), a cool arty interior (with the original outdoor courtyard retained) and a really good live scene with DJs regularly playing. They even serve tasty food.
There were two ‘warm up’ DJs preceding The Nextmen. The first played a nice selection of bouncy hip hop, including a personal favorite of mine Gangg Starr’s ‘The Milita‘. Sadly the second warm up DJ was not as entertaining. He opted for a horrible selection of ‘grind’ (i.e back of the bus music). I suddenly felt very old. Others seemed to agree and the dance floor quickly cleared.
Having a dreadful support act does make you appreciate the main event though and thankfully The Nextmen didn’t disappoint. Their last album ‘Join The Dots‘ was a fantastic record full of clever samples and infectious original tunes. They are also a critically acclaimed live act and it was clear why tonight. A combination of superb mixing / scratching skills, clever use of laptops and an entertainingly eclectic playlist made their set a lot of fun. We danced non-stop for around two hours before finally running out of steam.
The highlight of the night was the clever mash-up of Marvin Gaye’s ‘Heard It Through The Grapevine’ and The Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’. How could those two ever go together? But they did, wonderfully.
We had a very fun night. Particularly given it was free to get in. Keep your eye on what’s happening at A Nation Of Shopkeepers because they rarely charge an entry fee and there are often some great live DJs on.
