Spank Rock/ Femme Fatales/ Fire! Santa Rosa Fire!
Rocket Bar
Wed 9 Jan


That this show had to be moved from the Gov would be another disappointment for those critical of Adelaide crowds for not being supportive enough of touring acts, but in all honesty, that venue was always a strange choice for namedropper favourites Spank Rock's party rap. The more confined surroundings of Rocket Bar, and more specifically its soundsystem, were definitely a better fit, as was the darkened interior.

Starting the night were a number of Rocket Bar regulars in Fire! Santa Rosa Fire! and the Femme Fatales, and though the choices made sense considering the crowd in attendance, the disparity between the music of these supports and Spank Rock highlighted the gap that exists in Adelaide's live scene between traditional hip-hop and the increasingly common (worldwide) offshoots of the genre.

Femme Fatales in particular showed why they have so quickly become fixtures on the scene, though the sound for both bands was turned up to almost painfully loud levels, prompting many in attendance to go downstairs for a smoke, from where they could still comfortably hear the sets.

Once the supports had finished and left the stage, everyone started coming back inside, but as the break became more and more drawn out and the clock passed midnight they began to get more than a little restless. Thankfully it was merely technical difficulties that had stopped the headliners from taking the stage, and MC Spank Rock hadn't replicated that plane missing antics that saw him miss one leg of last years Big Day Out.

Once the crowd parted to let the group take the stage, things began to get interesting. The act evolved from a club night held regularly in Philadelphia, and this was definitely evident in the performance they gave, which placed far more emphasis on getting the crowd rowdy than nuance, or even traditional song structures, though plenty of album cuts like Rick Rubin, Push and Rick Rubin made the mix.

Though it's doubtful anyone didn't have a good time and an energetic workout (unless they actually listened to the woefully misogynistic lyrics), it certainly felt more like a party throughout than a gig or concert. Spank essentially played hypeman while the Baltimore Bass Connection handled the beats, and though as aforementioned certainly enjoyable, when a punter pays 40 bucks to get in, they could be excused for expecting something more.

Amanda Blank certainly upped the value for money quotient once she appeared, and though one wonders how she puts up with the constant misogyny of her bandmates (and actively participates in it), she displayed a dextrous flow (as MC Spank Rock did at times) and the ability to control both the males and females in the crowd without resorting to shock tactics quite as often as her fellow MC.

A quick listen to the lyrics would have been enough to tell you that none of the members were shy, but for any who entertained lingering doubts, Spank dispelled them by wading into the crowd, and getting them even more involved, which was a great move. It further emphasised the informal nature of the performance, but turned it into a strength rather than a shortcoming, and as the group began inviting audience members up onto the stage, it was obvious that they would be happy to continue dancing long after the band left.

Alexis Buxton-Collins