Images: Issy Beech
To be honest; a hasty last-minute downsize in venue doesn’t exactly fill you with confidence before a show. That apprehension is multiplied when the artist being shuffled around relies on a certain type of ~wonky party vibes~ to pull off his particular brand of EDM rap.
So I had my reservations when Danny Brown's Melbourne show was moved from the much larger Forum to 170 Russell, a venue that doesn't have the same grandeur. Plus, there’s that whole thing about him being sober now. But I was wrong, people. For the first time ever.
Sober or not, Brown exudes a frayed enthusiasm that is legitimately infectious. Despite it being a Tuesday night, and that the venue kept trying to DJ over the actual DJ with slightly less cool music, by the end of Brown’s set, a juicy, collective delirium had set in. I was ready to ream a pile of coke, quit my job and hit the road on a Harley, Danny on the back, nowhere to go.
But then they turned on the lights and kicked everybody out.