Live Review: Friendshop feat. Flatshop, OLNL, CHOILB, Slowdance at Channel 1969
By Connor Cass (@aminorcharacter)
If you want to experience some hip hop in Korea, you’re usually limited in choices. Do you want to spend hours in a smokey club being pummeled with hedy trap hits to catch a glimpse of a rap performance? Or would you rather spend a whole day at a soul-sucking corporate festival watching a conveyor belt of the same big names?
As someone who hugely enjoys hip-hop but much prefers the vibe and intimacy of small venues, I was thrilled at the discovery of the Friendship show. A chance to see rapper-led bands Flatshop and Slowdance play alongside WYBH crew members OLNL and CHOILB fulfilled my wish to bridge the hip-hop world with the indie venue space. And judging by the packed-out Channel 1969, a lot of hip-hop fans are relishing the chance to see a show like this, too.
As a dummy move on my part, I had assumed host MC Secret Man’s moniker was a tease of a special guest from the hip-hop sphere. However, that’s just his name. After a quick serenade, Secret Man is responsible for crowd work throughout, ensuring smooth set-to-set transitions.
On a running order seemingly decided by a game of rock-paper-scissors, should-be-headliners Flatshop kick off the show. Tight and funky, the band bring the fun from the start as they run through bops like DYK Club, Stupid Cupid and K-Juice. As a union of differing solo artists, they come into a really cohesive whole, Noogi’s crisp basslines and Viann’s production providing a solid backbone. Damye proves to be a charming and jovial live singer, and Khundi Panda, famous for hip-hop competition show appearances, raps with a peaceful passion and cool confidence that shows he’s so much more comfortable in this setting. The band are so convincing that they have a good portion of the phone-glued audience boogieing by the set’s end.
Flatshop
Flatshop
CHOILB overpowers the stage with his booming stability. He performs a selection of smooth, pleasant tracks with ease. As a back-to-basics rap performance, it was a solid counterpoint to the two bands he’s sandwiched between.
CHOILB
Speaking of bands, Slowdance are up next; they’re the biggest enigma on this lineup. Instrumentally, they have a BADBADNOTGOOD-style set-up, a powerful rhythm section backing a jazzy and improvisational keyboardist. While the vocals glide between soulful falsetto and effortless rap. It is an understated performance, sure, but their chill presence is quite captivating.
OLNL closes out the night, and like Khundi Panda, he comes across as a lot more playful on a smaller stage. It’s a set more built around swaying singalong anthems, and a chance to leave people with a euphoric goodbye. Proving that this rare union of the local indie scene and hip-hop genre can create something wonderful together.
