NEWS MUSIC NEWS
GANGSTA RAPPED!
nme.com is on hand to check out the star's spoken-word schtick - and it doesn't go down well in the Big Apple...
By
NME
7th July 2000
Tricky stormed off the stage at
NEW YORK‘s
CENTRAL PARK SUMMERSTAGE last night (July 6) after the audience greeted his bizarre, almost farcical performance, with a chorus of boos and a large proportion of walkouts,
nme.com can reveal.
The star was clearly annoyed that the crowd gave a less than favourable greeting to sections of his spoken-word project
Product Of The Environment, which was released last year on his own
Durban Poison label. The temperemental trip-hopper stomped off after only 15 minutes.
The
Bristol-born star, joined onstage by former gangster
‘Dodgy’ Dave Courtney, had begun by explaining that the material was a collection of “stories from the underground” which contained no singing, just recollections by
England‘s most notorious criminals – “Real gangsta rap,” he added.
Following an anti-police rant by
Courtney,
Tricky called for a human beatbox from the crowd, and embarked rap which closed the very brief set. They both left the stage, but
Tricky returned following disgruntled noises from fans, explaining, “I didn’t know we were supposed to do an hour, so I’m going to bore you a little longer.”
He invited another audience member onstage for an improvised number, but the audience reaction led him to abandon it a couple of minutes in and walk off.
DJs
State of Bengal and
Luc Sante had opened the free show.
Tricky, now a
New York resident, recently signed a new record deal with
Californian proto-punk label
Epitaph.
Tricky’s UK spokesperson said: “The material played is in no way connected with the album
Tricky is currently recording for
Epitaph.”