@ The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen on Thu 17 Mar 2016
(part of Aberdeen Jazz Festival)
Hip-hop, jazz and funk grooves collide this evening in Aberdeen, with Manchester’s Riot Jazz Brass Band bringing their infamous brass-y, party vibe north to the city’s Jazz Festival.
The set is packed full to the brim of 1970s inspired brass belters, at times echoing Yoko Kanno’s momentous soundtrack for Cowboy Bebop. This is heard best on Afro, an energetic and adventurous track that showcases the band’s technical mastery.
A well-toured and equally well-performed band, Riot Jazz is a collection of three trumpet players, three trombone players, one drummer, one sousaphone and one MC.
Risky features a tight key change, but the highlight of the night is the Mancunian anthem Dem A Sus, dedicated to the people of Moss Side. By the end of the tune MC Chunky is so hyped he asks the audience if they want to hear it again, to howls of approval from the absolutely heaving Lemon Tree. This mid-set encore is totally worth it for Kieran McLeod’s blistering trombone solo.
Chunky delights in all sorts of crowd participation, but the best of the bunch is when he tries to learn Doric, even being taught a few phrases by the front row of the audience.
Toward the end of the set it looks as though two ecstatic fans are pulled on stage, when Chunky reveals they’re actually McLeod’s mum and sister. The mic is handed over to them and they take over singing duties on I’ve Got A Sousamaphone, dutifully singing every word.
At the end of the set, to Chunky’s surprise, birthday cakes and balloons are brought on stage. It’s his birthday today, and all he wants (as well as the audience), is for the set to continue into the night, playing an extended set of Britney, A-Ha and Bon Jovi covers.