Chasing The Dragon

After two consecutive number two albums and massive sets supporting both Eminem at Reading and Prodigy at Creamfields, Chase & Status have become one of the few dance acts with a crossover appeal large enough to play an arena tour in support of their most recent album, Brand New Machine. Whereas Pendulum or Prodigy did extended runs of late shows at Brixton Academy during the heights of their respective popularities, Chase & Status’ show at a venue that hosted One Direction for nine sold-out shows earlier this year produced some bizarre contradictions, such as MC Rage encouraging fans to rave late into the night despite an 11pm curfew and £5 drinks. The O2’s lack of suitability for dance music did not get in the way of a good time however. The 20,000 tickets to the show sold out well in advance and most fans arrived very early to listen to the strong support bill on offer. Pusha T is featured on one of the standout tracks from Brand New Machine (‘Machine Gun’) and so was a natural choice to support at such a large show. His affiliation with Kanye West’s GOOD Music label has given him large numbers of followers in the UK and so his performance was thoroughly enjoyed. A fellow drum and bass producer, Netsky, was selected as the main support and did not disappoint. He assembled an excellent band for his live show and they flew through many dance anthems in a half hour set, finishing with Netsky’s anthemic remix of ‘Everyday’ by Rusko. With the crowd properly hyped for the main act, Chase & Status came onstage and flew through their first few songs. While playing their second song, ‘International’, a blackout occurred and the rest of the song and ‘No Problem’, which followed, were played in darkness. MC Rage informed the crowd that a particularly destructive thrown drink had hit the lighting board and encouraged a chorus of boos towards the culprits. Neither the band nor the crowd let the technical malfunction dampen their spirits and as the lights came back on, Tempa T burst onto the stage as the first guest vocalist of the night to help deliver an incredible rendition of Hypest Hype. Chase & Status played through many of the songs on their later two albums but also included a few songs from their debut, More Than Alot. The show was spectacular, with Chase and Status themselves playing synths and sequencers from behind a giant, illuminated C and S and explosions of pyrotechnics accompanying heavier parts of songs. MC Rage filled the brief pauses between songs by keeping the crowd jumping and anticipating what was to come. Many more vocalists came out to add to the show, such as Liam Bailey during the excellent ‘Blind Faith’ and Jacob Banks during Alive, and in cases where the singer was busy their face would be displayed on the giant screens around the arena (‘Delilah during Time’). The two hour set sped by with the energy levels remaining high throughout. Just as the crowd were preparing for a night of dancing, the encore was upon us and Chase & Status finished on a high, tearing through an aggressive cover of ‘Killing in the Name’ by Rage Against the Machine and finishing on the up-tempo ‘Fool Yourself’. Chase & Status definitely put on a show worthy of any rock band currently touring but they have had to sacrifice some things in pursuit of commercial success. The 11pm finish meant the harder fans would be off to other events to dance the night away whereas a few years ago Chase & Status would be playing that two hour set at 4am in Fabric with fans having just as good a time and I am sure a part of them still wishes that was the case. Their gig was an excellent showcase of many different dance genres (from jungle to house to trap to drum and bass) and their ability to produce a cohesive album using all these influences and then tour it imaginatively and energetically has gained them many fans and allows them to retain the underground credibility that first brought them to attention.