“Check, check.”
Rap fans were given more than a fair share of a good time Wednesday night, thanks to established, respected, and undeniable collaborators Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist. Currently approaching the tail end of a beefy 27-stop US run of shows touring their latest collab album ‘Alfredo 2’, the two drew a sold out crowd to the Van Buren for an excellently entertaining evening on October 29th.
‘Alfredo 2’ is the latest album and official sequel to the pair’s 2020 album ‘Alfredo’ – an album which has seemingly aged exceptionally well since its release, and is regarded to many as a modern “classic” in its own right; myself included. Filled with mafia themes and a healthy feature list, ‘Alfredo’ takes Freddie and The Alchemist at their best and combines their skills to create an addictingly replayable record. ‘Alfredo 2’ brings all of this back to the table, and with a newer kung-fu-like identity. So when this tour was announced, I was instantly stoked.
Composer Sven Wunder and melodic rapper MAVI kicked off the night with great sets that were diverse and entertaining amongst growing crowds. MAVI intro’d his set with quick tributes to the recent late and greats D’Angelo and MF DOOM, which I had to respect. But I didn’t know his music before this show, and I thought he did great. This guy’s got a balanced groove and energy that reminds me of the mid 2010’s rap I liked in high school but with a touch more current-day sounds – check him out if you haven’t yet.
But seeing the Alchemist roll out on stage and light a blunt with the “1985” intro over it all was mad tight. And following that, a strong, explosive walk-out for Freddie Gibbs with no shortage of crowd hype. Freddie’s got great live breath work and unlike a handful of rap shows I’ve been to, frankly has strong performance energy, keeps a crowd engaged, and had a merch line that didn’t stop the entire night.
Freddie and The Alchemist had a roaring crowd running into the night, but I may say the coolest part of the night was in the first two songs when Freddie asked the crowd to tell him which two ‘Alfredo’ albums they’d like to hear, before dropping a bomb that they’d be doing both albums (which of course had some select non-Alfredo Freddie bangers thrown in), which brought a massive roar of excitement. I felt it for sure; watching an iconic collaboration like these two run through the bulk of both albums was a treat. The Alchemist offered a solid intermission later into the night, too. I loved getting to see him work in real life; the man cooks. We were also treated to seeing him give the room a good couple rap verses after being more-or less teased by Freddie all night with him frequently asking “Y’all wanna see Alchemist rap?”.
The whole night was what I would describe as “mad chill”. Super tight and fun, with an enjoyable and social crowd. I’d for sure recommend any rap fan to go see Freddie sometime when he’s back in town, and likewise for The Alchemist. The remaining stops on tour as of writing this review are Morrison, SLC, Portland, Seattle, and concluding in San Francisco.
In the meantime, I’ll be spinning some ‘Alfredo 2’.
