CLUBS

Adam Burrows talks beats, rhymes and life with Bristol’s most evangelical new hip-hop promoter.

“I’ve calmed down a bit now,” says Luke Gregory, “but last summer - before I had a full-time job - I probably averaged 16 hours of hip-hop a day.” Excessive perhaps, but monomania goes with the territory. Hip-hop is, after all, a way of life. “Loads of people told me you can’t make money promoting hip-hop in Bristol anymore,” he says, “I’m either too determined not to listen, or too stupid to listen.”

Rhyme & Reason is a new monthly night at The Croft that’s dedicated to booking “the biggest names in U.K hip-hop,” and like all good things it was born out of necessity. “When I first came to Bristol eight years ago,” says Luke, “the scene was buzzing. There would often be four or five solid hip-hop nights, and promoters landed talented artists with ease. Not only U.K but international artists were queuing up to play here, and people would usually flock to see them. Sadly - for whatever reason - good live Hip-Hop seems to be rarer here now.”

Rhyme & Reason is Luke’s first shot at promotion, and it’s pretty ambitious, though he’s keen to give credit where it’s due. “Friends have been really helpful,” he says. “Dave Psyda who runs Agro and Morph really helped me out. Others designed flyers and helped me distribute them, helped on the door, stuff like that. I owe those guys a lot of thanks.”

The night launched on 12th May and the turnout was good, but more importantly the music delivered. “BadHabitz seemed to know what the crowd wanted,” says Luke. “C-Froo and the Exclusive Acoustics were pretty crazy, and people definitely enjoyed them. Everyone was moving hard to Mr Benn and Mystro.” When pushed to choose a highlight, he says, “I guess what stood out is Mystro's showmanship and stage presence. That stuff is harder to learn than any instrument.”

The next instalment lands on 25th June, with a line-up that showcases the conscious, politically aware rap of South London’s Genesis Elijah, alongside the torrential flow of freestyle destroyer Stig of the Dump. Luke seems determined to keep things interesting, and to represent every side of the British hip-hop scene: “After a few nights we're gonna start to mix it up a bit,” he says, “maybe have an open mic night where people can come and spit some bars with a beat-juggling session.” He doesn’t rule out featuring grime MCs in future either, recognising that the style has “become a bigger part of the U.K scene and we don’t want to ignore that. When the right grime artist comes along we’ll book them for sure.”

So what, Venue asks, would be Rhyme & Reason’s perfect line-up? “Man, that’s so hard,” says Luke, before coming back with “A Tribe Called Quest, Gang Starr, J-Dilla, Task Force and MF Doom. I would definitely go to that night!”

Fantasies aside, there’s plenty to be going on with closer to home. “Hip-Hop in Bristol is pretty strong”, he feels. “There are a lot of dope acts out there. The Bastard Sunz and Central Spillz are both sick groups - we’re very lucky to have those guys representing Bristol. Mr Benn, who played at our opening night, is easily one of the best and most original producer/DJs in the country. Also, BadHabitz, who just produced the latest Genesis Elijah album, is definitely gonna be big in the game soon. In terms of MCs, Buggsy has just dropped one the best U.K albums I’ve heard in years. For a small place - trust me, we're doing good.”

STIG OF THE DUMP AND GENESIS ELIJAH PLAYED RHYME & REASON AT THE CROFT, BRISTOL ON THUR 25 JUNE

IMAGES: DAN@ISPYPHOTO WWW.ISPYPHOTO.CO.UK

Copyright Adam Burrows 2011