Article
Wu-Tang Clan
Academy, Manchester
The Wu-Tang Clan's reputation rests on 1993's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), the 1993 debut which transformed the face of hip-hop with its haunting soul samples, martial arts references and complex interweaving rhymes. However, subsequent years have seen the once-fearsome Staten Island collective often appear more like a hip-hop episode of Fawlty Towers, as members have been distracted by squabbles and interests ranging from Wu-Wear clothing to New York cabbing. At one point, they even launched an online chess game, campaigning for the implausible Hip-Hop Chess Federation and insisting that a game often regarded as stuffy is actually "like a swordfight". At times, the chances of a reunited Clan has seemed as likely as a reformed Bob Marley and the Wailers.
The Reunited in Full tour began with farce in Glasgow when it emerged that Method Man was busy filming an episode of CSI, while sometime member/cabbie Cappadonna may have been otherwise engaged with a particularly lucrative fare. In Manchester, there's a sigh of collective embarrassment as the understandably confused crowd realise they've given a heroes' welcome to a couple of warm-up DJs. However, Ghostface Killah, RZA, GZA, Raekwon and the rest have managed to make it and are in fearsome form. Announcing "real hip-hop", Bring Da Ruckus, C.R.E.A.M., Wu Tang Clan Ain't Nuthin' Ta F'Wit and the rest have an audacity of scope and invention that few, if any, of the many superstar MCs influenced by them have reached. You can't but marvel at a rap act who namecheck everyone from Arnold Schwarzenegger to JRR Tolkien, whose voices weave a tapestry of language, and who musically reference a spectrum from Gladys Knight to the Beatles.
Nowadays nearly 40 rather than menacing youngbloods, there are no creaks as members spray the audience with champagne, and crouch in the darkness before leaping up together like hip-hop superheroes. Age has given them a new poignancy. Their flow sounds gruffer and more forceful. The haunting Can It All Be So Simple is the sound of hip-hop weeping for itself; a lament for their late rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard, the crowd's mobile phones providing the only lighting, feels like a seance.
The members may be individual stars, but this is the unlikely and awesome spectacle of a Wu team performance. Alas, we're unlikely to see them together for very long: as applause almost brings down the building, leader RZA announces his next project – The Man with the Iron Fist, a movie.
Related Content
User Comments
whobson123
5 August 2010 9:30AM
Hm maybe they were better at the Apollo. How long were they on for?
Saw them at Brixton and though I've wanted to see them for years, I was a little disappointed. The sound wasn't that good - but still, it was fun. The only real problem was they didn't come on till 10 and they left at 11.
One hour set = very weak, especially with no Johnny Blaze.
KALFU
5 August 2010 9:46AM
I'm not sure how anyone could of given this gig 5 stars!? Having waited over 15 years to finally see the Wu I found this to be one of the most dissapointing experiences of my life!
Firstly the sound was HORRENDOUS! Barely a word was audible and for anyone attending who didn't already know the songs word for word, would have been clueless as to what was being said. Secondly, with nearly 20 years of songs in the vault, a 1 hour gig is never gonna' cut it! I didn't pay to hear just the 'hook' of certain classic tracks and not the verses also.
Method Man dropping out was probably a good thing, the artists material was spread thinly enough as it was...
DaveSimpson
5 August 2010 9:53AM
Where were you stood KALFU? I was at the front left and the sound was fine, certainly better than many hip-hop gigs I've attended.
williamthoth
5 August 2010 10:20AM
Supreme Clientele is one of the best rap albums of all time - by Ghostface Killah
Wu Tang's 'The W' ain't at all bad either.
RZA + GZA appearing with Bill Murray in Jarmusch's 'Coffee & Cigarettes' is the best scene in the movie.
Basically, Wu Tang are the shit
KALFU
5 August 2010 10:29AM
I was pretty much central, probably about 20-30 feet back.. Was easily the worst sounding gig i've been to at the Academy (or anywhere for that matter!) I wasn't the only one complaining either... Overall atmosphere was good though.
DaveSimpson
5 August 2010 10:46AM
I was wearing musician's earplugs, which take the very top of the volume and means you can hear the tiniest sound at some gigs... wouldn't have thought it would have made that much difference though. Without them my eardrums were rattling
KALFU
5 August 2010 11:21AM
You had the right idea, would certainly have helped address the sound issue. Never needed them before myself but perhaps now should invest to avoid any potential future dissapointment!
germit
5 August 2010 1:56PM
"this review really doesnt tell me if the gig was any good or not"
I know, right? I mean, if only there was some sort of system of creating a mark for experiences out of, say, 5 where 5 is amazing and 1 is dire...oh wait... ;-)
righthandpulltrigger
5 August 2010 2:50PM
Great gig. I was at the back and although the sound wasn't crystal clear I wouldn't say it was at all detrimantal the overall experience.
After all it's The Wu, not Black Eyed Peas.
DaveSimpson
5 August 2010 2:51PM
"The members may be individual stars, but this is the unlikely and awesome spectacle of a Wu team performance."
I'm worried about you, Blippa
ketmanscoop
6 August 2010 12:01AM
They came on an hour late, Method Man was missing, they were all absolutely caned off their box (Ghostface laughably, GZA worryingly) and they kept missing verses. And it was one of the best gigs I've ever been to. The atmosphere was great, they seemed genuinely impressed by the crowd and I though Raekwon and especially RAZ were on fire. It was looking so dicey at about 9.45 but at the end not even a 90 minute drive home could dampen my spirits....
noname67
6 August 2010 12:31AM
They were incredible in Glasgow. The number of Wiggas put me off a little, but I soon phased them out and focused on the incredible lyricism and pure skill oozing from the stage. So glad I finally got to see them,.
DIPSET
6 August 2010 12:36AM
@williamthoth
Here is a question for you.......Ironman or Supreme Clientele? Which is better?
blippa
6 August 2010 8:35AM
@germit i can see the score but some colour would have been nice
@davesimpson that looks like an intro not a review to me
ketmanscoop has got it down
plumwood
6 August 2010 11:17AM
the sound at brixton was diabolical but it has been every time i've been there. it seems there a lot of sound guys obsessed with bass and turn it up so loud its all you can hear. its stupid, if i only wanted to hear the beats i could've done it at home. the vocals were drowned out.
still a good show though. best i've been to since furious 5 and kurtis blow a couple months back!
DaveSimpson
6 August 2010 2:39PM
I was amused by the fact that their decks set up seemed to be doubling as a drinks cabinet
mattcreese
6 August 2010 4:58PM
Dave Simpson, you should be sacked as a music journalist! Were you at the same gig?
From a more objective point of view than yours, I would say the gig was pretty shit! Reunited in full force with no method man, 50 minutes late, missing verses, cramming several songs into the tail end of the congested set turning it into some sort of a hip hop medley and not to mention it sounded like karaoke!
I want my £30 back. I saw Nas and Damian Marley a couple of weeks ago and that was infinitely better than this.
There's absolutely no substance or objectivity in your 5 star review
DaveSimpson
6 August 2010 6:11PM
Each to their own Matt. Judging from comments above people either really loved or in some cases (inc. yours) really hated this gig. All the regional reviews of the Manchester show I've seen have said similar things to me, so that's all of us out of a job.
Glad we at least agree on the awesome Nas/Marley gig.
carlmorris
5 August 2010 12:09AM
Nice write-up but it's not all about the first album! Their reputation rests on some of the stunning solo albums too, e.g. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx and Liquid Swords