Local Concert Review: Brockhampton

Brockhampton

I had been aching to see Texas native “boy band”, Brockhampton, live ever since they dropped their debut studio album Saturation. The release of Saturation II and the hype leading to its much-anticipated sequel, Saturation III, made the wait exponentially more agonizing. The effortless chemistry, catchy hooks, and youthful energy captured on those albums were just begging to be played live. I don’t normally memorize albums word for word, but I have about 90% of Saturation burned into my memory. So if it’s not already apparent, I’m a pretty big fan, and this Tuesday I had the opportunity to catch them at Warehouse Live.

I had arrived at the venue about an hour before doors opened, and there was already an enormous line that took up about a block and a half. Luckily, when doors opened I had managed to get about from the stage. The stage was setup with a DJ table in the back, and a small orange sofa center stage. Fans began chanting “Fix your teeth!”, “Fuck you Kevin!”, and “Fuck J. Cole!” in anticipation. At around 9 o’ clock, Romil, Brockhampton’s DJ and one of their in-house producers, came out to perform a short set consisting of hip-hop and R&B’s biggest current hits, hyping up the crowd.

Romil

After about 10 minutes of flipping through tracks, Romil cut the music completely. Kevin Abstracts voice blared through speakers hyping the audience up telling them to make some noise. The audience complied. Shortly after, Robert Ontenient, the group’s web master, known for introducing each of their videos, stepped out with the group’s videographer, Ashlan Grey, filming the entire time. Robert’s entrance was greeted with wild applause, which grew to the point of drowning out the latter part of his catchphrase “Me llamo Roberto…” followed by the distorted sirens that opened “Heat”.

Ashlan Grey, Robert Ontenient, and Romil

The crowed roared as each member of the boy band emerged to perform their verses. By the end of the song, everyone that been directly in front of the stage, was now sitting on it. This slightly disappointed me because at any other show, people would be stage diving if they’d found themselves up there. It also feeds into my personal theory of why Dallas won Texas over Houston.

dallas wins texas

— ian (@kevinabstract) September 21, 2017

Regardless, this doesn’t take away from the incredible energy of the show. The group ran through tracks from both albums ranging from bangers like “Gummy” and “Bump” to more mellow deep cuts like “Face” and “Milk”. As soon as one song ended, they’d launch into the second giving me almost no time to breathe. This would prove to be detrimental to me by the end of the show.

Bear//face and Romil

After finishing their initial set, the group walked offstage to allow, Bear//face (who’d been absent throughout the show), to play ballads “Waste” and “Summer” solo. As soon as he was finished, fans began chanting for an encore. The group returned to the stage to perform their biggest hit, and my favorite song, “Star” not once, not twice, but five times. By the third time they’d played “Star”, I was on the verge of passing out. I stood in the back wishing I could join the giant mosh pit in the middle of the house.

I do not regret seeing Brockhampton live. In fact, I will shell out whatever dollar amount they ask me to see them again. Every single song sounded immaculate. The energy from the group and the fans was intense and passionate. The group’s fanbase is expected to grow, thanks to the heavy exposure on blogs like Pigeons and Planes and through their Viceland TV show, “American Boyband”. A bigger fanbase, means bigger shows, and a bigger shows demand more than a kiddie couch. With a group as creative Brockhampton, I could see their shows going from great to fantastic, and I would I not miss them next time they tour.