Music > Live Reviews

Lethal Bizzle @ Mercy

08/11/15

Mercy was absolutely rammed for Lethal Bizzle’s Friday performance, and unsurprisingly so. Back in the day, Bizzle helped pioneer grime and has recently snared the mainstream UK audience with catchy club tunes like Fester Skank.  To add to his accolades, he’s also a social media entrepreneur, fashion label owner, fitness craze starter, and relentless live performer. His Snapchat account (check it out, it’s hilarious) reveals him playing seemingly endless Dench Party club nights both here and abroad. 

Bizzle took care to give the impression that Norwich was not just another gig on his expansive tour schedule. Yes, he was on for a disappointing 30 minutes, but in that time he transformed Mercy’s dancefloor into an intense, chanting moshpit. Opening with Rari Workout, Lethal B mobilised the limited performance area, balancing over the barrier and rapping into the inebriated crowd. Bizzle conversed with the energetic audience, hyping them up before tearing into anthems like Leave it Yeah, Fester Skank, and arguably grime's biggest anthem, Pow. Interestingly, Bizzle performed the 2011 version and not the original.  (Without sounding like an insufferable hipster, the original is iconic. It exposed ungerground grime MCs and broke into the UK top 40 despite being banned from several radio stations and clubs).  

I guess Bizzle’s setlist choices make sense though. It’s not 2004 anymore. Bizzle isn’t storming underground East London raves anymore, he’s snapchatting sold out Dench Party shows in Ibiza.  Here in Norwich, he delivered a rampant, entertaining night; a neat package of songs old, but mostly new. The crowd were charmed, belting words back at Bizzle and soaking up his compliments and subtle self-promotion. It was a snappy set, but in a short space of time, Bizzle thoroughly entertained. Props to the crowd too, they created an amazing atmosphere. You stay dench, Norwich.

7/10