Ah . . . . Monday night after a festival, Good Vibrations no less. Normally associated with a slowly defogging mind and perhaps a big meal to recharge, this particular post festival evening was a good deal more exciting for those in the know. Ol’ skool hip hop heroes Jurassic 5 plus My Space Secret Shows equaled the perfect antidote to the Monday blues.

For those unaware, My Space does a promotion called Secret Shows which when added to your friends list sends information on free shows which will otherwise remain unannounced to the general public. No add means no time and no place for you! The lucky people who clued on early were duly awarded an incredible show at Brisbane live music institution The Zoo. This was an unparalleled opportunity to see a world class hip hop act in a perfectly intimate environment, a point not lost on the huge initial turn out.

Despite rain and a queue which at one stage reached from the front door of The Zoo to New York Slice around the corner (!) the venue was only comfortably filled. There was an order for no queuing before 5PM and in order to get into and out of the venue punters were issued a wristband, both requisites of entry ensuring a pleasant lack of overcrowded-venue-my-chest-is-collapsing-from-the-lack-of-oxygen-itis.

As luck would have it (damn not having Irish parentage) there was a slight mishap with the door list and my name which resulted in me missing the majority of a support set from 2 Dogs. The lovely lady on the door did thankfully ensure I caught the last half hour of their set. It was as usual impeccably funk addled and with the two MC’s in tow which I was alas unable to identify keeping the large crowd more than well entertained. That said one has to feel sympathy for their vinyl which cops quite the battering for the sake of our entertainment! The gents left the stage to joyous applause to make way for the techs to set up the stage for what was set to be a rather large show.

Arriving on stage to a tribal chant were MCs Chali 2na, Akil, Soup and Mark 7even with DJ Numark bringing the Jurassic 5 sound to stun an eager audience. Whilst keen to make an impression with material from their latest album Feedback, Chali 2na assured the crowd that there was plenty of old J5 material to keep the faith. The set traversed the depths of their back catalog taking in classics Quality Control, Freedom, I Am Somebody and awesome performances of Concrete Schoolyard and perennial favourite What’s Golden and ended with the sublime Work it Out and a fantastic freestyle from the group. To boot the crowd was treated to a mind bogglingly swift solo turntable performance from DJ Numark which was received with rapturous applause.

What puts J5 above their peers is the incredible harmonies, rhythmic vocals, crisp beats, eagerness to involve the crowd in performance and improvise structures whilst maintaining a voice of consciousness not prone to drivel dwelling on guns, bitches, money and blow.

For anyone reading who has ever considered going to a J5 show . . . . get yourself on My Space and hope you get an opportunity like the one just passed! You could buy their albums too . . . .