Having exploded onto the scene with his single On The Prowl getting a decent rinsing on the airwaves of late, Ellesquire has shown he is well and truly ‘Ready’, as it were, to make his mark on the ever-burgeoning Aussie hip-hop scene. Leaving behind all of the usual hip-hop clichés about hoes and Cristal champagne, Ellesquire brings a sense of humour to a scene that often falls into the trap of taking itself way too seriously.

Melbournites MoneyKat (and self-professed “most Asian hip-hop crew in Australia”) warm up the already close to bursting Whitehouse, with plenty of old school vibes and impossibly smooth flows. Their sound engages plenty of reggae beats and they work the crowd shamelessly- although a request for a show of hands of anyone who has done something stupid for love gets a surprisingly modest response in such a full room.

Reverse Polarities, back in fine form after a recent hiatus, are next to take the stage and raise the tempo with swagger a-plenty. With plenty of bass-heavy beats, rapid fire flows from Daily Med’s MC’s P-Smurf and Mikeon make for an infectious atmosphere. Beat Slow leaves few bodies motionless and their set cements their reputation as some of the best talent in the local hip-hop scene.

Ellesquire’s arrival on stage is heralded with soulful horns and like a modern day James Brown (albeit with a flap hat and comedy glasses on) he asks for hands to be thrown in the air with a shout of “can you feel me!” The hands thrown into air and shouts of approval indicate that we could, indeed, feel him.

With Sam Z behind the decks, Ellesquire is a natural showman. His cover of Black Sheep’s Strobelite Honey sees P-Smurf jump back on stage for backup, joined by some booty-shaking honeys for full effect. Before launching into Dragon’s Mouth, he demands everyone in the room give their biggest dragon’s roar – Ellesquire clearly plays for the crowd and the interaction only makes for an even more intimate vibe.

On The Prowl draws a frenzied response (and gets the live horn back onstage) and with lyrics like “my pick up line is so, do you like stuff?” it’s nearly impossible not to get drawn into the stories he weaves so effortlessly.

Ellesquire’s debut album Ready was a breath of fresh air to the local scene and if tonight was anything to go by, we’re only seeing the beginning of what Ellesquire has to offer.