Having wowed audiences across Europe with their 100% live performances of DJ Shadow’s ‘Endtroducing’, Introducing were in Brighton last month – this time to take on Ninja Tune Legend, Mr Scruff’s back catalogue of surreal electro funk.

On what was the hottest day of the summer so far, the band wasted no time getting stuck into a set that packed Mr Scruff’s very best tunes, a good chunk of those coming from 1999’s ‘Keep It Unreal’. The guitar led ‘Spandexman’ and the jazztastic ‘Honeydew’ showed off the band’s undeniable ability as musicians and got the crowd moving – despite the stifling heat inside the Blind Tiger.

Mr Scruff’s music simply wouldn’t have the same appeal without the quirky humour that is injected by tracks about various (mostly aquatic) animals. It was this bizarre element of Mr Scruff’s music that we felt would be difficult to recreate in a live context, however the nautical nonsense of ‘Shanty Town’ (a song about whale-fish) proved that Introducing are able to conjure the same delight as listening to ‘Keep It Unreal’ for the first time.

As the temperature in the venue rose, the band continued to bang out the classics. The dub influenced ‘Pickled Spider’ complete with wobbly bass line is a particular favourite and Introducing’s reworking hit exactly the right spot. Finally, and with the band looking ready to pass out through heat exhaustion, the band began their encore of the seminal ‘Get A Move On’. Leaving the stage to rapturous applause, all that was left was a mass exodus as everyone rushed to the door to cool off.

Blind Tiger, Friday 10th August 2012
Words by Tom Wood