Slaughterhouse Performance at SOB’s, 1/22/2009

Check out the video below:



- Review by Culture VI


Where the Fuck Is Joell Ortiz???


That’s the question I was asking myself all night. Imagine playing the All-Star game at Yankee Stadium. Derek Jeter sits on the bench the entire night until, with the game already decided, they put him in for defense in the top of the 9th inning for a cameo appearance. Imagine how the crowd would feel.


Well, that was sort of what happened last night at SOB’s.


Let me start by saying all the emcees killed it when they had the opportunity (although, Crooked couldn’t quite remember his lines on Slaughterhouse and had to be bailed out a few times). The show was good, and any problems that there might have been couldn’t be blamed on the effort of the artists.


Let’s start with what went wrong.


First, the live webcast that was supposed to take place on Almalgam’s website never happened. From what I understand, it wasn’t the fault of the label, but of the venue itself. Internet problems halted the feed(though it was recorded and will be uploaded onto Almalgam.com).


That wasn’t the venue’s only problem. I’m not sure who was at fault, but somewhere during the show, the DJ blew out a speaker or his pet hamster chewed up the wires, causing the beats to sound like they were pouring through a pair of giant headphones. Very disappointing, especially for such a hype crew. It got so bad that Joe made them cut off the music and they did Slaughterhouse accapella.


The biggest issue, however, came with the planning. Royce opened the show with a twenty minute set, followed by Joe’s feature set, which lasted an hour or so. At no time was Joell (or Crooked I, but that didn’t bother me) even on stage.


Now, let me paint the picture for you. If you’re not a native New Yorker, then you might not know the significance SOB’s has for Joell. He made him come-up in that venue. He’s been at every open mic there, every event. If he’s Derek Jeter, SOB’s is his Yankee Stadium, more than any other club. He didn’t even get to perform ONE solo song!


Royce, this is nothing personal towards you – we’ve done a track together and I have tremendous respect for you as an artist – but why the hell was he opening up in NEW YORK CITY, at SOB’s??? If any of the remaining three deserved time on the stage, it was Joell. He didn’t get to do Hip-Hop. He didn’t get to do Brooklyn Bullshit. He didn’t get to do Memories. He was left to do half a freestyle (which he cut short, screaming “I wanna do my songs – put my fucking record on!) and his verses on Slaughterhouse and Onslaught. Extremely disappointing.


If you’ve ever seen Joell live at SOB’s, then you know the crowd missed out last night. Sorry Royce, but in NY, at SOB’s, you gotta give those 20 minutes to Joell. And Crooked? On this coast, you’d have to be the last one to deserve solo time. In LA, you can take the spotlight and let the others fight for stage time.


Okay – now on the good stuff. Joe Budden was awesome!!! Despite the crappy sound coming from the speakers, Joe managed to keep the crowd hype – and I swear they sang every single word of every song he performed. Also worth noting is he did NOT perform Pump It Up, though he did mock the song by telling the crowd he was gonna spit his realest shit and then spitting “Pump it up, if you came to get it…….naaaahhh”, before abruptly cutting it off.


He did a whole slew of tracks in his hour of so on stage, including Under the Sun, Focus, and All of Me – which he used to close the show. Every one hit hard and was well received by the crowd, who didn’t let down for a single second. Joe’s hype-man, Killa BH, maybe have made his case for best hype-man in the business.


Royce did a good job opening and definitely had a lot of energy on his tracks. The crowd again spit every word. He also let his little brother spit a verse that had the crowd “ooohing” and “aahhhing”. Crooked’s freestyle was on point, as well.


The crowd was good and there was very little drama, save for Joey’s brother Rocky getting thrown out before the performance even started.


Tehiry continued her rise to stardom. She could barely walk through the club to get to her seat. Everybody kept stopping her to take pictures and tell her how much they loved her on the show. Guys were gawking from all angles of the club. She definitely has a natural charm about her and though the fame is still new to her and she’s still adapting, I have no doubt that she will adapt soon enough. She was very charming to the fans and very humble. I believe it is only a matter of time before she has her own career doing…..well…….something.


If this is a sign of things to come in the future, then Slaughterhouse will be dominating the hip-hop game. They had so much energy and put on such a great show. But next time – please – MORE ORTIZ!