A polemical hour of rap, poetry and narrative calculated to spark thought and discussion. And legitimate discomfort.
Partly it's the fictional story of a young working class Glasgow man, conflicted over the affluence of his girlfriend's middle class world, where the dogs are on leads and people choose to cycle even though they have cars, and the Pollok estate he comes from, where there's knives and heroin and a far lower life expectancy. This is told through song and rhyme, with explosive moments of anger and confusion.
The other part is metatextual narrative, of trigger warnings and explanations. It's unclear if this is a defence against some misinterpretations he's suffered in the past, as he seeks to clearly delineate the boundary between fiction and reality, or an ironic commentary on his Fringe (i.e. largely middle class) audiences who can't share his experiences. Either way this side of the show feels overblown, almost patronising, reducing the impact of the storyline. More poetry, less talk would be an improvement.
That quibble aside this is a fascinating hour, and Loki has a commanding stage presence and mastery of his audience. There's plenty of laughs, with some well crafted jokes, to balance out the tensions he raises and he doesn't push the discomfort levels as far as he clearly could. You emerge thoughtful, rather than provoked.
Unafraid to voice unconventional views, this is a show that rewards careful listening. Which is made easier by his impressive ability to enunciate clearly when delivering lines at such a high syllable rate! He wants to abolish the term 'social mobility' in a society where increasingly the rich get richer, the poor poorer, and presents a strong argument to support that. Loki's well worth an hour of your time.
Loki, the Scottish Rapper is on in the New Town Theatre at 17.00 until 26 August.
No comments:
Post a Comment