Saturday at Cervantes’ Masterpiece, a crowd of fists pumped into the air from the first kick-beat of the drum. Havoc and Prodigy, in the backdrop of a smoky, glowing red stage, painted the venue with a charged, dominant aura.
The legendary hip-hop duo rapped from a wide variety of their canon, including 2006’s “Blood Money.” “Survival of the Fittest,” “Quiet Storm,” “G.O.D. Part III,” “Shook Ones, Pt II” — every classic was met with high energy and bobbed heads. True to the title of the tour, “Hell on Earth” featured heavily, lighting up the true Mobb heads. Closing out the concert, Mobb Deep brought out songs from their latest release, “Infamous Mobb Deep.”
The openers were lackluster, even though it’s always good to hear bars from a Denver rappers. Your Old Droog, who came on right before Mobb Deep, was particularly boring, and commanded barely anything from the crowd, which made Havoc and Prodigy’s emergence on the stage that much sweeter.
We all know of Mobb Deep as a relic of hip-hop, who dominated the pre-G-Unit gangster rap scene. Many of us have fond memories of watching every week when the duo was at the height of their power. They’re rightfully associated with classic, raw New York rap. However, in the days of Fetty Wap and Future, that simple, street, grimy sound has been lost. Maybe that’s why Saturday’s Mobb Deep concert at Cervantes felt so right.
