I’ve been waiting 18 years to finally catch Body Count live and it’s not been for lack of effort. Poor timing between being able to afford to get to London for a one off show, or having the time available has meant tonight has been a long time coming. The self-titled release is one of those albums that has been a constant presence on any mp3 player/iPod I have owned and their more recent works have been fantastic releases which have all been in my end of year lists whenever they have come out.

Rap in general is something I usually do not find myself being a massive fan of. Sure I don’t mind some of the older 80’s and 90’s classics and Eminem’s work has always been entertaining, but there is just something about Ice T and how he brought the hip hop elements of hard hitting gangsta rap to a perfect blend and equilibrium with crossover thrash… That and the gratuitous usage of the word Motherfucker, delivered with plenty of style and attitude.

So gear up, it’s time to ride with BC…. Right after the supports that is.

Slope are a band I have not heard of before. The customary googling of them reveals that they are a hardcore/funk metal influenced act from Germany. Thematically speaking, this would fit well with the overall musical theme for the night. High energy and intense, blurring the lines between stylistic and genre based approaches, it seems like they could be a good prospect.

8pm hit and Slope came out on stage. The Duisburg natives certainly lived up to the description. The hardcore vibes had some hints of Suicidal Tendencies and D.R.I in both style and tone. The drums were punchy and the guitar tone sounded sweet as hell but the bass was a little lacking. There was also a person on stage who seemed to spend the entire set floating about with a camera. Tour Vlog? Live footage archive? Can’t quite say but they were certainly digging it.

The second track brought the more funk inspired elements of the band’s sound out. It was a bit of a curveball as it exploded to life with little warning and the crowd seemed to enjoy it, paying a bit more interest to the band after this happened. The obligatory syncopated wah-laden chord riffs began to surface and as the funk elements came in, the bass started to pick up in volume and it all started to go a little bit too Red Hot Chilli Peppers at times, and it was at this point I realised that Slope were going on a very slippery downward one.

As Slope continued, my ever reliable partner in crime noted that the band were just trying to do too much in each song after their first two. I will admit that she has a point; each track after their second seemed to get even more chaotic and with the level of energy they were putting into it, I wouldn’t be surprised if the enigmatic and chaotic Mr. Bungle’s earlier works didn’t have some influences in their approach.

As the set went on, the venue started to get even more crowded and with the posters by the bar saying that Body Count would be on after 9, it was a relief that this influx of people meant that the support set was drawing to a close. The announcement of their last track shortly following this observation meant that the downward trajectory was finally coming to a halt, all that remained was to determine whether a crash mat or a wall was at the end of this Slope… it was a wall… The final track of the set was a wall of underwhelming entropy with no tangible musical direction or defined identity. With this finally over, it was time for a quick smoke and then to get ready for Body Count.

With the music and lights fading, the intro tape section of “Civil War” was the first shot fired as an introductory track whilst Body Count came out on stage. The place immediately roared to life and things finally got underway as the iconic “Body Count’s In The House” introduced us to OG Body Count members Ice T and Ernie C’s accomplices. The volume was unreal and the atmosphere was electric as Ice announced “I didn’t come to Manchester to play for some pussies, make a mosh pit” before blitzing right into a cover of “Raining Blood/Post Mortem”.

Naturally you can imagine the chaos this brought and honestly, I would be lying if I said I didn’t revel in it in the slightest. Before ‘Raining Blood’ even finished I had palmed off my stuff to my partner in crime and was thick in the middle of the carnage. Classics like “Bowels Of The Devil” and “There Goes The Neighbourhood” from the self titled debut album flowed seamlessly into newer tracks such as “Point The Finger” and “The Purge”.

There was also the entertaining banter with the crowd. “Manslaughter” addressing toxic gender perspectives was preceded by Ice claiming they’re after our balls, “No Lives Matter” packed as much of a punch as it did the first time I heard it on CD and “Psychopath” the latest single from the forthcoming album ‘Merciless’ was intense as hell.

“War / UK 82 / Disorder” by The Exploited was delivered to a big cheer. Ice T has stated on numerous occasions his love for the original punk approach and Body Count loves to pay tribute to artists who have inspired them. The multi-vocal attack of Body Count suited this take on the original punk sound and it hit hard and fast with plenty of carnage in the crowd. “Drive By” saw Ice T’s son take the lead vocals before it ripped into the classic “Voodoo”. Hearing the tale of misadventures in the Deep South with Voodoo magic in a live setting was extremely enjoyable. The humour in the lyrics and delivery was on form and the crowd were fully into it, losing their shit in the chaotic riffs and singing along.

There was a touching moment when Ice got a young fan on stage to deliver a statement about bullying which led into “Talk Shit, Get Shot” which brought out the rest of Ice’s family to join the fun. It was hilarious to watch and I have to hand it to young Dexter, he fucking rocked it with his stage dive. With 10pm approaching, the venue dripping with sweat and plenty of noise, “Cop Killer” exploded to life. I doubt I have to elaborate on this track, it’s one of the most iconic tracks from Body Count and it was also a major part of music history in the congressional hearings around lyrical content spearheaded by Tipper Gore. It was just a flat out shot of party energy with the simple but effective musical hook and gang vocal spots and it was a great way to wrap up the main part of the set. Especially when the T-Shirt cannons were brought out to fire some freebies into the crowd.

Next up was the “Virtual Encore” where Ice explained that he’s ’too old’ to leave the stage, so instead we just need to imagine he has whilst they cut the lights before bringing them back on. The big baseline of “Born Dead” kicked off the ‘after party’ portion of the set. The heavy riffing and massive vocal sing along had the crowd bouncing despite the humidity of the venue starting to sap at the energy levels. This was then followed by probably the best track Body Count have done since their 1990’s albums in “This Is Why We Ride”. The poignant number about hood violence is an expressive and atmospheric number on record but in the live setting it is even more intense and raw. The blunt truth of hood violence mixed with the sounds of police sirens and gunshots really drives home the message of the track and the slick guitar work of Ernie C for an extended live solo before the track went into its final run. With everything almost wrapped up, Ice laid out the last track of the night: a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”.

It certainly fucked with the crowd like Ice wanted it to. A hip hop approach on a classic with a total rework of the lyrics but retaining compositional elements, it was strange to hear but in some way… It worked. It kept the introspective edge from the previous track but it still engaged the crowd with participation and kept the same vibe but instead of the slow and expressive solo, we got a raw shred attack to wrap it up.

With this being the end of the European festival tour, Body Count proved that they still had plenty of miles left in the tank for future efforts, and with a new album on the horizon, things are just gonna stay wild.

(Fraggle)