Travis Scott review: Ruthless rebel whips up his devoted crowd

Every minute of the Houston rapper’s pyrotechnic-heavy set evoked the unbridled fury that has put trap music on par with punk, writes Matilda Egere-Cooper
Unpredictable: Travis Scott
Rex
Matilda Egere-Cooper20 November 2017

“If you can’t survive this s**t, take your ass upstairs,” yelled Travis Scott on the second night of his sold-out Brixton shows. “This concert ain’t for virgins, this concert ain’t for scared motherf***ers!”

No kidding. Every minute of the Houston rapper’s pyrotechnic-heavy set evoked the unbridled fury that has put trap music on par with punk and heavy metal — from senseless moshing to diabolical symbolism, such as the gigantic red-eyed animatronic eagle on stage with entrails hanging off its beak. In another setting, it would’ve been laughable. In Scott’s world, it’s horrendous.

Then there were his own unpredictable antics. At one point, he dragged two men on to the stage who somehow understood that this was their cue to jump head-first into the crowd at the opening of Butterfly Effect. Later, he attempted to surf himself but was mauled by an audience energised by his breathless run of hits, including his latest single Way Back and 2013’s Upper Echelon.

The music never faltered, but to outsiders, Scott’s breed of hip-hop, full of auto-tuned chants over brooding productions, might be easily shunned. Simply put, it’s not for them. That became even more apparent as he gave as good as he got from the hysterical crowd, who never dropped their devotion, effortlessly charmed by the ruthless rebel with only one cause — concocting a show that they’d never forget.

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