Around 7:00 pm, the show began with a DJ set from producer Ripsquad, a veteran producer with Drain Gang members (including Bladee, Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital, and Whitearmor). Some Ripsquad produced Bladee songs include Be Nice 2 Me, Destroy Me, and Frosty The Snowman. During Ripsquads set, he primed the already antsy crowd with a melodic DJ set, including remixes from artists such as Crystal Castles, Frou Frou, Ecco2k and Thaiboy Digital. After his 30 minute set, the crowd was buzzing for Bladee to take the stage.

Bladee began his set at 8:00 pm with his song Hero of my story 3style3, off of his fan-favorite album, 333. The explosive sounds of the opening track set the stage for the rest of the night. The palpable energy was so abundant in the venue, it felt as though the walls were going to break down. Just at the mere sight of Bladee walking on the stage, the crowd screamed and sang every word of the song, pushing to the front to be as close to Bladee as possible. He then moved the music momentum into ICARUS 3REESTYLE, followed by The Flag Is Raised from Crest, the famed collaborative project with Ecco2k from 2022. Although Ecco2k wasn’t present that night, the crowd was ecstatic to hear his verse over the speakers.

In the middle of his set he played a couple of very notable songs including desiree, just the second time he’s played that song live ever. He followed that into Like a Virgin, not only an unreleased track but also the first time he’s played it in years. During this middle portion of the show, Bladee took the time to slow down the tempo, performing more melodic songs like Valerie, DNA RAIN, I think…, EVERY MOMENT SPECIAL, Wings in Motion, and many more. This dip in energy was just what everyone in the crowd needed, they sang out to every word of his songs as they continued to push as close to the front as possible.

Just before the end of his set and the encore, Bladee pulled the energy back up with YUNG SHERMAN, Into Dust, Waster, and Destroy Me. The crowd somehow had even more energy than when the show started. He played his recently released song One In A Million, and walked off the stage. The crowd was well prepared for an encore. They didn’t stop screaming until Bladee came back on stage to end the night with Who Goes There, Unreal, Sugar, and She’s Always Dancing, as everyone soaked in the final fleeting moments, that incredible end to an unreal night. Just as quickly as he appeared on stage, he was gone.

Seeing Bladee perform live was a surreal moment for me. He is an artist I have known for many years, but never thought I would see him live. It was a privilege to have the opportunity to see him in concert, and to share that moment of his first time ever performing in the Twin Cities. I am counting down the days until he makes his return back to Minneapolis. But given Bladee’s illusive nature, God knows when that’ll be–if ever. I highly recommend seeing him live if you ever come across the chance, be wary for the rambunctious crowd, they won’t let anything get in their way of being as close to Bladee as possible.

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Coming off a strong LP with I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You, the West Coast artist continues to become more versatile with his latest mixtape SCRAPYARD. This mixtape has almost everything to offer within the current musical landscape. There are traces of postmodern hip-hop, cloud rap, indie rock, and folktronica. The combination of these genres makes for a fun and creative record. Despite the various mixes of different musical genres and influences, Quadeca’s sense of melody is strong throughout the project and every hook lands.

Quite honestly, SCRAPYARD sounds like the project that artists like Yung Lean and Lil Ugly Mane have been trying to make over the entirety of their groundbreaking careers. The triumphant instrumental of the incredible “A LA CARTE” sounds like something that would sound at home on a Bon Iver record, while “GUESS WHO?” is an energetic EDM trap banger. “U TRIED THAT THING WHERE UR HUMAN” has a distant almost alien like sense of emotion that is commonly seen on Björk albums. Quadeca’s confidence throughout this record is exuberant as he tackles an array of challenging styles, putting his own emo hip-hop spin on the various genres incorporated on his latest mixtape.

One of the biggest flaws of Quadeca’s unbridled creativity is the lack of cohesive thought. Even though most of the songs off on this project sound good individually, the great variety in styles spreads the main focus thin. It leaves us with undercooked tracks like “I MAKE IT LOOK EFFORTLESS” and “WAY TOO MANY FRIENDS”. Despite Quadeca showing proficiency in many different styles of music, he has mastered few of them.

Nonetheless, the potential that he shows across the fifteen tracks of this mixtape left me awestruck with the possibility of what he could do in the future. Quadeca has the raw talent to create classic records for years to come. If he simply hones in and develops some of the styles showcased across this diverse mixtape, we are going to be in for something special in the near future. If SCRAPYARD is merely a bare bones skeleton of a great record, I have seen few that are more appealing.

Official Maurice Crawford Score: 8.2/10

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