I'm way too attached to Tricky to start playing apologist for him now.
Yeah, all of you claiming it was actually a bad set—unfortunately, you're right. Still, there are factors at play here that have nothing to do with his talent.
First off, you don't exactly see Tricky on MTV, so the kids under 20 around me looked completely lost. They were rightfully expecting something mystical, provocative, and exotic, but instead they got some tired guy from Bristol/New York; except, that’s exactly who he’s always been.
Second, I traveled all the way from San Diego just to unwind for a few hours, and I was pretty floored by the sound engineering at the Apple stage. What was that? Nobody sounds good with tech that amateur; Tricky was probably the last person who could.
Third, put some Latin dancers in front of Tricky, and while the girls and guys are jumping to Davor Radolfi with that "Latin intellectual" vibe—expecting twenty minutes later to get a continuation of Moby’s hop-cup-peace-yeah leftist party on that same stage—out comes a guy from a country that survived the third industrial revolution. He’s had a hell of a life, he fights his own demons, and he isn't exactly the most cheerful musician you'll meet. And he's not a vegetarian, either.
Fourth, his mistake was that he didn't run a "greatest hits" playlist like Moby, which is what you're all complaining about. He didn't perform his best of. That's a flaw when you're dealing with a mixed crowd, but it's also a statement. Credit to him for that. And credit for not shouting out Washington, D.C., or the US, or whatever; he had no intention of being "likable." He would’ve played this same show in Hull.
Fifth, in my opinion, Tricky is a killer in a club setting with perfect acoustics. He isn't built for these massive festivals, but hey, better anything than nothing at all.
And finally, I don't know what your problem is, but he wasn't high. Just high enough.
Yeah, all of you claiming it was actually a bad set—unfortunately, you're right. Still, there are factors at play here that have nothing to do with his talent.
First off, you don't exactly see Tricky on MTV, so the kids under 20 around me looked completely lost. They were rightfully expecting something mystical, provocative, and exotic, but instead they got some tired guy from Bristol/New York; except, that’s exactly who he’s always been.
Second, I traveled all the way from San Diego just to unwind for a few hours, and I was pretty floored by the sound engineering at the Apple stage. What was that? Nobody sounds good with tech that amateur; Tricky was probably the last person who could.
Third, put some Latin dancers in front of Tricky, and while the girls and guys are jumping to Davor Radolfi with that "Latin intellectual" vibe—expecting twenty minutes later to get a continuation of Moby’s hop-cup-peace-yeah leftist party on that same stage—out comes a guy from a country that survived the third industrial revolution. He’s had a hell of a life, he fights his own demons, and he isn't exactly the most cheerful musician you'll meet. And he's not a vegetarian, either.
Fourth, his mistake was that he didn't run a "greatest hits" playlist like Moby, which is what you're all complaining about. He didn't perform his best of. That's a flaw when you're dealing with a mixed crowd, but it's also a statement. Credit to him for that. And credit for not shouting out Washington, D.C., or the US, or whatever; he had no intention of being "likable." He would’ve played this same show in Hull.
Fifth, in my opinion, Tricky is a killer in a club setting with perfect acoustics. He isn't built for these massive festivals, but hey, better anything than nothing at all.
And finally, I don't know what your problem is, but he wasn't high. Just high enough.