Words and Photos by Desirea Corbett
Atmosphere’s Winter Carnival Tour at Brooklyn Steel
“This is Brooklyn and we are all the same. No one is better than the person next to them,” shouted Slug during Atmosphere’s Winter Carnival show at Brooklyn Steel on Thursday night. This idea of equality and camaraderie was apparent even before the show started, when the crowd lined up outside the venue and Slug came out to greet everyone personally.
Atmosphere is a Minneapolis-based hip-hop duo consisting of rapper Slug and DJ/producer Ant. Formed in 1996, the duo has been going strong for 30 years. To celebrate this milestone, they’re currently on their Winter Carnival Tour with some very special guests. Opening the night was Mr. Dibbs, followed by Kool Keith. Slug even came out to take video of Kool Keith’s set — much to the confusion of security, who briefly gave him a hard time.
Next, R.A. The Rugged Man took the stage and fully warmed up the crowd. Toward the end of his set, he jumped into the audience and asked if anyone knew how to breakdance, forming a breaking pit in the center of the crowd. He then encouraged audience members to crowd surf — something rather unexpected for a hip-hop show, but wildly entertaining. Following that, Sage Francis wowed the crowd with his lyrical prowess.
A little after 9:30, after the show had already been going for nearly 90 minutes, Atmosphere finally took the stage. They kicked things off with “Locusts” from their new album Jestures, then launched into a whopping 90-minute set featuring 24 songs that spanned every era of their 30-year career.
One thing that stood out was Slug’s ability to truly connect with the audience. He paused several times throughout the set to speak. At one point, he reminisced about spending Sunday nights in Ant’s basement in the late ’90s, rapping over beats Ant had created. Much of that music eventually became the project Lucy Ford. “Lucy Ford came out 25 years ago,” Slug said as the crowd erupted with cheers. “I’m not big on celebrating shit, but 25 years makes me feel fuckin’ old. So I’d like to do a chunk of shit off that Lucy Ford album.”
The crowd’s enthusiasm only grew as the night went on. Another moment that highlighted Atmosphere’s humility and belief in equality came when Slug told the audience, “The person standing next to you is why we’re all here tonight, so make some motherfucking noise for the person next to you.”
He also gave a shout-out to his hometown of Minneapolis, urging the crowd to pay attention to what’s happening there with ICE raids as a warning of what could soon happen elsewhere. Slug invited the audience to protest the following day in Union Square, saying, “If you wanna go and see some faces of people who will have your backs if you have theirs, you should probably go to some of these fucking types of gatherings.” This moment flowed directly into their hit “The Best Day,” as Slug explained that despite everything happening back home with his friends and family, he was still trying to smile and have the best day of his life.
As the night came to a close, the crowd’s energy reached its peak. During one of the final songs, “Scapegoat,” it felt as if the entire venue was shaking.
After 30 years, it’s clear that Atmosphere is only getting better—and judging by the crowd’s reaction, fans are more than ready to be along for the ride.
Loudspeaker Collective 