The Typhoons

"Now, personally most Aussie hip hop shits me to tears. The Accent is too forced, and the backing music tends to be white boy funk of the shittest variety - so if a band like The Typhoons score well on my sheet, they do so because they can transcend the shortcomings of their genre. Specifically speaking, The Typhoons do this in two ways: firstly, their MC is a gifted poet who dares to delve deeper than the usual hip hop vocabulary; and secondly they have a sax player that takes the whole white boy funk element out and replaces it with some pretty world-class jazz playing." - Mike Wafer, X-Press Magazine

"The sound was big, the voices were diverse and booming and their stage presence was massive. With ten members Perth’s own The Typhoons were a big band with MCs up front and as support almost brought the house down. If it wasn’t for the calibre of the main act the four interchanging vocalists could have wrapped it all up.

There was a clear appreciation and respect by each of the musicians for the talents of their peers as MCs Lewis “Galaga” Ryan and David “Emcee Able” DiPaolo took to the back of the stage to allow soulstress Natalie Alley to open. Throughout the performance, the limelight would shift between the vocalists and the superb solos of Dylan Hooper on a screaming tenor sax and Brian Kruger on violin with what could closely be described as a classical Eastern European style.

Surprisingly unheralded outside of the Perth music scene yet with a swag of support slots for international acts, the release of their recently finished debut LP could be the catalyst for the band receiving greater local and national accolades." - FasterLouder.com.au

In my opinion, one of the best things about reviewing gigs for ITM is that I often get the chance to see local artists that I haven’t seen perform before. Sometimes they completely blow me away. This was the case on Thursday night when I arrived at Capitol just after 9pm to find The Typhoons already on stage.

It was all too easy to groove along to the smooth beats being laid down by the Typhoons. I was really enjoying listening to the MCs Lewis Galaga and Emcee Able, and vocalist Natalie Alley infused the tracks with a soulful essence. Did I mention the brass section? I’m such a sucker for brass! I was left standing slack-jawed at the array of talent before me on stage (10 people!) and it was easy to see how this “soul-hop” collective won Best Live Act at the 2007 Perth Dance Music Awards.

I thought I was safe to pick my jaw up off the floor and enjoy the delights held by lukewarm beer served in a plastic cup when the keyboardist Brian Kruger stepped up to the microphone for the third song. Yet another amazing voice! Then he proceeded to rap during the track Automated, and later belted out the best violin solo I’ve seen since… well, probably since Warren Ellis playing with Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds (and I had to think long and hard about that one).

I could rave on and on about the performance from The Typhoons. I was excited to hear that they have just finished recording a debut album and accordingly I’ve put this on my “must buy” list. Excuse the poor Molly Meldrum impersonation, but seriously, do yourself a favour and check these guys out. If you’re a hip-hop fan, if you’re a soul fan, if you’re a fan of good live music, I think you will be seriously impressed by The Typhoons.
- inthemix.com.au