Thanks to interview commitments, this year I unfortunately wasn’t able to experience as much of the always fantastic SPIN party as much as in prior years. As usual, however, the event featured a wonderfully eclectic mix of some of the hottest acts to play the festival.
Solange was well into her set by the time I arrived, and was wowing the crowd with a five piece backing ensemble. By dropping her surname, she’s genuinely trying to break into the scene irrespective of her family connection. The soulful music she’s creating to do this is definitely winning her plenty of fans, too. There’s nothing I heard that screams out “Number One Pop Hit!” like that of her sister, but I think that’s the point. It seems like she’s trying to create some honest music, without expectations and label pressure. Whether or not that’s actually the case or not is unknown, but at the very least what I’ve witnessed is a very promising talent indeed.
Headlining the event, Kendrick Lamar got the crowd pumping with ease, jumping between some impressive freestyling and his popular tracks like “Pussy and Patron (P & P)”, “Fucking Problem” (an A$AP Rocky track he featured on) and more. Look, I have to admit I’ve never been into this side of the rap spectrum, bar the odd track, and Lamar is no exception. But to see an artist whip the crowd up into such a frenzy, and make it look easy, is something certainly to be respected. He’s one of the industry’s most well regarded rap artists at the moment, and it’s no surprise why.
Until next year SPIN – hopefully I get to enjoy even more of your party next time! And to fill in those who weren’t there on who else performed, this included Unknown Mortal Orchestra, buzz band CHVRCHES and Parquet Courts, among others. Link to the full event gallery is below!
Words by Larry Heath. Photos by Johnny Au. See the full gallery HERE.
