Bliss N Eso, Auckland New Zealand, 2017

Bliss N Eso

27th July 2017
Neck of the Woods, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Lauren Sanderson. Photography by Mike Thornton.

Australia’s biggest hip-hop group Bliss N Eso kicked off their New Zealand debut last night at K road’s Neck of the Woods to showcase their brand-new album Off the Grid. Playing an epic set list, the trio certainly knows how to entertain a crowd and will be doing what they do best across the country. Next stop Wellington, Christchurch and ending in Queenstown.

It was a real treat for a Thursday night to be amongst the hard-core Bliss N Eso fans in such an intimate setting. It was hot, sticky and a whole lot of fun!

Taking us back to almost a decade ago, Bliss N Eso pumped out Woodstock, a classic from their third album Flying Colours. It was the perfect way to kick off the night, the crowd grew closer and the well-known lyrics echoed around the space.

Followed by Act Your Age – which certainly wasn’t the case with the audience who were reminiscing about their younger days.

Animal Kingdom, My Life demonstrated and The Sea Is Rising had the crowd singing and chanting, highlighting how the hip-hop triad can swiftly switch from rapping to sing along pop tracks.

Moments featuring Gavin James was certainly a crowd favourite. Bliss N Eso really captured the essence of celebrating the precious moments that you take for granted as a child. From your first kiss, your first love and the neighbourhood that you lived in. The lyrics “I just wanna feel this way forever, how we did when we were young” rung true for the entire crowd as we simultaneously held our hands in the air. Once again, we were left reminiscing about our younger days before life got complicated.

The third member of the group DJ Izm stole the show. His creativity and scratching skills were next level, especially during his ten-minute solo track in Cialis Cuts from their fifth album Circus in the Sky.

Hit track Dopamine sparked emotion as it touches upon some hard times for the boys. It’s piano riffs and uplifting chorus again demonstrated just how diverse the trio can be. One minute they’re brutally rapping and the next they’re creating contemporary musical magic.

As they finished the classic rap hit Addicted, the crowd demanded an encore and of course, that’s exactly what they got. Friend Like You Featuring Lee Fields blasted out into the space, the crowd merged into one, and at this point, we were no longer individuals but a wild group of Bliss N Eso fans.

From the hyped-up classic rap hits such as Family Affair to the emotional live performances of Reflections. The talented trio certainly put out all the stops, living up to their name as the best hip-hop act in Australia.

Bliss N Eso perform live in Auckland, New Zealand 2017. Image by Mike Thornton.

Were you there at Neck of the Woods for this high octane hip-hop show? Or have you seen Bliss N Eso perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!