Live Review: Rejjie Snow, Arno Faraji, Aslan

Rejjie Snow's Dear Annie has been one of the hottest hip-hop releases of the year.

The Dublin-born rapper has built a dedicated following with releases such a 2013's Rejovich EP and his sonically sprawling 2017 mixtape, The Moon & You, but it was this year's debut album that saw his adventurous production and nonchalant rapping style come together for a melodically thorough body of work. Perth fans finally got the chance to see Snow in the flesh when he stopped by Jack Rabbit Slim's for the final gig of his debut Australian tour.

Aslan kicked off proceedings, warming us up by spinning some hip-hop heaters before breakout rapper/producer Arno Faraji hit the stage. In the midst of a stellar 2018 that has seen him hit the Bunbury GTM stage just last month, the 17-year-old Perth talent who has supported Snow for the entire Australian tour appeared to save the best 'til last for his hometown crowd. With his posse behind him, Faraji brought an energetic set that showed off his prowess both on the mic and production-wise.

Aslan was then laboured with the task of holding over the increasingly restless crowd (of which he did an admirable job) since Rejjie Snow (Alexander Anyaegbunam on his passport) was nowhere to be seen as the clock ticked past the scheduled 10pm scheduled start time. A disappointing 40 minutes late, Anyaegbunam finally hit the stage to the tune of Dear Annie-standout, Pink Lemonade, and the cheers from the sold-out crowd indicated that all was immediately forgiven.

The apparent reason for his delay was made clear with his own admission of being high, before jumping into renditions of the spacey Room 27 and the bird-chirping sweetness that is Mon Amour. It only took a few songs to realise that the sound levels were excessive, marring the mellow, ambient sonic landscape that features in the majority of Anyaegbunam's catalogue.

Despite this slight hitch, Anyaegbunam delivered his promised 90-minute set, which included songs both new (Egyptian Luvr, Rainbows, Desole, LMFAO) and old (Black Pancakes, Olga (1984), All Around The World). While sections of this set needed energy lifts from the "energy gang" - as his DJ titled them - closing with fan-favourites Charlie Brown and 1992 had every member of the audience buzzing come the end of the show.