Raekwon: 15 December 2009 – Washington D.C.

Raekwon might be responsible for one of this year’s best albums but as his Washington D.C. fans found out earlier this week, he’s far from infallible. To be fair, the deck was stacked against him from the start: it was a cold Tuesday night and the 9:30 Club was less than half full. After a brief DJ set heavy on classic ’90s cuts, the Chef came out swinging, digging deep with Wu classics like “C.R.E.A.M.” and old solo favorites like “Ice Cream”. Problem was, without the much-needed assists from his fellow Clan members, the songs were sapped of much of their momentum. Tracks from Raekwon’s latest opus, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… Pt. II fared far better, with both “House of Flying Daggers” and “New Wu” being delivered with particular urgency. The night’s guest stars, however, left something to be desired. Though billed as Capone-N-Noreaga, the latter was a no show, though that didn’t stop Capone from trying–and failing–to carry the weight of the N.O.R.E. hit “Nothin'”. Still, Capone managed to cultivate some good will by effusively professing his love for the District, though it was immediately squandered by a hype man who mistakenly yelled, “Pittsburgh, make some noise!”. A lot of noise was indeed made, though it was probably not the kind he had had in mind.