“Welcome to this random tunnel in London,” Mike D begins, addressing a crowd of melting people in a Waterloo railway arch, the latest stop in his first solo tour, which he’s chosen to undertake in esoteric venues around the UK - think bingo halls and working men’s club. Why do this? Well it’s to do with his esoteric approach to music, as one of Beastie Boys who made eccentricity, risk and japes, into some of the greatest hip-hop ever. You also sense that given this is his first musical foray, beyond producing others people’s records, since the death of Adam Yauch in 2012 - with him being open about his struggles after the death of his friend - he’s building back up from the basics. Trying out his new music, his new band, in a humble manner, rather than just playing Beasties’ Best Of at The O2.
Except, that’s not quite right either. For this is Mike D, and he is resplendent in day-glo jogging suit, backed with a band called The D5 who are also in day-glo jogging suits. And from the second they start it is a bouncing, joyous show, and the music that we’re hearing is not some tentative dip back but immense and immediate, melding punk, hip-hop, rave, with a very Beasties gonzo attitude. Yes, this seems to be more about Mike D rediscovering what he loved about music in the first place: the fun of it.
