Entertainment

LIB recap: Earl Sweatshirt injects manic energy into his set—and the crowd

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Earl Sweatshirt at the Life Is Beautiful Festival in downtown Las Vegas, Oct. 26-27, 2013.
Photo: Corlene Byrd

"Y'all calmed down. We don't like that," Earl Sweatshirt snarled at the crowd during his Saturday evening set. The word "calm" may as well be heresy at an Odd Future show, and Earl managed to sum up an ongoing issue with crowds at the Huntridge stage and, really, the festival in general.

That said, the moshing, fist-pumping masses at his set were far and away the most rowdy of the day, and it wasn't long before Odd Future's most mythologized member got fans worked up again, mostly by goading everyone to chant lyrics to a new song: "Motherf*ckers talkin' sh*t/'Til you show up where they live," a phrase that did not go without a little irony, considering the recent tensions between Downtown residents and festival organizers.

Odd Future member Taco oversaw Earl's ferocious, bass-heavy beats as he jumped around the stage and into the crowd, spitting off tracks from his solo debut Doris as well as stand-alone fan favorites like "Home." Even while being tossed around on top of the crowd, Earl never missed a beat, and his precision on the mic is something to behold.

"Damn, I just got my ass grabbed all wild," he declared when the freshly riled-up crowd finally spit him back out onto the stage. For LIB's lackadaisical attendees, it was a job well done.

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