January 31, 2001

Eminem / Outkast / Xzibit: Hamburg Sportshalle

Eminem pops pills, baits the crowd, gets electrocuted and swears a helluva lot as his European tour kicks off...

Parties at the Hamburg Sportshalle traditionally find themselves under siege from a 'PC terror'. When those - mostly female - anti-discrimination sqauds stop by at your shindig, DJs are careful not to let Buju or Beanie onto the decks to drone on about their Batty Boy paranoia too much, because they might find themselves kissing those precious 12"s goodbye. Those activists got something for destruction.

Maybe that's why it was slightly subdued here in expectation of Eminem's first performance on his European tour. Then again, maybe it was just that the kids weren't ready to sit through the support when all they were after was Slim and his PC-baiting antics. Which is a shame, since Eminem's brought the platinum-selling Hennessey connoisseur Xzibit with him, as well as the greatest hip-hop group in the world today, Outkast, who proudly announce that they've hit number one in the US rap charts with 'Ms Jackson'.

Unfortunately the 9000 kids waiting for their homophobic, misogynist, rape-preaching hero aren't interested. While Dre and Big Boi are truly rocking the stage with a little help from Cutmaster Swift and their gospel-like backing singers, while Xzibit is threatening not to leave the stage at all as his performance comes to an end, the kids are just hoping that maybe N*Sync or Britney might turn up.

The former, of course, get an expected verbal assault from the man himself when he finally appears on stage, toting a chainsaw and 'Friday The 13th' mask while ripping into 'I'm Back': "You're tearing my ass apart". Marshall, of course, tears the place apart with ease, with a whole lot of foulmouthed exclamations: "girls, I want you to grab your left titty and say 'fuck you asshole'", he exhorts, and most oblige.

He doesn't cause a riot, but then maybe the kids are inured to this kind of behaviour now - later, when a cartoon video plays recounting the Mathers story, no one's even slightly shocked by the self-righteous, violence-soaked tale of how Slim had to beat his way to the top. This doesn't stop Eminem, of course, trying ever more outrageous ways to get a reaction, even pretending to pop E onstage, being 'electrocuted' on an electric chair complete with explosions and flying sparks, and then blabbing on about his court case even though it's "breaking the rules" to do so. And hey, just to make sure the message gets across, he even speaks slowly, "'cause I'm not sure everybody in here speaks English".

Meanwhile, the stage design is transformed into a castle, Slim roars through D-12's 'Shit On You', Marilyn Manson gets onstage, barechested and leather-trousered, to perform 'The Way I Am' with the man himself, and Hamburg is left slightly less uptight than it was four hours previously. Mission accomplished.

Dunja Christochowitz